When a Vocabulary has elected to have an EDC Datasource, setting an entity's Datastore Persistent property to Yes declares that the entity will map to a table in the Datasource. A database cylinder decorates the icons of the entity and its attributes, as shown:



After the property is set, right-clicking an Entity's alias in a Rulesheet's Scope section shows the menu command to Extend to Database, as shown:



Then, you can define filters and set them each as a Database Filter, as shown:



When checked, the filter becomes a database query that retrieves data from the connected database, and then adds the retrieved data to working memory.

When the option is cleared, the filter is applied only to data currently in working memory.

Note: See Precondition and filters as query filters for qualifications and supported operators.

Database filters in an execution sequence diagram

When you choose Rulesheet > Logical Analysis > Execution Sequence Diagram, the graphic that is generated distinguishes a database filter from local filter by its shape:



In this example, F.1, the database query, is displayed within a triangle, while F.2, the local filter, is displayed within an inverted trapezoid (a quadrilateral with parallel horizontal bases and legs that converge downward).

Error Conditions

It is important to note that you could set a database filter on an entity that is not datastore persistent or extended to database. If you do so, then the filter is marked in red, as shown. The error notes that the filter cannot be processed by a database.