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# Data Contract Builder (DCB)

## Overview

**Data Contract Builder (DCB)** enables users to create, review, validate, version, and export data contracts based on the **Open Data Contract Standard, version 3.1.0**. It provides contract forms that allow users to manage contract information without manually editing YAML files.

A data contract is a structured agreement describing a data product or dataset, including its ownership, schema, service expectations, quality rules, and usage conditions.

## Key Capabilities

DCB supports the following capabilities:

* Create contracts from SQL DDL.
* Create contracts from scratch.
* Import existing ODCS YAML contracts.
* Edit contract metadata through guided forms.
* Define datasets, properties, and relationships.
* Add roles, service-level objectives, and quality rules.
* Invite Contributors to participate in the contract review.
* Create contextual suggestions linked to a contract section or property.
* Collaborate through suggestions and discussions.
* Review, accept, reject, or mark suggestions as processed.
* Validate contracts automatically before activation.
* Manage contract lifecycle states.
* Create and manage contract versions.
* Compare contract versions.
* Export contracts as YAML.

## Accessing DCB

Users with the **Data Steward** or **Data Explorer** role can access DCB from the application switcher in Studio and Explorer.

To open DCB:

1. Open Studio or Explorer.
2. Select the application switcher in the page header.
3. Select **Data Contract Builder**.

     The DCB home page opens.

## DCB Home Page

The DCB home page displays all data contracts available in the current tenant.

From this page, you can:

* View contracts across all lifecycle states, including Draft, Active, Deprecated, and Retired.
* Search for contracts by contract name or ID.
* Filter contracts by lifecycle status.
* Review contract details, including version, owner, domain, field count, and tags.
* Open a contract to review its contents and version history.
* Create a new contract.

By default, all users have **Viewer** access and can browse available contracts. Additional actions, such as creating, editing, reviewing, or managing contracts, depend on the user's assigned role and permissions.