Supporting Digital Preservation and Access with Fedora

Abstract

Digital preservation is complex, and the vocabulary is not well-defined. A long-term digital preservation and access strategy incorporates many components, and there are levels of preservation to match the risk tolerance and available resources of an institution - there is no “one size fits all” approach. Digital preservation systems with modular components provide the greatest flexibility for organizations to choose an approach that can scale up or down as needed over time. Fedora is an open source, durable repository for digital objects, that is part of a long-term digital preservation and access solution. Fedora is used in a wide variety of institutions including libraries, museums, archives, and government organizations. It is a community-based solution that leverages existing, widely used standards whenever possible to ensure long-term sustainability. Fedora stakeholders from around the world have come together to clearly define how Fedora supports digital preservation, and how it fits into a larger digital preservation solution. This paper will provide an overview of the considerations and complexities of a digital preservation strategy, and describe how Fedora can serve as a key component of a digital preservation and access solution.