[wwPDB] Big PDB Changes Are One Year Away: Extended PDB IDs, the PDB Beta Archive, and PDBx/mmCIF

Starting July 21, 2027

• The PDB Beta Archive will replace the current PDB main archive. The current beta archive URL will point to the main archive (details).
• PDB entries that have been issued 4-character PDB IDs, including IHM structures, will be accessed in this archive using their extended PDB ID that prepends “pdb_0000” to the 4-character ID (e.g., 1ABC becomes pdb_00001abc).
• OneDep will only issue 12-character IDs (prefix pdb_ followed by 8 alphanumeric characters, e.g., pdb_1000axyz).
  - New 4-character PDB IDs will not be issued at this point.
  - Entries with only 12-character IDs will follow a new DOI syntax.
  - Data deposited after July 20, 2027 will only be released in PDBx/mmCIF and PDBML formats.
  - Legacy PDB formatted files will not be generated for these entries.

The PDB Beta Archive is designed to be scalable and extensible. All files in this archive are re-organized using extended PDB IDs (including file naming and directories).

All PDB users, including software developers and journal editors, must transition to this new archive directory structure, PDBx/mmCIF and extended PDB ID format. Start using extended IDs and PDBx/mmCIF data files today.

For any further information please contact us at info@wwpdb.org.

Transition Resources

• PDB ID Extension FAQ
• PDB Beta Archive Overview: includes beta archive access, scripts, shortlink URLs, and other resources
• PDBx/mmCIF software resources
• Understanding PDBx/mmCIF format
• PDBx/mmCIF User Guide
• PDBx/mmCIF Dictionary
• PDB -> PDBx/mmCIF correspondences
• An online PDBx/mmCIF Editor

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