Digital stewardship services for long-term digital content at GW Libraries
GW Libraries’ Digital Stewardship Services provides long-term preservation of selected unique, rare, and institutionally-created digital materials, such as student and faculty research products, University records of enduring value, and specialized cultural heritage collections. These include born-digital and digitized materials.
GW Libraries has committed to preserving and providing access to this carefully selected set of digital materials over the long term. Commitments are the result of strategic resource planning that balances the benefits of providing engaging, rich access for today’s users with key investments to support access for future users.
Through its digital stewardship commitments, GW Libraries offers several tiers of preservation services, depending on the source, format, historical value, access restrictions associated with the material.
Tier 2
Copies:
1 Copy + Preservation-grade Backups
Storage:
Storage hardware is regularly monitored and updated.
File checks:
Every file receives a digital fingerprint that is regularly monitored for changes.
Content Types:
Cultural heritage material, digitizedCultural heritage material, deposited through upload, file transfer, or readable hard drivesGW organizational records of enduring historical value (University Archives)
Tier 1
Copies:
1 Copy + Business-grade Backups
Storage:
Storage hardware is regularly monitored and updated.
File checks:
Files receive digital fingerprints, which are checked on an as-needed basis.
Content Types:
Electronic Theses and DissertationsGW scholarly works by faculty, researchers and/or staff
Tier 0
Copies:
1 Copy (on original storage media)
Storage:
Not regularly monitored
File checks:
No file checks
Content Types:
Cultural heritage material deposited on obsolete storage media (such as floppy disks and CDs)