Foundational Data Management
About 11% of the CIS-SP exam — see all 6 domains.
"Foundational data" is the reference/master data customers need (users, groups, locations, companies, CMDB seed data, catalog content, etc.) loaded into the correct domain.
Key points:
- Import Sets + Transform Maps are the standard mechanism for bringing customer data in; the transform must place rows in the correct domain (set
sys_domainappropriately, often by running the import while in the target domain context or by mapping a domain value). - Data loaded while the import user is in a given domain is stamped to that domain; getting the running domain right is the crux of clean foundational loads.
- Foundation/reference data shared across customers (truly common lookups) can live in global so all domains inherit it, while customer-specific master data lives in the customer's domain.
- Be deliberate about users and groups: a user's domain and visibility determine what they can do; provider staff often need cross-domain visibility while customer users are confined to one domain.
Sample questions from this domain
Three of the 33 in this domain, with the reasoning. The full set is in the question bank.
When importing data into a domain-separated instance, which domain are the imported records typically stamped with by default?
- A. A random domain
- B. The domain context (session domain) under which the import/transform runs ✓
- C. The domain of the source file's first row only
- D. Always global
Why: Imported records are stamped with the domain context in which the import and transform run, so running the import under the correct customer's domain ensures the data lands in that domain. They are not forced to global, randomized, or based on a single row.
To load a specific customer's data into that customer's domain during a transform, what should an administrator do?
- A. Run the import/transform while in that customer's domain context (or set the domain on the transform). ✓
- B. Manually edit sys_domain_path on each row afterward.
- C. Always import into global then hope it separates.
- D. Disable domain separation during the import.
Why: Running the transform under the target customer's domain context (using the domain picker) or explicitly setting the domain ensures records are stamped to that customer. Disabling separation, importing to global, or hand-editing the path are unsafe or unnecessary.
Which import artifact maps source columns to target table fields and can be influenced by domain context?
- A. Business Rule debugger
- B. Update Set
- C. ACL
- D. Transform Map ✓
Why: A Transform Map defines how source (import set) columns map to target table fields; when executed under a domain context, the resulting target records are stamped accordingly. Update sets move configuration, ACLs control access, and the debugger is a troubleshooting tool.