Services
Koha Services — Installation, Migration, Hosting and Support
Everything a library needs to get Koha running and keep it running — without hiring a system administrator.
Sound familiar?
The three things libraries tell us
Koha is excellent software. Almost every problem we are called about is not a problem with Koha — it is that nobody was ever given the job of running it.
“We installed Koha and now nobody knows how to maintain it.”
“Our overdue notices stopped sending and we don't know why.”
“Our IT person left.”
What we do
Pick the part you need
Most libraries start with one of these and add the others later. They work as separate engagements — you are not buying a bundle.
Koha Installation
Set up properly, first time
Learn moreData Migration
Move from your old system without losing anything
Learn moreSupport & Maintenance
Someone to call, before it breaks
Learn moreVersion Upgrades
Get back onto a supported release, safely
Learn moreRFID Integration
Make your RFID hardware work with Koha
Learn moreIntegrations
Connect Koha to what your institution already runs
Learn moreCustomization
Your branding, your workflows
Learn moreOPAC Themes
A catalog that looks like your institution
Learn moreMultilingual Catalogs
Catalog and search in any language or script
Learn moreKoha Cloud (hosting)
We run the server, you run the library
Learn moreTraining
Certify your staff on a live system
Learn moreThe full list
Our Core Services
The cards above are the services libraries ask for by name. This is everything the same team handles, whether or not it has a page of its own.
Koha Installation & Deployment
Cloud & Dedicated Hosting
Koha Customization & Development
Koha Version Upgrades & Data Migration
Domain Registration & Management
Server Setup & Infrastructure Management
Automated Cloud Backup & Disaster Recovery
Local Area Network (LAN) Setup for Koha
Offline Koha Networking Solutions
Ongoing Technical Support & Maintenance
Why libraries work with us
Things you can check
Every claim on this page is either verifiable from a standard or visible in a system we run.
Live libraries, daily circulation
College and university libraries are checking books in and out on systems we run today. Not a pilot, not a demo instance.
Koha's own schema and column names
Our data model follows Koha table for table and column for column, so records move across one-to-one instead of being approximated.
MARC21, ISO 2709 and MARCXML
Standards-compliant import and export both ways, with matching rules and staging — the same formats every other library system speaks.
SIP2 for hardware you already own
Self-check units, RFID pads and security gates connect over SIP2, so existing equipment does not become a reason to stay put.
Z39.50 and SRU copy cataloging
Search remote catalogs and pull a full record in rather than typing it. Configured with working targets on day one.
Backups you keep your own copy of
Automated, and yours to download. A backup you cannot get at without asking your vendor is not really a backup.
The difference
Everything is already set up
Most of the work in a library system is not installing it. It is the hundred small things that have to be configured before a single overdue notice arrives in a student's inbox.
- Mail server and deliverability — SPF and DKIM, so notices reach the inbox rather than the spam folder
- Notice templates written and tested — overdue, hold ready, due soon, welcome
- Z39.50 and SRU copy-cataloging sources, configured and working
- Daily backups you keep your own copy of
- Security patching and certificate renewal
- Scheduled jobs with a run history you can read
You look after your students. We look after the server.
How an engagement runs
Koha implementation, end to end
Most libraries arrive needing one of these and discover they need three. The sequence below is the same whether we do all of it or you take part of it in-house.
- 1
Scope
Collection size, branches, staff, what you run today and what has to be true on day one. Half an hour, and it is what makes the estimate honest rather than a guess.
- 2
Install or migrate
A new catalog on a current supported version, or your existing records moved across with every field accounted for. Often both, running together.
- 3
Configure
MARC frameworks, item types, patron categories, circulation rules per branch. This is the part that turns installed software into a library that can lend a book.
- 4
Connect
Email with its DNS records, Z39.50 targets for copy cataloging, RFID and self-check over SIP2, and single sign-on where the institution has it.
- 5
Train
A walkthrough with the people who will use it daily, and written documentation of how yours is configured — so the next person to join does not start from nothing.
- 6
Go live, then support
Cutover with a rollback plan, then someone to call. The month after go-live is when the questions actually arrive.
Before you choose anyone
Choosing a Koha service provider
Koha is open source, so the software is the same whoever you buy from. What differs is what happens after go-live — and these are the questions that surface it.
Do we get our data out, in a standard format, without asking?
MARC21 and CSV exports on demand. If leaving requires a support ticket and a fee, you are not hosting with them — they are holding it.
Are the backups ours to download?
A backup you cannot retrieve without your vendor is not a backup. Ask for the retention period and whether a restore has ever been tested.
Which Koha version will we be on in two years?
Upgrades are the commitment people forget to ask about. A cheap first year on a version nobody supports is the expensive option.
Who configures email, and do they do the DNS records?
Setting an SMTP server is the easy half. SPF, DKIM and DMARC are what make notices arrive, and they are where most "Koha is broken" reports come from.
Do customizations survive an upgrade?
Ask how they are implemented, not whether they are possible. Changes made in the wrong place are quietly undone by the next release.
What is the response time, and to whom?
A named channel and a stated hour beats "24/7" as an adjective. Ask what happens when the person who knows your setup is on leave.
We answer all six on the pages above, in writing, before anyone signs anything.
FAQ
Questions we are asked before the first call
Do you only work with libraries already using Koha?
No. About half the libraries we talk to are still on another system, on a spreadsheet, or on paper. Moving to Koha is one of the things we do — we handle the migration as well as the setup.
Can you take over an existing Koha installation someone else set up?
Yes, and it is a common request. We start with an audit: what version it is on, what is configured, what is broken, whether the backups actually restore. You get that written up before you commit to anything ongoing.
Do we have to move to your hosting to get support?
No. We support Koha on your own server as well as on ours. Hosting with us means the upgrades, backups and monitoring are simply how it runs, but it is not a condition of being supported.
How long does a typical setup take?
A single-branch library with a clean catalog is usually two to four weeks from scoping call to go-live. A multi-branch university with data to migrate runs longer — six to twelve weeks is a realistic range. We give you a timeline after the scoping call, not before it.
Which countries do you work in?
Worldwide. Implementation, migration, configuration and training are all delivered remotely, so where your library is does not change what we can do. Koha itself runs in roughly 20,000 libraries across every continent.
Can you catalog in our language and script?
Yes — including non-Latin scripts, right-to-left text and mixed-script collections. That has its own page, because getting it right involves four separate things most vendors treat as one.
What happens to our data if we leave?
You take it with you. Bibliographic records export as MARC21 (ISO 2709 or MARCXML) and the rest exports as CSV — patrons, holdings, circulation history, fines. There is no proprietary format and no exit fee. We would rather answer this now than have you wonder about it later.
Related reading
Prefer to read first?
The guides go into the detail a sales page should not. They are free, and they do not ask for your email.
What is Koha?
The open-source library system behind everything on this page — what it does, who runs it and where it came from.
Read the guideKoha vs other library systems
An honest comparison against the commercial alternatives, including where Koha is the weaker choice.
Read the guideKoha hosting, explained
What running a Koha server actually involves, so you can decide whether you want to.
Read the guideGet a quote
Tell us what you need
A short description is enough to start. We reply by email with a quote and a realistic timeline — no call required first.