Data Catalog

Key features

Unified management: Centrally manage and search tables, views, functions, and resources from multiple data sources.
Quick table creation: Create table schemas directly in DataWorks without switching consoles.
- DDL-based creation: Use native DDL statements for flexible, precise control.
- Visual creation: Create tables through a form-based interface.
- Copilot-assisted creation: Describe your requirements in natural language and let AI generate the table schema.
One-click synchronization: Initiate data sync tasks between sources like MaxCompute and Hologres.
Quick exploration: Preview table schemas to understand your data at a glance.

The following table lists supported data source types and how to add them.

Data catalog	From workspace	From account
MaxCompute (internal and external projects)	Supported	Supported
Hologres (internal and external databases)	Supported	Supported
DLF Catalog (DLF 1.0, DLF 2.0, DLF 2.5, and later versions)	Supported	Supported
Hive (EMR Hive)	Supported	Not supported
Lindorm	Supported	Not supported
AnalyticDB MySQL	Supported	Not supported
AnalyticDB PostgreSQL	Supported	Not supported
StarRocks	Supported	Not supported
AI Catalog (AI datasets and AI models)	Automatically reads from the AI workspace with the same name as the current DataWorks workspace.	Not supported

How Data Catalog accesses a data source depends on how the source is added:

For workspace-attached data sources, Data Catalog uses the identity configured in the data source to access metadata.
For account-level data sources, Data Catalog uses your personal identity to access metadata.
To view MaxCompute data in Data Catalog with a RAM user or RAM role, first obtain the required MaxCompute permissions. If the Layer 3 model is enabled for the MaxCompute data source or project, also grant the RAM user or RAM role permission to view schema metadata.

Note
If a MaxCompute project contains multiple schemas, grant metadata permissions for all schemas to view the complete schema list on the project details page.
- Grant permissions to a RAM user:
```
GRANT DESCRIBE ON SCHEMA <schema_name> TO USER RAM$<alibaba_cloud_account_name>:<ram_user_name>;
```
- Grant permissions to a RAM role:
```
GRANT DESCRIBE ON SCHEMA <schema_name> TO USER `RAM$<alibaba_cloud_account_name>:role/<ram_role_name>`;
```

Important

This feature is available only in workspaces that use Use Data Studio (New Version).

Go to the Workspaces page in the DataWorks console. In the top navigation bar, select a desired region. Find the desired workspace and choose Shortcuts > Data Studio in the Actions column.
In the left-side navigation pane, click to open Data Catalog.

To add a data catalog:

In Data Catalog, find the data source type to add and click next to its name.
On the Add Data Catalog page, find the target instance and click Add in the Operation column.

Note

A workspace-level data catalog is visible to all workspace members.
An account-level data catalog is visible only to you.
When adding from your account, only instances in the same region as the DataWorks workspace that you have access to are listed.

To hide irrelevant data catalogs:

In the left directory tree, find the data catalog and click in the upper-right corner.
In the pop-up, click next to an engine name to hide its data catalogs.

Note
To unhide, click the empty space next to the engine name in the pop-up.

To remove a data catalog you no longer need:

In the left directory tree, find the target data catalog and click Remove or Disassociate Data Catalog in the Operation column.

Expand a catalog to create or manage its data objects. The following table links to related documentation.

Data catalog	Description	References
MaxCompute	Create and manage data objects such as tables, views, external tables, resources, and functions.	MaxCompute data management
Hologres	Create and manage data objects such as tables and views.	Hologres data management
DLF Catalog	Create and manage table metadata in the database.	DLF Catalog data management
Hive	Create and manage table data objects.	Hive data management
AnalyticDB MySQL	Create and manage table data objects.	AnalyticDB MySQL data management
AnalyticDB PostgreSQL	Create and manage table data objects.	AnalyticDB PostgreSQL data management
StarRocks	Create and manage table and view data objects.	StarRocks data management
AI Catalog	Manage dataset and model metadata in AI Catalog.	AI Catalog data management