Entries and entry groups

Entries and entry groups are key concepts in Data Catalog. The following illustration depicts how they fit in the Data Catalog data model.

Within each project are locations, and within each location are entry groups containing entries for different data sources and assets.
Figure 1. Entry groups organize different data sources and assets.

Entries

Data Catalog entries represent data resources:

  • Google Cloud resources, such as a BigQuery dataset or table, Pub/Sub topic, for example.
  • Custom resources with custom data types.

You can create, search, and manage your entries. For more information, see Create custom Data Catalog entries for your data sources.

Entry groups

Entries are contained in an entry group. An entry group is a set of logically related entries together with Identity and Access Management policies that specify the users who can create, edit, and view entries within an entry group.

Data Catalog automatically creates entry groups for Google Cloud resources, such as BigQuery (@bigquery) and Pub/Sub topics (@pubsub).

The BigQuery and Pub/Sub entry groups are unique because you cannot run API functions that typically work on custom entry groups. Some examples of such functions are retrieving the list of entry groups in a project, retrieving basic information about an entry group, and creating or deleting a tag.

You can create your own entry group to contain your Cloud Storage fileset entries and the IAM policies associated with those entries. For more information, see Surface files from Cloud Storage with fileset entries.

Entry groups, similar to entries, are searchable.

Map data assets to entries and entry groups

Refer to the following tables to see how Data Catalog maps data assets from different Google Cloud products.

Map Dataproc Metastore to Data Catalog
Dataproc Metastore resource Data Catalog resource
Service Entry and entry group
Database Entry
Table Entry
Map Dataplex to Data Catalog
Dataplex resource Data Catalog resource
Lake Entry and entry group
Zone Entry
Table Entry
Fileset Entry
Map Pub/Sub to Data Catalog
Pub/Sub resource Data Catalog resource
Topic Entry inside a Pub/Sub entry group
Map Bigtable to Data Catalog
Bigtable resource Data Catalog resource
Instance Entry and entry group
Cluster Attribute inside an instance entry
Table Entry inside instance entry group
Column families Attribute inside a table entry
Map BigQuery to Data Catalog
BigQuery resource Data Catalog resource
Dataset Entry inside a BigQuery entry group
Linked dataset Entry inside a BigQuery entry group
Table Entry inside a BigQuery entry group
View Entry inside a BigQuery entry group
Model Entry inside a BigQuery entry group
Routine Entry inside a BigQuery entry group
Connection Entry inside a BigQuery entry group
Map Vertex AI to Data Catalog
Vertex AI resource Data Catalog resource
Model Entry inside a Vertex AI entry group
Dataset Entry inside a Vertex AI entry group
FeatureGroup Entry inside a Vertex AI entry group
FeatureOnlineStore Entry inside a Vertex AI entry group
FeatureView Entry inside a Vertex AI entry group