> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.zwiron.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Data Governance

> Shared business glossary, classifications, and tags for PII and policies across your Zwiron organization.

Governance in Zwiron has three components:

* **Glossary** — a canonical dictionary of business terms and definitions
* **Classifications and Tags** — a structured labeling system for sensitive or domain-specific data
* **Policies** — documented rules for data access, masking, and retention

Go to **Governance** in the sidebar. The page has three tabs: **Glossary**, **Classifications**, and **Policies**.

***

## Glossary

A shared glossary ensures that terms like `MRR`, `active user`, or `LTV` have a single, agreed-upon definition visible to everyone in the organization.

### Term fields

| Field          | Description                                           |
| -------------- | ----------------------------------------------------- |
| **Name**       | The canonical term (e.g. `Monthly Recurring Revenue`) |
| **Definition** | Plain-language explanation of what the term means     |
| **Synonyms**   | Comma-separated aliases (e.g. `MRR, monthly revenue`) |
| **Status**     | Lifecycle state — `draft`, `active`, or `deprecated`  |

### Term statuses

| Status       | Meaning                                             |
| ------------ | --------------------------------------------------- |
| `draft`      | Work in progress — not yet official                 |
| `active`     | Approved and in use across the organization         |
| `deprecated` | Replaced or removed — kept for historical reference |

### Creating a term

1. Click the **Glossary** tab
2. Click **New Term**
3. Enter the name, definition, and any synonyms
4. Set the status (defaults to `draft`)
5. Click **Create**

### Editing a term

Click the pencil icon on any term to update its fields or change its status.

### Deleting a term

Click the trash icon on any term. Deletion is permanent.

### Searching

Use the search bar to filter terms by name or definition text.

***

## Classifications and Tags

Classifications and tags provide a structured way to label data assets in the catalog.

* A **Classification** is a category (e.g. `Sensitivity`, `Data Domain`, `PII Type`)
* A **Tag** is a label within that category (e.g. `Confidential`, `Finance`, `Email`)

This two-level structure keeps labeling consistent. Instead of freeform strings like `"sensitive"` or `"pii-email"`, your team picks from defined tags within defined categories.

### Example taxonomy

| Classification | Tags                                               |
| -------------- | -------------------------------------------------- |
| Sensitivity    | `Public`, `Internal`, `Confidential`, `Restricted` |
| Data Domain    | `Finance`, `Marketing`, `Product`, `Operations`    |
| PII Type       | `Name`, `Email`, `Phone`, `SSN`, `Address`         |
| Retention      | `30-day`, `1-year`, `7-year`, `Indefinite`         |

### Creating a classification

1. Click the **Classifications** tab
2. Click **+ New Classification**
3. Enter a name and optional description
4. Click **Create**

### Adding tags to a classification

1. Click **+ Tag** next to a classification
2. Enter the tag name and optional description
3. Click **Create Tag**

Tags appear nested under their parent classification.

### Applying tags to catalog assets

Tags are applied in the **Data Catalog**, not here. Open any table in **Catalog** → click **Tags** in the overview panel → select from your defined tags.

<Info>The Governance page is where you **define** your classification taxonomy. The Catalog is where you **apply** tags to individual tables and columns.</Info>

### Deleting a classification or tag

Click the trash icon next to any classification or tag. Applying tags that have been deleted will be removed from all catalog assets.

***

## Policies

Policies are structured documentation records for data governance rules. They are not technical enforcement mechanisms — they define what the rules are so the whole organization has a shared reference.

### Policy kinds

| Kind        | Documents                                                              |
| ----------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `access`    | Who is authorized to query or use a dataset                            |
| `masking`   | How sensitive values should be obscured in non-production environments |
| `retention` | How long data must be kept before it can be deleted                    |

### Creating a policy

1. Click the **Policies** tab
2. Click **+ New Policy**
3. Enter a **name** (e.g. `Customer PII Access Policy`)
4. Select a **kind** — `access`, `masking`, or `retention`
5. Select the **tags** the policy applies to (from your taxonomy)
6. Fill kind-specific fields (roles, masking method, retention days)
7. Click **Create**

### Seeing where a policy applies

On the Policies table, click the **assets in scope** action on a row. Zwiron lists catalog tables, views, and columns that carry any of the policy’s tags.

### Seeing policies on a catalog asset

Open a table in **Catalog** (peek panel or full detail → Profile). The **Applicable Policies** section lists policies whose tags overlap the asset’s tags.

### Column-level tags

Tags can be applied to individual columns, not only tables. On the asset detail **Columns** tab, click a column to open the tag editor. Prefer tagging `email` as `Email` rather than labeling the whole table when only one column is sensitive.

***

## Permissions

| Role       | Access                                                                       |
| ---------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Admin**  | Create, edit, and delete all governance records                              |
| **Editor** | Create, edit, and delete glossary terms, classifications, tags, and policies |
| **Viewer** | Read-only access to all governance records                                   |

***

## What policies do not do

Policies are **documentation only**. They do not:

* Block queries or exports
* Mask column values in Catalog or downstream tools
* Auto-delete data when retention expires

Treat them as the org’s written rules of record, linked to data through shared tag names. Runtime enforcement (warehouse masks, IdP controls, etc.) is outside Zwiron today.

***

## Related

* [Data Catalog](/platform/catalog) — where classification tags are applied to assets
* [Data Quality](/platform/data-quality) — automated tests on catalog tables
* [Audit Logs](/platform/audit-logs) — track who changed what in your organization