Arkib Negara ELECTRONIC RECORDS MANAGEMENT and archive mgmt guideline_eng

e-SPARK
intervention in order to be made accessible to users. Electronic records that are stored
offline are usually retained on removable digital storage media (e.g. magnetic tape, CD,
DVD) and are generally inactive electronic records not regularly required for business
purposes. Offline electronic records may be stored offsite as part of an agency’s
business continuity plan. Electronic records stored offline are not immediately available
for use. Public offices must take responsibility for monitoring and guarding against
environmental degradation and changes in technology that may adversely affect the
storage media employed.
• Near-line – Near-line storage of electronic records means the records are contained on
removable digital storage media, but remain relatively accessible through automated
systems connected to the network. These electronic records are technically considered
to be offline. The use of systems such as CD jukebox or magnetic tape silos allow them
to be made available through public office networks, in relatively short periods of time
and without the need for human intervention (i.e. staff are not required to physically
retrieve the storage media on which the required information is retained).
Generally, electronic records will begin life as online records and, as the immediate business
need to refer to them diminishes over time, they will be moved to either near-line or offline
storage, depending upon the technology available to the public office, the ongoing relevance
and value of the records and their retention requirements.
Based on relevant recordkeeping and business requirements, public offices must decide
which electronic records are to be captured and maintained online and which electronic
records can be retained in near-line or offline storage.
Electronic records of vital significance to a public office, as well as electronic records
required for long-term retention within public offices, and electronic records of archival value,
should be stored online. Online storage devices, such as network storage devices and
mainframe storage, have the following advantages:
• Electronic records stored online will, in most cases, be retained on the magnetic hard
drives that form a public office’s network, where they will be readily accessible to users
and can be maintained and controlled as an integral part of the public office’s
recordkeeping system.
• Large storage capacities allow for significant quantities of electronic records to be
retained on a single storage device.
• Regular integrity checks of electronic records can be more readily performed and, in
some instances, it may be possible to automate these tasks.
• Electronic records stored online have a greater likelihood of being identified and included
within any changes made to the IT systems of public offices, such as system-wide
migration processes.
• Online storage devices need not be linked directly to a public office’s network. Where
security concerns, business considerations or other factors warrant, public offices may
opt to establish standalone online storage systems.
• Increasingly, online storage systems can support sophisticated automated techniques
and redundant designs that aid electronic records control, monitoring and backup.
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