Comparison of virtual, physical, and hybrid MDM capabilities

The following definitions show the differences and the relationships among the technical capabilities:

Virtual MDM

The management of master data where master data is created in a distributed fashion on source systems and remains fragmented across those systems with a central "indexing" service.

Physical MDM

The management of master data where master data is created in (or loaded into), stored in, and accessed from a central system.

Hybrid MDM

The management of master data where a coexistence implementation style combines physical and virtual technologies.

Relative to your master data goals, you might require the technical capabilities of virtual MDM, physical MDM, or hybrid MDM. These capabilities are not implementation styles, but instead they are means by which you might achieve your goals for a particular implementation style. Where and how you choose to store a golden record is reflected by the implementation style for your MDM solution. The distinction between product capabilities and implementation styles is as follows:

• You can achieve a registry implementation style by installing the Standard Edition and by using the virtual MDM capabilities.
• You can achieve a centralized implementation style by installing the Advanced Edition and by using the physical MDM capabilities.
• You can achieve a coexistence implementation style by installing the Advanced Edition and by using the hybrid MDM capabilities.

The following diagram shows the interrelationships of physical and virtual MDM capabilities as they relate to the editions:

In previous releases, you might have used the following products to achieve equivalent results with each capability: