Data Catalog Specification
Specifications are the Data Cookbook objects that describe your reporting deliverables, such as reports, spreadsheets, dashboards, extracts, database views, or tables in a data store. Each specification is managed through a specification approval workflow and with the impact analysis feature.
Attributes of a Specification
The specification's purpose is a description of why the reporting object is needed.
This might describe a business process that requires a specific report, a regulatory or other mandated requirement, or a specific user need that it fulfills.
The description explains what is in the report or process. For example, "a summary of all budgets and year-to-date totals by department with grand totals provided at the school level."
The description might contain attached files (text or image) that provide additional details or provide an example of what the final output should look like.
Each data system from which the report is generated is shown.
If data system groups are defined, both the group and the specific data system are displayed.
Tools are the programs or systems used for developing a report or process.
For any report or process, a specification requester may have identified a specific tool, such as Cognos, Tableau, or SAP, or simply identified the type of tool that should be used, such as a data profiling tool or spreadsheet.
Specification types are defined by your Cookbook administrator and are unique to your organization's use of the Data Cookbook.
The specification type indicates the kind of reporting object being defined.
Access details explain how to gain access to or run the report.
These details could be a URL, a file location, or a set of instructions for generating or requesting the report.
Right Side Bar
Functional areas categorize objects by topic or business area and
Determine the workflow assigned to the object
Control permissions for viewing, editing, and managing the object
Provide an option for filtering on the object's Browse page
Editors can add or remove functional areas for an in-progress or approved version of an object. However, changing the functional areas may change the workflow and, for items currently in progress, may result in the approval process starting over.
Please visit Functional Areas to learn more.
Tags are searchable words or phrases that can be created once and shared by multiple definitions, specifications, or collections. They are used as a filter on the object's Browse page.
Example tags include:
- Bio/Demo
- FERPA
- Training item
Editors can add or remove tags for an approved or in-progress definition or specification (or collection in the Enterprise Edition).
Related specifications are those specifications that use this definition.
The relationship between definitions and specifications is created when a definition is added to a specification.
Specification Tabs
All the Data Cookbook definitions selected for this specification are listed in this table.
Go to the Selections, Sort Criteria, Technical, or Display Details tab to see more information about how these data definitions are used for this specification.
Along with the basic information about each definition, technical editors will also see the definition's technical definition.
Use the Selections tab to define how the data is selected for this reporting object.
In a report specification, you can define multiple sets of selection criteria with each set comprised of a series of statements that describe how the data are selected.
Selection criteria is defined in terms of a Connector used to show how each criteria is connected to the next one (the first Connector is generally WHERE); an Attribute from your Data Cookbook; an Operator (such as “is true” or “equal to”); a Condition (this is free text); and whether the user is prompted for a value (a Parameter) at the time the report is generated.
On an ETL specification, you use the textual description to explain how the data items are selected.
Enter a description of this set of selection criteria. The description should be useful to someone who might not be able to read the code or pseudocode you use elsewhere in the specification.
If necessary, you can use a description only--without using the attribute, operator, and condition fields--to explain how data should be selected for the report.
Use the Sort Criteria tab to define how rows or columns in a report specification are sorted.
In an ETL specification, use the Sort Criteria Description to describe any data sorting done for the ETL process.
Technical Summary
Data Systems
- Each data system from which the report is generated is shown.
- If data system groups are defined, both the group and the specific data system are displayed.
Tools
Tools are the programs or systems used for developing a report or process.
Technical Overview
- The technical overview provides details about the specification.
- This overview might be
- the full text of the query
- a techno-functional description of how the data is extracted or transformed in the context of the current specification or
- any other information the specification requester provided to describe the technical aspects of the reporting object
Data Defintions
- All the Data Cookbook definitions selected for this specification are listed in this table.
Name
- Each definition used for this reporting object, along with any synonyms and its data system, are displayed.
- Alert icons indicate that there is an in-progress version of a definition or that information, such as the technical definition, is missing (hover over any icon to see a description of the alert).
Display Info
- If the Display shows "Yes", this definition will display on the report. Any details about how a definition should be displayed is also provided.
- If the Display shows "No", the definition will not display on the report. For example, the definition may only be used for calculations or queries.
- Definitions that are used in sort or selection criteria are indicated by icons (hover over any icon to see a description).
Field info
- Loc is a description of where the field is located on the report (such as "upper right corner" or "second column").
- Ref is any reference information given about this field as it relates to the report.
Aggregate Info
- Indicates whether the values from a definition should be aggregated in some manner.
- If "Yes," there may also be a description of how the aggregation will be done.
Go to the Selections, Sort Criteria, Technical, or Display Details tab to see more information about how these data definitions are used for this specification.
Along with the basic information about each definition, technical editors will also see the definition's technical definition.
Display Details
Output Description
This optional description can provide information about how the reporting object should be generated or displayed.
Specification Type
The specification type indicates the kind of reporting object being defined.
Specification types are defined by your Cookbook administrator and are unique to your organization's use of the Data Cookbook.
Delimiter
If the output for the reporting object is a flat file with a delimiter, the required delimiter is provided.
Header
The reporting object's header.
Display Layout
The way in which the report should be layout, either described or presented visually, is provided.
Footer
The layout of the reporting object's footer.
Any attachments provided for additional information are shown.
Specification editors can add attachments, which are seen by specification editors and viewers.
If this specification is based on the Report template and an image was loaded from the Display tab, that image is also stored as an attachment. These attachments may be removed when the display mode is changed.
Individual sections of a specification (such as Name, Purpose, or Description from the Overview tab) can be shared with one or more Cookbook communities. If any portion of this specification is shared, a table listing the specific items, and the communities to which the information is shared, is displayed.
Tags
None found.
To learn how to create a specification, visit Create a Specification
Last updated: July 29, 2025
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