Appian Associate Developer (ACD101) Practice Exam

In Appian, linking two record types so you can navigate from one to related records depends on having a synchronized data layer for those records. Data Sync must be enabled for the involved record types. It creates a consistent, queryable representation of the data and the keys you use to relate records across types, which is essential for establishing and maintaining those relationships. Without Data Sync, Appian would rely on live data across sources, making reliable cross-record-type relationships difficult to establish and maintain.

Sharing the same data source isn’t required, since relationships can span different sources as long as Data Sync is enabled for each involved record type. Disabling Data Sync would prevent the relationship from being set up, and publishing the app isn’t a prerequisite for defining the relationship—although you’d publish to run the app.