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Using an Advanced Analytics DCR as a data analyst

As a data analyst in an Advanced Analytics DCR, you can analyze data using various languages such as Python, SQL, and R. The key difference between analyzing data in a DCR versus other platforms is that the data owner maintains control over the output.

Accessing and navigating the DCR

  1. Access all DCRs your account participates in by clicking the DCRs button on the sidebar. Sidebar actions are outlined in Welcome to Decentriq
  1. Once inside a DCR, you'll see several tabs.

    • Overview: Full overview of the DCR configuration. You can execute computations you have permissions for from here.
    • Development: Your workspace for running arbitrary analyses on data and computation results you have access to.
    • Requests: In this tab you can request approval for computations on data and computation results you do not have access to.
    • Audit log: This tab shows an audit log of all actions that took place in this DCR.

Waiting for data provisioning

Before you can begin your analysis, ensure that all data owners have provided their data to the DCR. You can see this by setting the Show only actionable items button in the Overview tab.

Analyzing data by running approved computations

Approved computations are defined during the DCR creation process or through requests (see below):

  1. These computations are available in the Overview tab.
  2. You can execute the computations you have permissions for directly from the Overview tab.
Run approved computations

Analyzing data and results you have access to

Use the Development tab as your primary workspace for creating and running analyses:

  1. Create computations using data you have access to (owned data, approved computation results, or privacy node outputs). The dropdown menu for input selection greys out data or computation results you don't have access to.
  2. Execute these computation and retrieve results.
Creating computation in development tab

Analyzing data you don't have access to

Requesting new computations

For computations not defined at creation:

  1. Create a draft computation in the Development tab.
  2. If you don't have permission for input data, you'll be prompted to create a request. Otherwise, select the input file and you can reference it by pointing to the /input/ folder as needed.
  3. In the Requests tab:
    • Define analyst permissions (who can see and use the results).
    • Specify input files of data you don't own, and reference them similarly to above as needed.
    • Submit for approval. By default, the submission runs an empty file to check code validity. For code depending on non-empty files, either account for empty files or submit without validation.
Requesting a computation addition

Using privacy nodes

Privacy nodes are specialized computation nodes that control information outflow from datasets you don't own:

  1. Examples include synthetic data generation and limited data preview (Airlock).
  2. Request the addition of privacy nodes if not already present in the DCR through the flow mentioned above.
  3. Use their output in the Development tab for further analysis without needing additional approvals.