Welcome to OverDrive!
No matter where you are on your journey to bring digital content to the classroom, we are here to help you implement a plan that is customized for your students’ and educators’ needs.
Implementation Overview
Your school will be assigned a Product Support Specialist to assist you with the technical setup, and a Content Specialist to help you select digital content that meets your objectives and budget. Implementation takes approximately 4-6 weeks, but we can be flexible to meet your needs.
Your OverDrive specialists will work closely with your school during this process and ensure you stay on track for a timely and successful launch. The following is a typical sequence of setup milestones.
Set up student sign-in process
Review the authentication options below with your technical staff and determine which option is best for your school. Once selected, complete the respective form and click the “Submit to OverDrive” button. Once we receive your form, a member of our Integration Support team will contact you to set up your authentication method.
OverDrive can authenticate users with your LDAP server. Using LDAP allows your users to borrow items with their existing network username/password.
Content Access Levels
Within your Active Directory structure, users will need to be housed in Organizational Units (OUs) for grade level or graduation year that are readable from the distinguishedName attribute.
It's also possible to set up Content Access Levels based on other attributes such as department, description, physicaldeliveryofficename, or title.
Branch Reporting/Advantage Accounts
Similar to Content Access Levels, users should have an attribute tied to them such as distinguishedName, department, description, or physicaldeliveryofficename that specifies which school building they are a part of.
OverDrive can authenticate users with a Federated Authentication server using SAML v2.0. Once the server is linked with the OverDrive-powered website, the sign-in action will direct users to the authentication server to enter their credentials. Common federated identity providers include Shibboleth, ADFS, Ping Identity, and Okta.
Content Access Levels
We will need to be sent a claim in your SAML response for each user that specifies their grade level or graduation year (if you're using ClassLink, this should already be set up on ClassLink’s end and you do not need to do anything additional).
Branch Reporting/Advantage Accounts
We will need to be sent a claim in your SAML response for each user that specifies their school building (for ClassLink, this will be the userOrgId field).
Please contact your Product Support Specialist to set up
Using an ILS/LMS such as Atriuum, Alexandria, SirsiDynix, etc., OverDrive can send authentication requests via SIP2, PatronAPI, or RPA protocols. Users will sign in using a library card number. If you are interested in authentication via Follett Destiny, please contact your Product Support Specialist.
Content Access Levels
We will need to be sent an attribute or field for each user in your SIP response that specifies their grade level or graduation year.
Branch Reporting/Advantage Accounts
We will need to be sent an attribute or field for each user in your SIP response that specifies their school building.
OverDrive offers a hosted portal you can upload user credentials to via batch upload or by individual user ID. As new credentials are issued or statuses change, you can add, remove, or edit as appropriate.
Content Access Levels
This feature can be enabled upon request and you will determine the appropriate access level for your users within the User Login Manager portal.
Branch Reporting/Advantage
This feature can be enabled upon request and you will add the appropriate building names or codes for your users within the User Login Manager portal.
OverDrive supports integration with your school’s Google G Suite. This method involves creating a read-only admin account for OverDrive that will be added to our configuration in order for the Google API to duplicate it and allow access. The read-only admin account created for OverDrive will need to be set to active permanently in order for the connection to work.
Content Access Levels
Within your Google structure, students will need to be housed in Organizational Units (OUs) that specify their grade level or graduation year.
It's also possible to set up Content Access Levels based on building levels if the OUs are separated by Elementary, Middle, and High School.
Branch Reporting/Advantage Accounts
Within your Google structure, users will need to be housed in Organizational Units (OUs) that specify their school building.
*To use both features, users should be set up in OUs by school building and then further organized into grade level within each school building OU.
Please contact your Product Support Specialist to set up
Preview and customize OverDrive website
After purchasing content and setting up authentication, your Product Support Specialist will share a preview of your OverDrive website before launch. Customization options include:
- Curating featured curriculum content at your website through Marketplace
- Free MARC records for your catalog available with MARC Express
View on-demand training
You can choose between live webinars or on-demand training sessions to educate your staff on a variety of topics, including managing your OverDrive platform, how to purchase titles, integrating OverDrive digital content in the classroom, and using OverDrive on popular devices. Get started with the following resources:
- On-demand and live webinars available in the Resource Center
- Searchable how-to articles and videos through OverDrive Help
Generate awareness and excitement
Your Product Support Specialist will provide custom marketing materials to help you get the word out to students, educators, and parents. You can also visit the Resource Center for print-ready and online promotional assets.
