What are the features of DataWorks Management Center - DataWorks

The DataWorks console provides centralized environment configuration and resource management at two levels: global (tenant-wide roles and alert rules) and workspace (compute resources, data sources, and members for each project).

Core concepts and system architecture

Understand the core architecture and entity relationships in DataWorks before you begin.

Core concept: Workspace

A workspace is the fundamental logical unit in DataWorks for project management, permission control, and resource isolation. All activities, such as data development, task operations, and member management, are performed within a workspace.

Isolation: Workspaces provide strong isolation. Nodes, tasks, resources, and members in different workspaces are completely independent.
Container: A workspace acts as a container that hosts functional modules such as Data Studio and Data Integration, and associates with external entities like data sources, compute resources, and resource groups.

Architecture and entity relationships

The following figure shows the dependencies among core DataWorks entities.

Workspace: The minimum unit for all operations. Functional modules such as Data Studio, Data Integration, and Operation Center operate within a specific workspace.
Resource group:

Note
A resource group in DataWorks, which provides compute resources for running tasks, is a separately purchased package of computing resources. This is different from the resource group in your Alibaba Cloud account, which is used for resource isolation and permission management.
- Definition: An entity that provides compute resources (CPU and memory) for task execution. It exists independently of workspaces.
- Relationship: Association is required. As shown on the right side of the figure, a resource group must be associated with one or more workspaces. This allows Data Integration tasks and periodically scheduled Data Studio tasks within the workspaces to obtain runtime compute resources.
Compute resource:
- Definition: An entity that provides the syntax parsing, compilation, and execution environment for the Data Studio module. Examples include MaxCompute, Hologres, and EMR.
- Relationship: Development dependency. As indicated by the input arrows to the Data Studio module in the figure, you must associate a compute resource with a workspace. This enables developers to write, debug, and submit code, such as SQL and Spark, in the Data Studio module.
Data source:
- Definition: Connection information for accessing external data stores, such as MySQL, Oracle, and OSS.
- Relationship: Integration dependency. As indicated by the input arrows to the Data Integration module in the figure, the source and sink of a Data Integration task depend on pre-configured data sources in the workspace.
Custom image:
- Definition: A packaged environment that contains a specific operating system, runtime environment, and third-party libraries.
- Relationship: Associate as needed. As shown on the left side of the figure, when the personal development environment (Studio) or specific types of Data Studio nodes (such as PyODPS) require dependencies beyond the standard environment (such as a specific version of a Python library), you can associate a custom image as needed. This is an advanced feature.
Cross-workspace global services:
- As shown at the top of the figure, modules such as Data Governance and Data Map operate above the workspace level, providing tenant-level global data views and management capabilities. Their permission systems are independent of individual workspaces.

Notes

Permission control: If you cannot view or use specific features, contact the Alibaba Cloud account owner or an administrator to verify that you have the required permissions. For more information, see Manage member permissions.
Region isolation: Workspaces and resources in DataWorks are isolated by region. Before you perform any operation, make sure that you have selected the correct region in the top navigation bar of the console.

Getting started workflow

If you are configuring DataWorks for the first time, follow this workflow to set up a complete and functional environment.

Important

Make sure that you are using an Alibaba Cloud account or a RAM user that has the AliyunDataWorksFullAccess policy attached. Otherwise, ask your administrator to grant permissions to the RAM user.

Step 1: Create a workspace

Log on to the DataWorks console. In the top navigation bar, select the target region. In the left-side navigation pane, click Workspace, and then click Create Workspace. Select a workspace mode based on your requirements. We recommend that you use Standard Mode to support complete isolation of the development, testing, and production environments.

For more information, see Create a workspace.

Step 2: Configure and associate a resource group

Create or purchase a resource group: In the left-side navigation pane of the console, go to the Resource Group list, and purchase a resource group that meets your workload requirements (for example, a serverless resource group).
Associate with a workspace: Associate the purchased resource group with your workspace. This step is a prerequisite for Data Integration, task scheduling, DataService Studio, and other core features to function properly.

On the Resource Groups page, click Create Resource Group to create a resource group, and then click Bind Workspace in the Actions column of the target resource group.

Step 3: Add members to the workspace

Go to the workspace list and click Details in the Actions column of the target workspace to go to the workspace details page.
On this page, add project team members (RAM users) and assign them appropriate workspace-level roles (such as Workspace Administrator, developer, or operator) to enable collaborative development and permission control.

