The i2 Analyze data model

The i2 Analyze data model is the foundation on which the abilities of the platform to manage, process, and visualize data are based. On the server and in the user interface, i2 software models data in terms of entities, links, and properties (ELP).

• An entity represents a real-world object, such as a person or a car.
• A link associates two entities with each other. For example, a Person entity might be associated with a Car entity through an Owns link.
• A property stores a value that characterizes an entity or a link. For example, a Person entity might have properties that store their given name, their surname, their date of birth, and their hair color.

Every deployment of i2 Analyze contains descriptions of the kinds of entities and links that can appear in the data for that deployment. These descriptions also state exactly what properties the entities and links can have, and define the relationships that can exist between entities and links of different kinds.

In i2 Analyze, schemas provide these deployment-specific descriptions of the data model:

• If your deployment includes an Information Store, a schema determines both its structure and the shape that data must have in order for the Information Store to process it.

• If your deployment includes the i2 Connect gateway, each connector can have a schema that describes the shape of the data that it provides. Additionally, the gateway can have one or more schemas that describe the data for several related connectors.

To create a schema for an i2 Analyze deployment, you must examine the data that is likely to be available for analysis, and understand how that data is used during an investigation. Understanding the aims of your investigations is key to helping you to organize data effectively.