AtoM (Access to Memory) has served the archival community well as an open-source, standards-based description tool, but many institutions reach a point where a single-purpose ISAD(G) catalogue no longer matches how they actually work. Heratio is a broader GLAM platform: it keeps the archival description model AtoM users know, then extends it across galleries, libraries, museums, digital asset management and records management, with modern deep-zoom viewing, richer rights enforcement and pluggable compliance modules.

Migration is a deliberate decision, not a default. This lesson frames why an institution moves, so that later technical lessons are anchored to real business drivers rather than novelty.

What Heratio adds over a standalone AtoM instance

  • Multi-standard description: ISAD(G), RiC-O (Records in Contexts), DACS, RAD, MODS and Dublin Core on the same record, not ISAD alone.
  • IIIF Image API 3.0 deep-zoom viewing for high-resolution TIFF/JP2, plus native 3D and audio/video handling.
  • Digital-preservation alignment: OAIS-informed ingest, PREMIS-style event and fixity tracking, and Archivematica bridging.
  • Rights as policy: ODRL-based access and reproduction rules enforced at view and print time, not just a free-text note.

Drivers that justify the move

Sound migration cases are usually a combination of capability gaps and governance pressure. Common triggers include the need to manage museum objects to Spectrum procedures alongside archives, records-management obligations under ISO 15489, information-security controls expected by ISO/IEC 27001, and demand for interoperable linked-data output (RiC-O, EAD, Dublin Core) that a description-only tool cannot fully deliver.

In practice. Before committing, write a one-page benefits case that maps each driver to a measurable outcome - for example "expose collections as RiC-O linked data" or "enforce reproduction rights automatically". If a capability appears only because it is new, park it. Migration effort should always trace back to a named institutional need.

Weighing the cost of change

Migration is never free: staff retraining, data-quality remediation, revalidation of access points and a cutover window all carry cost. The honest question is whether the target platform removes recurring friction - manual rights handling, siloed museum records, or absent preservation metadata - by enough to repay that one-time effort within a reasonable horizon.

Key takeaways

  • Migrate for capability and governance gaps, not for novelty - every driver should map to a measurable outcome.
  • Heratio extends the familiar archival model into full GLAM, IIIF, preservation and ODRL rights territory.
  • Balance the benefits case against retraining, remediation and cutover cost before you commit.

Check your understanding

Last modified: Saturday, 1 August 2026, 11:10 AM