For more information, see Add members to a workspace.

In the left-side navigation pane, click Workspace Members and Roles, click Add Member, select accounts from the Accounts to Add list to move them to the Added Accounts list, select the desired roles (such as Workspace Manager) in the Batch Set Roles section, and click OK.

Step 4: Associate compute resources

Go to the Computing Resource list in the workspace details, and associate an existing compute resource instance (such as a MaxCompute project) with the current workspace. This step is a prerequisite for data development.

Step 5: Add data sources

Go to Data Sources in the workspace details, click Add Data Source, configure the connection information of the source or destination database for data synchronization, and then test the network connectivity.

After you complete these five steps, your DataWorks workspace is ready for data development and task execution.

Management feature overview

Overview and navigation

The left-side navigation pane provides access to all management features, including the workspace list, resource group list, image management, and purchased resources and services. Log on to the DataWorks console. The Overview page is displayed by default, showing key scenarios, frequently used workspaces, product updates, and quick links.

Global-level configuration

These configurations take effect at the tenant level and apply to all workspaces in the current region.

Navigate to More > Management Center in the navigation pane, or click the management button in the Actions column of the workspace list, to go to Administration.

View the tenant-level Alerts, Tenant Members and Roles, and Extension settings.

Feature	Description and key operations
Alert configuration	View and configure alert contacts and set alert limits for DataWorks. • Alert resources: View the usage of alert resources (SMS and phone) and set the daily alert limit. Alerts stop after the limit is reached. • Alert contacts: Configure contacts who receive task alerts. You can synchronize contacts from RAM or add them manually. Contacts must be activated before they take effect. For more information, see View and configure alert contacts.
Tenant members and roles	• Tenant members: Configure members who have permissions on global modules such as Data Security Guard and Data Map. • Tenant roles: View or customize global roles and their permissions. For more information, see Permission control for global services.
Extensions	Enable or configure extension applications provided by Open Platform to implement verification and control over development and operations workflows. For more information, see Extensions.

Workspace details configuration

These configurations take effect only in the current workspace.

Feature	Description and key operations
Workspace settings	Manage basic workspace properties and security settings (such as whether to allow downloading `Select` results). For more information, see Configure a workspace.
Data sources	Manage source and destination connections used for data synchronization in the current workspace. For more information, see Data source management.
Computing Resource	Associate and manage compute resources for data development, such as MaxCompute, Hologres, and AnalyticDB for MySQL. For more information, see Compute resource management.
Cluster management	Register and manage self-managed CDH/CDP or EMR clusters, and configure authentication files and account mapping relationships. This feature is visible only for workspaces that do not use the new Data Studio.
Workspace Members and Roles	View preset role permissions, create custom roles, and configure their feature permissions and role mappings to compute resources. You can also add or remove workspace members and assign roles. For more information, see Manage permissions on workspace-level services.

Workspace management

In the left-side navigation pane, click Workspace to view all workspaces in the specified region. You can manage workspaces that you have joined or create new ones.

Note

RAM users can only view workspaces that they have joined. To view a workspace, the RAM user must be added as a workspace member. For more information, see Add members to a workspace.

Area	Feature	Description	References
1	Select a region	Switch the DataWorks region. Different regions display different workspace lists.	-
2	Create a workspace	Create a new DataWorks workspace.	Configure a workspace
3	View basic workspace information	View basic workspace information such as the mode and administrators: Workspace template: Supports full-featured workspaces and OpenLake workspaces. Mode: The workspace mode (basic or standard). Standard mode is recommended for production development. Administrators: The workspace administrators. An administrator can add RAM users on the Management Center > Workspace > Workspace Members page. Resource group ID: The resource group to which the current workspace belongs. This is the Default Resource Group created in Resource Management of your Alibaba Cloud account. Important This resource group is for grouping and managing resources within an Alibaba Cloud account, helping manage resource grouping and permissions. It differs from the resource group that DataWorks uses for running tasks. For more information about Alibaba Cloud resource groups, see What is Resource Management?.	For more information about the differences between the two workspace modes, see Workspace mode differences. You can upgrade a basic mode workspace to a standard mode workspace. For more information, see Upgrade a workspace mode. Add a RAM user to a workspace as a member and assign roles to the member
4	Workspace operations	View key metrics, quickly navigate to modules, or perform workspace operations. Details: View instance execution, pending governance issues, and model and metric data for the previous business date. Quick access: Navigate to functional modules for the current workspace. Manage: Go to Administration to configure workspace settings, members and roles, data sources, clusters, and extensions. Create a data source: Create a data source for Data Integration, data development, and other tasks. Associate a compute resource: Associate a compute resource with the workspace for big data task development. Delete a workspace: Delete a specific workspace. A deleted workspace cannot be recovered. Disable a workspace: Disable a workspace you no longer need. After the workspace is disabled, tasks are no longer automatically scheduled. However, engine resources still exist and may incur engine charges.	Configure a workspace Management console overview Data source management Compute resource management Stop billing
5	Version upgrade	Upgrade the current DataWorks edition. Higher editions provide more capabilities. The available capabilities vary by edition. Editions are activated at the region level. After you purchase an edition, all workspaces in the current region can use the capabilities of that edition.	For more information about the differences between editions, see DataWorks: Features by edition.
5	Purchase an exclusive resource group	You can purchase a serverless resource group. After the purchase, click Resource Group in the left-side navigation pane to view the resource group details.	Serverless resource groups

