Examples
Worked examples
- Is an instance
A published dataset record in a repository that any visitor can view and download but cannot edit, because write access is restricted to the depositing author or a repository administrator.
- Is an instance
A finalised grant record in a CRIS that reporting staff can view but not modify, since editing rights are restricted to the original submitter or a designated grants administrator.
Counter-examples
Looks similar, but isn't
- Not an instance
A shared document that collaborators can both view and edit is not read-only, since it grants write access to those users.
- Not an instance
A record entirely inaccessible to a given user, with no view permission at all, is not read-only either -- read-only requires that viewing is permitted even though editing is not.
Editorial commentary
Read-only describes online content or a system that a user can view or download but cannot edit, modify, or delete. In a CRIS or repository context, this typically describes the access level granted to a metadata record, a deposited file, or a database view: a user with read-only access can retrieve and display the content but has no permission to alter it, which distinguishes their access level from an editor, contributor, or administrator role that carries write permissions.
A permissions property, not an availability statement
Read-only status describes who can change a record, not who can see it or what they are allowed to do with a copy of it once they have it. A record can be read-only and openly accessible to anyone on the internet; read-only and restricted to an authenticated group such as an institution’s staff; or read-only pending a separate embargo that controls when it becomes visible at all. It is therefore a narrower, access-control concept than sharing, which describes the broader question of how discoverable, accessible, and reusable a work is to others — a work’s sharing status is set through a licence or permissions statement, while its read-only status is a system-level permission flag independent of that licence.
Where the distinction matters operationally
CRIS administrators commonly set a record to read-only once it has passed a validation or reporting deadline, to preserve an auditable snapshot of the data as it stood at that point, even though the underlying dataset or publication itself may remain openly shared and downloadable. This is a common source of confusion for end users, who may see a “cannot edit” message and assume the record has been withdrawn or restricted from view, when in fact only its editability has changed.
Also known as
without permission
Machine-readable encodings
Use in your systems
<role vocab="credit"
vocab-identifier="https://casrai.org/dictionary/"
vocab-term="Read only"
vocab-term-identifier="https://casrai.org/dictionary/term/read-only" />{
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "DefinedTerm",
"@id": "https://casrai.org/dictionary/term/read-only",
"name": "Read only",
"identifier": "https://casrai.org/dictionary/term/read-only",
"description": "Online content or a system that can be viewed or downloaded by a user but not edited, modified, or deleted by them.",
"inDefinedTermSet": "https://casrai.org/dictionary/domain/research-outputs#set",
"url": "https://casrai.org/dictionary/term/read-only",
"sameAs": [
"http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/R/read_only.html",
"without permission"
],
"license": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
"publisher": {
"@id": "https://casrai.org/#organization"
},
"author": {
"@id": "https://casrai.org/#editorial-team"
},
"datePublished": "2026-05-19T19:13:31",
"dateModified": "2026-08-23T05:35:45",
"inLanguage": "en-GB",
"isAccessibleForFree": true
}
