Skip to content
CSA Loom — the Microsoft Fabric experience for Azure tenants where Fabric isn't yet available: lakehouses, warehouses, notebooks, semantic models, Activator rules, Data Agents, across Commercial, GCC, GCC-High, and DoD IL5

ontology — parity with Palantir Foundry Ontology

Category: Fabric IQ · Loom slug: ontology · Editor: OntologyEditor in apps/fiab-console/lib/editors/phase4/ontology-editor.tsx (registry → phase4). Last verified: 2026-07-01 against current code. Backend (default, Azure-native, NO Fabric): Cosmos (item state / model persistence), Apache AGE on Azure Database for PostgreSQL Flexible Server (object + link instances, write-back actions), Synapse dedicated/serverless SQL + ADLS Gen2 Delta (backing datasources / column introspection), Azure Monitor scheduled-query alerts (Activator triggers), Data API Builder over ACA (OSDK).

Source UI: Palantir Foundry Ontology Manager - https://www.palantir.com/docs/foundry/ontology-manager/overview - Object & link types: https://www.palantir.com/docs/foundry/object-link-types/object-types-overview - Property base types: https://www.palantir.com/docs/foundry/object-link-types/base-types - Link types: https://www.palantir.com/docs/foundry/object-link-types/link-types-overview - Action types: https://www.palantir.com/docs/foundry/action-types/overview - Shared properties: https://www.palantir.com/docs/foundry/object-link-types/shared-property-overview - Interfaces: https://www.palantir.com/docs/foundry/interfaces/interface-overview - Structs / Time series / Geospatial: structs-overview, time-series-setup, geospatial/ontology

Note: this surface is also positioned against Microsoft Fabric IQ Ontology / digital-twin semantic canvas, but the feature-complete real-world equivalent is Palantir Foundry Ontology — used here as the parity bar. All parity is met with Azure-native + OSS backends; a real Fabric/Foundry tenant is never required.

Real feature inventory (Palantir Foundry Ontology Manager)

Top-level workbench tabs: Object types · Link types · Action types · Shared properties · Interfaces · Functions · Datasources · Proposals (branches/review).

A. Object types

Each object type opens an editor with: 1. Datasources / backing datasets — one or more backing datasets (a table / RID) supply the object's instances; an optional separate edits-only datasource; per-property datasource mapping. 2. Properties — list of typed properties; each has API name, display name, base type, description, visibility (prominent / normal / hidden), value formatting + conditional formatting, renderer hints, typeclasses, edit-only flag. 3. Primary key — the identifier property. 4. Title key — property used as the object's display title. 5. Display metadata — display name (singular/plural), description, icon, color, type groups. 6. Status — Active / Experimental / Deprecated (lifecycle badge). 7. Visibility — Prominent / Normal / Hidden. 8. Object views — configurable tabs/widgets that render a single object instance (overview, properties, linked objects, charts, map, timeseries). 9. Security / granular permissions — type-level + property-level + row-level (restricted views, mandatory markings) controls on who can read/edit. 10. Derived properties — computed from linked objects or a function (e.g. rollups / aggregations), not stored on the backing dataset.

B. Property base types (the type system)

string, boolean, byte, short, integer, long, float, double, decimal, date, timestamp, array (of any base type), struct, geopoint / geohash, geoshape, timeseries, attachment, media reference, marking, vector/embedding, cipher text. (Array of any except Vector/Time series.)

Named relationship between two object types: cardinality one-to-one / one-to-many / many-to-many; from/to object types; display name per direction; backing datasource (a foreign-key column on an object datasource, or a separate join/mapping dataset for many-to-many); metadata/description.

D. Action types (the write-back surface)

  1. Rules / logic — create object, modify object, delete object, create link, delete link, and batched combinations.
  2. Typed parameters — each parameter has a type (string, boolean, number, date, timestamp, object reference, attachment, multi-select, struct, geohash), a prompt, default value, required/optional.
  3. Parameter validation — allowed-values lists, range/regex checks, conditional visibility, conditional requiredness, cross-parameter rules.
  4. Submission criteria / conditions — gate whether the action can run.
  5. Form layout — ordered sections/fields the operator fills in.
  6. Function-backed validation + side effects (Functions on Objects).
  7. Security — which groups may submit; Ontology edits history / audit log.

E. Shared properties

Define a property (type + metadata) once and reuse across object types for consistency; the building block interfaces are declared against.

F. Interfaces

Abstract types declaring property constraints + link constraints + action constraints; object types implement interfaces → polymorphic apps/SDK.

