CollectionSpace Release Documentation

Using CollectionSpace

If you are new to CollectionSpace, you can get a good sense of how it works from the demo available on the CollectionSpace website: http://demo.collectionspace.org.  The User Manual describes how to use CollectionSpace to manage your collections. This manual also provides a useful overview of CollectionSpace's basic feature set.

Installing CollectionSpace

CollectionSpace is installed on a server and accessed using a web browser. No software needs to be installed on your users' computers.

We recommend installing CollectionSpace on a Linux Ubuntu 16.04 server.  You can find installation instructions here: Installing CollectionSpace.

/wiki/spaces/collectionspace/pages/666272695

Upgrading to Tomcat 7

You'll need to upgrade the existing CollectionSpace Tomcat 6 to the new CollectionSpace Tomcat 7:

First, you'll set up the new Tomcat folder (sample instructions given here for Ubuntu 14.04):

Login to your Ubuntu server using an account with sudo privileges. Go to the directory where you want to install CollectionSpace. We recommend:

cd /usr/local/share

CollectionSpace runs as a Tomcat 7 server application. A pre-configured version of Tomcat 7 is provided with the CollectionSpace distribution package.

Start by downloading the CollectionSpace distribution package "tarball":

sudo wget ftp://nightly.collectionspace.org/pub/collectionspace/releases/4.5/cspace-server-4.5.tar.gz

Unpack the tarball:

sudo tar -xzvof cspace-server-4.5.tar.gz

This will create an apache-tomcat-7.0.64 directory in /usr/local/share.

Next, make necessary files owned by the cspace user and executable:

sudo chown -R cspace:cspace apache-tomcat-7.0.64/
sudo chmod u+x apache-tomcat-7.0.64/bin/*.sh

You can now remove the tarball:

sudo rm cspace-server-4.5.tar.gz

Then you will need to update any existing environment variables to reflect the path to the Tomcat 7 folder. Most likely, this will only be:

•  CSPACE_JEESERVER_HOME

but, depending on how you set your variables, may also include: 

• CATALINA_HOME
• CATALINA_PID

Changing a database table column name

You'll need to change the name of one column in the database:

Starting with version 4.2, due to an upgrade of one of its components, CollectionSpace expects that, in the accounts_tenants table of the cspace database, the column formerly named TENANTS_ACCOUNTSCOMMON_CSID will have been changed to a new name, TENANTS_ACCOUNTS_COMMON_CSID (i.e. with an underscore added between ACCOUNTS and COMMON.) As a result, you'll need to rename that column in your database to reflect this changed expectation.

(Note: if you've instance-qualified your CollectionSpace server, the name of the cspace database might include an instance ID suffix and thus its name may look something like cspace_myinstancename. If so, be sure to substitute that name for each instance of cspace in the instructions below.)

If you plan to continue to use your existing cspace database after upgrading to v4.2 - and you will want to do that under nearly all circumstances - you'll need to - just once - rename that column by sending two short commands to PostgreSQL.  To do so, connect to your PostgreSQL database server using either a graphical client or the command line psql client; log in via an account with administrative privileges, such as CollectionSpace's csadmin account or the default postgres account (if the latter is present); and then:

Connect to the cspace database:

\c cspace

Rename this column in the appropriate database table:

alter table accounts_tenants rename column TENANTS_ACCOUNTSCOMMON_CSID to TENANTS_ACCOUNTS_COMMON_CSID;

Adding new Environment Variables

You'll need to add several new, required environment variables (three when upgrading to v4.2, four when upgrading to v4.3 or higher):

CollectionSpace System Requirements

In CollectionSpace System Requirements, you can find the system requirements for running a CollectionSpace system, as well as a list of supported web browsers for accessing your system.

Configuring CollectionSpace

If you are an implementer, consultant, or plan to host CollectionSpace, you can adapt CollectionSpace for the specific needs of your museum or client via the documentation in Configuring CollectionSpace.

The documentation in Configuring CollectionSpace focuses on configuration: changing the behavior and the look and feel of the system by making changes via web-based Administration pages and by editing text files: HTML templates, CSS stylesheets, XML- and JSON-based configuration files, and properties files.

To learn about customization - extending the system's functionality by working with the system's Java and JavaScript source code or adding code of your own - please see Developing for CollectionSpace.

Maintaining CollectionSpace

Once you have your deployment up and running, you'll want to take care of it. In Maintaining CollectionSpace, you'll find both operational suggestions and troubleshooting techniques.

Upgrading CollectionSpace

If you have an older version of CollectionSpace and want to upgrade it to a newer version, Upgrading CollectionSpace provides pertinent tips.

Migrating to CollectionSpace

When you want to migrate your existing data into a CollectionSpace system, Migrating to CollectionSpace can help you do this.

Developing for CollectionSpace

If you are building or integrating applications or scripts that talk to CollectionSpace systems, or are a CollectionSpace software developer, integrator, or implementer who wishes to extend the system's capabilities by working with its source code, you can find documentation on these topics in Developing for CollectionSpace. This topic area includes details about CollectionSpace's Application Programming Interfaces (APIs).

Hosting CollectionSpace

If you're hosting multiple CollectionSpace systems, whether in-house or as a service provider, Hosting CollectionSpace can help you find resources relevant to this task.

Reference Information

Reference Information provides supporting information and requirements for CollectionSpace, and includes general documents that are referenced from across two or more of the topic areas above.

Documentation Feedback

Many documentation additions and updates are planned. Please feel free to comment on the CollectionSpace project's /wiki/spaces/collectionspace/pages/666276158 if you have suggestions for improving current documentation, or if there is documentation you would like to see in the future.