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    Configuring RTA for Aleph and Voyager

    Before configuring RTA for Aleph and Voyager, make sure that the source system has been set up to provide availability information.

    Setting Up RTA in Aleph

    The Aleph RTA program uses an Aleph X-server service called publish_avail to retrieve the real-time availability status. This service returns the bibliographic record with expanded holdings and availability information in the AVA field. (The record format is the same format as the record that is extracted for Primo harvesting.)
    The service requires that the Aleph staff user WWW-X be authorized for the bibliographic library that is the Primo data source (function WWW-X and sub-function=MAIN or ALL/ALL). The WWW-X user should come as default in all Aleph installations, but if it is not present, it should be created. Note that the password for the WWW-X user must be www-x.
    In order for RTA to work, the publish_avail X-service requires a valid X-server license. If you encounter difficulties, contact Ex Libris support.

    Setting Up RTA in Voyager

    To deliver real-time availability statuses, the plug-in needs to find a match between the availability information in Voyager (usually stored in the 949 field) and the availability information stored in the PNX (the Library Level Availability field, availlibrary). The settings in the Real-Time Availability mapping table instruct the RTA plug-in how to map the Primo institution (availlibrary - $$I), Primo library (availlibrary - $$L), and Primo sub-location (availlibrary - $$1) from the Voyager data elements. The Voyager data elements used in RTA should be the same as those used by the normalization rules.
    For more details on the Voyager API, refer to the Voyager-Primo Integration User's Guide.

    Setting Up RTA in Primo for Aleph and Voyager

    In order for real-time availability to work, the following configurations must be set in the Back Office:
    1. Make sure that the source system has been defined properly for the data source. For more information, see Defining the Source System.
    2. Select and configure the RTA mapping method for your source system. For more information, see Selecting and Configuring the RTA Mapping Method.
    3. Enable the RTA Adaptor for your source system and mapping method. For more information, see Enabling the RTA Adaptor.
    4. For each institution, define the RTA base_url in the Institution wizard. For more information, see Defining the RTA Base URL.
    5. Use the Views wizard to activate RTA per view and to configure whether RTA should be invoked for both the brief and full result pages or only the full results page. For more information, see Activating RTA per View.
    6. Deploy the changes to the Front End user interface. For more information, see Deploying Your Changes.

    Defining the Source System

    In order for Primo to use the correct RTA adaptor, you must make sure that the data source definition has the correct source system (Aleph, Voyager, or III) and that all PNX records from this data source have the control/sourcesystem field set to the correct source (Aleph, Voyager, or III).
    If the source system is not correct, make sure that the correct source system is defined and then re-run the pipe. Note that you can use the No harvesting - Update Data Source pipe type, which does not require harvesting from the source system.
    In the following example, the source system has been set to Aleph in the PNX record:
    <record>
    <control>
    <sourcerecordid>000250938</sourcerecordid>
    <sourceid>Blue_Bay_Aleph</sourceid>
    <recordid>Blue_Bay_Aleph000250938</recordid>
    <sourceformat>MARC21</sourceformat>
    <sourcesystem>Aleph</sourcesystem>
    </control>
    To define the source system:
    1. Click Edit next to the data source on the Data Source List page in the Back Office. The Data Sources page opens for the data source.
      Aleph_DataSourceConfig.gif
      Data Sources Page
    2. Select the correct source (Aleph, Voyager, or III) from the Source system drop-down field.
    3. Click Save & Continue.

