What is the Preservation Registries Special Interest Group?

The original idea of this group came out of the iPres 2022 “Registering our preservation intentions” workshop, where we proposed the idea of the Digital Preservation Coalition hosting an open ‘drop-in’ meeting for anyone interested in format and software registries.

To this end, we will run a monthly videoconference meeting that provides a space for to discuss anything and everything related to the maintenance and use of format registries in digital preservation.

At first, we’ll use this space to ask questions and gather feedback on the Registries of Good Practice project. We’ll also encourage attendees to share any updates on registries they depend on and/or maintain. Over time, we’ll see if a standing agenda emerges, and adapt the format to suit the needs of the attendees.

This is not intended to require any preparation or other significant commitment beyond simply attending the meetings, if you find them useful.

How can I get involved?

This is an open group - you don't have to be a DPC member to get involved. However, we need a reasonable private way to send our meeting invitations and videoconference details, so meeting announcements and coordination will be done via a dedicated email mailing list.

You can join or leave the This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. mailing list using the web interface at: https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/DIGI-PRES-REGISTRIES

When does the group meet?

We will run a one hour 'drop-in' videoconference on the first Thursday of every month. It will alternate between 0900 UK time and 2100 UK time, so folks from different timezones get a chance to attend. Connection information will be distributed by email before the meeting via the This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. mailing list mentioned above.

The first meeting will be on the 7th of March 2024. See here for more details.

Governance

Chair: Andrew Jackson

Deputy Chair: Paul Wheatley

Values

The WG is established under the auspices of the DPC Executive Board. As such it will adopt the constitution, norms and values of the DPC. Consequently, within the terms of reference it will:

• care for our members, resources, people and environment:
• maintain neutrality in respect to solutions, approaches, sectors, suppliers and vendors.
• be open, transparent and accountable to members.
• amplify the needs and successes of our members.
• be open to all stakeholders with a presumption of positive intent.
• respond to the needs of members in the delivery of services.
• be authoritative, current and concise in all our publications and communications.
• be respectful, welcoming, inclusive and transparent in all our dealings.
• be evidence-led, making effective use of data in decision making.

The WG will act on its values and be transparent with respect to how they are implemented.

The WG meets under the DPC’s Inclusion and Diversity policy. DPC is committed to being accessible to everyone who wishes to engage with the topic of digital preservation. Communities that fully embrace these values are shown to be more effective, innovative, and united. Therefore we expect participants to be positive, accepting, and sensitive to the needs and feelings of others. Harassment of any member of the vommunity will not be tolerated and appropriate steps will be taken to deal with any such issues. For more information, see the DPC Inclusion and Diversity Policy.

Conflicts of interest and confidentiality

In discussion focused meetings, any conflicts of interest should be declared at the start of each
meeting, particularly if a potential conflict relates to the provision of preservation services.
Participants are encouraged to raise any concerns about conflicts of interest with the event leader or
Chairs. In exceptional circumstances the focus of a specific meeting
agenda may raise the potential for a significant conflict of interest. In this case it may be necessary
to restrict meeting attendance.

Discussions relating to particular people, organizations or products should be treated confidentially.

Agenda

Each meeting will be advertised in advance.

Evaluation

The PR-SIG will be evaluated as part of the DPC’s overall and ongoing evaluation of its effectiveness.

The DPC's Supporters programme is open to those organizations who provide tools and services to the digital preservation community. An up-to-date list of Supporters and further details of our programme can be found here.

Supporters are typically very familiar with the procurement process - either through sitting on the opposite side of it, or by working alongside the organization who is procuring (for example as a consultant). Like you, they are keen that the process of procurement, and the steps that are taken once procurement is complete, are as painless and straightforward as possible.

The DPC provide regular opportunities for Members to hear from Supporters in our annual Digital Preservation Futures webinar series and Supporter panels. Look out for these in our events programme. You may also explore previous sessions by following the links below:

• A Supporter panel session held in October 2023 was called “So I’ve finally procured a digital preservation system, now what?”. During this event, Supporters gave lightening talks offering advice and thoughts on what makes a smooth implementation. A recording of this session is available on the event page here (DPC Members and Supporters log in to access this). 

