Workflow:LAC Pre-Ingest Workflow

LAC Pre-Ingest Workflow
Status:	Draft
Tools:	7-Zip DROID (Digital Record Object Identification) Md5summer Quick View Plus Safecopy TreeSize fsum
Input:	Born digital content transferred to Library and Archives Canada
Output:	Pre-ingest report
Organisation:	Library and Archives Canada

Workflow Description

1. Review Digital Transfer Assessment Form (DTAF) and provide strategic advice to acquiring staff on potential challenges for pre-ingest, archival processing, and long-term digital preservation
2. Transfer the content
3. Ensure that the content has a persistent identifier (e.g., Registration Control Number; barcode for containers where physical storage media are stored)
4. Confirm security classification of records and infrastructure that is required for processing information at this level of classification
5. Create a processing workspace on the Pre-ingest server (or classified infrastructure). Note: The Pre-ingest server is a server location where processing workspaces are organized by a standardized directory structure
6. Ensure that all appropriate metadata and metadata generating templates are copied to the processing workspace (MET subfolder)
7. Complete a physical carrier inventory documenting all physical storage media involved in the transfer. Media must be numbered sequentially (e.g. "01" or "001").
8. Review and complete Digital Processing Checklist
9. Write protect physical media when possible
10. Insert into drive/attach to computer/anti-virus software (LAC network network will automatically scan for viruses; if a virus is detected, do not copy the data and document the virus in the Pre-ingest Report
11. Review file format/directory structure of physical media at a high level
12. If interactive CD/DVD content or authored AV content is detected, do not perform pre-ingest for the physical carriers containing that content. Follow workflow for authored AV content. Document this in the Physical Carrier Inventory spreadsheet
13. Create sub-folders for physical media on the Pre-ingest server. If a physical carrier is blank or unreadable, do not create a subfolder for it
14. Copy the content to the Pre-ingest server using SafeCopy. If issues occur, troubleshoot via SafeCopy or other checksum software like Fsum or MD5summer
15. For any content that is unreadable, send to Digital Preservation for extraction. Record this in Physical Carrier Inventory
16. Use TreeSize Pro to create a digital object listing of all digital objects successfully copied to LAC infrastructure
17. Run DROID on the entire registration and create a DROID export (*.CSV) for all content
18. Start populating the Pre-Ingest Report. Record Pre-Ingest volume, number of files, and number of folders
19. Weed transitory objects (temporary files, system files, configuration files, Thumbs.db, program files) that are not required to render the information of long-term value
20. In the Pre-Ingest Report, record if viruses were detected as part of the virus scan
21. If authored Audio or video files are present, add a note that content must be processed according to a separate AV workflow.
22. Non-authored AV material (i.e. unstructured AV material that has been copied to the Pre-Ingest server)can be processed in the same manner as other digital records.
23. Use TreeSize Pro to identify:
24. (sub-bullet)Duplicated records existing within the corpus. Note existence of duplicate records to be addressed as part of archival processing.
25. (sub-bullet)Container files. Extract any container files identified using software like WinZip.
26. (sub-bullet)Email file formats. Identified email files may require a stand alone workflow for processing
27. (sub-bullet)Data file formats.
28. (sub-bullet)Database file formats
29. (sub-bullet)Website file formats. Consult with the Web-Archives and Social Media Program.
30. (sub-bullet)zero bytes files. Use TreeSize Pro to move zero byte files into disposition folder.
31. (sub-bullet)long file paths.
32. (sub-bullet)empty folders.

Purpose, Context and Content

Pre-ingest is the technological review of digital records transferred to LAC. It involves technical appraisal using multiple software tools to automate the process. The goal of pre-ingest is to aid in creating a SIP that conforms to LAC’s preservation policies and that which LAC has a reasonable success of preserving in its repository and making accessible for the long-term.

There are two major tasks for pre-ingest:

1. Weed any digital records that should not have transferred in the first place (i.e. computer files that are configuration, developmental, temporary, software files etc.).
2. Identify file format or other issues that need addressing prior to or during appraisal/selection/description by archival staff.