OAISmallin

OAISmallin is a fictional open-source project created to illustrate concepts within the Open Archival Information System (OAIS) framework for digital preservation. It models an archival ingest and preservation workflow with emphasis on clarity and educational value.

In its model, OAISmallin represents the core OAIS concepts of Submission Information Packages (SIPs), Archival Information Packages (AIPs), and Dissemination Information Packages (DIPs). The project demonstrates fixity checks, metadata capture, preservation description information, and policy-driven preservation actions.

Architecture and interoperability: The design is modular, comprising a core ingest service, a metadata registry, a storage abstraction layer, and a policy engine. It references standards such as PREMIS for metadata, and packaging formats like BagIt or METS, illustrating how an OAIS-compliant system can interoperate with real-world archives.

Role and reception: As a teaching tool, OAISmallin is cited in academic materials and talks to explain OAIS concepts. It is not intended as a production system, but rather to support reproducible demonstrations of ingest workflows and preservation planning.

Related topics include the OAIS reference model, PREMIS, BagIt, and METS; OAISmallin serves as a conceptual aid rather than a deployed solution.