Read the report about the technical architectures, metadata practices, and interoperability standards of the use cases in EOSC Data Commons
In September 2025, EOSC Data Commons ran a survey across the project's use cases to understand the interoperability readiness of the different data sources.
The report of that survey finds a clear split between two kinds of partner systems: traditional data repositories and archives on one side, and virtual research environments and specialised tools on the other. The document reports that the first group largely already supports established metadata-harvesting standards such as OAI-PMH, while the second group relies more on REST APIs, specialised formats, and workflow-driven services.
The main takeaway is that the project will need two integration approaches:
- For repositories and archives, relying on OAI-PMH metadata harvesting seems to be the way forward.
- For VREs and specialised tools, the analysis suggests exploring other options such as data dumps, MCP Server implementations, or specific solutions on a case-by-case basis.
The report also highlights broad benefits expected from integration, including better discoverability, improved FAIRness, and stronger interoperability between data platforms and research tools.
