--- title: How to Read the Relationship Map slug: como-leer-mapa-de-relaciones description: >- A guide to discovering the data governance ecosystem, analyzing impact, and navigating technical relationships. audiencia: Administrator | Data Owner | Data Steward | Data Engineer | User roles: Read access according to scope; administrative actions according to capability modulo: Relationship Explorer estado: Validated current behavior revision: '2026-10-19' section: guias order: 20 sources: - Cómoleerelmapaderelaciones.md locale: en --- # How to Read the Relationship Map The Relationship Explorer helps answer a specific question: **how is this business concept connected to its owners, controls, technical sources, and products?** The taxonomy remains the central axis. This is not a free-form graph in which all objects appear at the same level. ## Before You Begin - The **Relationship Explorer** module must be active for the company. - Only objects in the tenant and within the authorized scope appear. - The map starts from the selected object, or from a valid tenant seed when opened without a selection. - Attributes and fields are queried progressively; they are not all loaded at the first level. ## The Path Bar Is the Context Selector The top path works like the Windows folder browser: ```text Company / Domain / Subdomain / Entity / Attribute / Repository / Field ``` - Each segment represents an available level. - Clicking a segment returns to that level and displays the related objects in that context. - `Volver al nivel anterior` moves up one step without losing the current view. - `Limpiar selección` returns the map to the general seed. - The same bar shows depth, effective filters, and the number of objects/relationships. The path does not open the inspector automatically. Changing context is for navigation; **Detail** opens expanded information only when requested. ## Overview: Understand the Ecosystem Use Overview when you do not yet know which relationship you are looking for. 1. Select a Domain or Subdomain. 2. Review the taxonomy column: Entities and Attributes. 3. Look at the side columns: Business Terms, Quality Rules, Repositories, Systems, Data Products, and Data Contracts. 4. Click an object to change the map context. 5. Use the top path to move up or return to a previous conceptual folder. Overview prioritizes understandable names and groupings. It does not attempt to show all the physical fields of a source. ## Impact: Analyze a Selected Object Impact answers **what feeds the object and what may be affected if it changes**. - **Analyzed object:** selected using the visible root object control. - **Upstream:** origins or elements that feed the object. - **Downstream:** products, contracts, rules, systems, or processes that depend on it. - **Impact filters:** narrow the results to categories such as Quality, Products, Contracts, or Systems. - **Depth:** indicates how many hops are traversed from the root object. Example: ```text Attribute “Entry date” ← Technical field in an academic table ← University repository → Completeness rule → Data Contract → Data Product ``` If no actual upstream or downstream path exists, the screen must explain that absence. It must not invent a dependency based solely on sharing the same Domain. ## Technical Detail: Follow the Physical Relationship Technical Detail is intended for the Data Engineer, Steward, and Owner who need to verify traceability. ### Backbone The center retains a readable hierarchy: ```text Domain ↓ Subdomain ↓ Entity ↓ Attribute ``` Related objects appear on either side: ```text Attribute ↔ Quality Rule Attribute ↔ Technical Dictionary Field Field ↔ Repository / schema / table / column Repository ↔ System ``` An Entity or Repository may show internal rows for attributes or fields. The card initially displays up to eight rows; `+N` and the internal scroll let you review the rest without turning the entire diagram into illegible boxes. ### How to Investigate a Field 1. Select the Entity or Attribute on the central axis. 2. Find the Repository or Technical Dictionary card. 3. Check the table and column names, schema, type, and association status. 4. Follow the line to the taxonomy Attribute. 5. Open **Detail** if you need the full table of fields, source, or description. The functional name of the Attribute is shown in the interface. The technical code is reserved for persistence, validation, import, or generated SQL. ## What a Line Means | Signal | Meaning | |---|---| | Line to the central taxonomy | The object is related to the business context. | | Line from an Attribute to a Field | A documented physical association exists. | | Line between a Repository and a System | The Repository declares a related System. | | Line to a Quality Rule | The Quality Rule uses the Attribute or an associated field. | | Line to a Data Product/Data Contract | The object participates in a data delivery or commitment. | | No line | No relationship is recorded; do not infer one from the name alone. | ## Filters and Depth Filters apply to the active context, not to the entire tenant: - Depth 1 shows direct relationships. - Depth 2 allows you to follow one additional hop. - Equivalent edges are shown only once. - Filters incompatible with the root are disabled to prevent an empty or misleading map. - Changing levels through the path recalculates the depth and valid filters. ## When to Open Detail Do not open the side panel for every click. Keep the canvas clear for navigation and use **Detail** when you want to: - read the description, ownership, and status; - review all attributes or fields; - consult technical associations and source; - open the full record for the object. ## Common Problems ### The Map Looks Empty Check that a visible root object exists, the module is active, and the depth/filters are compatible. The system keeps the root rendered while loading and shows an explanatory status if there are no relationships. ### A Table Appears but Its Fields Do Not The table may exist as a Repository without all its fields being in the Technical Dictionary or associated with attributes. Open Detail and review the status of each field; do not assume that a table relationship implies a column association. ### Two Similar Lines Appear The interface deduplicates equivalent relationships by object pair. If two lines represent semantically distinct relationships, the legend must distinguish them; if they are the same link, only one should be shown. ### I Cannot Navigate to a Previous Level Use the corresponding segment in the top path or `Volver al nivel anterior`. Clearing the selection returns to the general seed without changing companies. ## Related Content - [Object and relationship model](/en/explicaciones/modelo-de-objetos-y-relaciones/) - [Roles, capabilities, and scope](/en/referencia/roles-capacidades-y-alcance/) - [Modules and dependencies](/en/referencia/modulos-y-dependencias/) ## Expected Outcome You can distinguish a business association from a recorded physical relationship, navigate Overview, Impact, and Technical Detail, and recognize when a dependency has not yet been documented.