ADAPT

ADA Deposit and Preservation Tool (ADAPT) is a web-based tool developed by the Australian Data Archive to ensure that data and metadata in the Archive are programmatically moved between Dataverse instances and ADA’s archival storage.

See ADAPT's implementation within ADA technical architecture - click on the link to the diagram ADA Archival Workflow based on OAIS Reference Model.

The focus of ADAPT version 3 is for for the application to be a direct representation of the OAIS model, enforcing the steps which each dataset must follow when being processed by the archive. These steps must be followed according to the application's defined order and cannot be skipped, or ignored, thus ensuring adherence to the model and reducing any risks. For the application to know what processing options are available for the archivist to use on a given dataset, this new version extends the datasets by implementing them as objects with a dynamic reference to where within the OAIS reference model the dataset is up to. By tying the processing options with the dataset's state ADA can ensure that data and metadata is consistently and only programmatically moved between instances and storage when appropriate. The additional benefit of this is that it allows for tracking the progression of the datasets in an automated and verifiable process. Furthermore, all of the aforementioned references to dataverse instances, assigned archivists, depositor contacts and related internal ticket numbers are all tracked in application too. To ensure all this information is secure, the ADAPT implements OAuth2 login to ensure only approved ADA staff are able to view and manipulate the datasets.

Web Ontology Language (OWL)

The Web Ontology Language (OWL) is a W3C-recommended standard designed as a foundational language for the Semantic Web, which aims to make internet data machine-readable by providing a formal system for knowledge representation. At its core, OWL allows for the explicit, formal specification of an ontology, defining the terminology and the complex relationships within a specific domain of knowledge. For ADAPT, OWL is leveraged not just for static modeling but also for dynamic auditing and version control: the ontology includes specialized classes and properties to define events, actors, and timestamps, effectively creating a formal change log schema. Any modification to the underlying datasets—such as adding, deleting, or altering entities—is automatically captured as a new set of RDF triples conforming to this change log schema and is then persisted to an rdflib graph. This technique ensures that a formal, machine-readable history of all dataset changes is maintained, utilizing the semantic rigor of OWL to provide a structured, queryable audit trail that is then human readable for each dataset in ADAPT.

Roles

ADAPT's internal roles and their equivalent permissions within ADAPT

Role	Permissions
User	Process a dataset depending on available archival rules.
Admin	Manage users, and all User powers.
Super	Manage instances, manage archival steps, and all Admin & User powers.

Software Architecture

• PostgreSQL Database
• Python Backend
  • Web framework: FastAPI
  • Database toolkit & ORM: SQLModel
• React Frontend
  • Bundler: Vite
  • Component library: shadcn
• Traefik Proxy