Learn about Advanced mode and how it extends the basic mode capability for larger-scale and more complex grouping scenarios.

Advanced mode is a feature that lets you group related entities using match rules without merging them. The result is a separate group entity that references member entities through relationships. Unlike traditional merging or automated householding, Advanced mode keeps source entities intact. It uses a dedicated grouping processor to associate, validate, and evolve groups as contributing entities change. This approach helps you manage large-scale grouping scenarios more efficiently while improving flexibility and maintainability.

Advanced mode helps address the large object problem in master data environments. In traditional implementations, merged entities can become excessively large because of accumulated crosswalks and attribute values. By keeping source entities separate and maintaining membership through a group entity, Advanced mode supports large logical groups without creating oversize merged records.

When a new entity matches existing group criteria, it's added to that group. When a group's integrity is broken by entity changes, it's automatically split or updated.

For example, you can use Advanced mode to build a retail or corporate hierarchy. You might first group individual store entities into state-level groups, and then group those state-level groups into a country-level group. In this model, each group can also have its own members, which allows you to represent multi-level structures such as branches by state and branches by country.