Setting up the ERM Module in Koha

The Electronic Resources Module

Setting up the ERM

To enable the ERM in Koha, navigate to Administration > System preferences > E-resource management. There will be four system preferences.
  1. ERMModule - when set to Enable, the e-resource management module will be active for staff.
  2. ERMProviderEbscoApiKey - this preference will hold the API key for EBSCO HoldingsIQ. You can contact your EBSCO support team member to find this information.
  3. ERMProviderEbscoCustomerID - enter the Customer ID for EBSCO HoldingsIQ in this system preference.
  4. ERMProviders - this preference allows you to customize what type of providers you will be engaging in the module. You can connect via an API key directly to EBSCO's global knowledge base via their HoldingsIQ tool or create local packages right within the ERM. This preference can be selected for EBSCO, Local, or both.
Once these system preferences are set, your new ERM module button will appear on the main page!


Customizing the ERM - Authorized Values

Once the ERM is enabled, ERM fields can be customized using authorized values. You may want to wait to customize some of these fields until you familiarize yourself with the ERM.
  1. Navigate to Administration > Basic parameters > Authorized values
  2. There are currently 11 different values you can customize. Below we will list the options with the default values: 
    1. ERM_AGREEMENT_CLOSURE_REASON - Close reasons for agreements (e-resource management module)
      1. cancelled
      2. expired
    2. ERM_AGREEMENT_LICENSE_LOCATION - Locations of the licenses' agreements (e-resource management module)
      1. cupboard
      2. filing_cabinet
    3. ERM_AGREEMENT_LICENSE_STATUS - Statuses of the licenses' agreements (e-resource management module)
      1. controlling
      2. future
      3. history
    4. ERM_AGREEMENT_RENEWAL_PRIORITY - Renewal priorities of agreements (e-resource management module)
      1. cancel
      2. for_review
      3. renew
    5. ERM_AGREEMENT_STATUS - Statuses of agreements (e-resource management module)
      1. active
      2. closed
      3. in_negotiation
    6. ERM_LICENSE_STATUS - Statuses of the licenses (e-resource management module)
      1. active
      2. expired
      3. in_negotiation
      4. not_yet_active
      5. rejected
    7. ERM_LICENSE_TYPE - Types of the licenses (e-resource management module)
      1. alliance
      2. consortial
      3. local
      4. national
    8. ERM_PACKAGE_CONTENT_TYPE - Content type of the packages (e-resource management module)
      1. AbstractAndIndex
      2. AggregatedFullText
      3. EBook
      4. EJournal
      5. Mixed Content
      6. OnlineReference
      7. Print
      8. StreamingMedia
      9. Unknown
    9. ERM_PACKAGE_TYPE - Types of the packages (e-resource management module)
      1. complete
      2. local
    10. ERM_TITLE_PUBLICATION_TYPE - Publication types of the titles (e-resource management module)
      1. audiobook
      2. book
      3. bookseries
      4. database
      5. ebook
      6. journal
      7. newsletter
      8. newspaper
      9. proceedings
      10. report
      11. streamingaudio
      12. streamingvideo
      13. thesisdissertation
      14. unspecified
      15. website
    11. ERM_USER_ROLES - Roles for users (e-resource management module)
      1. librarian
      2. subject_specialist

Staff Access

Access to the ERM is controlled by a permission. This permission can be set in the patron account for staff.
  1. Once in the staff member's account, click ‘More’ and choose ‘Set permissions’ to adjust the staff member's permissions.
  2. If they are not a superlibrarian, select the checkbox for Manage the electronic resources module (erm)
  3. Click save

EBSCO

The eHoldings within Koha allow integration to connect directly with the EBSCO Knowledge Base enabling staff to manage resources held in the EBSCO HoldingsIQ. This does require a subscription to EBSCO's HoldingsIQ. If your library has a subscription with EBSCO then staff will want to check the EBSCO checkbox in the ERMProviders system Preference. In order to set up the API connection with EBSCO eHoldings, staff will need to enable the 2 system preferences to activate the EBSCO connection.

ERMProviderEbscoApiKey - API key provided by EBSCO
ERMProviderEbscoCustomerID - customer ID

Searching Titles and Packages

Once this connection is set up staff will be able to search titles and packages within their EBSCO subscription in Koha. These titles are not stored in the Koha database. This integration just provides the same experience for staff through Koha in the same way you would if you were using EBSCOadmin.

This API connection works both ways between Koha <-> EBSCO. If a staff member makes a change in EBSCO, it will appear in Koha. And if the staff member makes a change in Koha, it will appear in EBSCO.


