Identify, document, and prepare forgotten archives

Why a data inventory matters

Many organizations inherit archives after acquisitions, product sunsets, or system migrations. The material often sits in forgotten servers, tape libraries, or cloud buckets. Without a clear picture, the data cannot be repurposed, protected, or retired safely. An inventory turns a hidden mass of files into a documented asset. It shows what exists, where it lives, and what constraints apply. The result is a foundation for risk management, compliance, and any future use of the material.

What the inventory process covers

Our inventory service follows a defined checklist. Each item is recorded in a structured format that can be reviewed by legal, compliance, and technical teams.

• Source identification – List every system, storage device, and backup that contains legacy material.
• File cataloging – Capture file counts, formats, size ranges, and date stamps.
• Rights mapping – Record ownership, licensing status, and any known restrictions.
• PII detection – Locate personal identifiers, note jurisdictional rules, and flag for protection.
• Deduplication analysis – Identify exact and near‑duplicate records to avoid inflated counts.
• Metadata recovery – Extract embedded metadata, timestamps, and provenance notes.
• Sample selection – Choose representative records for a manifest that illustrates the archive’s scope.

The checklist is applied consistently across all legacy sources, whether they are on‑premise servers, legacy databases, or cloud archives.

Step‑by‑step workflow

1. Initial briefing – You submit a brief through our readiness review form. We capture basic information about the archive’s origin, size, and expected outcomes.
2. Readiness check – Use our self‑assessment tool at /preparation/recovery-planner/ to identify access questions before an inventory.
3. Access provisioning – Provide temporary credentials or export samples. We work with your IT staff to ensure secure handling.
4. Automated scanning – Scripts enumerate files, capture hashes, and extract basic metadata.
5. Manual validation – Analysts verify automated results, resolve ambiguous formats, and note missing documentation.
6. Rights and provenance register – We compile findings into a register that aligns with our rights and provenance offering.
7. PII mapping – Specialized tools locate personal data. The map links each PII element to its source record.
8. Deduplication report – We present a summary of duplicate groups and recommended actions.
9. Sample manifest creation – A curated set of records is packaged with a data dictionary for quick review.
10. Final delivery – All artifacts are delivered in a secure folder, with version control and clear identifiers.

Each phase ends with a sign‑off checkpoint. The process is transparent, and you can pause or adjust scope at any checkpoint.

Key deliverables

• Structured inventory report – A spreadsheet‑style document that lists every source, file count, format, and rights status.
• Rights and provenance register – A concise register that records ownership history, licensing terms, and any open questions.
• PII mapping sheet – An itemized list of personal data elements, their locations, and recommended handling.
• Deduplication summary – Quantitative data on duplicate families and suggested consolidation steps.
• Metadata recovery log – Extracted metadata fields, quality notes, and gaps identified.
• Sample manifest and data dictionary – Representative records with field definitions, allowing stakeholders to assess content quickly.

All deliverables are linked to our dataset preparation service, should you need further cleaning or transformation.

Benefits for your organization

• Risk reduction – Identify compliance gaps before they become regulatory issues.
• Decision clarity – Know exactly what material exists and what can be reused, sold, or retired.
• Cost control – Avoid paying for storage of duplicate or irrelevant data.
• Strategic planning – Use the inventory as a baseline for migration, integration, or archival policies.

The inventory does not prescribe a next step. It simply provides the facts you need to choose the right path.

Get started today

A clear inventory is the first step toward responsible data stewardship. Begin with a short brief to request a readiness review. Our team will outline the scope, timeline, and required inputs. If you prefer to assess readiness on your own first, try the recovery planner.

When you are ready, explore the broader process at our How It Works page or read related insights at /collections/notes/. For a deeper dive into the specific services that complement the inventory, visit the dedicated pages for Data Inventory, Rights and Provenance Register, and Dataset Preparation.

Your legacy archives deserve the same rigor as any active data set. Let us bring order to the forgotten.