• Jenny Mitcham also wrote up a top ten list of tips that emerged from the session above as a blog post - “So I’ve finally procured a digital preservation system, now what?”: Takeaways from DPC Supporter panel.

• In our latest Digital Preservation Futures Webinar Series (2023) each Supporter organisation introduced their digital preservation offering, before either inviting the reflections of a customer guest speaker or by discussing key issues related to DPC Member needs through a dialogue with DPC staff and attendees (DPC Members and Supporters log in to access this).

This section of the Procurement Toolkit describes 10 core requirements for a preservation system that can provide a starting point for requirements development or be used as tool for assessing current systems or as a communication tool.

The aim of this work is to simplify and enhance digital preservation system procurement for both the procurer and for 3rd parties responding to procurement exercises. Organizations procuring digital preservation systems may adopt these core requirements as a starting point and then focus on identifying additional functionalities important to them (perhaps specific to their own organizational context, types of content to be managed, existing technological landscape or certification route). This work may also be used as an educational tool, for example where a practitioner may need to communicate why a typical IT system might not meet the needs of long-term preservation.

• Core requirements for a preservation system ( download )

  • German Translation/deutsche übersetzung der Kernanforderungen für ein digitales Langzeitarchivierungssystem von Jens Ludwig, Bundesamtes für die Sicherheit der nuklearen Entsorgung (BASE) (download)

• Core requirements mapped to DPC RAM ( download )

• Core requirements worksheet ( download )

 These requirements have been created in conjunction with the UK Nuclear Decommissioning Authority.

Digital preservation is for everyone (on World Digital Preservation Day and everyday) by Elliott Bledsoe, Creative Commons

¿Por qué se celebra en noviembre el Día Mundial de la Preservación Digital? by Julián Marquina

PREMIS – one year after receiving the award by Karin Bredenberg, PREMIS Editorial Committee

Sometimes you get lucky by the Public Record Office Victoria

Celebrating World Digital Preservation Day (published in the Post) by Valerie Love, National Library of New Zealand

Diskovering Nostalgia: A 5.25-inch Floppy Tale by Leontien Talboom and Chris Knowles, Cambridge University Libraries

Preserving Your Digital Files 101 by Kathryn Slover, UTA Libraries

PRÉSERVER LES SOUVENIRS, UN PEU À LA FOIS : L’HISTOIRE DE FRED ET KRYOFLUX ! by Maryna Chernyavska

Happy World Digital Preservation Day! by Emma Hancox, University of Bristol

Celebrating World Digital Preservation Day: A short story about creating collections as data for both present and future use by Nele Gabriëls, Dirk Kinnaes, Hendrik Hameeuw and Bruno Vandermeulen, KU Leuven

World Digital Preservation Day 2023 by The Ohio State University

RCSI publishes historical Annual Reports of Council spanning more than a century of healthcare education by Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland

OAPEN books preserved with CLOCKSS by CLOCKSS

An introduction to digital preservation at the St John Archive by Sophie Denman, Museum of the Order of St John 

Cofnodion Llesiant Cenedlaethau’r Dyfodol yng Nghymru by Archifau Cymru / Archives Wales

Digital Preservation Day – Preserving Our Own Records  by Lynn Bruce, National Records of Scotland

Doe mee met de Werelddag van de Digitale Duurzaamheid by Noord Hollands Archief

Celebrating World Digital Preservation Day! by Microform

One big jigsaw: Challenges in disseminating 3D data from The Former Curzon Street Station Yard by Valeria carillo, Archaeology Data Service

De Werelddag van de digitale duurzaamheid gaat vandaag door by Netwerk Digitaal Erfgoed

Digital Preservation Day 2023 by the Digital Humanities Team, University of Exeter 

“Digital Preservation: A Concerted Effort”: ParER celebra #WDPD2023, il World Digital Preservation Day 2023 by ParER

A Day in the Life of a Digital Preservationist by Harvard Library Preservation Services

COMPOSITE FILE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM by Tyler Thorsted

Preserving our Digital Archives at the University of Surrey by Simon Mackley, University of Surrey

What's left of FOIA Online? by Ed Summers

The making of the WDPD2023 parody ‘De Bennies, Everlasting’ by Remco van Veenendaal

Vanishing publications: we hear from the experts working on the preservation of online scholarship by Deborah Thorpe

Moving Getty.edu “404-ward” With Help From The Internet Archive API by the J. Paul Getty Trust.

