Self-service discovery for researchers. Informed requests for support teams.
A guided planning tool that helps researchers select data infrastructure, estimate costs for grant budgets, and generate draft DMP text—while giving support teams complete, reviewable requests instead of vague asks.
What it does:
- Guides you through selecting services based on your data's security tier
- Calculates costs for your grant budget (including long-term retention)
- Generates draft Data Management Plan text as a starting point (always review and customize for your project)
- Explains unfamiliar terms and helps estimate requirements
npm install
npm run devOpen http://localhost:4000 in your browser.
See the User Guide for a complete walkthrough.
- Tier Questionnaire — Answer a few questions to determine your data classification
- Help Me Estimate — Calculators that translate research concepts (images, samples) to infrastructure units (TB, GPU-hours)
- Compare Options — Side-by-side service comparison within categories
- Terminology Tooltips — Click any underlined term for a plain-English explanation
- Software Catalog — Check what licensed software is available on each platform
- Talk to a Human — Escape hatch to email, schedule a call, or save progress
This is a "fork and own" project. Clone it, customize the configuration for your institution, and deploy.
All institution-specific content lives in YAML files under config/:
| File | Purpose |
|---|---|
meta.yaml |
Institution name, contacts, branding |
tiers.yaml |
Data security classifications (L1-L4) |
categories.yaml |
Service categories with comparison features |
services.yaml |
All services with pricing and tier availability |
bundles.yaml |
Pre-configured service combinations |
mappings.yaml |
Tier-to-service availability matrix |
acronyms.yaml |
Terminology for automatic annotation |
calculators.yaml |
Help Me Estimate calculator settings |
help.yaml |
Contact info and escape hatch config |
tier-questionnaire.yaml |
Data classification decision tree |
tier-workflow.yaml |
Approval process for L3/L4 data |
retention.yaml |
Data retention schedules |
software.yaml |
Licensed software catalog |
dmp-templates/ |
Handlebars templates for DMP output |
See Customization Guide for complete schemas and examples.
npm run dev # Start dev server (port 4000)
npm run validate:config # Validate YAML files
npm run build:config # Compile YAML → config.json
npm run build # Production build to dist/The build output is static files. Deploy anywhere:
- nginx, Caddy, Apache
- GitHub Pages, Netlify, Vercel
- AWS S3 + CloudFront
No backend required.
| Document | Audience | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| User Guide | Researchers | How to use the tool |
| Customization Guide | Admins | Configuration reference |
| Architecture | Developers | Technical overview |
| Document | Feature |
|---|---|
| EXPLORE-FIRST.md | Pre-wizard discovery tools |
| CALCULATORS.md | Individual calculator UI specs |
| CALCULATORS-IDENTIFICATION.md | Data identification status helper |
| ELI5-IMPLEMENTATION.md | Calculator architecture |
| COMPARISON-FEATURES.md | Service comparison matrix |
| TIER-QUESTIONNAIRE.md | Data classification helper |
| SOFTWARE-CATALOG.md | Licensed software lookup |
| TALK-TO-HUMAN.md | Escape hatch system |
| POST-WIZARD-ONBOARDING.md | Next steps after wizard |
| CONCEPT-GRAPH.md | Policy governance framework |
| MULTI-SESSION.md | Drafts and folder sync |
| REQUEST-GATEWAY.md | Ticketing system integration API |
| V2-PLANNING.md | Future roadmap |
- Config-driven — All content from YAML, no code changes for customization
- Zero backend — Fully static, deployable anywhere
- Progressive disclosure — Complex concepts revealed only when needed
- Escape hatches — Human help always accessible
This tool generates draft content to assist with research planning. It does not provide legal, regulatory, or compliance advice. Tier classifications are illustrative — validate with your institution's IT security or research compliance office before making data management decisions. DMP output requires review by your research office before submission to any funding agency. Deployed under the MIT License, as-is, without warranty.
MIT License - see LICENSE