DIGITAL PRESERVATION a How-To Guide for Beginners

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DIGITAL PRESERVATION A How-To Guide for Beginners

PREPARE. PRESERVE. PROGRESS. Contentsal preservation is a very hot topic in the world of

03 Introduction

04 What will you learn from this eBook?

05 Who is this eBook aimed at?

06 What is digital preservation?

09 How do you know if you need digital preservation?

11 How do you get on the digital preservation ladder?

12 What does a basic digital preservation system look like?

16 Cloud or on-premise?

17 Where next: Other components of a digital preservation system

18 How much is it going to cost?

19 Case Study - New York’s Museum of Modern Art

21 Where to go to get more info?

22 Key Takeaways

23 eBook Checklist

24 Contact Us

25 Acknowledgements

/ 2 Introduction

Digital preservation is a very hot topic in the world of heritage, culture and memory institutions. Many people are talking about it and some organisations have a strategy in place and are in the process of digitally preserving their assets in some shape or form.

There are however a large number of people who are just starting out and who are trying to get to grips with the basics of digital preservation. These people, and you might be one of them, are asking themselves “what exactly is digital preservation?” and “where do I start?” and “what do I need to do to be able to say that I’m on the digital preservation ladder?” - and many more questions besides.

This eBook will answer these and other questions and will serve as a jumping-off point in helping you to define the digital preservation system that meets your needs.

This eBook is undeniably about the basics of digital preservation and keeps its feet firmly on the ground in focusing on the (very few) fundamental building blocks you need. Arkivum/Perpetua, a fully hosted, long-term digital preservation and archiving service, fulfils all the requirements of a basic digital preservation solution and is used to illustrate the concepts explored in the eBook.

/ 3 What will you learn from this eBook?

If you’ve got this far, you very likely want some help on getting the basics of digital preservation in place.

We’ll start out by reiterating who the book is aimed at and by defining what we mean by digital preservation and describing what kind of digital preservation the book is going to focus on - just so we’re all on the same page.

The book will then ask how you’ll know if you need digital preservation and what to do if you do (how to get on the first rung of the digital preservation ladder).

We’ll then take you through what the basic building blocks of a digital preservation system look like and what their key characteristics are.

And finally, we’ll take you through a Case Study from New York’s Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) and then point you at some other resources that you might find useful.

And if that wasn’t enough, there’s a checklist to assess your readiness and preparedness to get on that all-important first rung of the digital preservation ladder.

/ 4 What about digitisation? Digitisation is the digital preservation enabler for physical assets. It is the Who is this eBook aimed at? existence of digitisation technology that drives the possibilities of digital Anyone tasked with preserving digital assets for the long-term preservation. It is the process of converting analog assets (paintings, but doesn’t really know where to start, or anyone who would like paper documents, film, audio, to validate that they are on the right road and heading in the right photographic prints and negatives, direction. Or indeed anyone looking for information on how to physical objects etc) into a digital bridge the gap between the digitising of physical assets and the form either through direct conversion (converting a 16mm file to an MP4 file ability to access, trust and use the resulting digital files at some for example) or ‘recording’ a physical point in the future. The value and purpose of digital preservation object through the use of digital lies in bridging this gap and making it possible. photographs for example. Digital preservation processes can, of course, also be applied to digital assets that were born digital. These could be, for example, digitally recorded audio, electronic documents etc.

Don’t forget that getting digitisation right is really rather important - the digitisation process creates the raw £2m material that you will be working with in your digital preservation workflow. The amount of the Heritage Lottery Fund that You’ll need to start with a the Tate Archives and Access digitisation strategy. project is supported by.

/ 5 What is digital preservation?

Simply put, it’s the process of managing and storing digital assets (image files, audio files, video files, text files etc) and their associated metadata in such a way that they are guaranteed to be accessible, available and usable in the future, whenever that is. Thinking very long-term is key here - decades and (way) beyond. The combined complexity of achieving these goals lies at the heart of successfully executing a digital preservation strategy.

It’s important to remember that digital preservation is as much about preserving the meaning and context of the asset as it is about preserving the asset itself. It is therefore important to preserve, alongside the digital asset, metadata about the digital asset and that of the original object (if the digital asset was not born-digital but is a digitisation of something physical / analogue).