Tutorial Videos for setting up the ERM


 

Agreements

Navigate to E-resource management > Agreements > Add agreement
  1. There are 3 important fields, 2 of which are required:
    1. Agreement Name - name of the agreement
    2. Description - enter a detailed description here for what the agreement applies to
    3. Status - the current status of the agreement. Staff can customize the options shown in this dropdown from the 'ERM_AGREEMENT_STATUS' in Administration > Authorized values (Read More)
  2. Staff can also add a vendor, which pulls from your vendor list in the Acquisitions module
  3. Next, Staff can identify the following fields:
    1. Closure reason - if your Status dropdown is set to Closed, then this field will have drop-down options for Canceled or Expired. If the status is set to Active or In Negotiations, then the field will be grayed out. Staff can customize these fields in the 'ERM_AGREEMENT_CLOSURE_REASON' authorized values (Read More)
    2. Perpetual - Yes or No radio buttons (this is set if your library has post-cancellation access and continuing access after the electronic material is no longer accessible or your license has lapsed)
    3. Renewal Period - default values are: Cancel, For review, or Renew. These periods can be customized in the 'ERM_AGREEMENT_RENEWAL_PRIORITY' authorized values (Read More)
    4. License info - basic information about the license that the agreement is associated with

Periods

Periods can be defined for the time the agreement is active. When the duration of the agreement is up, staff can create a new agreement period. This allows staff to look back and plan for the future of the agreement with the vendor. For example, if an agreement is something the library plans to have for years, the agreement can track all historical data for reference.
  1. Click the Add new period button
  2. Enter a start date using the date picker
  3. Define an end date, if known, using the date picker
  4. If a cancellation deadline is provided, enter the date
  5. Notes are an optional, free text field

Users

Within this part of the agreement, staff can connect a librarian, staff member, or subject liaison who is involved in managing the agreement. Staff accounts with the 'erm' patron permission selected will show in the search when selecting the user.
  1. Click Add new user
  2. Click Select user
  3. Enter the name in the search field or browse by last name to select a staff member
  4. In the patron search results table, click the action button "Select" to add the user to the agreement
  5. Under the Role dropdown, you can add information about how they will work with the agreement. Staff can define the 'Role' dropdown in the ERM_USER_ROLES authorized values
  6. You can add multiple users by clicking on +Add new user

Licenses

When creating an agreement you can link to a pre-existing license.
  1. Click Add new license
  2. License - this dropdown will show any pre-existing licenses in the Licensing section
  3. Status - define the status of the License. Staff can customize these fields in the 'ERM_AGREEMENT_LICENSE_STATUS' in authorized values. (Read More)
  4. Physical location - if you have a physical copy of the license stored somewhere you can define its location. Staff can customize these fields in the 'ERM_AGREEMENT_LICENSE_LOCATION' in authorized values.
  5. Notes - free text field pertaining to the agreement and license
  6. URI - if the license is online staff can enter a url to link out to the license

Related Agreements & Documents

Related agreements allow staff to link to an existing agreement in the system.
  1. Click Add new related agreement
  2. Related agreement - dropdown will link to any existing agreement in the system
  3. Relationship - will provide a dropdown of options on how they are related (this is not an editable dropdown connected to authorized values).
  4. Notes - free test field for any additional information about the related agreement
The Documents section allows staff to attach PDFs or other useful documents containing communications between your library and the vendor about the agreement.
  1. Click Add new document
  2. Select a file by clicking Choose File
  3. Options for entering additional information include:
    1. Physical location - free text field
    2. URI - free text field
    3. Notes - free text field
Finally, click Submit when finished to save the agreement!

Searching for Agreements


Staff can search and filter when looking for an Agreement.
  1. Selecting the checkbox for Filter by expired will show staff agreements that expired before the current date. Alternatively, staff could select a date using the date picker to find any agreements expiring before a specific date.
  2. Staff can search within the agreements table by using the search box. This function works just like it would when you are receiving items in Acquisitions (for example). This search will filter agreements by the text or phrase as staff starts typing into the search box.
  3. In addition, staff can use the table columns to filter results. The second row of the agreement table contains text search boxes and dropdown fields. Staff can choose any of the dropdowns to activate the columns filtering. For example, by selecting the Closure reason, staff can select canceled or expired to identify the reason. Alternatively, they could use the description search under the description column to identify an agreement. 

Tutorial Video on Agreements in the ERM Module:



Licenses

The Licenses module in Koha's ERM helps a library organize information about resource licensing to ensure they are complying with their agreements.

