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June 22, 2026

# Ask a Lineage Question

**Ask a Lineage Question** is on the project **dashboard** only. It is the broadest AI entry point: you ask a plain-English question and get an answer grounded in the code and metadata ingested for that project, with links into Explore tabs (**Modules**, **Tables**, **Fields**, **Variables**, **Jobs**, **Files**).

Explore itself stays deterministic; use Ask a Lineage Question to orient, then verify and deepen in Explore.

Who it is for

Business analysts and architects use it for discovery (“where are overdraft fees calculated?”). Developers use it to jump to the right module before edge-to-edge tracing.

How to ask

1. Open your Data Lineage project **dashboard**.
2. Enter a question in **Ask a Lineage Question**.
3. Review the response. Format adapts to the question—narrative, lists, or tables when that fits best.
4. Follow **hyperlinks** to modules, tables, fields, variables, jobs, or files.

### Tips for better answers

- **Be as specific as you can**—named programs, tables, or business terms beat vague prompts.
- Answers are easiest to action when the project focuses on a **coherent subset** of programs; very large catalogs may need narrower questions or follow-up filtering in Explore.
- When the answer names one program, **right-click** a module link and **open in a new tab** so you keep the answer visible while you trace in Explore.

Example (sample banking project)

In Zengines sample projects, code resembles small banking mainframe programs. You might ask:

> Tell me about overdraft fees.

A strong response might state that overdraft logic lives in **one module**, name that program, and summarize the calculation in plain English. If multiple programs participate, the answer is usually grouped by program or topic area.

You might then ask a narrower question:

> Does the retail summary program interact with any files?

Because you named a specific module, the answer may resemble a **module summary**—functional and technical descriptions with links to tables, files, and variables—so you can branch into the **Variables** tab for logic detail.

Recently asked questions

Questions you submit appear under **Recently asked questions** on the dashboard, directly under the Ask a Lineage Question input. That list is stored **in your browser**—it is local to you, not shared with other users or devices.

After you get an answer

| Situation | What to do |
| --- | --- |
| Answer is complete | Use links only if you need to verify |
| Answer points to one module | Open module in new tab → edge-to-edge trace |
| Answer is broad | Open linked modules → **Summary** / **Tell Me More** or filter **Fields** by table |

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