The digital assets you’re preserving could be born-digital or they could be the result of a digitisation project that aims to preserve analogue or physical objects (for example 16mm film; archaeological finds; paintings; clothing, china etc).

This eBook focusses on a so-called migration-based digital preservation strategy that in turn is based on file-format preservation and long-term data archiving processes. In this context, file-format preservation is the process of maximising the accessibility of a file through the repeated migration of it into any number of more stable or current file formats; and data archiving is the process of storing, for the long-term, all of the resulting digital assets using active archiving principles and processes. The original asset being preserved and all of it’s supporting ‘preservation’ versions are archived for the long-term. You’re covering as many bases as you can in terms of being able to use the file in the future.

/ 6 First draft of the lyrics to Born to Run. Handwritten by Bruce Springsteen. Migration is quite different from ‘emulation’ - the process of creating, managing 1974. and maintaining a system that replicates (emulates) the functionality of the original © Sotheby’s system. In such a system, a holistic approach is taken to digital preservation. A good example is computer-based games. These are often preserved by creating a software emulator that runs on a current computer platform within which the game can be used and accessed (played). The emulator replicates the capabilities of the original hardware and software (gaming console for example) on which the game was originally used. The use of an emulator is often easier than maintaining the ‘roadworthiness’ of the original system / console / whatever, despite the fact that the emulator itself has to be migrated as new computer platforms become available (and replace obsolete ones).

The most fundamental component of a digital preservation process is the storing of digital objects in archival repositories - exactly what Arkivum/Perpetua does for you (no more and no less).

It isn’t the process of digitising artefacts (taking photographs of, or 3D scanning, physical objects, transferring reel-to-reel tape to digital format, or scanning physical documents for example). For physical objects and analogue artefacts, digitisation is the pre-requisite for digital preservation processes. In the context of this eBook, digitisation is assumed to already have taken place.

Digital preservation encompasses many processes and the ones that you need for your particular workflow will vary depending on the scope and requirements of your project. This eBook will explore the basic and fundamental elements of a digital preservation system along with descriptions and examples of the ‘optional extras’ that can be added to such a system to increases its capabilities.

Don’t forget that as well as the actual processes and tools, digital preservation also encompasses the strategy in which this all sits (more on this below); the people and the best practices that they are going to use; the quality of the digital assets that you’re going to preserve (this generally applies if you have digitisation as part of your workflow); IT infrastructure and associated support (if you’re not going to use a hosted and managed service where this is all taken care of for you).

/ 7 Guaranteeing the long-term integrity of our digital assets is an absolutely crucial part of the Archives and Access Project – this archival heritage is extremely valuable to Tate’s future, and the future of British and international art history. We cannot afford to have them compromised in any way.

Anna Henry, Digital Preservation Manager, Tate

/ 8 How do you know if you need digital preservation? Arkivum/Perpetua So-called ‘memory institutions’ of all shapes and sizes are facing increasing demands on their collections (that range from physical Arkivum/Perpetua™ is an automated digital preservation solution that and digital artworks, to museum artefacts, to local history / public supports the OAIS model and that archives, and beyond) from a range of sources. These demands delivers Archivematica file-format range from artwork / artefact public and academic access preservation and an Arkivum digital archiving service. requirements; to the need to better manage costs; to the fact that The Arkivum/Perpetua service is a some artefacts are degrading so quickly that digital preservation fully managed solution with zero is going to be the only way that the asset will be accessible and setup costs and no requirement for local IT infrastructure. usable in the future. It forms the basis for a secure, flexible and scalable digital preservation solution that can be integrated into a wide range of third-party asset preservation tools and services.

Archivematica and Arkivum together fulfil the functions of the Open Archival Information System (OAIS) reference model (ISO 14721:2012) and allow a range of preservation activities to be undertaken including: ingest, storage, management, administration, access, and preservation planning. 3 The minimum number of copies of each digital file that Arkivum/Perpetua stores to provide the 100% integrity guarantee.

/ 9 You’ll know that you have a digital preservation need if you have: • An increasing need for remote access to the physical items in your collections. This could be part of your institutional requirements for providing wider access to the items in your collections or it could be, for example, to provide access to physical objects through digitisation processes.

