Centralization of Koha ILS for Nine Constituent Colleges
Royal University of Bhutan (RUB)
A proposal to consolidate hosting at OVC while preserving college autonomy, improving reliability, security, and observability.
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Summary
Current Scenario
- 9 independent Koha ILS hosted locally across colleges.
- College-specific VMs with limited central oversight.
- No unified disaster recovery posture.
Proposal
- Centralized hosting at OVC; independent Koha VMs per college.
- Autonomy retained for configuration and operations.
- Shared platform services for reliability, security, and DR.
Features
- Autonomy with centralized reliability.
- SIP2 integration for RFID.
- Anti-bot & AI-scraping protection.
- Comprehensive monitoring & transparent reporting.
Objectives
- Centralize Koha hosting while preserving autonomy.
- Ensure reliable power, networking, and DR readiness.
- Secure SIP2 for RFID integration.
- Protect OPAC/SRU endpoints from AI abuse.
- Provide transparent monitoring and reporting.
Architecture Overview
Logical Layout
Users → Nginx LBs (load balancers) → College VMs
(Koha + MariaDB + Zebra/ES + SIP2)
Shared Services: Proxmox VE, PBS, Zabbix, Uptime Kuma, MinIO/NAS
DR Site: 1× Proxmox VE + PBS
Notes
- Per-college VM isolation; shared infra plane.
- TLS termination and WAF at Nginx LBs.
- Backups land on PBS; replicated to DR site.
Networking & UPS Design
Dual ISPs → Firewall HA → Core Switches → Proxmox/Nginx → PBS → NAS/MinIO
UPS Layer: 20 kVA, N+1, 30 min runtime + generator
Resilience
- Dual uplinks with failover.
- Firewall HA (active/standby).
- N+1 UPS with generator support.
Security
- Segmentation for OPAC, staff, and SIP2 networks.
- Strict ACLs, IP allowlists for kiosks.
- Centralized certificate management.
Key Features
VM Management
- Proxmox VE cluster for compute & HA.
- PBS backups with nightly schedule & 90‑day retention.
SIP2 Security
stunnelTLS wrapping for SIP2.- Per‑college ports and IP restrictions.
Load Balancing & WAF
- Nginx LBs with TLS termination.
- Bot‑blocking & AI scraping deterrents.
Monitoring
- Zabbix metrics and alerting.
- Uptime Kuma public status page.
Hardware & Cost (Primary Site)
| Item | Qty | Est. Cost (INR) |
|---|---|---|
| Proxmox VE hosts | 2 | 12,00,000 |
| PBS 20 TB | 1 | 4,00,000 |
| Nginx LB | 2 | 3,00,000 |
| UPS 20 kVA | 2 | 12,00,000 |
| Core Switches | 2 | 6,00,000 |
| Racks + PDUs + cabling | – | 3,00,000 |
Figures are indicative; vendor quotes required for final budgeting.
DR Site & OPEX
DR Site
| Item | Qty | Cost (INR) |
|---|---|---|
| Proxmox VE | 1 | 5,00,000 |
| PBS backup 10 TB | 1 | 3,00,000 |
OPEX (Annual)
- Dual ISP: At actuals
- Sysadmin staff: At actuals
- AMC/Support: ₹5,00,000
Implementation Roadmap
Timeline
- Month 1: Deploy Proxmox VE, PBS, Nginx, UPS, networking
- Month 2: Build Koha VM template, pilot migration
- Months 3–4: Migrate remaining colleges
- Month 5: Deploy DR host, replicate PBS backups
- Month 6: Launch status page, finalize monitoring
Success Criteria
- All 9 colleges live on centralized platform.
- RPO ≤ 24 hours; RTO ≤ 4 hours.
- Public status page with 99.9% monthly uptime.
Thank You
Questions? Contact the OVC ICT Team.
Add college and RUB logos to the header for branding.