    Selecting and Configuring the RTA Mapping Method

    The RTA adaptors allow you to choose from the following methods to map the source system’s locations and statuses to Primo locations and statuses:
    • normalization_rules – This method uses the rules specified in the normalization rules to match the institution, library, and sub-location. It can be used for Aleph, Voyager, and III Millennium.
    • mapping_tables – This method uses mapping tables to match the institution, library, and sub-location. It can be used for Aleph and Voyager. Note that this is a legacy option and should not be used for new RTA implementations.
    To select and configure the RTA mapping method:
    1. Select the RTA subsystem from the Primo Home > Advanced Configuration > General Configuration page.
      RTA_GeneralConfiguration.gif
      RTA Subsystem
    2. In the RTA method for mapping data field, select the mapping method (normalization_rules or mapping_tables) to be used for the RTA adaptors.
      If the normalization rules for your source system modify the location information in the display/availlibrary field, you must use the normalization_rules method.
    3. In the RTA timeout field, enter the amount of time in seconds that Primo will wait to receive RTA information. The default value is 20 seconds.
    4. Click Save & Continue.
    5. Depending on the RTA mapping method selected above, update the corresponding table under the Back Office subsystem on the Primo Home > Advanced Configuration > All Mapping Tables page:
      • For the normalization_rules method, update the following columns on the Real-Time Availability (using normalization rules) mapping table:
        Real-Time Availability (using normalization rules) Table
        Column Description
        Enabled
        Select this box to enable this mapping row.
        Source system
        Enter the source system as it appears in the data source and control/sourcesystem field in the PNX. The valid values are Aleph, Voyager, and III.
        For more information, see Defining the Source System.
        Mapping Set Name
        Enter the name of the normalization rules set that is used to convert the incoming data during harvesting.
        Data Source Code
        Enter the code for your data source. If you have multiple data sources for the same source system:
        • For Voyager and Aleph, enter a mapping row for each data source.
        • For III Millennium, select one of the data sources.
        Active Y/N
        Enter Y to activate the RTA program. The default is N.
        Description
        Enter a free text descriptive note.
        RTA_NormRulesTable2.gif
        Real-Time Availability (using normalization rules) Table
      • For the mapping_tables method, use the Real-Time Availability mapping table. As mentioned earlier, this option should not be used for new RTA implementations. For more information on using this option, see Configuring the Real-Time Availability Mapping Table.

    Enabling the RTA Adaptor

    The RTA Adaptors mapping table defines which RTA adaptors can be used by Primo. Out of the box, Primo provides a separate program for each type of mapping method supported by the source system.
    RTA_AdaptorsMapping.gif
    RTA Adaptors Mapping Table
    To enable the RTA adaptor:
    1. Select the Enable field in the row that contains the adaptor that supports your source system and mapping method:
      Adaptor’s Class Values
      Mapping Method Enable this Adaptor
      normalization_rules
      For Aleph:
      com.exlibris.primo.utils.rta.nmrta.AlephRtaAdaptor
      For Voyager:
      com.exlibris.primo.utils.rta.nmrta.VoyagerRtaAdaptor
      For III Millennium:
      com.exlibris.primo.utils.rta.iii.IIIMillenniumRTAAdaptor
      mapping_tables1
      For Aleph:
      com.exlibris.primo.utils.rta.AlephConcreteConnector
      For Voyager:
      com.exlibris.primo.utils.rta.voyager.VoyagerConcreteConnector

      1 This is a legacy method and should not be used for new RTA adaptor implementations.
    2. Click Save.
    3. Click Deploy.

    Activating RTA per View

    The Locations Tile Configuration page in the Views wizard allows you to activate RTA per view and configure whether RTA should be invoked for both the brief and full results pages or only the full results page. The latter option has been added in case the API is slow or cannot handle more than one record at a time.
    To configure RTA per view:
    1. For each view, access the Tiles Configuration page from the Primo Home > Ongoing Configuration Wizards > Views Wizard page.
    2. From the Tiles Configuration page, select Brief Display from the Page drop-down list. The list of brief display tiles displays.
      adOngCnfgVwsWzrdBriefLocationsTile.gif
      Tiles Configuration - Brief Display
    3. Select Edit Tile in the Locations tile row.
      adOngCnfgVwsWzrdBriefLocationsTileDetails.gif
      Locations Tile Details Page
    4. Select one of the following options in the Real-Time Availability section:
      • None – This option disables RTA for this view.
      • Brief and full results – This option enables RTA in both the brief and full results.
      • Full results only – This option enables RTA in the full results only.

    Defining the RTA Base URL

    The Institution wizard allows you to define the base URLs used for delivery. To configure the base URL for real-time availability, enter the URL of your source system’s RTA service in the RTA field.
    For III Millennium customers, use the same base URL that you entered in the ILS field.
    RTA_InstWizard.gif
    Institution Wizard

    Deploying Your Changes

    After you configure RTA for your site, you must apply the changes to the Primo Front End. To apply the changes, use the Deploy All page in the Primo Back Office to apply the following configurations:
    • RTA normalization rules
    • RTA configuration
    • Views (if not already deployed from the Views wizard)