The REDCap workflow for research follows a structured lifecycle with three main phases to ensure data quality and integrity. It begins in the Development Mode, where you first establish the Study Design and Create the Project. The core of this phase is Designing Data Forms (Instruments), which involves iterative Testing and typically requires IRB Approval before moving forward. Once the design is finalized and approved, the project transitions by submitting a Request for Production Deployment. This moves the project into Production Mode, where real data collection occurs. In this phase, minor changes can be made via Draft Mode, and data entry can be paused via Inactive Mode. When the research is finished, the project moves to the final stage, where you can either Complete the Project and subsequently Archive it for long-term storage or Delete the project entirely. This structured process helps researchers manage the entire lifecycle of their data collection in a secure and organized manner.

Source: https://www.unmc.edu/vcr/_documents/unmc_redcap_usage.pdf