[Irtalk] Using Cloud Infrastructure as Part of a Digital Preservation Strategy with DuraCloud

[Smith, Ina <ismith@sun.ac.za>]

Of interest for those working on a digital preservation strategy for their organizations:

http://www.educause.edu/EDUCAUSE%2BQuarterly/EDUCAUSEQuarterlyMagazineVolum/UsingCloudInfrastructureasPart/206548

Key features of the software enable users to:

Transparently push content to multiple third-party storage providers. This allows organizations to take advantage of cost-effective Internet-based storage, using the DuraCloud software to send content to one or more underlying cloud storage providers.
Use value-added services. The DuraCloud platform adds value to what the underlying storage providers offer, with a particular focus on services that enable longevity of content and facilitate flexible use and reuse. These services are provided as a menu from which users can choose services to implement. Services planned include:
Preservation support: Replication, file format transformation, and bit integrity checking.
Access and reuse: Image viewing and editing, video streaming and editing, and faceted browse and search.
Leverage open-source technologies. DuraCloud is being built as open-source software, keeping with the open-source principles promoted by both Fedora Commons and DSpace. Core DuraCloud software components will be released as open source in the Summer of 2010.
Choose hosted or run-your-own. The DuraSpace organization plans to run the DuraCloud platform software as a service. Since it is built on open-source technologies, others can pick up the service and run local instances to create their own hybrid cloud or cloud consortium network.