Transcode API
Learn about how the Transcode API resolves source lookup values to canonical values and supports simple lookup transcoding, hierarchical lookup transcoding, and reverse transcoding.
The Transcode in Reltio Reference Data Management (RDM) converts source system values into standardized canonical values so that systems exchanging data through Reltio interpret the same value consistently.
Source systems often represent the same business value in different ways. One system might store a country as US, another as USA, and a third as United States. The Transcode API resolves these different source values to a single canonical value.
Transcode operations
The Transcode API provides three operations, each handling a different relationship between the source value and its canonical value.
- Transcode Simple Lookup resolves a single source lookup value to its canonical value.
- Transcode Hierarchical Lookups resolves parent and dependent child lookup values in one request.
- Reverse Transcoding resolves a canonical value to the representation used by a target source system.
Localization in Transcode API
Localization in Transcode returns a canonical value in the requested language. A canonical value can have translations in different languages. For example, the canonical country value US can have the English value USA and the Spanish value Estados Unidos de America. The Transcode API returns the value that matches the requested language. Localization applies to all Transcode API operations that return a canonical value.
To request a specific language, include the Accept-Language header in the request and set it to the language code you want, such as Accept-Language: es-ES. RDM returns the value in that language, while the code and the rest of the response stay the same. RDM returns a localized value only when a translation is configured for the requested language. If you omit the Accept-Language header, or set it to a language that has no configured translation, RDM returns the default canonical value instead.
The following table shows how the requested language changes the value that RDM returns for the canonical country value US.
| Accept-Language | Translation availability | Value returned |
|---|---|---|
es-ES (Spanish) | Available | Localized value: Estados Unidos de America |
de-DE (German) | Not available | Default canonical value: USA |
The following request asks for the canonical country value US in Spanish by setting Accept-Language: es-ES.
Request
POST https://{{rdm-service}}/transcode/rdm_tenant_name/value
Accept-Language: es-ES
{
"type": "rdm/lookupTypes/Country",
"value": "US",
"source": "rdm/sources/Reltio"
}As Spanish translation is configured for this lookup, RDM returns the localized value.
Response
{
"type": "rdm/lookupTypes/Country",
"code": "US",
"value": "Estados Unidos de America",
"source": "rdm/sources/Reltio",
"success": true
}The following request asks for the same value in German by setting Accept-Language: de-DE, a language with no configured translation.
Request
POST https://{{rdm-service}}/transcode/rdm_tenant_name/value
Accept-Language: de-DE
{
"type": "rdm/lookupTypes/Country",
"value": "US",
"source": "rdm/sources/Reltio"
}As German translation is not configured for this lookup, RDM returns the default canonical value.
Response
{
"type": "rdm/lookupTypes/Country",
"code": "US",
"value": "USA",
"source": "rdm/sources/Reltio",
"success": true
}