1. Determine which fields you would like this new patron to fill out in the PatronSelfRegistrationBorrowerMandatoryField system preference. Typical fields that are selected are First Name, Last Name, etc. Just pick and choose which fields from the list provided.
2. Determine which fields you don’t want on the self registration form in the PatronSelfRegistrationBorrowerUnwantedField system preference. Just pick and choose fields from the list provided.
3. Determine what Patron Category code these registrations will be assigned. Many libraries use “SELF” as a patron category code for self registrations. This patron category can be created, if needed. Whatever category you choose, enter the patron category code into the system preference PatronSelfRegistrationDefaultCategory. Self registration won’t appear unless this system preference has been entered.
4. If you are a multiple branch library and self registration is only available in some branches, add the branches that will allow self registration (by their code) into the system preference PatronSelfRegistrationLibraryList.
5. Define the system preference that determines whether the User Name/Password is or is not given to the patron when the self registration is done. PatronSelfRegistrationPrefillForm has the option to “Display and prefill” or “Don’t display and prefill.” If the library chooses to Display and prefill, when the patron registers on the OPAC, they will receive this on the screen once the registration has been completed:
   

1. The login and password will appear on the left, and the login on the right will be already entered for easy access to their account in the OPAC. The card number has also appeared to the patron who has self registered. This will ONLY appear if your library has the system preference AutomemberNum turned on. This system preference will automatically assign the next card number to the new patron.
2. Another system preference for self registration is PatronSelfRegistrationVerifyByEmail. If you would like your patrons to verify their account with an email before using it, this system preference can be set to Require. If required, the email field will be a mandatory field in the self registration process and the patron will not be able to use their new account until they acknowledge the email that Koha will automatically send. If you use this option, you can additionally have Koha automatically delete patrons who have not activated their account by clicking on the verification email within X days. The number of days is set in the cleanup_database cron. If you would like this set up, please open a ticket with us.
3. If you are using a temporary category for self-registered patrons with the expectation that they must come to the library to complete their registration and be updated to a permanent patron category, you can optionally use the PatronSelfRegistrationExpireTemporaryAccountsDelay system preference to delete accounts that are still in the self-registered category after X days. If a number of days is set in PatronSelfRegistrationExpireTemporaryAccountsDelay, the cleanup_database cron will delete any self-registrations that are still in the PatronSelfRegistrationDefaultCategory category after that number of days. If you would like this flag added to your cleanup_database cron, please open a ticket with us.
   
4. If your library does not need the patron to verify by email (see PatronSelfRegistrationVerifyByEmail above), then the system preference PatronSelfRegistrationPrefillForm will allow your patron to be logged in when set as Display and prefill.
   
5. If the system preference PatronSelfRegistrationEmailMustBeUnique is set to Consider, when a patron is self registering, their email will be checked with your database to see if the email already exists in your system.

Notes

A few fields that a library may want to exclude (add to the System Preference PatronSelfRegistrationBorrowerUnwantedField) would be categorycode, homelibrary, dateofbirth (unless you collect this info), and expirydate.

Expirydate is not a field that the patron can fill out during the self registration process, but it does appear in the form unless added to the PatronSelfRegistrationBorrowerUnwantedField system preference.

Categorycode will appear as a drop down menu for the patron to select a category code. Since PatronSelfRegistrationDefaultCategory requires library to select a default patron category for self registered patrons, we recommend adding categorycode to the PatronSelfRegistrationBorrowerUnwantedField system preference.

If you want to track your Self Registrations, it is also helpful to create a unique code for these self registrations.

During the Self Registration process, there will be a Verification code that your patrons will have to enter - this is used to make sure that this is an actual person creating the registration.

Patron Attributes and Self-Registration

Patron attributes can be set as mandatory in the OPAC, in the staff interface, or both. If patrons should be required to select/enter a value for an attribute when they self-register, make sure that the 'Editable in OPAC' option is selected for your attribute in Administration > Patron attribute types in addition to selecting 'OPAC mandatory':

If 'OPAC mandatory' is selected but 'Editable in OPAC' is not, patrons will be able to self-register without selecting/entering a value for the attribute. 

How to set up an online resources only self registration

With more and more electronic resources available for patrons through their local library, we are seeing an increase the in the number of libraries who want to be able to give their patrons an immediate way to access online resources when they register for a library card from home. It is a straightforward process, and I’ll show you all the steps!

1. To begin with, the library will need to make a decision about what patron category to use in the self registration process. Many libraries use ONLINE or SELF to distinguish this registration from a library card that has been issued in a library. Create that patron category.
2. Additionally, you may want to create a separate branch just for these registrations. If so, set up that branch.
3. Turn on the automemnum system preference and figure out what number you will use as a starting point for these new registrations.
4. Set up your patron self registration system preferences.
5. Optional - create reports to see who is registering.
   

System Preferences

For help in setting up the system preferences, here are the typical mandatory entries on the self registration screen (PatronSelfRegistrationBorrowerMandatoryField):

Surname|firstname|firstname|dateofbirth|address|city|state|zipcode|email|phone|

And typical fields in the borrower unwanted field (PatronSelfRegistrationBorrowerUnwantedField):

dateexpiry|password|cardnumber|categorycode|initials||B_phone|phone|B_phone|contacttitle|altcontactfirstname|altcontactsurname|altcontactaddress1|altcontactaddress2|altcontactaddress3|altcontactstate|altcontactzipcode|altcontactcountry|altcontactphone|B_streetnumber|B_streettype|B_address|B_address2|B_city|B_state|B_zipcode|B_country|B_email|B_phone|contactnote|streetnumber|contactfirstname|contactname|contacttitle|fax|mobile|emailpro|phonepro

I hope this helps, or inspires you to try something new. Share your success stories with us!

Tutorial Video

Library Notification for New Self-Registrations

As of 25.05, new self-registrations will show in an alert on the Koha staff interface homepage:

This links to a patron search for patrons in the patron category defined in the system preference PatronSelfRegistrationDefaultCategory. 

In addition, libraries may choose to be notified by report or email. 

Report

A report can be added to your Koha report module to allow staff to view new patrons that have self registered. This report can be scheduled at your desired frequency and emailed to the library, if preferred. If you would like a report to be scheduled and you are a partner of ByWater Solutions, please submit a ticket and we would be happy to assist!

This SQL will give the library the patron's name, card number, category, the date they enrolled, and their email. It displays all self-registrations from the last 30 days. 

SELECT borrowers.dateenrolled, borrowers.cardnumber,borrowers.surname,borrowers.firstname, borrowers.email,

borrowers.categorycode

FROM borrowers

WHERE borrowers.categorycode='SELF' AND DATE_SUB(CURDATE(),INTERVAL 30 DAY) <= borrowers.dateenrolled

ORDER BY borrowers.dateenrolled

The category code used for self-registrations at your library will most likely be different than the one used in this report. Verify what code your library is using, and replace SELF in the SQL above with the code specific to your library.

Email Library When Patron Self Registers

Libraries can also use the EmailPatronRegistrations and EmailAddressforPatronRegistrations system preferences to receive an email for each new self-registration. For details on this option, please see the manual. The email uses the OPAC_REG notice, which - like all notices - can be customized to fit your library's needs. 

Automatically delete self-registered patrons