Major Library System Upgrade — Changes to Library Hours and Services July 4 – 10

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Duke University Libraries will migrate our Integrated Library System (ILS) from a product called Aleph, which we began using in 2004, to Alma, which we will launch on July 10, 2024.

  • The ILS is the staff-facing application we use to manage the 7.5 million physical and electronic resources that comprise our collections, such as books, eBooks, online journals, DVDs, streaming media, music scores, microforms, archival manuscripts, and more.
  • We use the ILS to track items in our collections from initial acquisition through storage to circulation.
  • Data from the ILS is synced with our public-facing Books & Media Catalog, Articles search, Online Journal Titles search, Course Reserves, and many other patron-facing discovery systems.
  • Alma will enhance core functions for the Libraries' operations including selection, licensing, acquisition, metadata management, and circulation.

Our migration timeline

  • June 29 – July 10 — The Rubenstein Library reading room will be closed and requesting items from Rubenstein Library will be unavailable during that timeframe
  • July 4 – 7 — Duke University Libraries will be closed
  • July 8 – 9 — Duke University Libraries will be open
  • July 5 – 10 — Requesting items from the Books & Media Catalog will be unavailable. Access to Online Journal Titles, Articles, and Databases will remain available.
  • July 10 — Duke University Libraries will open at 12 noon. Searching for Books & Media, Articles, and Online Journal Titles will intermittently be unavailable during the morning of July 10. Users may resume requesting items from the Books & Media Catalog after 12 noon.
  • July 11 — The Rubenstein Library Reading room reopens

Note: Lilly Library is closed for renovation until summer 2026.

See Library Hours for details about when library spaces are open.

Changes that patrons will experience

  • Online Journal Titles search results will be displayed within the Summon platform
  • Course Reserves will be accessed through a course's Canvas site
  • The Books & Media Catalog will display more information at the library level instead of the shelf level to support quicker requesting

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