Self-archiving is called Green open access and involves uploading the Author’s Accepted Manuscript (AAM) version of an article to a repository while the final published version usually appears behind a journal’s paywall.  

An Author’s Accepted Manuscript is one that has been peer reviewed and which includes any corrections that have been recommended as part of the peer review process. It is generally recommended that author’s add a Rights Retention Statement to their AAM in order to ensure they retain copyright and complete control over this version, and to further differentiate it from the final published version. 

Learn more about Green open access on the Library's open access information pages.