Open reel to open source: digital preservation of the UK’s videotape heritage by Michael Norman, BFI

Reframing the public’s relationship with the nation’s screen heritage by Arike Oke, BFI

Making the BFI National Archive the most open in the world? Start with open source by Joanna White, BFI

Binghamton University Libraries celebrate World Digital Preservation Day by Erin Rushton, Binghampton University, USA 

Finding the Proof of the PID Pudding by Alice Meadows, Josh Brown and Natasha Simons, Datacite

Let’s Keep It FAIR by Tuomas J. Alaterä, Tietoarkisto

6 ways automated digital preservation changes everything by Jon Tilbury, Preservica

World Digital Preservation Day 2022 by St George's Library, University of London

An Introduction to Digital Preservation by Teresa Wong, John M. Kelly Library, Toronto

Calling the OPF’s corporate archives and archivists! by Ross Spencer, Ravensburger AG for the OPF Blog

What next for Digital Preservation? 3 Takeaways from iPres 2022 by Simon Mackley, Swansea University

Building and Sustaining a Digital Preservation Program at NARA by Elizabeth England and Leslie Johnston, Digital Preservation, Office of the Deputy Archivist of the United States

Pause for Reflection by Claire Collins, Gloucestershire Archives 

Digital preservation scenarios by Simon Wilson

Wheel Out the Digital Dark Age Klaxon! by Johan van der Knijff

Digitale Archivierung und Recht by Annabel Walz, Friedrich Ebert Stiftung

Data for All for Good – Archiving Reproductive Health by Clare Lanigan and Dr Lorraine Grimes, Digital Repository of Ireland

Arguing the case for Digital Preservation: Are you a ‘passavist’? by Georgia Moppet, OPF

Transmettre et partager les actions de préservation numérique : l’initiative PAR (Preservation Action Registry) by Bertrand Caron, BnF and Dominique Naud, SIAF

FAIR-IMPACT on the World Digital Preservation Day by Maaike Verburg, DANS

A FILE FORMAT BY ANY OTHER PRONOM SIGNATURE by Edward Shaddow, Shaddow Library

Born-digital Literary Archives — How We’re Capturing the Future by Callum McKean, British Library

World Digital Preservation Day – Be the Yeast by Artefactual

Discovering the digital: Developing born digital access by Kathryn Steenson, University of Nottingham

World Digital Preservation Day 2022 by Vicky Holmes, University of Leicester

Starting with 3D Data: A 3D Data Book Sprint by University of Bristol Theatre Collection

• (Digital) Preservation first by Paul Stokes, Jisc

• World digital preservation day: bits and pieces by Paul Stokes, Jisc

• Tout transformer pour que rien ne change; La stratégie de préservation de la BnF face au PSD by Yannick Grandcolas on the OPF Blog

• How Digital Editions Break Down International Barriers: #WDPD2021 by Ellie Burnage, Exact Editions

• Digital Preservation starts at home – Thoughts of a Trainee Archivist - Worcestershire Archive & Archaeology Service (explorethepast.co.uk)

• No viruses or check-sum inconsistences at the Digital Preservation Party please: validating, verifying and transferring born digital architecture records by 

  Jemma Singleton, Team Valley Research Reserve at Newcastle University

• Web Archiving at UofSC – Happy World Digital Preservation Day! by Amie Freeman, University of South Carolina Libraries

• It’s All About Digital by the Archives and Records Association

• Digital Preservation on a Shoestring: Impossible? by Anthea Seles, International Council on Archives

• ‘The Queen of Crime’ – Ngaio Marsh by Ngā Taonga Sound & Vision 

• Preservación digital: construye tu archivo personal by Sandra Pérez, Universitat Oberta de Catalunya

