_INLET.INF / _HISTORY.INF
Auxiliary files found in some Waters RAW directories. Neither is required for spectrum decoding.
_INLET.INF
Format: Plain text (ACE Experimental Record)
A human-readable ASCII text file generated by the Waters ACE (Automated Chromatographic Experiment) software. Contains the LC method parameters used for the run.
Corpus presence
| Dataset | Present | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| PXD058812 (P15, Q-TOF native MS) | No | No LC inlet |
| PXD066594 (WANG, SYNAPT G2-Si IMS) | No | Native MS, no LC |
| PXD068881 (CtpA, SYNAPT G2-Si, LC-MS) | Yes | 4358 bytes |
| PXD075602 (DHPR, Xevo G2-XS, LC-MS) | Yes | 4511 bytes |
Only present for LC-MS acquisitions that used a Waters inlet method.
Content
The file begins with the header line:
\r\nACE Experimental Record\r\n
followed by sections describing:
- Inlet method file path
- Run method parameters
- Pump configuration (Waters BSM or other binary solvent manager)
- Solvent composition, flow rate, gradient table
- Column parameters
- Sampler/autosampler settings
Example excerpt (DHPR):
ACE Experimental Record
Inlet Method File: d:\projects\mpd002.pro\acqudb\20231012_traping_5ul_2min_trap_30min
--------------------- Run method parameters ----------------
-- PUMP --
Waters GI Pump
...
Binary Solvent Manager
...
This file is informational only and is not required for spectrum data decoding.
_HISTORY.INF
Format: Waters Parameter Table (binary, 0 descriptors)
A binary file using the Waters Parameter Table structure (see 07-func-sts.md
for format description) with 0 channel descriptors.
Corpus presence
| Dataset | Present | Size (bytes) | Version | Data bytes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PXD058812 (P15, Q-TOF) | Yes | 624 | 3 | 592 |
| PXD066594 (WANG, SYNAPT G2-Si) | Yes | 1731 | 12 | 1699 |
| PXD068881 (CtpA, SYNAPT G2-Si) | No | - | - | - |
| PXD075602 (DHPR, Xevo G2-XS) | No | - | - | - |
Preamble
u16@0 = data_offset (always 32 = 32 + 0*48; no descriptors)
u16@2 = version (3 for P15; 12 for WANG)
u16@4 = record_size (0 for P15; 1 for WANG)
u16@6 = n_desc (0 in all observed cases)
The preamble is valid Waters Parameter Table format, but with n_desc=0 there are no channel descriptors. The data section follows immediately at byte 32.
Data section
Content varies by dataset and is not decoded:
- P15 (592 bytes): begins with ~100 zero bytes, followed by float-like binary data (values in the range 0.1-4.0 based on byte pattern inspection); possibly an audit trail of parameter settings or a time-series of instrument state.
- WANG (1699 bytes): rec_sz=1 suggests single-byte records; content not analyzed.
The HISTORY file likely records parameter changes made during the acquisition (e.g. autosampler injections, operator modifications). Its content is not needed for spectrum reconstruction.