How to start using the service - for institutions

Who can join?

Publications Router is for institutions with an active programme of research whose authors publish their outputs in research journals. It is currently available without charge to UK institutions who are members of Jisc.

Which repositories or CRISs can Router work with?

Publications Router is currently up and running with the EPrints and DSpace repository platforms. We are also talking to vendors of the main CRIS and research information management platforms to encourage them to develop their products to interoperate with Router.

If you are interested in receiving feeds directly into your EPrints or DSpace repository, do contact us at help@jisc.ac.uk, mentioning Publications Router in your email. We can then help you decide whether to join, take you through what's involved, answer any questions and give you any further information you'd find helpful.

If you would like feeds into a repository platform not mentioned here, do also get in touch so that we can update you when Router will work with that platform.

What will I receive into my repository?

The current content sources are listed here, together with what each of them delivers and when.

What's involved?

Publications Router delivers metadata and, if available, article PDF and related files, that populate new records created automatically in your repository. The metadata provides most of the key information you will need, including licensing and any embargo end-dates (where applicable) from some providers. Note that Router can only pass on what providers supply, which may differ between providers and individual articles. Technically, Router sends notifications via the SWORD v2 protocol, which was first introduced in EPrints 3.3 and the unsupported version of DSpace 1.x

There are two repository types currently receiving PubRouter notifications:

EPrints deposits

There are two connection options for Eprints repositories:

Basic connection
This simple approach sees Router connect to your EPrints repository, requiring no plugin and minimal configuration on the EPrints side. This results in deposits with a basic set of meta-data and, if available, article PDFs and related files. There are some limitations on populating particular meta-data fields, such as an attached document's License terms, however in these cases the relevant information is captured in the EPrints "Additional Information" field.
Jisc PubRouter RIOXXplus Connector plugin
For EPrints repositories that already have the RIOXX2 plugin installed, there is the option of an enhanced Router feed if the RIOXXplus Connector plugin is also installed. This enables Router to populate the RIOXX metadata profile and will also populate other fields that the basic connection has to work around. It also attaches document files were available. For this option the RIOXXplus Connector plugin must be downloaded from the EPrints Bazaar and configured, which your repository administrator will be able to do (following the clear guidance in the plugin documentation).

Router will send its feed to a repository account specified by you. You may find it works best if this has a generic username rather than a personal one, so that any relevant members of your team can access it and use it as your "Router review queue" - the place to check for Router deposits, before deciding whether to make them live or edit them first, for example. Alternatively, you can send your deposits directly to a "manage deposits" queue.

DSpace deposits

Basic connection
SWORD v2 is enabled by default in DSpace repositories (versions 1.x+). However, some configuration might be required depending on the customisation in your repository. This connection will result in deposits with a basic set of metadata and, if available, article PDFs and related files. There are some limitations on populating particular metadata fields, in these cases the relevant information is captured in the DSpace "dc.description" field.

Note that SWORD may require a user account with certain administrative privileges in your repository. So for security reasons, it is strongly recommended that your repository is accessible via HTTPS protocol (which encrypts traffic) rather than HTTP (which does not).

Legal agreement

To use the service, your institution will need to sign an agreement with us. Among other things, for any publishers that supply embargoed full text via Publications Router, you will need to commit to respect the embargo period set out in an embargoed article's metadata. The agreement also sets out the service levels you can expect from us.

Getting the right content for your institution

To enable Router to send you the right notifications - about articles co-authored by your researchers - you'll need complete a spreadsheet setting out some parameters that will enable it to make the right matches. You can download the template for that here. It includes explanations of how to fill it in, and we're here to support you if there's anything you'd like to know more about.

Can we try it out?

If you'd like to see for yourself what sort of information Router will provide for your particular institution, we can set you up with a feed into a test instance of EPrints to avoid disturbing your live repository. In this sounds interesting, do get in touch so we can take you through how we can set that up.

This sounds interesting - what next?

To find out more, do get in touch with us at help@jisc.ac.uk, mentioning Publications Router in your email. We'll then arrange a call or a webinar to go through this, to answer any questions you might have, and to help you decide whether Publications Router is right for you.