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As organizations scale their use of Databricks for data and AI workloads, enabling secure and discoverable access to Unity Catalog assets becomes increasingly important. In many cases, users such as analysts or business partners need to query specific datasets but do not have direct access to the Databricks workspace. Databricks Delta Sharing addresses this challenge by allowing secure access to data and AI assets through an open sharing protocol, making it possible to share governed datasets across organizational boundaries. Learn more about sharing data using the Delta Sharing open sharing protocol.

While Delta Sharing provides the access layer, Microsoft Purview plays a critical role in enabling data discovery. Without access to Databricks Catalog Explorer, users may struggle to locate Unity Catalog-managed data. By integrating with Unity Catalog, Microsoft Purview makes metadata for these assets discoverable through its data map. This allows users across the organization to explore available datasets, including those in Unity Catalog, and request access in a secure and governed manner.

Once data is discoverable, Microsoft Purview enables automated access provisioning through its self-service workflows. These workflows can be configured to trigger Databricks REST APIs, allowing Unity Catalog access requests to be processed in an automated fashion. This approach streamlines the approval process, reduces manual overhead, and ensures that access is granted in a secure and auditable way.

Check out this detailed guide I wrote to implement this integration:

•  A Guide to Enabling Open Data Sharing of Databricks Unity Catalog Assets with Microsoft Purview.

The guide currently focuses on using Purview workflows, which are part of the classic data catalog experience. Guidance on the upcoming Power Automate connector—which will enable access requests directly from Purview—is expected to be available soon.