docs: catalog - extending the model, and relations (#3291)
* docs: catalog - extending the model, and relations * Address comments
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Fredrik Adelöw
@@ -22,11 +22,15 @@ we recommend that you name them `catalog-info.yaml`.
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- [Overall Shape Of An Entity](#overall-shape-of-an-entity)
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- [Common to All Kinds: The Envelope](#common-to-all-kinds-the-envelope)
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- [Common to All Kinds: The Metadata](#common-to-all-kinds-the-metadata)
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- [Common to All Kinds: Relations](#common-to-all-kinds-relations)
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- [Kind: Component](#kind-component)
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- [Kind: Template](#kind-template)
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- [Kind: API](#kind-api)
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- [Kind: Group](#kind-group)
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- [Kind: User](#kind-user)
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- [Kind: Resource](#kind-resource)
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- [Kind: System](#kind-system)
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- [Kind: Domain](#kind-domain)
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## Overall Shape Of An Entity
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@@ -259,6 +263,61 @@ This field is optional, and currently has no special semantics.
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Each tag must be sequences of `[a-z0-9]` separated by `-`, at most 63 characters
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in total.
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## Common to All Kinds: Relations
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The `relations` root field is a read-only list of relations, between the current
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entity and other entities, described in the
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[well-known relations section](well-known-relations.md). Relations are commonly
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two-way, so that there's a pair of relation types each describing one direction
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of the relation.
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A relation as part of a single entity that's read out of the API may look as
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follows.
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```js
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{
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// ...
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"relations": [
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{
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"target": {
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"kind": "group",
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"namespace": "default",
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"name": "dev.infra"
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},
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"type": "ownedBy"
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}
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],
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"spec": {
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"owner": "dev.infra",
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// ...
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}
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}
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```
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The fields of a relation are:
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| Field | Type | Description |
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| ---------- | ------ | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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| `target` | Object | A complete [compound reference](references.md) to the other end of the relation. |
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| `type` | String | The type of relation FROM a source entity TO the target entity. |
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| `metadata` | Object | Reserved for future use. |
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Entity descriptor YAML files are not supposed to contain this field. Instead,
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catalog processors analyze the entity descriptor data and its surroundings, and
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deduce relations that are then attached onto the entity as read from the
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catalog.
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Where relations are produced, they are to be considered the authoritative source
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for that piece of data. In the example above, a plugin would do better to
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consume the relation rather than `spec.owner` for deducing the owner of the
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entity, because it may even be the case that the owner isn't taken from the YAML
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at all - it could be taken from a CODEOWNERS file nearby instead for example.
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Also, the `spec.owner` is on a shortened form and may have semantics associated
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with it (such as the default kind being `Group` if not specified).
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See the [well-known relations section](well-known-relations.md) for a list of
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well-known / common relations and their semantics.
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## Kind: Component
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Describes the following entity kind:
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@@ -740,3 +799,15 @@ with the default kind `Group` and the default namespace equal to the same
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namespace as the user. Only `Group` entities may be referenced. Most commonly,
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these entries point to groups in the same namespace, so in those cases it is
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sufficient to enter only the `metadata.name` field of those groups.
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## Kind: Resource
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This kind is not yet defined, but is reserved [for future use](system-model.md).
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## Kind: System
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This kind is not yet defined, but is reserved [for future use](system-model.md).
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## Kind: Domain
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This kind is not yet defined, but is reserved [for future use](system-model.md).
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@@ -4,6 +4,36 @@ title: Extending the model
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description: Documentation on Extending the model
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---
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The Backstage catalog [entity data model](descriptor-format.md) is based on the
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[Kubernetes objects format](https://kubernetes.io/docs/concepts/overview/working-with-objects/kubernetes-objects/),
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and borrows a lot of its semantics as well. This page describes those semantics
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at a higher level and how to extend them to fit your organization.
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Backstage comes with a number of catalog concepts out of the box:
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- There are a number of builtin versioned _kinds_, such as `Component`, `User`
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etc. These encapsulate the high level concept of an entity, and define the
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schema for its entity definition data.
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- An entity has both a _metadata_ object and a _spec_ object at the root.
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- Each kind may or may not have a _type_. For example, there are several well
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known types of component, such as `service` and `website`. These clarify the
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more detailed nature of the entity, and may affect what features are exposed
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in the interface.
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- Entities may have a number of _[annotations](well-known-annotations.md)_ on
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them. These can be added either by humans into the descriptor files, or added
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by automated processes when the entity is ingested into the catalog.
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- Entities may have a number of _labels_ on them.
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- Entities may have a number of _relations_, expressing how they relate to each
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other in different ways.
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We'll list different possibilities for extending this below.
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## Adding a New Kind
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> TODO: Fill in
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## Adding a New Type of an Existing Kind
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Backstage natively supports tracking of the following component
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[`type`](descriptor-format.md)'s:
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@@ -20,13 +50,6 @@ track in Backstage, it is possible to add your own software types that fit your
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organization's data model. Inside Spotify our model has grown significantly over
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the years, and now includes ML models, Apps, data pipelines and many more.
