Stanford Digital Repository services
Stanford Digital Repository Services

Versioning

SDR supports the open scholarship goals of transparency and reproducibility by making previous versions of works available from our PURL pages. Find out more below.

Public access to multiple versions of works

As of August 2024, SDR allows for the creation of multiple publicly-visible versions of a work. The SDR has always preserved the history of all changes made to an item, and will continue to do so. But prior to August 2024, only the most recent version of a work was available to the public via our PURL pages. The new functionality allows for depositors to create and provide access to multiple versions of their work in order to support transparency into the research process. The new functionality also makes it possible for PURL users to better understand the version history of a work, access those previous versions, and cite them appropriately.

Versioning for PURL users

  • Persistent URL (PURL) pages for items in the SDR provide access to the current version of a work as well as any previous public versions of a work that may exist. 
  • Information about public versions of works is displayed below the embedded viewer on the right side in a section labeled "Versions." 
  • The version you are viewing is noted, and the "View" links take you to previous versions. 
  • Content displayed in the embedded viewer always corresponds to the version you are currently viewing. 
  • When viewing an older version of a work, you'll see a banner across the top of the page alerting you that you are not on the latest version and a link that will take you directly to that latest version.

Versioning for Depositors

  • When modifying a work that has already been deposited, users will now have a choice as to whether to create a new public version of the work or to update the existing version.
  • Any changes to the files will require you to create a new public version. In all other cases, you'll be able to choose whether to make a new version or not.
  • If you choose to create a new public version, the PURL page for your item will list a new version for your work and provide a way for PURL users to view and access all public versions.
  • If you choose to update the existing version, the PURL page for your item will continue to show only the existing versions of your work.
  • If your work has a DOI, that DOI will remain the same for all versions of your work.