• The preservation of Brazilian government websites by Mrs. Carolina Oliveira and Dr. Moises Rockembach on the ICA blog

• Getting Started in Digital Preservation: Taking Your First Steps by Sharon McMeekin, DPC on the ICA blog

• Unterschiedliche Welten – gleiche Herausforderungen: digitale Langzeitarchivierung in Bibliotheken und Archiven by Micky Lindlar, TIB

• Perils and pitfalls in Digital Archiving by Chris Knowles, Cambridge Churchill College

• UBalt Stories: an Oral History Project Celebrating the University Centennial by Laura Bell, University of Baltimore

• Saving the Bits in Wales by Sally McInnes, Chair, Archives and Records Management Digital Preservation Group 

• Byte by byte: Developing our digital preservation capability by Jaana Pinnick, British Geological Survey

• Natasha Young – our Bridging the Digital Gap Trainee, in her own words by Natasha Young, Gloucestershire Archives

• WDPD: Preservation Watch in the Time of Covid-19 by Yvonne Tunnat, nestor

• Broken Links und verlagspublikationen by ZB MED

• World Digital Preservation Day! Welttag der digitalen Erhaltung! by Annabel Walz, Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung

• Let’s do the Time Warp (through our archives) by Rosie Thorp, Historic Environment Scotland

We are very grateful to those people and organisations who have helped make translations of this resource available.

French

• Document translated by: UNESCO
• Document reviewed by: Valene Jouvert, British Library

Spanish

• Document translated by: UNESCO
• Document reviewed by: Mirerza González (University of Puerto Rico), Georgina Sanabria and Perla Olivia Rodriguez (Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México).

We are very grateful to those people and organisations who have helped make translations of this resource available.

French

• La traduction française a été réalisée en collaboration par la Cellule nationale de veille sur les formats, Valene Jouvet de la Bibliothèque Nationale du Royaume-Uni et révisée par Roxana Maurer de la Bibliothèque nationale du Luxembourg. Lancée en 2019, la Cellule nationale de veille sur les formats (CNVF), sous l’égide de l’association française Aristote et de son groupe de travail sur la Pérennisation de l’information numérique (PIN), regroupe à ce jour une dizaine de partenaires, principalement des institutions publiques nationales. Ces principaux objectifs sont la mutualisation des activités de veille sur les formats, la sensibilisation des professionnels sur le sujet, la contribution ou l’influence sur les outils associés. Elle ambitionne d’être un interlocuteur francophone reconnu dans les travaux internationaux sur ces sujets.

Japanese

• Document translated by: Akiko Kimura, British Library
• Document reviewed by: Etsuko Watanabe, National Archives of Japan

AVAILABLE TRANSLATIONS

Over the years, the DPC's work has included the production of many guides and reports which have supported the development of digital preservation tools and standards, as well as the professional community engaged in digital preservation. These resources have been produced in English although they are of universal relevance.

The creation of multi-lingual DPC material is therefore a vital way of supporting the digital preservation community across the world, and a key part of the DPC’s internationalization strategy. 

The DPC's  Translation Strategy  sets out our plans for identifying, translating and making available a set of DPC resources in different languages. It accompanies the Translations Policy which describes the essential practices and processes for the provision of translations.

Translations of DPC resources are made available thanks to the hard work and efforts of our multi-lingual digital preservation community, and we thank them very much.

For questions relating to translations; opportunities, uses, or improvements please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

This page provides definitions and explanations for anyone new to digital preservation who would like to take practical steps forward in sustaining their digital assets

I'm new to digital preservation, what is it?

The Digital Preservation Handbook provides the following definition:

Digital Preservation Refers to the series of managed activities necessary to ensure continued access to digital materials for as long as necessary  ...(digital preservation) refers to all of the actions required to maintain access to digital materials beyond the limits of media failure or technological and organisational change.

