MoReq2010: The New Kid On The Block

On the 6th June the DLM Forum finally published MoReq2010.  Some 5 months later than expected and weighting in at a respectable 520 pages the Modular Requirements for Records Systems – Volume 1: Core Services & Plug-in Modules is the latest offering in the MoReq series of specifications.  So what's all the fuss about and what's so different this time around?


Those familiar with the first iteration of the MoReq series of specifications will already know that the Mo stood for Model and the Req for Requirements.  In MoReq2010 Mo now stands for Modular, giving us Modular Requirements for Records Systems.  The deceptive innocence of this grammatical change underlies the fundamental shift in this new specifications focus from that of it's predecessors.


MoReq(1) focused, as the name suggests, on providing a set of model requirements for a records system.  MoReq2 extended these concepts with the important addition of a rigorous testing and certification regime, meta-data specification and data transfer formats, the later in the form of an XML schema.  All noble additions, allowing vendors to gain certification and proof of compliance and customers confidence when buying a records management system.


This approach, however, was not without difficulties.  Once customers had the compliant systems on site it became complex to make modifications for local variations by extending the specification.  The vendors also found it difficult to anticipate the changes that might be made.  These factors combined to make systems complicated and cumbersome to implement.


MoReq2010 was conceived to address these issues.  It moves it's focus away from the model and instead concentrates on defining services that deliver records management functionality.  This allows the specification to be partitioned into functional areas and focuses on the functional contract a records system needs, rather than the underlying data structures.


This division of the specification into discrete services means a pick-and-mix approach to a records system can be taken.  No longer is it an all or nothing situation, now you can use only the parts you need.


A service perspective distances MoReq2010 from the traditional monolithic records system architectures of old.  It suggests a greater focus on in-place records management, where record systems control the records, but not always the storage and management of the content itself.  A requirement I have seen increasing demand for especially in the new world of consolidated content, via CMIS, and dispersed content in the cloud.


I've yet to dig into the nitty gritty of the various service definitions, but I'm hoping this approach gives vendors greater flexibility when deciding on how to implement the specification and enables easier extensions for local markets.  Certainly from first glance it's a much easier specification structure to work with and compliments Alfresco's service based architecture.


Over the next few weeks I will continue to thumb through the details of the specification and report back with what I find.


You can download the MoReq2010 specification here.