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This guide walks you from a fresh environment to a working, schema-valid DMS record. The whole process takes about five minutes.
DMS requires Python 3.9 or newer. Run python3 --version to check before you begin.
1

Install DMS

Clone the repository and install the dms CLI in development mode:
git clone https://github.com/Dzaleka-Connect/Dzaleka-Metadata-Standard.git
cd dzaleka-metadata-standard
pip install -e .
The -e flag installs the package in editable mode, which ensures the schema files bundled in the repository are resolved correctly at runtime.
2

Verify the installation

Confirm the CLI is available and inspect the schema:
dms --version
dms info
dms --version prints the installed CLI version. dms info prints the schema version and a table of all fields, their required status, allowed types, and creator roles:
dms, version 1.0.0

╔══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗
║  Dzaleka Metadata Standard (DMS)                        ║
║  An open-source metadata standard for documenting       ║
║  and sharing Dzaleka's digital heritage.                ║
║                                                          ║
║    CLI version:    1.0.0                                 ║
║    Schema version: 1.0.0                                 ║
╚══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝
3

Create a record

DMS offers two ways to create a record. Choose the one that fits your workflow:
4

Validate the record

Once the record is saved, validate it against the DMS schema:
# Validate a single file
dms validate records/my-story.json

# Validate all .json files in a directory
dms validate --dir records/
A valid record prints a confirmation panel:
╭────────────────────────────────────────╮
│ ✓ VALID  records/my-story.json         │
╰────────────────────────────────────────╯
  ⚠ Recommended field 'Format' is not provided.
Errors (marked ✗) mean the record does not conform to the schema and must be fixed. Warnings (⚠) flag missing recommended fields — the record is still valid, but the missing fields reduce discoverability.
dms validate exits with a non-zero status code when any record is invalid, making it safe to use in CI pipelines.

​
Example record

The following is a complete, schema-valid DMS record from examples/story.json. You can use it as a reference or starting point:
story.json
{
  "id": "b3e7c8a1-4d5f-6e7a-8b9c-0d1e2f3a4b5c",
  "title": "Journey to Dzaleka: A Story of Hope",
  "type": "story",
  "description": "An oral history account of a Congolese family's journey from Bukavu to Dzaleka Refugee Camp in 2015. The narrator describes the challenges of displacement, the experience of crossing borders, and the sense of community found upon arrival at Dzaleka. This story captures themes of resilience, loss, and rebuilding life in a new place.",
  "language": "en",
  "creator": [
    {
      "name": "Marie Consolée",
      "role": "narrator"
    },
    {
      "name": "Jean-Baptiste Mushimiyimana",
      "role": "interviewer",
      "affiliation": "Dzaleka Digital Heritage Project"
    }
  ],
  "date": {
    "created": "2024-03-15",
    "event_date": "2015-08-22"
  },
  "subject": [
    "oral history",
    "displacement",
    "Congo",
    "journey",
    "resilience",
    "community",
    "arrival"
  ],
  "location": {
    "name": "Dzaleka Refugee Camp",
    "area": "Community Center",
    "latitude": -13.7833,
    "longitude": 33.9833
  },
  "format": "text/plain",
  "rights": {
    "license": "CC-BY-NC-4.0",
    "access_level": "public",
    "holder": "Marie Consolée"
  },
  "source": {
    "contributor": "Dzaleka Digital Heritage Project",
    "collection": "Oral Histories 2024",
    "original_format": "audio interview (transcribed)"
  },
  "coverage": {
    "start_date": "2015-01-01",
    "end_date": "2015-12-31",
    "period": "2015 displacement and arrival"
  },
  "schema_version": "1.0.0"
}

​
Next steps

Field guide

Detailed definitions and allowed values for every schema field.

CLI reference

Full reference for all dms commands: search, export, stats, report, and more.