Overview: All digital content lives in some kind of computer storage, whether internal or external. One of the objectives of digital preservation is to ensure that digital content is preserved (understandable, readable, available) across generations of technology. There have been organizations preserving digital content - in particular national archives and data archives with a mandate to do so - since computers could store content beginning in the 1960s.
An emerging community standard, the Digital Preservation Storage Criteria, In the context of the TDL Decision Tree project, the DP Storage Criteria provide a community-based resource to assist TDL members and the broader DP community to understand DP storage and to make optimal use of available storage options.
The DP Storage Criteria have been iteratively developed since 2015 as a result of the first DP community discussion about DP storage that convened at 2015 iPres in Chapel Hill NC. The DP Storage Criteria team did a light launch of version 4 of the DP storage Criteria at iPres 2023 with the intention of sharing the final version of the Criteria prior to iPres 2024. Full disclosure: Nance McGovern convened the 2015 community discussion as the iPres program co-chair that year and has been a member of the DP Storage Criteria team since.
The possible uses of the Criteria include (excerpt from current version):
Evaluating and comparing Preservation Storage solutions
Determining gap areas in existing Preservation Storage implementations
Informing more detailed requirements for Preservation Storage
As a component of instructional materials on digital preservation
To seed discussions with IT and other relevant parts of an organization about Preservation Storage
To seed discussions within the digital preservation field on Preservation Storage
What is Preservation Storage? This excerpt from the DP Storage Criteria addresses the scope of DP Storage:
“Preservation Storage can be considered, in part, within the context of the ISO OAIS Reference Model (CCSDS, 2015). In this context, Preservation Storage covers the same functions as the OAIS functional entity “archival storage”, as well as the parts of other OAIS functional entities which are needed to store, maintain in storage, and retrieve from storage, Archival Information Packages or AIPs (Zierau & McGovern, 2014). For example:
Parts of “Preservation Planning” concerned with monitoring technology for storage and bit preservation solutions and practices, media migrations, agreement changes, and the organization and technology needed to fulfil preservation policies at the storage level; and
Parts of “Data Management” that ensure a relationship between preserved data and identification of the data (metadata); and
Parts of “Administration” concerned with policies and standards that relates to preservation at the storage level; and
Parts of “Ingest” concerned with the coordination of updates of different data replica at the storage level.
In addition to the context provided by the ISO OAIS Reference Model, Preservation Storage can be considered in terms of:
The evolving technological environment and supporting organization; and
The evolving set of common understandings about digital preservation.”
The Digital Preservation Storage Criteria Game is a great - and fun way to learn about and use the DP Storage Criteria. Consider planning a DP gameroom event!
In addition to providing a practical and engaging resource to assist TDL members and the broader DP community to preserve their digital collections, ensuring that TDL members are able to make the best use of the DP storage services and options that TDL provides has been a motivation for the TDL Decision Tree partnership with the DPM Workshop. See online information about S3 and glacier storage options and contact TDL for more information and guidance.
Question for your team/organization: How does TDL DP Storage address your needs? Contact TDL [fill in how] for more information and assistance.
Sources: Informed by the development and launch of Comprehensive Digital Preservation Services (CDPS) using approaches developed by and for the Digital Preservation Management (DPM) Workshop: DP Management Tools. See [fill in] for additional information, examples, and current information.
Related Resources:
DP Storage Criteria Use Examples -Infrastructure Design: MIT Example
Supporting the Analysis and Audit of Collaborative OAIS’s Using an Outer OAIS-Inner OAIS (OO-IO) Model by Eld Zierau and Nancy McGovern, 2014 iPres Proceedings p. 209-218.
This is a joint initiative between TDL Digital Preservation Services and the Digital Preservation Management (DPM) Workshop and Global Archivist LLC. Dr. Nance McGovern 2024.