VHnr

VHnr is an alphanumeric identifier used in some digital repositories and content management systems to label the revision history of a record. In such contexts, the VHnr is attached to a record alongside a stable record identifier and a timestamp. The VHnr typically increments with each substantive modification, enabling users and automated processes to refer to a specific state of an item without relying solely on dates or overall version counts. Variants of VHnr exist across platforms, sometimes encoded with prefixes like VH-2024-00123 or as a simple numeric suffix.

Origins and usage of VHnr stem from the growing need to track changes in digital archives, scholarly repositories, and enterprise content systems. While there is no universal standard for VHnr, several repositories have adopted VHnr-like fields as part of their metadata schemas. VHnr supports auditing, provenance tracking, and reproducibility by providing a distinct marker for each revision.

VHnr is distinct from broader persistent identifiers such as DOIs or stable item IDs. It is specifically tied to the revision history of an item rather than to the item as an immutable entity. Limitations include the lack of universal standardization, potential ambiguity in cases of item forks or splits, and reliance on the hosting system to maintain consistent, persistent access to each VHnr-bearing state.

See also: version control, revision history, metadata standards, digital preservation, persistent identifiers.