AI and Agent

The AI menu group in the left-side navigation pane provides centralized access to AI and Agent capabilities.

Feature	Description and key operations
Data Agent	An AI agent conversational interface with built-in DataWorks Skills covering Data Integration, data development, Data Governance, and Data Security scenarios. Click to go to the Data Agent conversation page. For more information, see New Data Agent.
AI Assistant Service	AI Assistant Service supports direct conversations through the DataWorks console. It also integrates with IM platforms such as DingTalk and Lark, enabling alert analysis, task diagnostics, code modification, task operations, and data governance through natural language. For more information, see AI assistant service.
Large model service	Deploy and invoke large models efficiently. You can deploy models by using DataWorks serverless resource groups and invoke them directly in Data Integration and data development tasks. For more information, see Manage large model services.
Seat management	Manage the allocation and usage of Data Agent seats from the Seat Management tab on the Data Agent settings page. For more information, see Seat management.

Resource group list

In the left-side navigation pane, click Resource Group. You can purchase resources or view details and manage purchased resources in the corresponding region.

Area	Feature	Description	References
1	Create a resource group	Create a serverless resource group.	Serverless resource groups
2	View basic resource group information	View basic resource group information such as running status, expiration time, and utilization. Area 2, resource group Status Starting: The resource group is starting after purchase. Wait until the process is complete. Normal: The resource group is running normally and can execute tasks. Updating: The resource group is being modified, for example, during a scale-up or scale-down operation. Note The update process takes some time. Wait until the process is complete. Expired: If a subscription resource group is not renewed after it expires, it enters this state and cannot be used. If the resource group is still not renewed after a period of time, the console deletes the corresponding resource group record. Frozen: A pay-as-you-go resource group is automatically frozen if it is not used for 7 days. Area 3, resource group utilization: High utilization may affect task execution. Check resource consumption and adjust unreasonable usage promptly.	Use serverless resource groups Manage renewal of subscription products Overdue payments Expiration and renewal
3	View basic resource group information
4	Resource group operations	View detailed resource group information and perform modification operations. Details: View basic information, resource utilization, scheduling concurrency usage, and usage across modules such as Data Integration, data computation, Data Service, data scheduling, and personal development environment. Network settings: Configure network settings for accessing a special network environment. Select a network connectivity plan and follow the documentation to configure connectivity. Associate with a workspace: A purchased resource group must be associated with a specific workspace before it can be used. You must have the Modifyresourcegroup permission to modify the associated workspace. For information about how to grant permissions, see Console entity permissions: custom policies. More operations: You can click to perform operations such as scale-up, scale-down, renewal, unsubscription, quota management, billing type conversion, and modify the scheduling concurrency limit on the resource group. Note The resource group modification process takes some time. Wait until the process is complete.	Use serverless resource groups Manage renewal of subscription products Overview

Image management

In the left-side navigation pane, click Image Management. You can view DataWorks official images. If tasks on a serverless resource group require a specific development environment (such as third-party library dependencies), create a custom image that integrates the required packages and dependencies, and then specify the serverless resource group as the execution resource and the image as the runtime environment when running the task. For more information, see Custom image.

Purchased resources and services

In the left-side navigation pane, click Purchased Resources and Services. View details of purchased subscription and pay-as-you-go DataWorks services and resource groups, view bills and billing rules, or perform operations such as renewal, upgrade, downgrade, and unsubscription. For more information, see View bill details and Overview.