Skip to Content

Borealis upgrade to version 6.8

Last modified by Sabina Pagotto on 2025-11-20, 08:49

Article de blogue en français ici

Borealis upgraded to version 6.8 on November 19, 2025. This blog post outlines several new features in Dataverse for recent releases (6.5-6.8), including:

  • Renamed feature Private URL to Preview URL
  • Improved institutional collections anonymity for Anonymous Preview URL feature
  • ROR added as an ID Type in Author metadata fields for organization attribution (learn more about RORs)
  • New Version Note field can be added before or during the publication of a dataset 
  • New 3D Metadata Block for describing 3D data 
  • Curation status label history can now be viewed easily in the UI, helping to track who created statuses and when, and enhanced CSV reports (superadmin only, contact us)
  • Customizable metadata fields on the dataset creation page (“display on create” metadata fields, API only)
  • The number of files that can be uploaded to a dataset can be limited by superadmins (“requireFilesToPublishDataset” API)
  • DataCite metadata harvesting client
  • Generating citations in the Citation Style Language (CSL) formats (“View Styled Citation”)
  • Bug fixes, new APIs, and more!

Full details about the new features and changes can be found in the IQSS GitHub Release pages (English only).  Please note that not all of the features available will be enabled in Borealis.

Please reach out to info@borealisdata.ca if you have any questions or feedback. 

Preview URL

Previously named ‘’Private URL’’ and ‘’Anonymous Private URL’’, the new ‘’Preview URL’’ and ‘’Anonymous Preview URL’’ features enable you to share a draft dataset with collaborators and reviewers. 

With this upgrade, the ‘’Anonymous Preview URL’’ for external reviewers removes the name of the direct collection that the dataset is within. Still with some caution, you may be able to see the name of the main top-level collection /institutional collection name that the dataset author(s) are affiliated with.

When you select the ‘’Preview URL’’ feature in the ‘’Edit dataset’’ menu, you will be able to generate a URL link to share your unpublished dataset with collaborators and reviewers. You’ll also be able to create an ‘’Anonymous Preview URL’’, hiding the metadata and the direct collection name that could identify the dataset’s authors.

ROR ID Type for Author

A new ROR ID Type option is now available as an Identifier Type for Author(s). Enter the ROR Identifier of an organization to reference and attribute organizational author(s).  

You can now select ROR as the identifier type when editing the author field in your dataset’s metadata.

Version Notes

A new Version Note field can be added to each version. Contributors and dataset creators can only edit the version notes before submitting for review, and curators or admins can edit them before or during the publishing process.

When modifying your dataset, you can add a Version Note to help track changes. These notes will be visible in the Versions tab of your dataset.

3D Data Metadata Block

A new metadata block has been added for 3D object data. Multiple descriptive fields were added, such as the object dimension, the format of the file exported, alt text, and more. 

You can now add 3D objects metadata to describe your dataset when creating or editing it.

 

Posted by Sabina Pagotto  · Permalink · Comments (0)