Glossary
A reference of key terms and concepts used throughout the CrossModel Knowledge Base.
Attribute
A property or characteristic of an entity. For example, a Customer entity might have attributes such as CustomerName, Email, and DateOfBirth. Each attribute has a name, description, and data type.
Cardinality
Defines how many instances of one entity can be associated with instances of another entity through a relationship. Common cardinalities include one-to-one, one-to-many, and many-to-many.
Code Generation
The process of transforming a logical data model into executable code using customizable templates. CrossModel supports code generation with standard templating engines and provides a live preview feature. This is a Teams edition feature.
Code Generation Preview
A feature that allows you to see the generated code output while designing templates. This makes it easier to create and refine templates by providing immediate feedback based on the current model.
Data Lineage
The tracking of data transformation paths - showing where data originates (source), how it is transformed, and where it ends up (target). In CrossModel, data lineage is modeled through mappings.
Data Model
A structured representation of data within CrossModel. A data model is a container that holds diagrams, entities with attributes, relationships, and mappings.
Data Type
Defines the kind of value an attribute can hold. Examples include Integer, String, Date, Boolean, and Decimal. Some data types support additional parameters such as precision and scale.
Dependency
A link between data models indicating that one model references elements from another. Dependencies allow you to organize models into separate systems while maintaining connections between them.
Diagram
A visual representation of a data model, showing entities, attributes, and relationships on a canvas. Diagrams are views of the underlying model - changes made in a diagram are reflected in the model and vice versa.
Entity
A model element representing a real-world object or concept, such as Customer, Product, or SalesOrder. Entities contain attributes and can participate in relationships and inheritance hierarchies.
Expression
Logic used within a mapping to transform data. Expressions can perform calculations, string operations, date manipulations, and more. Attributes in expressions are referenced using double-bracket notation: {{ObjectName.AttributeName}}.
Identifier
A set of one or more attributes that uniquely identify an instance of an entity. An identifier marked as primary serves as the entity's primary key. Identifiers can be composite, consisting of multiple attributes.
Inheritance
A mechanism to create new entities based on existing ones, enabling reuse of attributes and relationships. The parent entity is called the supertype and the child entity is called the subtype. Subtypes inherit all attributes from their supertype and can add additional attributes of their own.
Join Condition
A condition that defines how two source objects in a mapping are related to each other. Join conditions are used when a mapping has multiple sources that need to be combined.
Mapping
Defines how data from one or more source objects is transformed and loaded into a target object. Mappings establish data lineage and can include expressions for data transformation and join conditions for combining multiple sources.
Relationship
A connection between two entities that describes how they are associated. For example, a Customer entity may have a relationship to a SalesOrder entity. Relationships have a defined cardinality and can include relationship attributes.
Reverse Engineering
The process of generating a data model from existing artifacts such as SQL DDL files, documentation, or images. In CrossModel, reverse engineering is performed using the AI assistants, specifically the DataModeler agent.
Source Object
The original data structure from which data is extracted in a mapping. A source object is typically an entity from a source data model.
Subtype
See Inheritance.
Supertype
See Inheritance.
Target Object
The data structure into which transformed data is loaded in a mapping. A target object is typically an entity in a target data model, such as a data warehouse model.
Workspace
A top-level container in CrossModel that holds one or more data models. Each workspace provides an isolated environment for modeling. Users can create multiple workspaces to organize work across different projects or features.