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De-duplicate user records

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Learn how to manage duplicate user records in OLIB.

About de-duplication

The de-duplication process can be used for User records and User Group records. Where there is more than one record in OLIB to represent the same user or group, you can "de-duplicate" the data so that a single updated record is retained.

What happens to the user data?

When a record is de-duplicated various identifiers are moved to the record being retained (if that record does not have such an identifier). These include:

  • Email address
  • Telephone numbers
  • Secondary Code
  • Identification
  • Alternative Barcode
  • Any Temporary Password information (for Folio’s Password Reset feature)

Last Login detail and Last Active date is updated if the record being removed has a value more recent than on the record being kept

Current loan, overdue and reservation counts are added up.

If the user or group being kept is not a member of any groups, then it will become a member of the groups that were associated with the user or group being removed.

History

A history of "activity" from the discarded user is also kept:

  • Circulation history is transferred to the retained user
  • Notice history including Overdues by email or SMS, are transferred to the retained user

(Records in the Email History domain are not directly associated with User records, but do mention email addresses explicitly).

User addresses

In general, address information is "merged" from both the discarded/retained user records - with the "latest" information taking preference where both records contain the same address type.

(The addresses themselves are removed from the replaced user).

Procedure

 Note: the System Administrator first needs to add the Duplicates attribute to the Users layout using Layout Manager. For example, add it to the Update Audit Trail sheet immediatelt below the audit fields.

  1. Go to Searches> Users.
  2. Search for the user record to be retained and put the record into modify mode.
  3. Use the Duplicates Search link to search for the user record to be merged and insert them back to the preferred user record.
  4. When you save the record OLIB displays a message prompting you whether or not to continue.
  5. When you click Yes the de-duplication will take place.
  6. Refresh the search and note that the non-preferred user record is no longer present. When you display the full details of the retained record you will see that all the latest relevant data is present.

 Note: the De-duplication process is privilege controlled to those staff with Manager level privileges or above. OLIB predefined users and groups cannot be removed by the de-duplication process - they can be retained and other records merged into them and then subsequently modified.