Without frequent attention, digital content is at the mercy of many different risks, such as :

• Rapid technological change may leave content unusable or unintelligable as the software that interprets it becomes obsolete.
• Without committed resources, the storage and management of digital content will not be possible.
• Organizational change might leave digital content without a committed custodian. Digital preservation requires a series of actions over time to ensure digital content remains alive, discoverable, accessible and usable.
• For more information see the DPC's Bit List of digitally endanged species.

Typical digital preservation activities to address these risks might include:

• Maintaining a register of digital content that records where data is stored, what it's purpose is and who is responsible for it
• Developing policy and process to guide the acquisition, preservation and provision of access to digital content
• Maintaining multiple copies of digital content to provide insurance against loss
• Frequently checking the integrity of digital content to ensure it has not decayed or become damaged
• Examining digital content to understand it's characteristics, assessing it for preservation risks and taking action to mitigate those risks

Digital preservation is usually delivered most effectively in a dedicated repository that provides specialist functionality to meet digital preservation requirements. However, the technology is only one piece of the puzzle. Getting effective organizational engagement and ensuring appropriate resourcing for the long-term, are often the biggest challenges.

Ultimately, digital preservation is about making an investment in properly managing digital assets with common sense, consistency and an attention to detail. Careful planning for digital preservation will safeguard your assets and avoid the need for costly intervention further down the line.

Read more in this two page primer: What is digital preservation?

Why does digital preservation matter?

Vast amounts of information are produced as a matter of course during our daily lives. Some of it is temporary or transient, but much has a longer term value. Without attention it may be lost, incurring costs in it's regeneration or preventing it's future value from being realised. Digital assets might be cultural - data that enriches our lives. They might be the record of scientific research, where there is significant benefit in being able to share, reproduce, verify and build on past work. They could take the form of business data that can drive forward revenue generation. They might be the record of government, where the statements of our political representatives are part of the public record. Or they might just be the digital information we create as part of our own lives, from our holiday snaps to our email and social media conversations. Preserving this digital record has the potential to enrich our lives, to advance science, to support the economy, to underpin democracy and hold politicians to account, and to ensure our personal digital lives can be passed on to the next generation.

Read more in the Digital Preservation Handbook: Why digital preservation matters.

Find out how to communicate what digital preservation is to senior managment.

What about digitisation, is it the same thing?

No! Digital preservation typically refers to the preservation of digital content over time. Digitisation is a related discipline that focuses on creating digital content from non-digital mediums, such as paper or analogue sound recordings. This is quite an involved process in itself, with it's own dedicated best practice (for example see Impact). Note however that when creating new digital content, it's important to plan for how it will be preserved over time. A common mistake with many digitisation activities has been a lack of forward thinking and planning for maintaining and sustaining the results of these activities.

How do I get started in digital preservation?

Getting started in digital preservation is not straightforward! It's a complex and multi-faceted challenge and can be overwhelming. But help is at hand, and these are some suggestions on where to start:

1. The DPC's Digital Preservation Handbook is the ultimate guide to digital preservation, providing primers on all the key topics and a multitude of links to further information. It's the best place to begin to learn about digital preservation good practice and begin taking some small practical steps forward.
2. Developing your digital preservation capability will be a challenging journey, so it's important to get your bearings and set off in the right direction! Resources may be limited, so good prioritisation will be essential. Measuring your maturity and setting realistic goals will help immensely. The DPC's Rapid Assessment Model can help you do this in no time at all.
3. Engaging across an organization and getting them onboard with digital preservation can be a real challenge. What language should you use? How do you engage senior management effectively? How do you put together a digital preservation policy? The DPC's guide to internal advocacy is a great place to start, along with our Executive Guide and Digital Preservation Policy Toolkit.
4. You've got your organisation on board and you've established a preservation policy, now you need a digital repository to store, manage, preserve and provide access to your digital content. But what are your requirements, and how do you navigate the market place to find the right product for your needs? Check out the DPC Procurement Toolkit.
5. It's widely acknowledged that no single person or organization can tackle all of the digital preservation challenges on their own. Engaging with and drawing on the support of the wider community is going to be essential. The Digital Preservation Coalition provides a friendly and knowledgeable community of over a hundred organizations. Find out more about joining the DPC.