Implementation Limitations#

BenchVault is a backup and offline-viewing app. It is not a LabArchives editor, synchronization client, restore-to-LabArchives tool, or institutional records system.

Current Boundaries#

  • The app targets the FedRAMP-authorized LabArchives environment used at NIH.

  • Full-size backup depends on what LabArchives includes in notebook_backup.

  • The app does not currently import LabArchives web UI Create Offline Notebook ZIP/HTML exports. Those exports are useful for offline viewing but are not full-size preservation; LabArchives documents that files larger than 250 MB are not included.

  • Backups are full-run copies, not resumable incremental downloads.

  • The app does not back up external systems linked from notebook pages.

  • The viewer is optimized for safe offline review, not pixel-perfect reproduction of the LabArchives web UI.

  • Attachment contents are preserved, but not every binary format is text-indexed.

  • Auto backup runs only while the app is open.

  • macOS is the primary target.

  • Windows has CI build validation plus Credential Manager and disk-space preflight wiring, but still needs real workstation testing and signing.

  • iPadOS has unsigned build validation and Keychain wiring, but full backup creation is blocked in this beta because LabArchives .7z extraction still depends on desktop command-line tools. Use iPad for read-only review of backups prepared by the desktop app.

Evidence Boundaries#

  • Integrity checks detect changes; they do not make a writable filesystem immutable.

  • Manual email witnessing depends on the user sending the prepared message.

  • BenchVault does not currently confirm email delivery or retrieve mailbox audit records.

  • Automated external witness routes are planned but not configured.

  • Local-only evidence is weaker than evidence stored in a separate controlled or write-once system.

See the tracked project document docs/implementation_limitations.md for the full current list.