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## Adding a new type
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TODO: Describe what changes are needed to add a new type that shows up in the
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catalog.
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## The Other type
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It might be tempting to put software that doesn't fit into any of the existing
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types into Other. There are a few reasons why we advise against this; firstly,
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we have found that it is preferred to match the conceptual model that your
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@@ -39,3 +62,29 @@ For example, the
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[Lighthouse plugin](https://github.com/backstage/backstage/tree/master/plugins/lighthouse)
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only makes sense for Websites. The more specific you can be in how you model
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your software, the easier it is to provide plugins that are contextual.
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> TODO: Fill in
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## Changing the Validation Rules for Core Entity Fields
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> TODO: Fill in
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## Adding New Fields to the Metadata Object
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> TODO: Fill in
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## Adding New Fields to the Spec Object of an Existing Kind
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> TODO: Fill in
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## Adding a New Annotation
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> TODO: Fill in
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## Adding a New Label
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> TODO: Fill in
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## Adding a New Relation Type
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> TODO: Fill in
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@@ -2,9 +2,9 @@
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id: well-known-annotations
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title: Well-known Annotations on Catalog Entities
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sidebar_label: Well-known Annotations
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description: Documentation on lists a number of well known Annotations, that
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description: Documentation that lists a number of well known Annotations, that
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have defined semantics. They can be attached to catalog entities and consumed
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by plugins as needed
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by plugins as needed.
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---
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This section lists a number of well known
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@@ -0,0 +1,83 @@
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---
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id: well-known-relations
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title: Well-known Relations between Catalog Entities
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sidebar_label: Well-known Relations
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description: Documentation that lists a number of well known Relations, that
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have defined semantics. They can be attached to catalog entities and consumed
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by plugins as needed.
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---
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This section lists a number of well known
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[entity relation types](descriptor-format.md#common-to-all-kinds-relations),
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that have defined semantics. They can be attached to catalog entities and
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consumed by plugins as needed.
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If you are looking to extend the set of relations, see
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[Extending the model](extending-the-model.md).
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## Relations
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This is a (non-exhaustive) list of relations that are known to be in active use.
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Each relation has a _source_ (implicitly: the entity that holds the relation), a
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_target_ (the entity to which the source has a relation), and a _type_ that
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tells what relation the source has with the target. The relation is directional;
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there are commonly pairs of relation types and the entity at the other end will
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have the opposite relation in the opposite direction (e.g. when querying for
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`A`, you will see `A.ownedBy.B`, and when querying `B`, you will see
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`B.ownerOf.A`).
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### `ownedBy` and `ownerOf`
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An ownership relation where the owner is usually an organizational entity
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([User](descriptor-format.md#kind-user) or
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[Group](descriptor-format.md#kind-group)), and the other entity can be anything.
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In Backstage, the owner of an entity is the singular entity (commonly a team)
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that bears ultimate responsibility for the entity, and has the authority and
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capability to develop and maintain it. They will be the point of contact if
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something goes wrong, or if features are to be requested. The main purpose of
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this relation is for display purposes in Backstage, so that people looking at
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catalog entities can get an understanding of to whom this entity belongs. It is
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not to be used by automated processes to for example assign authorization in
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runtime systems. There may be others that also develop or otherwise touch the
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entity, but there will always be one ultimate owner.
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This relation is commonly generated based on `spec.owner` of the owned entity,
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where present.
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### `consumesApi` and `providesApi`
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A relation with an [API](descriptor-format.md#kind-api) entity, typically from a
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[Component](descriptor-format.md#kind-component) or
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[System](descriptor-format.md#kind-system).
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These relations express that a component or system either exposes an API -
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meaning that it hosts callable endpoints from which you can consume that API -
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or that they are dependent on being able to consume that API.
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This relation is commonly generated based on `spec.implementsApis` of the
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component or system in question.
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### `dependsOn` and `dependencyOf`
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A relation denoting a dependency on another entity.
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This relation is a general expression of being in need of that other entity for
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an entity to function. It can for example be used to express that a website
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component needs a library component as part of its build, or that a service
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component uses a persistent storage resource.
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### `parentOf` and `childOf`
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A parent/child relation to build up a tree, used for example to describe the
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organizational structure between [Groups](descriptor-format.md#kind-group).
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This relation is commonly based on `spec.parent` and/or `spec.children`.
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### `memberOf` and `hasMember`
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A membership relation, typically for [Users](descriptor-format.md#kind-user) in
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[Groups](descriptor-format.md#kind-group).
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This relation is commonly based on `spec.memberOf`.
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@@ -45,6 +45,7 @@
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"features/software-catalog/descriptor-format",
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"features/software-catalog/references",
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"features/software-catalog/well-known-annotations",
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"features/software-catalog/well-known-relations",
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"features/software-catalog/extending-the-model",
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"features/software-catalog/external-integrations",
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"features/software-catalog/software-catalog-api"
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