• An increasing number of digital files that are being stored on expensive storage media such as disc that are also sitting in your backup window. Digitally preserving these files will reduce your costs and save you money - and this could be a significant part of your overall institutional data policy as well as being part of your digital preservation strategy.

• Dwindling availability of convenient and low-cost storage facilities and / or space due to the rising costs of storing physical artefacts in convenient and accessible local facilities - locations that are ideally local to your institution. The availability of digitised and digitally preserved renditions of your assets could enable the originals to be located in less accessible and therefore less expensive storage.

• Objects and artefacts that are fragile and / or degrading to the point when they are becoming increasingly hard to access (magnetic audio tape for example) or where the ability to maintain the hardware on which the asset can be accessed and used is becoming increasingly difficult and expensive.

• A strategic desire, need or requirement to guarantee the accessibility, availability and authenticity of heritage assets for generations to come / far into the future. This could be driven by academic, public, legal or regulatory requirements or simply to provide wider public access via your website.

Revox B77 Tape Recorder © Revox GmbH / Revox (Schweiz) AG

/ 10 How do you get on the digital preservation ladder?

It’s best to start by devising a strategy. One that encompasses a phased approach. This will lay out how you get from where you are today to where you ultimately want to be - and then break it down into manageable phases that meet your goals in a step-wise fashion.

The strategy that will be most appropriate to you will be one that considers and prioritises the digital preservation factors that are driving your institution to do digital preservation. These factors will include cost-effectiveness, legal and regulatory compliance, and requirements relating to and driven by providing access to your digitally stored material and assets.

Such a strategy not only breaks down your goals into discreet steps, it also enables you to manage costs and build up the skills, resources and infrastructure that you might need to meet all of your goals. It will also help you to set out the business case for digital preservation at your institution that will in turn help you resource the project.

Your strategy will break down your digital preservation goals in such a way that the most fundamental aspects, the building blocks, are addressed first. This will ensure that you have a repository for digital assets (files… objects… whatever) that is able to preserve those assets for the long-term (where long-term is likely to be many decades).

Taking a phased approach that starts with the basic building blocks will likely spread the resource requirements into potentially easier-to-obtain chunks. It will also enable you to focus on the most important and pressing (to your institution) aspects of digital preservation.

There are a number of resources that you can draw on to help you develop a digital preservation strategy. A good place to start is the Open Preservation Foundation (OPF). The OPF stewards the leading portfolio of open-source digital preservation tools and facilitates the development and use of best practice through interest groups, community events, and training.

/ 11 What does a basic digital preservation system look like?

Going back to the definition of digital preservation that’s based on what digital preservation is trying to achieve, you don’t need much to get started.

In a basic system, it’s all about providing (and guaranteeing) access to digital objects far into the future:

The most fundamental component of a digital preservation process is the storing of digital objects in archival repositories. Let’s break that down a bit with reference to the purpose of digital preservation. This gives us two basic needs:

1. Storing digital objects so that they can be accessed and trusted far into the future

2. Guaranteeing the usability of those digital objects far into the future

Each of these, and there’s overlap in what they mean, can be achieved with a system that guarantees bit-level data integrity of the digital assets, combined with a system that maximises the likelihood of being able to read / access the content of the bit-level preserved files. The former is about long-term archival storage and the latter is about file-format preservation, normalisation and migration. They are both delivered by the Arkivum/Perpetua service - a fully hosted, long-term digital preservation and archiving solution.

Having established earlier in this eBook that a basic digital preservation system that will be used within a migration-based strategy combines both file-format House and two cars. 1972. Polaroid SX-70. preservation capabilities with those of a long-term data storage and archiving 52k Used with permission. system, let’s look at each of these in turn. The number of new digital assets from the Tate being archived as part of the Archives and Access project.