G. Cross-cutting

Ontology proposals / branches (Git-like staged change + review), object search/indexing, Functions (TS/Python on objects), and OSDK generation.

Loom coverage (current state — honest)

Real capability Loom today Status Backend per control
Object types Structured typed designer (OntologyTypedModelPanel, ontology-editor.tsx:824-928): object-type dialog with API/display/plural name, description, status + accent color, properties, PK, title key, datasource, persisted via saveOt (:568-622). A legacy DSL Monaco box remains as a secondary path. ✅ Cosmos item PATCH
Property type system Add-property dialog (:854) with base-type Dropdown over ONTO_BASE_TYPES (string/boolean/byte/short/int/long/float/double/decimal/date/timestamp/geopoint/geoshape/timeseries…), arrayOf + required toggles. ✅ Cosmos item PATCH
Primary key / title key Per-type primary-key + title-property Dropdowns over key-eligible props (:875-886). ✅ Cosmos item PATCH
Display metadata (icon/color/status/groups/visibility) Status + accent color Dropdowns editable in the dialog (:837-847); icon / groups / visibility exist in the model but have no editable control yet. ⚠️ partial Cosmos item PATCH
Link types (named, cardinality, from/to, backing FK) Link-type dialog (:930-969): from/to object-type Dropdowns, cardinality (1:1 / 1:many / many:many), foreignKeyProperty; persisted via saveLt (:646-663). ✅ Cosmos item PATCH
Action types Typed-parameter builder (:971-1025): name + type Dropdown (incl. objectReference/enum) + required, kind create/update/delete; validated server-side. Param defaults/prompts are modeled but not yet editable, and the run form is still generic key/value entry. ✅ partial /run-action (validateActionRun) → Apache AGE
Backing datasources Object-type datasource block (kind lakehouse/warehouse, source-item Dropdown, table + PK-column inputs, :888-918), persisted per type. Table/column are free-text and the Synapse introspection route (/datasource) is not yet wired into the dialog; no column→property mapping grid. ⚠️ partial Cosmos; (/datasource Synapse synapse-sql-client exists, unwired)
Object instances (write-back) Real Apache AGE vertices via /objects (WeaveInstancePanel.createObject :227-252), sortable instance list; honest 503 gate when LOOM_WEAVE_PG_FQDN unset. Create form is still a freeform JSON Textarea (not derived from property types). ⚠️ real backend, freeform create form /objects → Apache AGE (weave-ontology-store)
Link instances /links AGE-edge route is real but not yet surfaced in the editor UI. ⚠️ backend only /links → Apache AGE
Shared properties None. ❌ MISSING —
Interfaces None. ❌ MISSING —
Object views Per-instance Object View (object-view-panel.tsx, opened via the "View" action on each instance): overview header, type-badged properties inspector (G3 SplitPane), linked objects grouped by link type × direction (traversed from real AGE edges), time-series chart (TimeSeriesChart over a real timestamp+numeric property series), and a map (GeoJsonMap over real geopoint/geoshape props). Panels auto-resolve from the property schema; a persisted state.objectViews[<type>] config can override. Backend: GET /objects/[vertexId]/view → weave-ontology-store.getObject + weave-explore.traverseObject + lib/foundry/object-view.ts shaping. Honest empty states when a widget's data is absent. ✅ (WS-4.1) /objects/[vertexId]/view → Apache AGE
Security / granular permissions None. ❌ MISSING —
Derived properties None. ❌ MISSING —
Activator triggers Real Azure Monitor scheduled-query alert per entity change (createTrigger :1142-1168); honest gate when Monitor unconfigured. ✅ (Loom extra) /activator → monitor-client
Materialize → graph-model (ADX) Real — emits a graph-model item (materializeToGraphModel :1232-1271), ADX-materializable in the graph-model editor. ✅ (Loom extra) POST /api/items/graph-model → (ADX in graph-model editor)
Data bindings (Loom item → entity types) Bind lakehouse/warehouse items to the ontology, persisted to Cosmos (submitBinding :1093-1140). ✅ /bind → Cosmos
OSDK Separate ontology-sdk editor (DAB). ✅ adjacent Data API Builder

Verdict: the earlier grade (a "thin class-hierarchy DSL + JSON scratchpad") is stale. The primary surface is now a typed Object/Link/Action-type designer (OntologyTypedModelPanel) persisting to Cosmos, backed by real Apache-AGE object/action write-back, real Azure Monitor Activator triggers, Cosmos data-bindings, and graph-model materialization — the Foundry core is built. Object views shipped (WS-4.1) — a per-instance viewer over real AGE data. Genuine remaining gaps are the advanced Foundry pillars: shared properties, interfaces, granular security, derived properties, and OSDK-in-editor, plus two honest partials (the object-instance create form and the action run-form are still freeform JSON, and datasource binding lacks a column→property mapping grid). The loom_no_freeform_config cleanup is therefore partially delivered (typed model dialogs shipped; the instance/run JSON textareas remain to convert).