Creating a License

Navigate to E-resource management > Licenses
  1. Click + New license
  2. Required fields
    1. License name - the name of the license
    2. Description - free text field to expand on the license
    3. Type - this dropdown identifies the type of license. The default options inculde Alliance, Consortial, Local, and National. These can be customized in the 'ERM_LICENSE_TYPE' authorized value. (Read More)
    4. Status - this dropdown will notify the user of the status, the default options include Active, Expired, In negotiation, Not yet active, and Rejected. These dropdown options can be customized in the 'ERM_LICENSE_STATUS' authorized value. (Read More)
  3. Additional fields
    1. Vendor - this will pull from your list of vendors in the Acquisitions module
  4. Users (staff can connect a librarian, staff member, or subject liaison who is involved in managing the license)
    1. Click + Add new user
    2. Enter the name in the search field or browse by last name to select a staff member.
    3. Click the actions button Select to add the user to the license.
      1. Using the Role dropdown, you can add information about how they will work with the license. Staff can define values for the Role dropdown in the ERM_USER_ROLES authorized value. (Read More)
    4. Multiple users can be added to a license
  5. Documents - upload the license document to Koha
    1. Click + Add new document
    2. Select a file by clicking Choose file
    3. Options for entering additional information include
      1. Physical location - free text field
      2. URI - free text field
      3. Notes - free text field
Finally, click submit when finished to save the License.

Searching for Licenses

Staff can search and filter when looking for licenses:
  1. Staff can search within the licenses table by using the Search box. This works just like you would search when you are receiving items in Acquisitions, for example. This search will filter licenses by the text or phrase when staff starts typing into the Search box.
  2. Additionally, staff can use the table columns to filter results. The second row of the licenses table contains text search boxes and dropdown fields. Staff can choose any of the dropdowns to activate filtering of the columns. For example, by selecting the Type, staff can select Alliance, Consortial, Local, and National to identify the type of license they are looking for. Alternatively, they could use the Description search under the Description column to identify a license.

Tutorial Video on Licenses within the ERM Module

​​​​​

eHoldings

Local holdings are electronic resources stored in the Koha database. These holdings are all other electronic resources from vendors that have a bibliographic record in Koha and are searchable in the Koha catalog

Local eHoldings

Local eHoldings are electronic resources stored in the Koha database. These are all other electronic resources from other vendors that have a bibliographic record in Koha and are searchable in the Koha catalog. This option enables staff to add electronic resources for any streaming titles, ebooks, electronic magazines, databases, websites, or electronic services they subscribe to. If your library does not have EBSCO, you can add all other electronic resources here. 

For this option, the system preference ERMProviders must be configured to include Local.

Creating Local eHoldings Titles and Packages

Remember, local holdings are created and stored in the Koha database. MARC records can be uploaded in bulk using the Stage Records for Import tool or users can create bibliographic records for your titles.

Tip: Staff can automatically create a bibliographic record in Koha for a title using the data entered into the ERM module when they create local packages before local titles. Staff can link the titles to the packages created (this auto-creates the title).

Local Package

  1. Navigate to E-Resource management > eHoldings > Local > Packages
  2. Click + New package
    1. Enter the Package name (required)
    2. Vendor - pulls vendor data from the Acquisitions module
    3. Select the Type (default is complete or local). This can be customized in the Authorized value for ERM_PACKAGE_TYPE (read more)
    4. Select the Content type. These values can be customized in the Authorized value for ERM_PACKAGE_CONTENT_TYPE (read more)
    5. Notes - free text field
  3. Click + Add new agreement
    1. The dropdown will display any agreements created in the ERM module for staff to select from
  4. Click Submit

Local Title

  1. Navigate to E-resource management > eHoldings > Local > Titles
  2. Click + New Title
    1. Enter a Publication title (required)
    2. Staff can choose from over 20 additional fields to uniquely identify that title in the system
  3. Click + Add to another package to select from a list of previously created packages
  4. Staff will now be able to see the local title they have created in the Koha catalog. When clicking on the local title, they will see a link for Local bibliographic record. This will take them to the bibliographic record created in Koha
    1. Staff can edit the bibliographic record to identify the correct itemtype in the record (942$c)
Koha will map the KBART metadata to MARC21 through the fields outlined in the Koha Manual.

Adding Local Titles in Bulk with Lists

Staff can batch load eholdings into the Koha ERM using the Stage Records for Import tool to batch load the records.
  1. Navigate to Cataloging > Stage Records for Import
  2. Import a File of Records into Koha (follow the tutorial for first time users)
  3. Navigate to Lists
  4. Click + New List
  5. Add the biblionumbers of the imported bibliographic records to a new local titles list.
  6. Navigate to E-Resource management > eHoldings > Local > Titles
  7. Click + Import from list
  8. Select from the dropdown menu the local package you want the new local titles to be added to
  9. Below the local package you will see a list of "lists"
  10. Under the actions column select Import to bring the file of titles into the package

Add Local Titles in Bulk with KBART Import

Staff can batch load eholdings into the Koha ERM using a KBART (Knowledge Base and Related Tools) file obtained from a vendor to batch load records.


