What is Alation?
- Alation is a campus software tool available to faculty and staff to centrally categorize and manage the university's metadata (metadata = the data that describes other data or that describes the content, structure, or other attributes of the data you work with).
- Alation is a catalog of data sources, visualizations, and documentation for campus data. Everything within Alation is cross-referenced and users can collaborate and crowdsource knowledge with each other.
How Can Alation Help Me?
- Provides your CSU access to centralized and consistent data sources, definitions, and uses.
- Reduces duplicative work and improves efficiencies.
Learn More About Alation
- Watch our resource videos in the D2I Training Library, including our resources for using and understanding dashboards or understanding financial data.
- Sign up for a scheduled monthly Alation demo at this link.
- Visit and explore the UT Austin Alation site.
- After you feel more familiar with the basics, if you need additional help, you are welcome to visit our weekly office hours. Schedule and link are available on the UT Austin Alation homepage.
- Both Alation Help Center and Alation University provide instruction on everything from the basics to highly detailed, heavy use topics. We recommend using this vendor-provided resource only after exploring the above options.
Alation FAQs
Who is Alation for?
Alation is a campus-wide online resource accessible to all current UT Austin faculty and staff.
Viewers can view parts of the catalog to which they have been granted access and can participate in conversations. UT Austin has an unlimited number of Viewer licenses, available at no cost.
Creators (any role above Viewer) can edit, use, and customize the catalog based on their specific campus role. UT Austin has a limited number of Creator licenses available for data stewards, spoke users, and those who actively curate information in Alation.
Who can see metadata in Alation?
Finalized metadata and documentation are available to all Alation users. Data stewards, data spoke users, and other analysts may also receive access to data resources that are in development. This availability allows users to see a breadth of metadata, giving them relevant context to request specific data in an informed way.
How do I access Alation?
Visit the UT Austin Alation instance. You will be redirected to a single sign on (SSO) login page where you will use your UT Austin EID and password to access the site.
How do I upgrade my role or my access?
If you believe you should have a greater degree of access to the catalog, please contact D2I’s Alation Team at Alation-Help@austin.utexas.edu.