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Edit Ontologies

You can edit any Ontology by updating its structure in the same way you did during the creation process. To edit an Ontology, simply select it from your list of Ontologies.
Once an Ontology is attached to a Project, Global Classifications cannot be changed to non-Global Classifications.

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Required Settings for Global Features

When working with global objects and classifications in your Ontology, you can now modify the Required setting directly in the Ontology editor. This allows you to control whether global features must be completed during annotation, even after they’ve been shared across multiple projects.
The Required setting determines whether annotators must complete this feature before submitting their work. This applies to both global objects and global classifications.

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Archive and Delete Entries

All Ontology entries can be either archived or deleted. The process is the same, but entries are archived when the Ontology is attached to Projects and can only be deleted when it is not.
Enabling the Show archived toggle at the top of your Ontology displays all archived entries in the Ontology.

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Duplicate Entities

During Ontology creation and modification, you can duplicate objects, classifications, and attributes. This can streamline creation of Ontologies that contain similar objects, classifications, and attributes. When you duplicate an object, Encord automatically assigns a random color from the color palette to help distinguish it from the original object. Duplicated objects have (copy) appended to their name. Duplicate Objects and Attributes

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Reorder Ontology

During Ontology creation and modification, you can adjust the order of objects, classifications, and attributes by dragging and dropping them. Adjust Objects and Attributes

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View Edit History

Encord tracks changes made to Ontologies each time the Ontologies are saved. Use the Show version history button on the Ontology’s Schema page. To view an Ontology’s edit history:
  1. Go to Ontologies > [select an Ontology]. The Schema page for the Ontology appears. Show version history
  2. Click the Show version history button. The Version history panel appears from the right side of the screen. The View changes tab displays the following:
    • Name of the user that made an edit
    • Date and time an edit was made
  3. Expand an entry in the View changes list. The edits made for an entry appear. View changes
  4. Click View schema to see a JSON of the entry version of the Ontology.

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Revert Ontology Edits

Encord tracks changes made to Ontologies. You can undo specific changes, while other changes need to be manually changed back.
An Ontology used by a Project provides a soft deletion (Archive) mechanism for objects, classifications, attributes, and options. Ontologies not used by a Project do not provide a soft deletion mechanism.
To restore archived features
  1. Go to Ontologies > [select an Ontology]. The Schema page for the Ontology appears. Show version history
  2. Click the Show version history button. The Version history panel appears from the right side of the screen. The View changes tab displays the following:
    • Name of the user that made an edit
    • Date and time an edit was made
  3. Expand the entry you need to revert in the View changes list. The edits made for an entry appear. View changes
  4. Turn on Show archived. Show archived
  5. Go to the Ontology setting. Revert changes
  6. Click Restore.
  7. Continue as needed.

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Ontology Settings

Select an Ontology, and navigate to the Settings tab to access the Ontology’s settings.

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Copy Ontologies

An Ontology can be copied in the Options page of the Ontology’s settings. Click the Copy ontology button to copy the Ontology.
Copying an ontology copies all object primitives, and you have the option to copy any team members associated with the Ontology. The new Ontology is not attached to any Projects.
You can also duplicate an Ontology directly from the Ontologies list by clicking the three-dot menu next to any Ontology and selecting Duplicate. A success message confirms when the duplication completes.

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User Management

users associated with the Ontology are managed in the Team pane of the Ontology’s Settings. To add collaborators to the Ontology:
  1. Search for the collaborator or the group you want to add. Multiple collaborators and groups can be added at once.
Only group members are added when a group is assigned to a Project. Group managers are not included.
  1. Select a user role.
  • User: Can view the Ontology and attach it to Projects.
  • Admin: Grants full administrative control over the Ontology.
  1. Click Add to ontology.
  • Change a user’s role by clicking their role in the Role column and selecting a new one.
  • Remove users by clicking the Delete icon in the Unassign column.

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Object Primitives

Object primitives (formerly called Skeleton templates) are customizable Ontology class.
Object primitives are created in the Object primitives section of the Settings tab of an Ontology. Here you define a configuration of key points, and the vertices between them.
  • A. ‘Add a primitive’: Start creating a new object primitive template.
  • B. ‘Names hidden’: Show or hide the vertex names in the canvas.
  • C. ‘Add a point’: Add more points on the canvas. Points are added to the list of points as they are made.
  • D. ‘Add an edge’: Add more edges. Mouseover the first point and click once before clicking over the
    end point of the edge. Edges are added to the list of edges as they are created.
  • E. ‘Move/edit’: Move vertices. Mouseover the vertex you wish to move. Click and drag to move the target vertex to the new desired location.
  • F. ‘Save current state’: Save the template. If you exit the editor screen without saving all your work will be lost.
  • G. ‘Name’: Enter a name for this object primitive. This name will be displayed in the ontology structure object annotation type selection.
  • H. ‘Delete template’: Delete this object primitive. Please ensure you’ve removed this object primitives from
    all connected objects before deleting, or the ontology structure may enter an unstable state.
  • I. ‘Points’: List of points with their coordinates and names. Coordinates are defined as (0, 0) in the
    upper left. You can also add points using the + Add a point button at the bottom of the list.
  • J. ‘Edges’: List of edges. You can also add edges by using the + Add an edge button at the bottom of the list.
To create an object primitive:
  1. Click Add a primitive (A).
  2. Give your primitive a meaningful name.
  3. Click Add. You are now ready to set up your primitive.
  4. Click Add a point (C). Add as many points as you need.
  5. Click Add an edge (D). Connect your points as needed.
  6. Click Save current state (F) to save your primitive.
You can adjust the color of points and edges by clicking the color circle next to their names in the list of points and edges.
To use your object primitive:
  1. Return to the Schema tab of your Ontology.
  2. Click + Add object.
  3. Select your object primitive from the list of Object classes.
  4. Save your Ontology.
Learn how to work with Skeletons here

