# Presentation: 098143

##      	The Alabama Digital 	Preservation Network 	(ADPNet)

- A statewide private LOCKSS network
- Aaron Trehub, Auburn University Libraries
- NDIIPP Partners Meeting
- Washington, D.C.
- July 8-10, 2008

##      Objective

- To create a low-cost, low-maintenance, sustainable, geographically distributed digital preservation network for libraries, archives, and museums in Alabama.

##      Background

- ADPNet inspired by Auburn’s experience with Library of Congress-funded NDIIPP MetaArchive Project
- ADPNet supported by an IMLS grant: September 2006 through September 2008
- Grant awarded to and administered by Alabama Council on Higher Education/Network of Alabama Academic Libraries in Montgomery
- Project director at Auburn University Libraries
- Commitments from seven institutions across the state

##      The seven participating institutions

- Alabama Dept. of Archives and History (Montgomery, AL)
- Auburn University (Auburn, AL)
- Spring Hill College (Mobile, AL)
- Troy University (Troy, AL)
- University of Alabama (Tuscaloosa, AL)
- University of Alabama at Birmingham
- University of North Alabama (Florence, AL)

##      The network

- ADPNet is a Private LOCKSS Network (PLN)
- “Dark” archive: for preservation ONLY, not access or display
- Uses off-the-shelf equipment and software
- LOCKSS servers (“nodes”) at all seven participating institutions
- Each institution maintains its LOCKSS server
- Each institution contributes content for harvesting and archiving by the network
- Runs on sweat equity, with help from LOCKSS staff

##      Why Alabama?

- Hurricanes
- Tornadoes
- Growing number of rich digital collections (e.g. _[AlabamaMosaic](http://www.alabamamosaic.org/)_)
- Modest financial resources
- Uneven technical support
- Ideal test case for geographically distributed digital preservation network

##      Why LOCKSS?

- Familiar with it (through the NDIIPP MetaArchive project)
- Simple and robust
- Cheap (except for membership in LOCKSS Alliance—more on that later)
- Excellent technical support
- Know it works

##      Costs

- Servers: LOCKSS server and Web server (for making content available to the network)
- Staff time: less than we anticipated
- Communication: e-mail listserv, weekly conference calls, some meetings
- Some travel: mostly in-state
- The biggie: annual LOCKSS Alliance membership fee. Supports LOCKSS software development and technical support

##      ADPNet cached content 

- ADPNet currently contains 35 collections (“archival units”) from five of the seven member institutions
- Approximately 250 gigabytes harvested
- Network capacity: one terabyte, soon to be upped to 1.5 terabytes
- Plenty of room for more collections
- More collections on the way, including audio and video files

##      ADPNet administration

- ADPNet is a single-state network
- Folded into existing administrative infrastructure: Alabama Commission on Higher Education/Network of Alabama Academic Libraries (NAAL)
- Not a service organization
- No membership fees—but LOCKSS Alliance membership mandatory
- In-kind contribution: bring up and run a LOCKSS node in the network—with exception for smaller institutions
- Governance document in the works

##      	ADPNet digital preservation              	awareness survey

- Sent to academic and public libraries, archives, schools, and state and municipal offices in Alabama in February 2008
- 79 responses: public libraries largest single group of respondents
- Most important decision factors: reliability (91 percent), expertise and support (88 percent), cost (86 percent), staffing (84 percent), and preservation of mission-critical collections (84 percent)
- Most people learn about new initiatives from conferences and colleagues, so focus on those

##      Achievements

- ADPNet is the first single-state private LOCKSS network in the U.S.
- Appears to be serving as a model for other states and consortia
- Similar networks being built by the Arizona State Library and a consortium of Canadian academic libraries
- Presentations at Alabama Library Association, Best Practices Exchange, and LITA national forum

##      Lessons learned

- Keep it simple
- Keep it cheap
- Don’t get fancy
- Aim for low maintenance and low administrative overhead
- Take advantage of existing structures and relationships (easier to do with a single-state network)

##      The future

- Add more content to the network
- Recruit more member institutions, including public libraries, museums, and other cultural heritage organizations
- Develop partnerships with other PLNs
- Spread the word

##       For more information...

ADPNet: http://adpn.org/
LOCKSS: http://www.lockss.org/
MetaArchive: http://www.metaarchive.org/

Aaron Trehub
Auburn University Libraries
trehuaj@auburn.edu
(334) 844-1716

- ADPNet: _[http://adpn.org/](http://adpn.org/)_
- LOCKSS: _[http://](http://www.lockss.org/)__[www.lockss.org](http://www.lockss.org/)__[/](http://www.lockss.org/)_
- MetaArchive: _[http://www.metaarchive.org/](http://www.metaarchive.org/)_
- Aaron Trehub
- Auburn University Libraries
- trehuaj@auburn.edu
- (334) 844-1716