Tags, hierarchies and relationships

A station’s Config > Drivers tree structure organizes a physical group of devices by network protocol, device, and point. This structure does not, for example, identify which building, region or tenant a point belongs to. Using the powerful hierarchy, tag, and relations features of Niagara 4, the framework can set up data source structures for analysis without requiring you to completely configure a separate data model.

A tag is a piece of information added to objects to make them more accessible and flexible for search and analysis. Tags support the use of hierarchies to organize objects in a station.

A hierarchy is a logical navigation tree for a system. Rather than define each element of an organization in a navigation (Nav) file, the HierarchyService defines a navigation tree based on a set of level definition rules.

A relation connects components to one another for the purpose of building a hierarchy.

Tags are contained in dictionaries. You can use a standard tag dictionary, such as Haystack, or your own tag dictionary.

Tags, hierarchies and relations are features of Niagara 4. More information about working with them can be found in the Niagara Tagging Guide, Niagara Hierarchies Guide and Niagara Relations Guide.