KBART files must be in the .tsv or .csv file format. If a vendor sends you the file in the .txt format, you should be able to convert it to a .csv file using a spreadsheet editor of your choice.  


  • Navigate to E-Resource management > eHoldings > Local > Titles

  • Click + Import from KBART file

  • Select from the dropdown menu the local package you want the new local titles to be added to


Koha will only recognize columns that align with the KBART Recommended Practice prepared by NISO. 


Key fields (but not limited to):


Column Title

Description

publication_title

The journal or eBook’s title

title_url

URL for the title

print_identifier

ISBN or ISSN

online_identifier

eISBN or eISSN

date_first_issue_online

Date of first serial issue available online

num_first_vol_online

Number of first volume available online

num_first_issue_online

Number of first issue available online

date_last_issue_online

Date of last issue available online

num_last_vol_online

Number of last volume available online

num_last_issue_online

Number of last issue available online


Tutorial Video: Local Holdings in the ERM


Usage Statistics

The Usage Statistics option within the E-Resource Management Module will allow libraries to upload COUNTER 5 Usage Statistics reports or connect to vendors via a SUSHI connection, as well as run reports on this data all within Koha.

There are two components to the Usage Statistics feature within the E-Resource Management Module:
  1. Data Providers
  2. Reports
Data Providers: These are your COUNTER-compliant platforms (provided by the publisher). Here is a link to the COUNTER Registry. This registry will include the report types each publisher provides and the credential information.

Reports- COUNTER

  1. PRx-Platform - Platform reports provide a summary of activity on a given platform
  2. DRx- Database - Database reports provide a summary of activity related to a given database or fixed collection of content that this packaged like a database
  3. Tx-Title - Title reports provide a summary of activity related to the content at the title level and provide a means of evaluating the impact a title has on an institution's patrons
  4. IRx-Item - Item Reports provide a summary of activity related to the content at the item level and provide a means of evaluating the impact an item has on an institution's patrons
Note: At this time, the Usage Statistics report module does not support COUNTER 4 reports.

Data Providers

When creating a new data provider, there are some required fields that will need to be entered.

Report Types - which reports would the library like to target with this provider? The reports that the publisher can provide are listed on the COUNTER Registry page, linked above.


The data provider detail page displays tabs at the top that will bring the user to the data (once it has been harvested). It is important to note that if this data provider does not provide Item Reports, there will not be information in the Items tab. There will only be data in the tabs in which information is provided from reports.


Providers Using the SUSHI Connection

Add SUSHI credentials for the data provider. Save this and then select the Test button. The Test button will allow the library to validate the credentials. Harvesting of data can be done manually using the Run button or by a cronjob. If a data provider is not an active provider, the harvester will not run for this provider. If this is not a SUSHI provider, then a library can manually import a file of records from the publisher from the data provider screen.

Import Logs

These logs contain a log of files of the manual import of files or the SUSHI harvesting.

Files are stored in Koha, so if a library would like to download a file from Koha, this is possible and can be saved/used elsewhere.

Harvesting

Harvesting can be run with dry mode. The harvester will look for any new data from the last time the harvester was run and will report on that.

For example, if a new title has been added since the last harvest, this new title will now appear in the Title List. If this title already existed, the harvester will update the counts from the report into Koha.

When running this harvester manually, Koha will allow the library to choose the date from which to collect the data. Once this has been done, these jobs will be included in the Background Jobs, which can be monitored from the Background Job page.

The Background Job page will provide the library with a look at what has been processed.

Data Provider Summary

This will be an at-a-glance look at the current and past harvesting. This will also show the latest data and the newest data we have.

Manual Import of Files (non-SUSHI connection)

From the data provider page, a library can manually import a file provided from the publisher, using the Manual Upload button.

Note: Koha will only accept COUNTER 5 reports.

Reports

The Usage Statistics reports are outside of the Koha Reports Module. In this report section, new reports can be created, or saved reports can be run. When creating a new report, there will be some dependency on the reports that are provided by the publisher. For example, a library will not be able to run an Item-level report if that provider does not provide an Item-level report.

Tutorial Video: Usage Statistics in Koha



PTFS-Europe has a three-part tutorial video series on Usage Statistics- check that out here.

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