> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.mediarithmics.io/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.mediarithmics.io/setup-and-monitor/plan-and-integrate/set-up-the-environment.md).

# Set up the environment

Declare the organisation, datamart, channels, compartments, registries, metrics, retention, and limits your integration depends on.

## Your goal

Put in place everything your data will reference before the first event arrives. Incoming data points at channels, compartments, and registries by identifier; if those do not exist yet, the data is either impossible to interpret or dropped outright.

## Expected outcome

A datamart that is ready to receive data: the properties you track are declared as channels, the systems that identify your users are declared as compartments and registries, and you know how long the data will live.

## Do it in this order

The order matters, because each step is referenced by the next.

{% stepper %}
{% step %}

### Confirm the organisation and datamart

You cannot configure anything without them, and their level in the hierarchy determines what your settings apply to.

[Prerequisites - Organisation and Datamart](/setup-and-monitor/plan-and-integrate/set-up-the-environment/prerequisites-organisation-and-datamart.md)
{% endstep %}

{% step %}

### Declare your channels

One per site or app you will track. Channels carry privacy rules, event rules, and analyzers.

[Channels](/setup-and-monitor/plan-and-integrate/set-up-the-environment/set-up-channels.md)
{% endstep %}

{% step %}

### Declare your compartments

One per registration system that gives you accounts or profiles.

[Compartments](/setup-and-monitor/plan-and-integrate/set-up-the-environment/set-up-compartments.md)
{% endstep %}

{% step %}

### Declare your device registries

Create or subscribe to a registry for every device or network identifier you intend to ingest.

[Device registries](/setup-and-monitor/plan-and-integrate/set-up-the-environment/set-up-device-registries.md)
{% endstep %}

{% step %}

### Decide on retention

Cleaning rules are computed at write time and are not retroactive, so decide before you collect.

[Data retention](/setup-and-monitor/plan-and-integrate/set-up-the-environment/manage-data-retention.md)
{% endstep %}
{% endstepper %}

Two further pages are useful at this stage but are not blocking: [Segment metrics](/setup-and-monitor/plan-and-integrate/set-up-the-environment/set-up-segment-metrics.md), which changes what your teams see on every segment, and [Platform limits](/setup-and-monitor/plan-and-integrate/set-up-the-environment/platform-limits.md), which lists the documented ceilings you should design within.

## Where these settings live

| Setting                                      | Level                     | Where                                               |
| -------------------------------------------- | ------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------- |
| Channels                                     | Datamart                  | **Settings > Datamart > Channels**                  |
| Compartments                                 | Datamart                  | **Settings > Datamart > Compartments**              |
| Cleaning rules                               | Datamart                  | **Settings > Datamart > Cleaning Rules**            |
| Partitions                                   | Datamart                  | **Settings > Datamart > Partitions**                |
| Computed fields                              | Datamart                  | **Settings > Datamart > Computed Fields**           |
| Visit analyzers, ML Functions, ML Algorithms | Datamart                  | **Settings > Datamart**                             |
| Datamarts themselves                         | Organisation              | **Settings > Datamart > Datamarts**                 |
| Device registries                            | Organisation              | **Settings > Organisation > Device Registries**     |
| Labels                                       | Organisation              | **Settings > Organisation > Labels**                |
| Processing activities                        | Organisation              | **Settings > Organisation > Processing activities** |
| Users, roles, single sign-on                 | Organisation or community | **Settings > Organisation**                         |

{% hint style="warning" %}
Inheritance of settings and objects from a parent [organisation](/setup-and-monitor/plan-and-integrate/set-up-the-environment/prerequisites-organisation-and-datamart.md#organisations-and-communities) is not systematic. Do not assume that something configured on a parent organisation is available to its children - check on the organisation you are working in.
{% endhint %}

## In this section

<table data-view="cards" data-search="false"><thead><tr><th></th><th></th><th data-hidden data-card-target data-type="content-ref"></th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td><strong>Prerequisites - Organisation and Datamart</strong></td><td>What must exist before you configure anything.</td><td><a href="/setup-and-monitor/plan-and-integrate/set-up-the-environment/prerequisites-organisation-and-datamart.md">Prerequisites - Organisation and Datamart</a></td></tr><tr><td><strong>Channels</strong></td><td>Declare each site and app you track.</td><td><a href="/setup-and-monitor/plan-and-integrate/set-up-the-environment/set-up-channels.md">Channels</a></td></tr><tr><td><strong>Compartments</strong></td><td>Keep accounts and profiles from different systems apart.</td><td><a href="/setup-and-monitor/plan-and-integrate/set-up-the-environment/set-up-compartments.md">Compartments</a></td></tr><tr><td><strong>Device registries</strong></td><td>Declare the device and network identifiers you ingest.</td><td><a href="/setup-and-monitor/plan-and-integrate/set-up-the-environment/set-up-device-registries.md">Device registries</a></td></tr><tr><td><strong>Segment metrics</strong></td><td>Choose the counts shown on every segment.</td><td><a href="/setup-and-monitor/plan-and-integrate/set-up-the-environment/set-up-segment-metrics.md">Segment metrics</a></td></tr><tr><td><strong>Data retention</strong></td><td>Decide how long each kind of data lives.</td><td><a href="/setup-and-monitor/plan-and-integrate/set-up-the-environment/manage-data-retention.md">Data retention</a></td></tr><tr><td><strong>Platform limits</strong></td><td>The documented ceilings to design within.</td><td><a href="/setup-and-monitor/plan-and-integrate/set-up-the-environment/platform-limits.md">Platform limits</a></td></tr></tbody></table>


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