ArchivesSpace Alma Integration Plugin

Current Functionality

This plugin provides integration between ArchivesSpace and Alma, focusing on MARC record synchronization and holdings management. It leverages the Alma API to perform operations and presents a user interface within ArchivesSpace for managing these integrations.

Key Features

1. Bi-directional sync between ArchivesSpace and Alma (push only)
2. MARC record comparison
3. Holdings management
4. Item display from Alma within ArchivesSpace

Configuration

The plugin requires specific configuration in ArchivesSpace's config.rb file:

AppConfig[:alma_api_url] = 'https://api-na.hosted.exlibrisgroup.com/almaws/v1/bibs'
AppConfig[:alma_apikey] = 'your_api_key_here'
AppConfig[:alma_holdings] = [
  ['building_code1', 'location_code1'],
  ['building_code2', 'location_code2']
]

Core Components

1. Controller (alma_integrations_controller.rb)

   Handles user interactions and API calls:

   def search
     @results = do_search(params)
   end
   
   def add_bibs
     post_bibs(params)
   end
   
   def add_holdings
     post_holdings(params)
   end
   

2. Alma Integrator (alma_integrator.rb)

   Manages communication with the Alma API:

   def search_bibs(ref, mms)
     aspace = get_archivesspace_bib(ref)
     alma = get_alma_bib(mms)
     results['marc'] = sync_bibs(aspace, alma) if aspace['content'] && alma['content']
     results
   end
   
   def post_bib(mms, data)
     uri = mms.nil? ? URI(@baseurl) : URI("#{@baseurl}/#{mms}")
     uri.query = URI.encode_www_form({:apikey => @key})
     response = AlmaRequester.new.post(uri, data, :use_ssl => true)
   end

3. Record Builder (record_builder.rb)

   Constructs MARC XML for new or updated records:

   def build_bib(record, mms)
     marc = Nokogiri::XML(record)
     # ... (code to build XML structure)
     data.root.add_child(marc.at_css('record'))
     data.to_xml
   end
   
   def build_holding(code, id)
     # ... (code to construct holdings XML)
     builder.to_xml
   end

Improvement Ideas

To enhance the plugin's functionality and flexibility, I propose the following improvements:

1. MARCXML Export Enhancement

   • Modify the ArchivesSpace MARCXML export to include all necessary data for bib, holdings, and item records.
   • Add configuration options for field inclusion.

2. MARCXML Parser

   • Create a new class to parse MARCXML and extract bib, holdings, and item data:

   class MarcXMLParser
     def parse(xml)
       doc = Nokogiri::XML(xml)
       {
         bib: extract_bib_data(doc),
         holdings: extract_holdings_data(doc),
         items: extract_item_data(doc)
       }
     end
   
     private
   
     def extract_bib_data(doc)
       # Implementation
     end
   
     # Other extraction methods...
   end

3. Enhanced Alma API Integration

   • Expand AlmaIntegrator to handle all record types:

   class AlmaIntegrator
     def create_or_update_bib(data)
       # Implementation
     end
   
     def create_or_update_holdings(bib_id, data)
       # Implementation
     end
   
     def create_or_update_item(holdings_id, data)
       # Implementation
     end
   end

4. Two-way Synchronization

   • Implement functionality to pull changes from Alma back to ArchivesSpace.

5. Improved Error Handling and Logging

   • Implement robust error handling and detailed logging for better troubleshooting.

These enhancements are untested, but could make the plugin more flexible, powerful, and easier to maintain.