GUIDs in EMu Ian Turnbull KE Software

GUID? UUID? A Globally Unique Identifier (GUID) is a persistent unique reference number used as an identifier. A Universally Unique Identifier (UUID) is a particular implementation of GUID. Some other GUID implementations are LSID, EZID, DOI, Darwin Core Triples. Opaque GUIDs? Resolvability?

Background For US institutions the National Science Foundation (NSF) digitisation grants require recipients to provide a copy of their biodiversity data to the NSF iDigBio repository with a GUID identifier. Draft proposal prepared by Larry Gall of YPMNH with contributions from a number of other EMu customers. KE proposal released for review and comment via EMu Users forum in September 2013.

Four Phases Proposed Phase 1 Storing GUIDs in EMu Phase 2 GUID generation on EMu record save Phase 3 Local IMu web service for local resolution of EMu GUIDs Phase 4 Global IMu web service portal for global resolution of EMu GUIDs

Phase 1 - Storing GUIDs in EMu Available in most EMu modules Catalogue, Collection Events, Multimedia, Parties, and Taxonomy likely candidates for GUIDs GUID fields on Admin tab Multiple GUID values can be stored per record

Phase 1 - Storing GUIDs in EMu

Phase 2 – GUID Generation On record save GUID(s) can be generated Configurable per module (off by default) UUID Version 4 identifier generated Extensible for support of other GUID schemes

Phase 2 – UUID Version 4 A randomly generated GUID with infinitesimal probability of a duplicate 84b567d5-dbbd-468a-be ebc397 Can be quickly generated locally without referring to a central naming authority; or pre-generating identifiers Can be represented as a URN urn:uuid:84b567d5-dbbd-468a-be ebc397 Opaque

Phase 3 – Local Resolution of EMu GUIDs Without a resolving service a GUID is simply an identifier without means of obtaining metadata A GUID is actionable with a resolving service Local IMu web service (no presentation logic) Receives web requests and returns match status and associated metadata

Phase 4 – Global Resolution of EMu GUIDs EMu community GUID resolution service Receives web requests; polls registered providers for GUID match; returns metadata Initial intention is for global resolver to be lightweight. It will not aggregate from institutions, each institution simply runs the Local web service. KE can initially host but expectation is that an EMu customer will become the host

Time frame? Phase 1 - Storing GUIDs Late 2013 Phase 2 - GUID generation Early 2014 Phase 3 - Local IMu web service Mid 2014 Phase 4 - Global IMu web service Late 2014

Questions?