THE RECORDS INFORMATIION SYSTEM (TRIS)

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP85B01152R000901240032-9
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 8
• Document Creation Date: December 21, 2016
• Document Release Date: June 16, 2008
• Sequence Number: 32
• Publication Date: June 14, 1983
• Content Type: REPORT

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THE RECORDS INFORMATION SYSTEM
(TRIS)
Office of Information Services
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TRIS - THE RECORDS INFORMATION SYSTEM
BACKGROUND
TRIS (The Records Information System) was conceived in 1977 as a result
of concern over the number of custom-made, computer-based records management
systems throughout the Agency. Early efforts to establish TRIS were not
successful, although two systems, which later became key elements of TRIS,
were developed by the Office of Data Processing (ODP):
ARCINS, Archives and Records Center Inventory System developed
in 1977, is a file folder-level inventory of all inactive
records retired to the Agency Archives and Records Center.
RAMS, Records Center and Archives Management System developed in
1979, provides job-level control over accessioning, recalling,
and disposing of Agency records retired to the Agency Archives
and Records Center.
In late 1979, the Information Services Staff (a predecessor of the
Office of Information Services) established a task force to define and
formalize data element standards for developing automated registries. As a
result, the design of automated registries began to be treated as a single
application thus enabling ODP to develop the third key element of TRIS:
Interim CARS, Common Use Automated Registry System developed
in 1981, is a standardized software package for
automating basic office-level registry functions.
In August 1981, the Office of Information Services (OIS) proposed to
ODP that OIS direct the design and development of TRIS. ODP, however, felt
that the responsibility for managing complex automated systems should remain
in ODP, and that OIS's role should be to develop customer requirements.
In 1982. ODP's budget oronosal for TRTS contractor support costing
was disapproved. As a
result, emphasis was shifted from the broader aspects of TRIS to the
development of CARS as Phase I. Subsequently, ODP's TRIS program manager
and CARS project officer were reassigned due to other priorities and ODP's
efforts came to a halt.
Recently, in a thorough program review, OIS found that TRIS parameters
have been ill-defined, have fluctuated over time, and have not been central
to records information control and retrieval. As a result, OIS has focused
TRIS on those sub-systems (CARS, ARCINS, and RAMS) that are essential to
records and information management activities and has reorganized one of its
branches to assume management control over TRIS development.
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SYSTEM DEFINITION
TRIS will be an on-line, computer-based records and information
management system that will encompass and enhance the capabilities of
Interim CARS, ARCINS, and the pertinent portions of RAMS. It will control
information in all media from the time it enters a CARS registry until it is
either destroyed or, when national security considerations permit,
transferred to the National Archives and Records Service. It also will
provide the mechanism by which electronic document transmission and
electronic document receipting between office-level registries will be
possible. TRIS will be an Agency-wide, but highly compartmented, system.
SUB-SYSTEM SCHEDULE
The following contains a brief description of the three sub-systems of
TRIS and the proposed timing of their development. A chart setting forth
the schedule for the development of all OIS systems is attached to this
report.
CARS. At present, seven offices use Interim CARS: Executive Registry,
IC Staff, Office of External Affairs, Office of the DDA, Office of
Logistics, Office of Scientific and Weapons Research, and Office of SIGINT
Operations. Ten more registries are expected to receive the Interim CARS
Package in CY 1983.
Although Interim CARS satisfies most automated registry requirements,
at least six additional features are needed:
a. Electronic exchange of common data elements between
registries to eliminate redundant keying.
b. Additional keyword capabilities for better information
retrieval.
c. Additional data elements (1) to provide for a Reports
Management Program, (2) to record records control schedule
item numbers for "front end" records disposition, (3) to
interface with ARCINS, and (4) to interface with TSCADS (Top
Secret Control Automated Data System).
CARS will be compartmented; each registry will have access only to the
data it sends or receives. In addition, home registries will be able to
suppress extremely sensitive document titles to restrict access to the
related information.
Assuming adequate programming support, OIS will begin the CARS
feasibility study in August 1983 following completion of the CARS
requirements document. CARS testing will begin in August 1984 with selected
registries.
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ARCINS. ARCINS presently is an off-line system. Most ARCINS input
data must be recorded on paper forms and forwarded to OIS for keying. To
reduce time and effort, ARCINS will be modified to hold one to three years
of data on-line. This will enable each registry to key and search its own
data. ARCINS also will be modified to provide a document-level as well as
folder-level inventory of selected records. The ARCINS feasibility study
will begin during the testing of CARS. Assuming no manpower or system
complications, ARCINS testing will begin by August 1985. As with CARS, the
data in ARCINS will be compartmented, with access on a need-to-know basis.