/ 12 Normalisation The term migration is derived from the process of repeatedly, over a period of time, migrating files to alternative formats. This could be to a file format that is easier Do I need to worry about OAIS? to use or more future-proofed; or could be to a newer version of the existing file An Open Archival Information System format. In practice it is a combination of these, and a typical Archival Information (OAIS) (Learn more) is an archive, Package (AIP) will contain both the original file and a number of ‘normalised’ consisting of an organisation of people alternative versions of it. and systems, that has accepted the responsibility to preserve information The use of multiple variants of the original file in a number of formats maximises and make it available for a specific the chances of being able to access the file and for it to be usable (to have usable audience / community / organisation. content) far into the future. It is of course important to periodically revisit the AIP That said, you probably mean ‘does in which the file and it’s normalised variants are stored, to assess whether new my digital preservation system need variants, in new file formats, need to be created and added to the AIP. to comply with the ISO OAIS reference model for an OAIS?’ The normalisation process and the monitoring of the AIP for the need to update The Arkivum/Perpetua solution with new file format variants is typically fully automated and runs unattended supports the OAIS model and is once a package of files to be preserved has been ingested (added) to the digital designed for the long-term. It includes a preservation system. And it is of course possible to integrate and automate the 100% data integrity guarantee backed by ingestion side of such a system to your existing processes. indemnity insurance and escrow copies of all your data.

90% The percentage of American silent films made before 1929 that are considered permanently lost.

/ 13 Data archiving The second component of a basic digital preservation system is the ability to store the package of digitally preserved files (the AIP) created using a service such as Archivematica, for the long-term. This needs to be done in a way that guarantees the bit-level integrity of the files over the long-term. After all, there’s little point in digitally preserving a file if it is subsequently corrupted and therefore unusable.

Long-term data archiving is inherently a simple process: store multiple copies of files having established that each copy is the same as the master. The complexity lies in the processes that support the underlying methodology around storing multiple copies.

The overarching concepts that enable the guaranteed, bit-level preservation of data over decade-long timescales are embodied in the principles and best-practices of active archiving. These principles are based on diversity and intervention. It is the application of these principles that enable large volumes of data to be stored and managed such that they can be retrieved with their data integrity intact.

These principles and processes, when combined and used with best practices, enable digitally preserved files to be stored with a 100% data integrity guarantee. And do so in an economically-sustainable way for many decades.

Within a digital preservation context, this means that it’s possible to implement an automated system that will preserve data at the file and bit-level, with a 100% data integrity guarantee, indefinitely.

Arkivum/Perpetua is a cost-effective and comprehensive digital preservation and public access solution using Archivematica and AtoM services in the cloud, coupled with an Arkivum/100 digital archive service with a unique 100% data integrity guarantee. For cultural heritage institutions and functions within public and private organisations that struggle to deliver on their digital preservation requirements, Arkivum/Perpetua is a fully hosted and managed service that requires zero local Eileen Agar with her husband, infrastructure, IT resource or expertise. Joseph Bard in the 1930s. From the Tate Archives and Access Project. © Tate

/ 14 Diversity Diversity in this context is all about not having all your ‘data eggs’ in one (in the same) basket. This relates to how and why multiple copies of your data are stored and managed. 40 GB Making and storing multiple copies of each file (each AIP in fact) and storing Storage required for 1 minute of film them in different data centres, in different geographical locations, forms the digitised at 60fps in RAW format basis of a sound, diversity-based digital preservation data storage strategy. When coupled with the storage of a separate, offline copy (optionally in escrow with a third-party), you have the capability to replace copies that are discovered to have become corrupt for whatever reason. Intervention Intervention means the active management of the files being preserved. The underlying principle is that if an issue with a file is discovered early, it will be possible to do something about it (especially if multiple copies of the data are being stored).

Active management is itself based on a range of processes and best-practices encompassing chain of custody; active integrity checking; and managing change.

/ 15 Cloud or on-premise?

You’ll also need to think carefully about where your data will actually be preserved and stored.

There are lots of questions here, but one of the basic ones is whether your data needs to stay with you, on your premises, or if it can be offloaded into the cloud (‘cloud’ in this context means using a third-party managed storage service - it doesn’t mean that your data is just ‘out there’, un-loved and un-managed. Your data will be in ‘your cloud’ - private!).

Using a managed, cloud-based service like Arkivum/Perpetua, makes a lot of sense if the cloud option is available to you. It is easy to use (there’s nothing for you to setup), your data will be secure and accessible, and all the pain and hassle of managing the digital preservation system as a whole is managed for you. If a cloud-based or fully managed solution doesn’t suit your needs, there are options at the other end of the scale (a digital preservation system installed at your premises and fully managed by you) or, of course, anywhere in-between. And finally, remember that if you do need to have an on-premise system, it is easier to deploy and manage than you might think (all the hardware, software and expertise can be provided as a package).

