Data services

What are data services?

Working with a data service is a new functionality from DCAT-AP-2. It can be most easily be described as a way to describe and publish one or more APIs. This helps you point from a data service that supplies and provides data to one or more datasets. It also allows you to point from a distribution in a datasets that is supplied by a data service.

Create your first data service

To create your first data service that you want to describe and publish, go to Data service.

Next, add the mandatory metadata. These are the "Title" field, which you can describe in one or more languages to increase the reach of your data services, and the "Access Address" field. For the "Access Address" field, point to the most general open access address to your data service. Avoid linking deeper with intersections in the API. After that, you can click on "Create".

Describe the data service

More detailed descriptions with additional metadata fields filled in will help employees and more users to easily find, understand and be able to use the data available from your data service.

Describe with recommended fields

If you want to further describe the data service according to national recommendations, click on the switch "Recommended".

Some recommended fields that help the user extra are Description, Access address, Contact information, Keywords, Access rights.

Describe with optional fields

If you want to describe the data service further, you can click on the switch "Optional" to enable optional fields which you can describe with metadata.

Several optional fields help the user extra for usage. These are: - Description - to briefly describe your data service where there are no f. - Publisher - to indicate your or another organisation as the publisher - Architectural style - to simplify the use of the data service for the user. This is usually a REST architecture. - Category - to make it easier to filter through data portals. - Compliant - to point to a data specification if it exists. - Feeds dataset - to point to datasets that are regularly updated with data from the data service. - License - to clarify legally how data from the data service is used.

Serves dataset

The Serves dataset field allows you to point to datasets to which your data service serves and delivers data to. To use this field, you need to have added and described the data set. You can then select the data set from the drop-down list.

Publish data service

Once you have edited your metadata as best you can, you can publish your data service publicly. To publish the data service publicly, save your edits and then click on the publish switch.

Unpublish data service

If you want to unpublish the data service, you can click on the same slider to unpublish the data service. Click on the same slider to unpublish.

Version management

Start by clicking on Versions in the options menu.

Then click to expand the version you want to restore to.

Then click Restore if you want to restore that version.

You will then have backed up or moved forward your metadata version.

Delete data service

If you want to delete a data service, you should first unpublish it. Then click on the three-point menu on the right of the data service in the list.

Then click on "Remove".

You will then need to confirm the removal.