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Linked Projects

The Linked projects pane shows a list of Projects using the Ontology. You can jump to any of the projects displayed by clicking the View link.

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Delete Ontology

Use the Danger zone pane to delete an Ontology.
Ontologies that are attached to one or more Project cannot be deleted. To delete an Ontology, it has to be removed from all Projects it is attached to.
Note that deletion is a permanent action, and deleted Ontologies cannot be restored.
Screenshot of the ontology deletion pane

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View and join Ontologies in your Workspace

Workspace Admins can search for and join any Ontology that exists within the Workspace.
  1. Navigate to Ontologies in the Encord platform.
  2. Select the All Encord ontologies tab.
  3. Find the Ontology you want to join.
  4. Click Join ontology to join the Ontology.
When a Workspace Admin joins an Ontology, they are automatically assigned the Admin user role for that Ontology.
Ontologies can be filtered by Ontology owner.
See all the Ontologies you belong to by clicking the Filter by search bar, and selecting My ontologies only.

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Shared Classes

Shared classes are reusable Ontology components. You can create, edit and reuse object and classification label types using Shared classes. You can also view detailed version histories to track changes over time.
Editing a shared class that is used in a Project, does not introduce breaking changes. You can add attributes to a shared class, but you cannot delete. You can archive attributes.

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Create a Shared Class

You can create shared Object and Classification label types. To create a new shared object:
  1. Go to Ontologies > Shared classes.
  2. Click Create new class.
  3. Select Object from the Class type field.
  4. Type a meaningful name for the shared class.
  5. Select the shared Object type to create. For example, select Box to create a bounding box object type.
  6. Optional: Type a meaningful name for the shared class.
  7. Click Add attributes > Add attribute.
  8. Specify the settings for your object type attributes.
  9. Rinse and repeat until your shared object is complete.
10 . Click Create class.

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Archive Shared Classes

When you archive a shared class that is used in existing Ontologies, Encord shows you which Ontologies use that shared class before confirming the archive action. To archive a shared class:
  1. Go to Ontologies > Shared classes.
  2. Click the three-dot menu next to the shared class you want to archive.
  3. Select Archive.
  4. Review the confirmation modal that shows:
    • The name of the shared class being archived
    • A list of all Ontologies that currently use this shared class
  5. Click Archive to confirm the action.
The confirmation modal includes direct links to each Ontology that uses the shared class, allowing you to review the impact before proceeding with the archive.
Archiving a shared class removes it from future use but does not affect existing Ontologies that already use it. You can restore archived shared classes by selecting Restore from the same menu.

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Edit a Shared Class

You can modify existing shared classes to add new attributes or update existing ones. When you edit a shared class, all existing attributes are preserved and displayed in the edit interface. To edit a shared class:
  1. Go to Ontologies > Shared classes.
  2. Click on the shared class you want to edit.
  3. Click Edit class.
  4. Make your desired changes:
    • Add new attributes by clicking Add attribute
    • Modify existing attributes by clicking on them
    • Archive attributes that are no longer needed
  5. Click Save changes to apply your updates.

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View Shared Class Version History

The version history displays a chronological list of all versions, with the most recent version at the top. Each version entry shows:
  • The user who made the changes
  • The date and time of the modification
  • Whether the version represents the initial creation or an edit
To view version history for a shared class:
  1. Go to Ontologies > Shared classes.
  2. Click on a shared class to open its detail panel.
  3. Select the Version history tab.

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View Version Changes

Each version entry can be expanded to show detailed information about what changed in that specific version. To view changes in a version:
  1. In the Version history tab, click the expand arrow next to any version entry.
The expanded view shows specific changes made in that version, including:
  • Added, deleted, or modified objects, classifications, and attributes
  • Changes to properties like colors, shapes, or requirement settings
  • Renamed features with before and after names
  • Reordered attributes or options
The version history automatically loads additional versions as you scroll down. Click Load more if you need to see older versions.
Version history is available for all shared classes and provides a complete audit trail of modifications made over time.