# Business documents

Add business rules and metric definitions for agents to retrieve and reference in their answers.

使用指南 · 模块: agent · 使用者 · 部署形态：资料未说明 · 已确认产品版本：资料未说明 · 来源：现有文档

Business documents explain rules beyond table structures, such as what counts as a valid order, when the fiscal year starts, and how metrics are defined. Agents retrieve and reference this content when answering.

Documents differ from [skills](https://docs.asktable.com/en/agent/skill): skills describe how to perform analysis, while documents provide background knowledge about how your business works.

## Before you start

| Item        | Requirement                                                                                                     |
| ----------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Permissions | Project owner or Project administrator. Ordinary members can ask questions but cannot modify this configuration |
| Entry point | Main navigation on the left → “More” → open the agent → “Documents” tab                                         |

The page is titled “Business documents”, with a description explaining that captured business knowledge is retrieved during data Q\&A to make answers more relevant to your business. The document list is on the left and the selected document's details are on the right.

## Create and edit

**Click New document**

On the Documents tab, click “New document” to open the creation dialog.

**Enter a title and description**

- **Title**: required, up to 255 characters.
- **Description**: required; one sentence explaining what the document covers.
- **Body**: can be empty and filled in later.

**Write the body**

Write the body in the right-hand detail panel, clearly stating rules, definitions, and exceptions. Title, description, and body all **save on blur**; there is no need to find a save button.

**Add keywords**

Add **keywords** in the detail panel: enter a term and press Enter or comma to add it. Click × to the right of a keyword to remove it.

Keywords guide retrieval. When the user's phrasing does not match the title, keywords can bring the document into the candidate set.

**Check the list**

List items show title and description, plus a keyword-count badge when keywords are present.

## How documents are used

Your documents do not just wait for people to read them. They enter the agent's retrieval scope:

1. After receiving a question, the agent performs hybrid retrieval in the semantic layer, with business documents as one content type;
2. Matching documents enter context with their paths and summary excerpts; the full text is read if the excerpt is insufficient;
3. From the agent's perspective, documents live in a virtual `/documents/` directory, with one `/documents/<title>.md` path per document.

That is why **specificity matters more than length**. A focused document with one clear definition, an accurate title, and useful keywords is easier to retrieve than a large all-purpose manual.

## Key constraints

| Item                   | Value or behavior                                                                                                   |
| ---------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Title                  | Required, maximum 255 characters                                                                                    |
| Description            | Required                                                                                                            |
| Body                   | Can be empty                                                                                                        |
| Keywords               | Separated by Enter or comma; can be added or removed                                                                |
| Saving                 | Saves on blur                                                                                                       |
| Deletion               | Delete from the detail panel; irreversible after confirmation                                                       |
| Ownership              | Attached to a specific agent and effective only within that agent's retrieval scope                                 |
| Difference from skills | Documents provide background knowledge; [skills](https://docs.asktable.com/en/agent/skill) provide analysis methods |

## Troubleshooting

| Symptom                              | How to identify it                                                      | What to do                                                                                                |
| ------------------------------------ | ----------------------------------------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Answer does not use a document       | A definition is documented, but the answer uses a different calculation | Check that the title and keywords cover the user's phrasing; make the definition more specific            |
| Title cannot be saved                | Submission reports an excessive title length                            | Shorten to no more than 255 characters                                                                    |
| Empty description fails to save      | Description is required                                                 | Add a one-sentence description                                                                            |
| Changes do not take effect           | The old value returns after leaving the field                           | Check that your role is Project owner or administrator; ordinary members cannot modify this configuration |
| Need to remove an incorrect document | Delete in the detail panel, then confirm                                | Confirmation is irreversible; back up important content elsewhere first                                   |

## Next steps

- Make analysis methods reusable too: [Analysis skills](https://docs.asktable.com/en/agent/skill)
- Align document definitions with table structures: [Table and field descriptions](https://docs.asktable.com/en/data/semantics)
- See whether a document was actually referenced: [Logs and user feedback](https://docs.asktable.com/en/agent/logs-feedbacks)