Guides

📄️ Linkage in LinXmart

With the appropriate metadata established in the system including a defined Linkage Project and the data ready for linkage, the next step is to ingest the data into LinXmart. This section describes the processing that occurs for linkage in LinXmart. For information on how to input data into LinXmart, see ingesting data.

📄️ Defining matching strategies

LinXmart utilises a probabilistic linkage engine. This engine uses a 'match configuration' that tells it how to compare records, and when to designate two records as a match. Each Linkage Project has a separate match configuration, and a Linkage Project’s match configuration can be modified at any time. After modification, all future linkages will use the new match configuration, while previous linkages will not change.

📄️ Merge vs best-link grouping

The matching process performed by LinXmart results in a number of matching pairs that represent weighted likelihoods between different records. In order to create sets (or groups) of records that represent individual entities, these pairs need to go through a grouping process. By default, LinXmart uses a merge-based grouping strategy.

📄️ Data pre-processing

Once the appropriate metadata have been added regarding Data Providers, Event Types, Data Sources, Import Formats and Linkage Projects, LinXmart is ready to accept data for linkage.

🗃️ Ingesting data for linkage and more

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📄️ Monitoring jobs and envelopes

All data processing by the system is run through the Job Queue. This includes all data loads, matching, grouping, reporting, extractions and rollbacks. Jobs are added to the queue and run sequentially in the background.

📄️ Reviewing linkage quality

LinXmart allows the operator to manually override links created by the system, either through the web UI or by uploading a quality review envelope. This allows a group of records with a known error to be manually changed. It also allows groups which fail grouping rules to be manually updated. All quality review grouping changes are stored in the system, together with the full history of quality review changes.

📄️ Extracting linkage keys

LinXmart is designed to provide linkage keys identifying records belonging to the same person within and across datasets.

📄️ Rolling back data (undo!)

It is possible to roll back an Envelope to effectively undo the loading of data into a Linkage Project. There could be a number of reasons that an operator would want to do this - for example:

📄️ Destroying record-level data

LinXmart stores personally identifying information (PII) as part of the process of linking datasets together. However, sometimes it is required (by agreement) or desired to destroy the PII data after it has been used. LinXmart can clear the sensitive PII data stored for records without deleting the linkage itself.