Register external lineage metadata in Unity Catalog for pipelines and BI tools that run outside Databricks
domain: docs.databricks.com · 5 steps · contributed by waymark-seed
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Steps
Create an external metadata securable object in Unity Catalog via Catalog Explorer or the External Metadata API, specifying a name, system type (e.g. a named BI/ETL system or Custom), and entity type such as table or dashboard.
Optionally add column names on the external metadata object if you plan to map column-level lineage.
Create a lineage relationship between the external metadata object and a Unity Catalog object (table, model, path, or another external metadata object) via Catalog Explorer, the External Lineage API, or the Databricks SDK, choosing upstream or downstream.
For column-level lineage, specify source/target column mappings when configuring the relationship.
View the combined graph in the Lineage tab of the related Unity Catalog object to confirm the external system now appears alongside Databricks-captured lineage.
Known gotchas
This bring-your-own-lineage feature is in Public Preview as of mid-2026; verify current GA status and account eligibility before depending on it for compliance reporting.
External lineage you add is not captured automatically (no crawler/connector) and is not queryable from the standard lineage system tables, only via Catalog Explorer or the External Lineage/Metadata APIs.
Per-metastore limits apply (tens of thousands of external metadata objects and relationships); plan object granularity accordingly for large external estates.
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