RAMS. The disposition and reference portion of RAMS will be merged and
developed concurrently with the on-line portion of ARCINS. RAMS also will
be enhanced to provide reference frequency statistics on records deposited
in the Agency Archives and Records Center. This will help determine the
most efficient retention period for temporary records.
COST
OIS believes that at least 75% (and perhaps 100%) of TRIS can be
developed in-house without direct contractor support. (The extent to which
an adequate digital storage medium and a registry-to-registry electronic
document transmission system can be developed in-house is not known at this
time.) The cost to OIS for TRIS during the first three years will
approximate Of this amount, manpower costs for requirements
definition, feasibility studies, documentation, testin aining will
approximate equipment costs of approximatelywill include
at least four Delta Data terminals, one printer, and one optical character
reader. When technically and economically feasible, an optical storage and
retrieval system, of yet undetermined cost, will be added. As with Interim
CARS, each component registry using TRIS will pay for its own equipment.
Near the end of the first two-year period, the need for direct
contractor support will be evaluated. It is expected, however, that OIS
will be able to "piggyback" on contractor-supported development programs
elsewhere in the Agency and to pace TRIS development with those programs.
With no direct contractor support, total costs to OIS, including the
purchase of an optical and retrieval system, should be
considerably less tha A chart listing the major TRIS costs is
attached to this report.
MAKING USE OF EXISTING TRIS SUB-SYSTEMS
OIS is making additional use of existing TRIS sub-systems through
programming and procedural modifications. One example is the recent
development of procedures enabling the DDA Registry to key directly into
ARCINS, thus eliminating one data recording step. Another example is a
current study to determine if registries can satisfy TSCADS requirements by
using printouts from Interim CARS.
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The greatest use of an existing TRIS sub-system, however, can be
achieved by providing Interim CARS to registries warranting automation. ODP
was doing this until earlier this year, and OIS hopes to obtain the
resources to continue the effort.
EXPLOITING COMMERCIALLY AVAILABLE SYSTEMS
Considerable time has been spent looking at commercially available
records systems with little success. The Agency's unique missions and
functions, the high volume of its records, legal constraints,
compartmentation needs, and other security considerations so far have
precluded economical modification of existing software packages for OIS
requirements. Efforts, however, are continuing.
OTHER OIS SYSTEMS
OIS will develop or enhance three additional systems if adequate
programming resources become available. One is a document security system
that is not directly related to records or records management activities,
the second is an Information and Privacy Division system, and the third is a
system to support an expanded records management program. Each is described
below.
TSCADS. TSCADS presently is an off-line, batch system for recording
the most recent location of non-electrical Top Secret (TS) collateral
documents. It is labor-intensive and far from adequate to its job.
TSCADS will be replaced by an on-line system providing (1) a real-time
auditing capability; (2) auditing of selected types of CIA documents held by
other Government agencies; (3) control of other types of sensitive material,
e.g., Treaty Organization, Restricted Data; (4) an interface with CARS to
reduce keying time by at least 50 percent; (5) an audit trail of each
document; and (6) personal accountability. None of these capabilities is
presently available.
Assuming adequate programming support, the new system will be developed
and tested concurrently with CARS (August 1984).
DECAL. The present DECAL system is an automated index of documents of
general interest released, either in declassified or sanitized form, under
the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), and the mandatory review for
declassification provisions of Executive Order (EO) 12356 and its
predecessor Executive orders. Information believed to be of interest to the
general public is indexed and used to rapidly satisfy identical or similar
requests. At this time we are capturing more than 50 percent of the
information being released.
OIS plans to increase the amount of material indexed in DECAL over the
next year by recording significant documents released to requesters in years
prior to the initiation of the DECAL system. Once this material has been
included, it might be possible to expand DECAL to incorporate other types of
material released by other Agency components.
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The expansion of the existing DECAL system might require some modest
increase in programming support from within OIS during the next year.
Development of an Agency-wide system would require additional programming
resources, the amount depending on the type and the size of the system
envisioned.
ARMS. OIS plans to develop an ADP Records Management System (ARMS) to
support the Agency's growing production and use of automated information.
The system, as it is envisioned now, will have two primary functions. The
first is to record information about existing and proposed Agency ADP
systems in order to (1) establish data element standards to reduce the
amount of data recorded in incompatible formats, (2) establish "front end"
disposition instructions for the information stored or produced by a system
to reduce the cost of unnecessary retention, and (3) identify and reduce the
amount of identical data stored in two or more systems to reduce capturing
and storage costs. The second function is to record information about (1)
proposed and existing Agency software programs to facilitate "off-the-shelf"
applications, and (2) commercial state-of-the-art technology that might be
applicable to present Agency systems.
If OIS obtains its requested programming support, work on ARMS can
begin in 1985.
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