Build plan (prioritized)

P0 — core model (removes both freeform violations; the spine of parity)

  1. Object Type designer — replace the DSL textarea with a structured left-rail list of object types + a detail panel: display name (singular/plural), description, icon picker, color, status (Active/Experimental/ Deprecated Badge), groups, primary key + title key selectors. Persist to state.objectTypes[] (Cosmos via existing PATCH route). TileGrid for the type gallery, EmptyState for the empty rail.
  2. Property type system — per object type, a properties Table with an Add property dialog: API name, display name, base-type Dropdown (string/boolean/integer/long/float/double/decimal/date/timestamp/array/struct/ geopoint/geoshape/timeseries/attachment/media/marking/vector/cipher), array-of toggle, visibility, edit-only, PK/title flags. Persist to state.objectTypes[].properties[]. No freeform JSON — all controls.
  3. Link Type designer — named link types with cardinality (1:1 / 1:many / many:many RadioGroup), from/to object-type Dropdowns, per-direction display name, backing datasource (FK column on an object datasource, or a join table for many:many). Persist state.linkTypes[]; render an ER overview.
  4. Action Type builder with typed parameters — replace params: string[] with parameters[] each { apiName, type, required, default, prompt, allowedValues?, validation? }; rule = create/modify/delete object + create/ delete link. Run form derives typed controls from the parameter schema (object-reference → instance picker, date → DatePicker, enum → Dropdown) — eliminating the JSON props textarea. Validate server-side in /run-action.
  5. Backing datasource → column→property mapping — replace whole-item bind with: pick Lakehouse table (existing lakehouse Tables route) or Warehouse table (Synapse INFORMATION_SCHEMA.COLUMNS introspection via synapse-sql-client), then a column→property mapping grid + PK column selector. Persist on the object type's datasource.

P1 — completeness

  1. Shared Properties library — a workbench tab to define reusable typed properties; object types reference them; persist state.sharedProperties[].
  2. Interfaces — abstract types with property/link/action constraints; object types declare implements[]; enforce constraints at action runtime. Persist state.interfaces[].
  3. Object views + instance viewer — ✅ SHIPPED (WS-4.1). Configurable per-type view (overview / properties / linked objects / timeseries / map widgets); an instance viewer (object-view-panel.tsx) that renders it from real AGE data via GET /objects/[vertexId]/view. Panels auto-resolve from the property schema and a persisted state.objectViews[<type>] config overrides.
  4. Security / granular permissions — Entra-group ACL on object type + property-level + row-level, enforced at /objects and /run-action (reuse the EH Phase-1 PDP/RLS pattern). Honest gate if group resolution unavailable.
  5. Derived properties — computed-property definitions (rollup over a link, or a SQL expression) evaluated via synapse-sql-client / AGE cypher; surfaced read-only in the instance grid.
  6. Link-instance UI — wire the existing /links AGE route into the editor (connect two instances via a typed link type).

P2 — advanced parity

  1. Ontology proposals / branches — staged model changes + review/approve before publish (Cosmos versioned drafts).
  2. Object search / index — Azure AI Search index over AGE instances for full-text + filter; vector property → vector search.
  3. Geospatial + timeseries rendering — Azure Maps for geopoint/geoshape object views; ADX for timeseries property charts.
  4. Functions on objects — validation + side-effect functions on ACA / Azure Functions, referenced from action validation and derived properties.
  5. ER diagram canvas — object-types + link-types as a drag-drop diagram via the shared canvas-node-kit (replaces the small force-directed viz).

Backend summary (all Azure-native, Fabric opt-in only)

Model persistence → Cosmos (item state). Instances/links/actions → Apache AGE on PostgreSQL Flex (weave-ontology-store). Datasource introspection → Synapse SQL (INFORMATION_SCHEMA) + ADLS Delta lakehouse tables. Triggers → Azure Monitor. Search/vector → Azure AI Search. Geospatial → Azure Maps. Timeseries → ADX. Functions → ACA / Azure Functions. SDK → Data API Builder. Graph materialize → ADX.