By default, VuFind® is configured to support LC call numbers, but Dewey Decimal support can be enabled if needed.

Activating Dewey Decimal support requires a few steps:

To add Dewey call numbers to your index, uncomment the Dewey-related lines in import/marc_local.properties under your VuFind® installation. By default, VuFind® expects to find Dewey numbers in the 082 and 083 MARC fields. You may need to adjust the process that exports records from your ILS to populate these fields (see MARC Export Notes for advice on exporting records). Alternatively, if your call numbers are in a different MARC field, you may have to adjust the field specification in marc_local.properties; see the SolrMarc Notes for more details.

In config.ini, there is a [Browse] section which controls VuFind®'s browse module. Set “dewey” to true in order to enable a Dewey call number browse. You may also want to disable the “lcc” setting to turn off LC call number support at this time, though you do not have to – both call number schemes can coexist.

In facets.ini, you may want to enable the “dewey-hundreds” facet in place of the LC-centric “callnumber-first” facet. Comments inside the configuration file offer more details on this setting.

Note that you will probably also want to make the same change in the [Advanced] / [HomePage] sections of the file as well as the [Results] section in order to control options on the Advanced Search screen and (in some themes) the Search/Home page.

In searches.ini, you may want to use “dewey-sort” as the call number sort in place of the LC-oriented “callnumber” setting. Comments inside the configuration file offer more details on this option.

In solr/biblio/conf/solrconfig.xml, there is a “morelikethis” request handler which is used for finding records similar to a given item. This is used for suggesting similar items on the record view page. By default, it uses Library of Congress call numbers as a strong factor in identifying matches. If you want Dewey to be a factor as well, supplement or replace the “callnumber-label” value in the morelikethis request handler section with “dewey-ones,” “dewey-tens” and/or “dewey-hundreds.” For smaller collections, you may want to use a less precise Dewey field to get more matches; for larger collections, you should probably use a more precise Dewey field to better precision matches. It's also an option to include all three Dewey fields and simply weight the more precise ones higher.

For more details on the MoreLikeThis handler, see the relevant Solr wiki page.

Depending on your local needs, you may also need to make a few Dewey-related customizations:

• Make sure your ILS driver returns Dewey call numbers when sending holdings information. This is necessary to display appropriate values in the “call number” field of search results. For more details on how drivers work, see the ILS Driver specification.
• If you want to show Dewey numbers in more places (for example, in record details), it may also be necessary to edit some of VuFind®'s templates. For more details on customizing the user interface, see User Interface Customization.