Record Deletion

Overview

You can configure an entity to support record deletion by selecting the Delete Enabled option for this entity.

Record deletion is performed either as a hard or a soft delete and may impact master or golden records. In addition, how deletes propagates from parent to child entities is configured on the reference relationship of the model.

In an application using entities with delete enabled, you configure delete actions in the entities' action sets.

Delete is handled by the jobs generated when deploying the model edition. A change in the delete or delete propagation configuration requires that you re-deploy the model edition.

Hard and Soft Delete

You can configure the deletion type for each delete action. A delete action may be:

  • A Hard Delete that physically deletes records from the hub database. With such a delete, data cannot be recovered.

  • A Soft Delete that logically deletes records by moving them to a deleted records storage.

Golden vs. Master Records Deletion

Golden record deletion is a functional delete. When deleting a golden record, the delete propagates to child records according to the delete propagation configured on the references. In addition, deleting a golden record automatically deletes the master records (for matched entities) attached to this golden, as well as the source records.

Master record deletion is designed to publish deletions performed in the source applications or to remove the records of a given publisher from the hub. When deleting one of the master records contributing to a golden record, the values consolidated in the golden record are updated to take into account this master record deletion.

When you delete a master record, the golden record is not re-matched. It is re-consolidated without the deleted master and re-published into the hub.
Unlike golden record deletion, master record deletion does not support the delete propagation defined in the reference relationships. Master deletes are not blocked by a restrict, propagated by a cascade, and references to deleted records are not automatically nullified. Each master deletion is considered individually.
If all the master records of a golden record are deleted, this golden record becomes legless and is automatically deleted. This golden deletion supports the delete propagation defined in the reference relationships.