Why do I get the message that a data file exported from a FACSDiva™ Experiment is invalid?

When you export an experiment from BD FACSDiva, an XML file containing the experiment is created, along with files with the extension .fcs. Each of these fcs files has a numerical name, for example, 300.fcs. These files correspond to the samples and tubes in your experiment. However, these files are intended to be used by FACSDiva itself in conjunction with the XML file, but not alone. When used in any other software, including FCS Express, the contents of the files may not be accurate. For example, the compensation information in these FCS files may be different from what was in your experiment.

Therefore, when you want to export an experiment from Diva, you will need to take two steps:

  1. Export the experiment using the menu item File -> Export -> Experiments. This will export the experiment along with the numerically-named data files.
    • If you wish, you can optionally delete the numerically named FCS files, since they will not be used
  2. Export the data files using the menu item File -> Export -> FCS Files. This will export the correct data files, which will be named with the tube and sample name.
IFCS Express will but will not create new plots for the numerical data files (exported using option #1 above) without your explicit approval.

If you try to open a new plot, and use one of these files, you will see a message like this:

If you have access to Diva and the original experiment, we recommend going back to Diva, and exporting the FCS files as described in step 2 above. However if you do not have access to Diva to perform the second export, or you have already deleted the experiment from Diva, then you will need to open the numerically-named files.

In that case, in FCS Express, go to the File Menu, select Edit Preferences, and then in the File Dialog category, check the checkbox for Allow opening BD FACSDiva data files that were generated by exporting a FACSDiva Experiment.

After checking that checkbox, you will be able to use the numerically-named data files without any problem in FCS Express. Once again, we would like to stress that these data files may not be correct and HIGHLY reccomend exporting the data files as described above in the future.

FACSDiva is a trademark of Becton Dickinson