Attributes

Reference attributes

Most attributes hold a value: a date, a number, a classification. A Reference attribute holds a link to another item in Kenseme instead. Use one to say “this column represents that glossary term”, “this table is documented by that process document”, or “this ontology class is owned by that schema”.

In the app: Governance › Attributes › your group › Add Attribute › Data Type: Reference

What a reference can point at

When you create a Reference attribute, you pick one kind of target in References. Every value of that attribute must be an item of that kind.

Kind You pick it by choosing…
Schema The schema.
Table, View, Stored procedure, Function, Script The schema, then the item.
Column The schema, a Source Type (Table or View), the table or view, then the column.
Glossary The glossary.
Term The glossary, then the term.
Process The process document.
Ontology The ontology.
Ontology class, attribute, relationship, or instance The ontology, then the entity.

The ontology kinds are labelled with your organization’s ontology naming convention. Under the OWL convention they read as class, object property, data property, and named individual. Under the Fabric convention they read as entity, relationship, field, and record.

Note: The target kind is fixed once the attribute exists. To point at a different kind of item, create a new attribute.

Create a Reference attribute

  1. On Governance › Attributes, click + on the group’s card.
  2. Enter a Name, for example Business Term.
  3. Set Data Type to Reference.
  4. In References, pick the kind of item it points at, for example Term.
  5. Click Create.

Reference attributes have no default value. For the other fields, see Create attribute definitions.

Pick a value

When someone fills in values on an item, a Reference attribute shows a cascading picker. Each dropdown narrows the next, and later dropdowns stay disabled until you choose the earlier ones, for example Select glossary first....

[screenshot]
A Column reference picker with Schema, Source Type, Table, and Column dropdowns, the last one open.

How references display

In read-only views, such as a term’s ATTRIBUTES section or a table’s Info tab, a reference shows with the name of its container first, so it’s never ambiguous:

  • Sales.Orders for a table in the Sales schema.
  • Finance Glossary.Net Revenue for a term.
  • Retail Ontology.Customer for an ontology class.

Click the name to open the item.

When the target is deleted

If the item a reference points at is deleted, the value stays but is marked as broken. Hover over it to read “The referenced item has been deleted. Edit this attribute to pick a new value.” A broken ontology reference shows the missing entity’s short name, so you can tell what used to be there. Open the item’s attribute form and pick a new target.

Ideas for Reference attributes

On Attribute References
Columns Business Term Term
Tables Documented In Process
Terms Canonical Table Table
Ontology classes Source Table Table
Process documents Governs Term Term