Domain Entity Does Not Support Soft Deletion

When attempting to implement soft deletion for domain entities using the status aspect in a custom ingestion source, users encounter the error "Unknown aspect status for entity domain." This indicates that domains cannot be soft-deleted using the same mechanism that works for datasets and other entities.

Common Error Messages:

• Unknown aspect status for entity domain

You Might Be Asking:

• Does the domain entity support soft deletion?
• How can I delete domains programmatically?
• Why doesn't the status aspect work for domains?
• What's the alternative to soft deletion for domains?

The domain entity type in DataHub does not support soft deletion because it lacks a status aspect. Only hard deletion is available.

Hard Deletion Options:

1. Using GraphQL API:

mutation {
  deleteDomain(urn: "urn:li:domain:your-domain-id")
}

2. Using Python SDK:

from datahub.emitter.rest_emitter import DatahubRestEmitter
from datahub.metadata.urns import DomainUrn

emitter = DatahubRestEmitter("http://localhost:8080")

domain_urn = DomainUrn("your-domain-id")
emitter.delete_entity(domain_urn)

3. Using DataHub CLI:

datahub delete --urn "urn:li:domain:your-domain-id"

Why Soft Deletion Isn't Supported: - Domains are organizational/structural entities rather than data assets - The status aspect is designed for data assets (datasets, charts, dashboards) - Hard deletion ensures domains are completely removed from the system - Prevents orphaned domain references in the metadata graph

Workaround for Soft Deletion Behavior: If you need to "hide" domains without deleting them: - Remove all assets from the domain - Update the domain description to indicate it's deprecated - Use naming conventions (e.g., "[DEPRECATED] Domain Name")

• Hard deletion of domains will remove domain associations from all assets
• Ensure no assets are assigned to the domain before deletion if you want a clean removal
• Domain deletion requires appropriate permissions (typically admin)
• Deleted domains cannot be recovered; back up metadata if needed

• Domains Documentation
• Delete API

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