OJS Plugin: Installation and Use Guide for Journal Editors

October 5, 2026 · 6 min read

If your journal runs Open Journal Systems (OJS 3.3, 3.4 or 3.5), the ReferenceVerify plugin lets you check the references of a manuscript file without leaving the submission. There is no need to download and re-upload the file, and a summary of the result can be written back to the submission as an editor-only discussion. This guide walks through installation and day-to-day use.

What you need first

• OJS 3.3.x, 3.4.x or 3.5.x. You can see your version in OJS under Administration → System Information. There are two packages: one for OJS 3.3 (PHP 7.4–8.1) and one for OJS 3.4 / 3.5 (PHP 8.0 or later); download the one for your version. In OJS 3.5 the plugin appears at the bottom of the workflow's left-hand menu as “ReferenceVerify” when you open the submission from the editorial dashboard; in 3.3 and 3.4 it is a separate tab.
• PHP 7.4–8.1, cURL with HTTPS and outbound HTTPS access from the server. Your hosting provider can confirm this.
• Site Administrator role. Uploading a plugin package in OJS requires the Site Administrator; a journal manager cannot upload it.
• A plugin key. Keys are issued per journal and start with rvojs_ (step 1 below).
• An account for each editor. Every editor who runs a check needs their own ReferenceVerify account.

Installation in four steps

1. Request a key. Use the contact form, or Messages once you are signed in, and tell us the journal name, the OJS address, a contact email and the account email of the editor who will use reviewer suggestions. The key is shown to you once; if it is lost we revoke it and issue a new one.
2. Download and upload the package. Download it from the OJS plugin page; do not unpack the .tar.gz file. As Site Administrator, go to Settings → Website → Plugins → Upload A New Plugin and choose the file. To update an installed version, use Upgradein the plugin's row instead; your settings are kept.
3. Enable the plugin. Under Installed Plugins → Generic Plugins, tick “ReferenceVerify”.
4. Enter the settings. Click Settings next to the plugin:
   • Plugin key: the rvojs_… key you received.
   • There are no other settings. The report type is chosen per file; summaries are added only when you click Get results.

Day to day: checking a submission

1. Open the ReferenceVerify tab in the submission workflow. Journal managers, editors, production editors, assigned section editors and the site administrator see it; authors, reviewers and assistants do not.
2. The manuscript files are listed with their stage: submission, review, copyediting, production. Next to a Word (.docx, .doc), PDF or RTF file (up to 50 MB), click one of three buttons:
   • Reference check: every reference is verified against scholarly records (fabricated, mismatched, retracted).
   • In-text citations: the citations in the text are checked against the reference list and whether the cited source supports the claim.
   • Consolidated report: both together. Every reference is verified, including those never cited; in-text citations and the reference list are cross-checked in both directions (cited but missing from the list, listed but never cited, year mismatches); citation claims are checked.
3. The site opens in a new tab with the file loaded and the report you chose. If you are not signed in, you are asked to sign in first. The check runs in your browser and the report appears on the site.

Writing the result back to OJS (optional)

1. When the report is ready, click Send summary to OJS below it. Nothing is sent unless you click it.
2. The summary contains only counts and the five most important issues; no manuscript text, references or personal data.
3. Back in OJS 3.5, opening the ReferenceVerify panel shows the number of waiting summaries and a “Summary waiting” label next to the file; in OJS 3.3 and 3.4 click Get results directly.
4. Click Get results. The summary is added to the submission as a discussion with the assigned editors only; authors are never added. Summaries that are not fetched are kept for 7 days.

Sharing the report with the author (optional)

1. In the Share with the author section below the report, add the manuscript title and journal name if you like.
2. Click Text the author will see and read it: the full status of every reference (verified, to correct or check, not checked), suggested corrections and the in-text citation consistency. The text always ends with “ReferenceVerify — https://referenceverify.com/”.
3. Tick the confirmation and click Share with the author. Nothing reaches the author unless you do.
4. In OJS, click Get results. The report is added as a discussion that also includes the authors, who get an OJS notification. This needs plugin version 1.2.0 or later; older versions add it for editors only.

Reviewer suggestions

Show reviewer suggestionsin the tab uses the submission's title, abstract and author names to list researchers who have published on the topic, with ORCID, institution, works on the topic and the year of their latest work. Conflicts of interest are flagged (co-authored with an author, same institution, retracted work) and flagged candidates are listed last. Nobody is assigned automatically. The account linked to the key needs editor tools; each journal can run up to 30 searches per hour.

Privacy

• The file goes from your OJS server to ours over HTTPS, with the journal's key, as an encrypted single-use transfer.
• The transfer is deleted when it is opened, or automatically after one hour at the latest.
• The check runs in the editor's browser; the manuscript is not stored.
• Summaries and author reports can only be fetched with the key of the journal that sent the file; both are kept encrypted and deleted once written to OJS, or after 7 days at most.

Troubleshooting

• “The plugin key has not been entered yet”: the journal manager needs to enter the key in the plugin settings.
• “ReferenceVerify did not accept the plugin key”: the key was copied incompletely or wrongly; paste it again.
• “This plugin key has been revoked”: contact us for a new key.
• “ReferenceVerify could not be reached”: your OJS server may not be allowed outbound HTTPS; ask your hosting provider to open it.
• File larger than 50 MB: download and compress it, or paste the reference list on the site.
• Reviewer suggestions unavailable: the account linked to the key does not have editor tools; contact us.

Using a different submission system?

If your journal uses another submission or manuscript management system, tell us which one; we can build a similar integration for it. Until then you can download the file and upload it to the bibliography check or Citation Check. Report errors, gaps or suggestions any time through Messages, or in detail by email.