Blam, 1962, Roy Lichtenstein © Estate of Roy Lichtenstein/DACS 2016

/ 16 Where next: Other components of a digital preservation system What about compliance with Digital Preservation ‘Where next?’ will largely be determined by your needs and Coalition guidelines and requirements. recommendations? The DPC is an advocate and catalyst That said, a good place to start will be to add tools and capabilities for managing for digital preservation and its Digital your digitally preserved collection of assets. Key functionality here is around Preservation Handbook is a mine of metadata management: useful information and resources for anyone working in this field. The ideas • Technical metadata management. and messages in this eBook, and the The metadata that describes the technical processes or tools used to create capabilities of Arkivum/Perpetua, are a or use the data, for example file formats, codecs and players. This helps in subset of what the DPC advocates while understanding how easy, or how hard, it will be to use the files either now or staying firmly within their guidelines in the future. Archivematica automatically creates, extracts and records this and recommendations. metadata for you. Having read this eBook, the DPC • Description and access metadata management. Handbook would be a useful and The metadata that describes digital objects that allows them to be discovered sensible place to go for a more and retrieved, for example author, title, subject and date. AtoM (Access to detailed analysis of the challenges of Memory) is a good example of a tool that uses descriptive metadata to make digital preservation. digital objects easy to find and access. It integrates tightly to Archivematica and is an optional part of Arkivum/Perpetua.

To read more about one such implementation that uses open-source tools to provide metadata management functionality (on top of a file-format preservation / data archiving system), see the MoMA Case Study on page 20.

/ 17 How much is it going to cost?

Cost is going to be very relative and will of course depend on what it is that you’re going to deploy, at least initially. It’s worth spending some time considering as many aspects of the cost as you can - remember, the cost of owning and running a digital preservation system can extend far beyond the actual purchase price (if you buy a system or a service).

It doesn’t have to though - managed services tend to be all-inclusive. And this is useful to know - having predictable and managed costs can be a big bonus when putting together your business case. This is one advantage of a fully managed service over a set of products or services that you bolt together yourself. The level of flexibility might seem to be slightly less, but the fact that it’s all done for you and taken care of is worth a lot. And ‘managed service’ doesn’t mean that the system is out of your control - it simply means that the day-to-day management of the system, the nuts and bolts, is taken care of.

To keep the costs down, focus on what’s really necessary - at least at first. Start small. Start smart with the crucial building blocks. The quicker you can get going with the basic tools in place, and start feeling your way around best practices and what works best for you, the sooner you’ll feel confident to branch out. And this will keep the costs down which will in turn increase the likelihood of your project getting off the ground.

NASA document from the Apollo 13 mission that details some of the engine burn actions the astronauts needed to make in order to get back to Earth after the aborted flight to the moon. Annotated by mission astronaut and lunar module pilot Fred Haise. © 2016 Bonhams

/ 18 New York’s Museum of Modern Art

MoMA has deployed a sophisticated digital preservation system based on the principles described in this eBook. It is using an integrated Archivematica and Arkivum system, along with the Binder indexing system, to deliver a solution that will digitise, preserve and make accessible 6.2PB of audio-visual artwork data over a 10-year period.

With 500 hours of Andy Warhol’s 16mm films to preserve, along with many other audio-visual artworks, MoMA required a scalable and financially sustainable solution to the challenges of long-term file-format future proofing and data archiving.

The benefits to MoMA are:

• Economical way to scale For the volume of data storage required by MoMA, the Archivematica / Arkivum system is more financially sustainable than a traditional disk-based system. In 4,000 fact it is at least a factor of ten more cost-effective. The number of reels of 16mm • Higher standards of preservation film that The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts MoMA has now raised its standards for digital preservation and will shortly Empire. 1964. 16mm film. be using the considerably higher assessment requirements embodied in ISO has donated to MoMA. Andy Warhol. 163632 - the recommended practices for assessing the trustworthiness of digital repositories. © 2016 Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

/ 19 The solution not only meets MoMA’s high preservation standards, but is also a financially smart move, considering the size of our digital collections (big) and the way we access them (infrequently).

