Manage restricted views

Use restricted views to back object types

To provide access to specific objects of a given object type in Object Explorer, set a restricted view as the backing dataset in the Ontology Manager. To successfully configure and save an object type backed by a restricted view, you must have View access to the input dataset of the restricted view.

Restricted view file permissions

To create and edit restricted views, you must meet the following criteria granted within the Granular Permissions Administration workflow in the Roles interface. To access the Roles interface, navigate to Settings and select Roles in the Platform Settings section of the sidebar. Access to the Roles interface requires special platform permissions; contact your Palantir representative if you require this level of access.

RoleDescription
Create restricted view resourceNeeded on the folder/Project.
Create restricted view for datasetNeeded on the dataset upstream of the restricted view.
Edit resource granular policyEdit the granular policy on resources.
Read resource granular policyRead the granular policy on resources.
Edit restricted view resourceNeeded to make edits on the restricted view (policy, assume Markings).
View restricted view resourceView the properties of a restricted view (policy, assume Markings).
View restricted view transactionSee historical transaction metadata (policy, assume Markings).

To build a restricted view, you must have view access on the input dataset and edit permissions on the output restricted view.

To use a restricted view in a Contour analysis, you need the Read restricted view permission.

To configure and save an object type backed by a restricted view, you must have:

  • View access to the input dataset of the restricted view.
  • Edit access to the restricted view (to view/set/change policies).
  • Be a member of the Ontology admin group (for access to the Ontology Manager).

To use granular policies on dataset-backed objects in Object Explorer, you must have View ontology data source permissions on the dataset to see any objects of this type.

Restricted view policy management

Restricted view policies use granular policies to determine which rows a user can access. Learn more about designing granular policies, user attributes, policy comparisons, and policy limitations.

Restricted view limitations

Restricted views are similar to datasets but have some key differences. The contents combine two dynamic factors: the policy definition and the user's attributes and group memberships at a specific point in time. The policy definition history is maintained in the transaction history. However, it is impossible for the transaction history to maintain a complete history of all user attributes and group memberships.

Restricted views are designed to simplify the analytical consumption of pipelines by individual users and cannot be used as inputs to data transformations. Pipelines built in Foundry should be reproducible and agnostic to the specific user running them. This expectation is incompatible with restricted views, which provide row-level permissions that depend on user attributes.

  • Users attempting to collaborate on a pipeline with restricted views may not have access to the policy statements and may not have the same set of user attributes and group memberships. Because of this, it is possible that each user may see different rows and aggregates in restricted views; users should not assume that workflows based on granularly permissioned data will behave the same as workflows based on regular dataset resources in Foundry.

  • With downstream transformations, there is no enforcement to ensure that subsequent downstream transformations preserve the policy column. By contrast, restricted views are read-only to protect the schema and columns from alteration in a way that could lead to the exposure of restricted data.

The following table summarizes the current limitations of restricted views:

OperationIs this supported by restricted views?Explanation
ReadingYesRestricted views can be read via objects or in Contour.
On-the-fly calculationsYesWith restricted views, calculations can be performed from accessible rows via objects (such as in Quiver or Functions) or on datasets (with tools like Contour).
WritebackYesObjects based on restricted views can have defined writebacks.
ExportingYesData from restricted views can be exported via Quiver, Contour, and other applications.
Batch-processingNoBatch processing is not supported with restricted views, given that different users see different subsets of data.
Saving outputs as a Foundry datasetNoSaving outputs based on transformations performed to restricted views is not supported; since Spark does not natively support row-level permissions, there is no way to enforce that subsequent transactions maintain the guarantees of restrictions.
Syncing to PostgresNoSyncing a restricted view to Postgres is not supported because row-level permissions that depend on user attributes would not be maintained.