Release Date:
Summary
Stack-592 is a Curator-heavy release, delivering significant advances in how data managers collaborate on curation tasks, how tasks are configured, and how the grid interface protects against accidental data changes. A total of 13 tickets were completed.
Curator now supports a new collaborative editing model through a “lock and intervene” mechanism, allowing multiple contributors to work in a shared grid session while reducing the risk of accidental data changes. Curation tasks can now be configured with one of three authorization modes:
Work independently preserves the legacy behavior, where each contributor works in their own view of the data based on what they personally have permission to edit.
Share with assignees only allows contributors to work together in one shared grid session, limited to the assignee or members of the assignee team.
Share with all editors allows anyone with edit access to the task’s data to join the shared grid session and edit the rows available in that session.
On the platform side, Synapse's underlying database has been upgraded from MySQL 8.0 to MySQL 8.4, keeping the platform ahead of an AWS end-of-support deadline in July 2026. The OpenSearch Search Index feature also becomes easier to configure, with better validation and error messages. No user-facing breaking changes are included in this release.
No breaking changes or required user actions are included in this release.
Affected Users & Systems
|
Who / What |
Impact |
|---|---|
|
Data managers and curators using the Curator grid |
New collaboration controls (lock & intervene), clearer authorization mode labels, task IDs now visible in the UI, and several grid-editing bug fixes. |
|
Teams configuring curation tasks |
Tasks can now be configured to scope data by "owner" or by "benefactor" (inherited permissions), providing more flexibility for folder-based data models. |
|
Portal users browsing project pages |
The "This resource is part of a portal" link now correctly navigates to the portal instead of refreshing the current page. |
|
Portal search / OpenSearch users and developers |
Search Index configuration now validates inputs earlier and provides clearer error messages, reducing the time spent diagnosing failed index builds. Search Index entities are also now visible and manageable in the Tables tab. |
|
Platform infrastructure |
The Synapse database has been upgraded to MySQL 8.4, ahead of the AWS MySQL 8.0 end-of-support deadline. No user-facing impact expected. |
Deprecated or Breaking Changes
There are no deprecated or breaking changes in this release. No migrations, required upgrades, or workflow changes are needed by users.
New Features
Curator Collaboration: Lock & Intervene for Shared Grid Sessions New
When multiple contributors are working in a shared Curator grid session, a designated user can now "lock" the session and "intervene" — taking sole control to resolve conflicts, make corrections, or unblock a stalled workflow. The UI clearly shows when a session is locked and who holds control, and the previous contributor can resume once control is released. This makes collaborative curation workflows more predictable and reduces the risk of conflicting edits in shared sessions.
Who benefits: Data managers and data contributors
Curation Tasks: "Benefactor" Permission Scoping Mode New
Curation tasks can now be configured to scope which data rows a contributor works with based on the benefactor of a file — that is, the folder or project from which the file inherits its sharing settings — rather than based on who directly owns the file. This is particularly useful for datasets organized in hierarchical folder structures where permissions are set at the folder level and inherited downward.
Who benefits: Data managers setting up curation tasks for projects where files inherit permissions from parent folders rather than having individually assigned ownership.
Search Index Entities Now Visible in the Tables Tab New
Search Index entities — which power the OpenSearch-based portal search — are now surfaced in the Tables tab of a Synapse project. Users can view the index as a searchable table with facets and edit the underlying SQL query that defines the index, without needing API access. This brings Search Index management into the standard Synapse UI for the first time.
Who benefits: Portal administrators and data engineers who manage Search Index configurations for their projects.
Edit Curation Tasks Directly in the UI New
Data managers can now update existing tasks entirely within the Curator interface, without resorting to API calls. The editing workflow is built into the Tasks and Actions panel, streamlining how teams set up and manage their curation pipelines.
Who benefits: Data managers who previously had to use the API to modify curation tasks.
Note: Task creation is currently available as an experimental feature and will be released at a future time.
Fixes & Improvements
Curator Collaboration Mode Labels Clarified
The three collaboration modes available when setting up a curation task — previously labeled with technical shorthand — have been rewritten with plain-language names and tooltip descriptions. The modes are now labeled Work independently, Share with assignees only, and Share with all editors, each with a tooltip explaining the behavior, the access implications, and when to use it. This reduces confusion for data managers who are new to collaborative curation.
Task ID Now Visible in the Tasks & Actions Panel
The unique identifier for each curation task is now displayed directly in the Tasks and Actions panel and on task cards. Previously, the task ID was only visible in the browser URL after opening the task. Having the ID immediately accessible makes it easier for data managers to reference tasks when troubleshooting issues or when needing to delete a task.
Curator Grid: Read-Only File System Fields Now Properly Locked
Two categories of fields in the Curator grid that cannot actually be changed through the grid interface are now correctly displayed as read-only. File names and certain file-system-level attributes (such as file handle metadata) appeared editable but changes made to them were silently ignored. These fields are now grayed out and non-interactive, preventing confusion and accidental data loss when users perform bulk operations like select-all and delete.
Curator Grid: Clearing a Dropdown Value Now Works Correctly
When a user cleared a dropdown selection in the Curator grid by pressing delete, the visible label remained on screen even though the underlying value had been deleted — creating a mismatch between what was displayed and what would be saved. This visual inconsistency has been resolved; clearing a dropdown value now immediately and correctly reflects the empty state in the grid.
Portal Navigation: "Part of a Portal" Link Fixed
Clicking the "This resource is part of a portal" link on a Synapse project page was incorrectly refreshing the current page instead of navigating to the associated portal. This has been fixed — the link now routes users to the correct portal page as intended.
Search Index Configuration: Earlier Validation & Clearer Errors
Configuring a Search Index previously required assembling several interconnected components, and any misconfiguration only surfaced as an opaque error during the asynchronous index build — often hours after the configuration was saved. Validation of cross-references and configuration settings now happens at save time, with error messages that identify the specific field or value that needs correction. Common setups also require fewer manual steps, reducing the chance of misconfiguration in the first place.
Database Upgraded to MySQL 8.4
Synapse's underlying database has been upgraded from MySQL 8.0 to MySQL 8.4, ahead of the AWS end-of-standard-support date of July 31, 2026. This is a proactive infrastructure upgrade with no expected impact on users or existing data.
Release Deployment: Database Migration Error Resolved
A migration error during the stack-592 deployment pipeline (related to a synonym set schema constraint) has been resolved. No user-facing impact.