Ben Fino-Radin, Digital Repository Manager, New York’s Museum of Modern Art

/ 20 Where to go to get more info?

Digital preservation is undoubtedly a large and broad subject and this eBook has only looked at one specific aspect of it. The following list aims to provide you with a few additional resources that you may find useful as you develop your digital preservation strategy and solution.

• Open Preservation Foundation (OPF) The OPF stewards the leading portfolio of open-source digital preservation tools and facilitates the development and use of best practice through interest groups, community events, and training. openpreservation.org

• Digital Preservation Coalition (DPC) The DPC is an advocate and catalyst for digital preservation, ensuring its members can deliver resilient long-term access to digital content and services. The DPC Digital Preservation Handbook is a mine of useful information and resources for anyone working in this field. www.dpconline.org

The DPC Digital Preservation Handbook is a mine of useful information and resources for anyone working in this field.

• The Preservation of Time-Based Media Artworks An article that touches on all the points raised in this eBook www.tate.org.uk/about/our-work/conservation/time-based-media

• MoMA Case Study - a video presentation Ben Fino-Radin, Digital Repository Manager at MoMA, presents how MoMA has implemented a digital preservation solution for thousands of heterogeneous media assets. www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQaFWqHfxMA As You See. 1986. 16mm film. Harun Farocki. © 2016 Harun Farocki Filmproduktion

/ 21 Key takeaways

Having a digital preservation strategy, no matter how simple, is the very first step

You need to think long-term but that isn’t as daunting as you might think Read some Case Studies - learn what other institutions like yours are doing. If you need to sort out digitisation, do that separately and with a separate strategy

You don’t need to put much in place to get on the digital preservation ladder. Have a look at the checklist on the next page

Use off-the-shelf tried and tested tools that are easy to deploy and use to get you going quickly and easily

Remember, you’re in the same boat as a lot of other organisations, so don’t be overwhelmed, help is at hand Start today!

Get in touch now to learn more about the benefits of the fully hosted Arkivum/Perpetua service.

/ 22 eBook Checklist Do you have digital assets to preserve? If not, do you have a digitisation plan? The following practical If no, here are some resources to help you: checklist will assess your The Aims and Scope of the British Library Digitisation Strategy View here preparedness and readiness John Rylands Library (University of Manchester) Digitisations Strategy Document View here for digital preservation and The US National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) Digitisation Strategy View here move you along from just thinking and talking about it Do you have a digital preservation strategy in place? to a position where you will If not, do you have enough information to put one together? actually be doing it. If no, here are some resources to help you: The National Archives (UK) digital preservation guidance: View here Digital Preservation Coalition Digital Preservation Handbook: View here

Does your digital preservation strategy enable you to focus on the basics at this stage?

Do your digital assets lend themselves to a migration-based strategy?

Do you know where you want your preserved files to be stored? Cloud? On-premise? Hybrid?

Do you have all the information you need to get started with your digital preservation programme?

Want a bit more? Have a look at this paper by Tim Gollins from when he was Head of Digital Preservation at The National Archives (currently Head of Digital Archiving at the National Records of Scotland) on the small, simple steps you can take to move forward in digital preservation: View here Wherever you are in your digital Do you want to use a managed service for your digital preservation? preservation strategy, If you’re unsure what a managed digital preservation service is, have a look at the Arkivum/Perpetua get in touch today! sidebar on page 10.

/ 23 About Arkivum

Arkivum is a specialist provider of digital preservation and data archiving services. Based in the UK, Arkivum focuses on solutions that address the challenges of storing large volumes of data for long periods of time while guaranteeing future data integrity, usability and trustworthiness.

With customers across the cultural heritage, higher education, healthcare and life sciences sectors, Arkivum works with a range of partners to deliver integrated solutions that can be deployed on-site; as managed services; or fully hosted.

Contact us: Arkivum, R21 Langley Park Way, Chippenham, Wiltshire SN15 1GE 01249 40 50 60 [email protected] www.arkivum.com

Follow us: This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, click here

ARK/MKTG/ALL/394/1.0 Acknowledgements

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