Alma & Primo VE Migration History and Milestones

On 1:00pm on June 24, 2020, all 89 I-Share institutions went Live on Alma and Primo VE!

Project Background

Alma Primo VE Kick Off Meeting (July 11, 2019) discusses the scope of the migration project, provides an updated overview of the project as a whole, and a description of the Test Load process, tasks, and deadlines. Slides from the recording.

• Alma & Primo VE Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) (last updated April 2020)
• Handout: Alma and Primo VE Resources for I-Share Libraries (April 2019)
• Migration Tasks webpage

Milestones

• CARLI has shared a somewhat modified version of Ex Libris' "Go Live Readiness Checklist" which libraries should complete and return to CARLI by mid-July 2020.
  • The checklist is available in two formats: as Go Live Readiness Checklist (PDF) and Go Live Readiness Checklist Word document (DOCX)
• As of 1:00pm on June 24, 2020 all I-Share institutions are Live on Alma and Primo VE!  See CARLI's Day One and Beyond in Alma/Primo VE page for more information on Day One activities.
• CARLI has announced the plan for Shutting down Voyager systems, library catalogs, and SFX on October 30, 2020.
• The Production Migration Extracts page includes the date when your institutions data was pulled from Voyager.
• Alma production environments are all available for data migration review.
• CARLI has shared a Production Data Review page where information on preparing for data review and acceptance of the Production/Cutover load can be found.
• CARLI has shared a webpage regarding deadlines and deliverables for Link Resolver data for the Production/Cutover migration.
• Ideas for Activities During the Technical Freeze
• CARLI has shared a PDF and an Excel version of the upcoming migration deadlines. These are also found on the Alma Primo Events & Deadlines Calendar.
• CARLI has announced the online I-Share Alma Migration Form Update Survey.
• CARLI has announced the I-Share Network Zone Cataloging Recommendations.
• CARLI has issued a call for institutions using self-check systems to contact CARLI and system vendors about testing self-check integrations.
• CARLI announced that Primo VE environments for all institutions are now available, along with documentation and other resources on Primo VE.
• CARLI staff have released the list of I-Share Mandatory Fields for Public User Records. This list specifies the minimum data elements all user records should contain to support consortial activities.
• CARLI staff have contacted institutions whose Alma Primo VE designated contact is Alma-certified with next-step instructions for setting up staff users in Alma.  Institutions whose Alma Primo VE designated contact is not Alma-certified--but other staff are--were emailed on 11/1/2019 and asked to designate their User Administrator; those designees will be sent next-step instructions for setting up staff users in Alma. 
• CARLI staff have contacted institutions where none of the staff are yet Alma-certified and have begun collecting information on the roles and privileges to be granted to staff users at these institutions.
• Each I-Share Library received access to their Alma Test Environments on, Wednesday, 10/23/2019. Details on access were sent to the Alma-Primo VE contact and I-Share Library Director.
• Libraries should continue Data Review and Testing.
• Alma Test Data Migration Review Procedures
• CARLI has a dedicated list of Alma & Primo VE events and deadlines.
• For ongoing updates, watch our Highlights of the Alma and Primo VE project page.

Priorities for Alma Migration Data Clean-up

• Acquisitions and Serials Data
  • Vendor Data Maintenance
• Cataloging
  • Catalog (Bibliographic, Holding and Items) Data Priorities updated 7/4/2019
  • Local Extensions for Copy-Specific Data
• Circulation and Patron Data
  • Patron record clean up for Alma Migration: Recommended and Required posted 1/15/2020
  • Investigate and clear your library's long-overdue "In Transit" statuses.
  • Patron Record Purge to remove expired patron records.
• SFX Link Resolver
  • Alma and SFX: Getting Ready for Migration