Domain I /

Follow a C-STORE operation

By the endIdentify the payload and peer roles in a C-STORE operation.

Follow the request and the response

C-STORE is the DIMSE-C service used to store a composite SOP Instance on a peer. The Storage SCU sends the request and the instance. The Storage SCP receives the request, processes the instance, and returns a response. Reading the exchange in that order prevents the response from being mistaken for a second transfer.

C-STORE request and response

The Storage SCU sends C-STORE-RQ and a composite SOP Instance to the Storage SCP. The Storage SCP sends C-STORE-RSP status back to the Storage SCU.

Worked example

A CT series arrives one instance at a time

A CT acquisition produces many image instances. For each instance, the modality invokes C-STORE toward the archive and receives a response for that operation.

  1. 1

    Identify the unit

    The C-STORE operation concerns one composite SOP Instance. A study or series can therefore involve many C-STORE operations.

  2. 2

    Follow the request

    The Storage SCU sends C-STORE-RQ with the instance data to the Storage SCP.

  3. 3

    Follow the response

    The Storage SCP returns C-STORE-RSP with the status for that operation. Success or Warning cannot be returned until the full C-STORE indication has been received.

Result: A successful response belongs to the instance and operation that it answers. When a series is incomplete, inspect the responses across the whole group instead of relying on one successful instance.

Storage and Query/Retrieve are separate service claims

An archive may support both, but one capability does not prove the other. Read the conformance statement by SOP Class and role.

C-STORE

  • Transfers a composite SOP Instance
  • Uses Storage SCU and SCP roles
  • Returns a status for the store operation

C-FIND

  • Matches requested attributes
  • Returns matching Identifiers in Pending responses
  • May be used by a Query/Retrieve FIND SOP Class

Try it

Account for a partial series

A modality sends 120 image instances. The first 119 C-STORE operations succeed, and the final operation fails. Can the successful response for instance 119 be used as the result for instance 120?

Hint: Match each response to the operation it answers.

02 / Questions

Answer 4 questions

Choose an answer. The explanation appears after you submit.

Check 1 of 4recall · easy

What does the C-STORE service place on a peer DIMSE Service User?

Check 2 of 4scenario · medium

A PACS accepts CT images with C-STORE. Which additional capability can be concluded from that fact alone?

Check 3 of 4scenario · medium

Which evidence reports the outcome of a specific C-STORE operation?

Check 4 of 4recall · medium

In a DICOM Storage operation, what does C-STORE transfer to the peer Application Entity?

03 / Recall

Answer without looking back

Describe C-STORE in one sentence using the terms composite SOP Instance, SCU, and SCP.

Primary reading

Read the relevant section

DICOM PS3.7 2026c - Message Exchange · 9.1.1 ↗
Sources used in this lesson
  1. DICOM PS3.7 2026c - Message Exchange, §9.1.1.1 C-STORE ParametersDICOM Standards Committee
  2. DICOM PS3.4 2026c - Service Class Specifications, B.1.1-B.1.2DICOM Standards Committee
Glossary terms used in this lesson
DIMSE-CDICOM Message Service Element - Composite
The subset of DIMSE services that operates on Composite SOP Instances.
C-STORE
The DIMSE-C service used to store a composite SOP Instance on a peer.
composite SOP Instance
One populated occurrence of a composite information object class, such as a particular CT Image instance.