Reference Data

Reference data is used in Enterprise Architect to provide meta-information for the modeler, and is often seen in drop down lists and selection boxes. It includes such things as status codes, requirement types, model authors and more.

For convenience Enterprise Architect comes pre-configured with useful reference data, but it is best practice to review this existing data when setting up a project and either replace or edit it to ensure it is appropriate for the project.

There are a number of different types of reference data, some of which apply at a repository level - such as status codes and authors - and some that is more technical in nature, such as code engineering and database datatypes.

The reference data can be copied between repositories by exporting it from one repository and importing it into another; this mechanism can save time and ensure consistency between repositories.

Project reference data can be entered and edited through the 'Configure > Reference Data' ribbon and includes:

Stereotypes
Tagged Value Types
Cardinalities
People
General Types
Project Indicators
Estimation Factors
Datatypes

Learn more

Notes

In the Corporate, Business and Software Engineering, System Engineering and Ultimate editions of Enterprise Architect, if security is enabled you must have Manage Reference Data - Update permission to update and delete reference items