Data Validation Service is an architectural building block of the EIRA Technical view - application supporting the Technical interoperability layer of the European Interoperability Framework.
It is included in the Enabler grouping Application Mediation Enablers.


Data Validation Service is a specialisation of Application Service. It Shares the functionality of referring to any activity aimed at verifying that the value of a data item comes from a given set of acceptable values. Data validation may be followed by corrective actions, such as data editing or data imputation.


The Data Validation Service ABB  is salient for technical interoperability because it shares the functionality to validate if data received (or to be sent) is compliant with common and agreed interoperable formats as stated in the EIF recommendation #eif41 - Establish procedures and processes to integrate the opening of data: "Establish procedures and processes to integrate the opening of data in your common business processes, working routines, and in the development of new information systems."


Example

The following implementation is an example on how this specific Architecture Building Block (ABB) can be instantiated as a Solution Building Block (SBB):

Eurostat Struval
The Structural Validation service (called STRUVAL) performs structural validation of statistical data files following the SDMX Information Model for a given data flow. It ensures that a data file respects the following key elements:

  • SDMX compliance in terms of checks on file format and completeness in terms of mandatory fields;
  • SDMX compliance in terms of the structure and coding defined by the Data Structure Definition (DSD);
  • The constraints defined for respective data flows.

The STRUVAL service returns a response containing a machine-readable message that is processed by the process manager. The invoker of the service receives a validation report, regardless of the result of the process (in case of no failures the reports hold no records).
Structural validation (Eurostat)



The latest release of the EIRA© is available on Joinup.


Source: European Interoperability Reference Architecture (EIRA version 3) (url) (with information on the 3rd release at the website of the ISA² - Interoperability solutions for public administrations, businesses and citizens).