Reference Model for an Open Archival Information System (OAIS)

This document is a technical Recommended Practice for use in developing a broader consensus on what is required for an archive to provide permanent, or indefinite Long Term, preservation of digital information.

This Recommended Practice establishes a common framework of terms and concepts which make up an Open Archival Information System (OAIS). It allows existing and future archives to be more meaningfully compared and contrasted. It provides a basis for further standardization within an archival context and it should promote greater vendor awareness of, and support of, archival requirements.