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

# Overview

> Connect Prizm to Alation to push data quality metrics, alerts, issues, and scores to your catalog and pull domains and tags back into Prizm.

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## What is the Alation integration?

The Alation integration creates a two-way connection between Prizm data quality monitoring and the Alation Data Catalog. Prizm pushes quality metrics, alerts, issues, and scores to Alation table and column catalog pages — making quality signals visible to data consumers browsing the catalog without requiring them to log into Prizm. Prizm also pulls domain classifications and tags from Alation to enrich the asset context inside Prizm.

For organizations that use Alation as the authoritative catalog for data discovery and governance, this integration means data quality information becomes part of the same surface where analysts evaluate whether a dataset is fit for use.

## What this integration enables

| Capability                         | Description                                                                                                                                                                                                               |
| ---------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Push asset-level quality data**  | Prizm pushes summary scores, alerts, issues, and measures to Alation table (asset) catalog pages. Deprecation and warning indicators appear as flags on the table overview.                                               |
| **Push column-level quality data** | Quality scores and alert indicators appear on Alation column (attribute) catalog pages under custom fields and the column overview.                                                                                       |
| **Push domain-level data**         | Prizm pushes domain metrics and semantic context to Alation domain catalog entries, with Auto, Semantics, and Custom sub-options.                                                                                         |
| **Pull domains**                   | Alation domain assignments are imported into Prizm and surfaced as domain metadata on the corresponding assets. Pulled metadata appears on the semantics page with source type labeled "Alation".                         |
| **Pull tags**                      | Alation tags are imported into Prizm and applied to the corresponding assets. Tags appear on the semantics page with source type labeled "Alation".                                                                       |
| **Health tab in Alation**          | A dedicated Health tab on Alation asset pages shows all data quality checks run by Prizm — giving catalog users a comprehensive quality view on each asset.                                                               |
| **DQ Score on column pages**       | Column-level DQ Score appears as a custom field on Alation column pages.                                                                                                                                                  |
| **Job management**                 | Catalog sync jobs can be monitored, killed, and restarted from the Prizm integration log page.                                                                                                                            |
| **Scheduled sync**                 | Sync runs can be scheduled on a configurable interval (Minutes, Hours, Days, Weeks, Month). When a schedule is active, manual per-asset auto-run is disabled and the integration runs all configured metrics on schedule. |

## Authentication

Prizm supports two authentication methods for Alation:

**Username / Password** — Connect using an Alation account email and password. Suitable for most deployments.

**UserID / Token** — Connect using an Alation user ID and a refresh token. This method is preferred for service accounts and automated workflows where password rotation is a concern.

The authentication method is selected when the integration is first configured.

## Workflow

1. The admin configures the Alation integration in Prizm, entering the host URL, credentials, and target datasource.
2. The admin enables PUSH settings for Asset, Attribute, and/or Domain objects, selecting which data types to push: Summary, Alerts, Issues, and Measures.
3. The admin optionally enables PULL settings to import Domains and Tags from Alation into Prizm.
4. Prizm initiates a `CATALOG_SYNC` job and syncs quality data to Alation catalog pages.
5. On Alation table pages, quality summary information, deprecation flags, and warning indicators are visible on the asset overview. A Health tab shows all Prizm data quality checks for that table.
6. On Alation column pages, DQ Score appears as a custom field and alert indicators appear on the column overview.
7. For domains, Prizm pushes domain-level metrics and semantic metadata. If PULL is enabled, Alation domains and tags flow back into Prizm and appear on the semantics page with source type "Alation".
8. Subsequent syncs run on the configured schedule or can be triggered manually from the integration settings. Job status, duration, and task counts are visible in the Prizm integration log.

## Prerequisites

Before connecting Alation to Prizm, you need:

* An Alation instance URL (e.g., `https://yourcompany.alationcloud.com`)
* An Alation account with write access to catalog pages (service account recommended)
* The name of the Alation datasource that corresponds to the data source Prizm monitors
* Admin or privileged user access in Prizm to configure integrations
* Alation admin access to complete the one-time Alation-side setup:
  * Enable **Data Health** and **Data Health 2022.4 Features** in Alation Admin Settings → Feature Config
  * Create a **DQLABS** Rich Text custom field under Customize Catalog and add it to the Table and Column templates

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Setup" icon="gear" href="/integrations/alation/setup">
    Connect Alation to Prizm — authentication, datasource selection, push/pull configuration, and scheduling.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Integration" icon="arrows-left-right" href="/integrations/alation/integration">
    How quality data appears in Alation, what Prizm pulls from Alation, and how to manage catalog sync jobs.
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