subregistry

A subregistry is a registry that exists within the framework of a larger registry, designed to organize a subset of the parent registry’s namespace for a specific domain, parameter, or class of items. Subregistries enable delegated governance, allowing a designated group to create, maintain, and deprecate entries without altering the overall registry structure. They share the parent registry’s infrastructure, formatting rules, and reference mechanisms, but define their own scope, policies, and update cadence.

Contents typically include: identifier or code, name, description, status (active, deprecated), applicability rules, effective date, and cross references to the parent registry. Subregistries may also specify validation criteria, versioning information, and interoperability notes to guide implementers.

Governance and processes: Subregistries are usually governed by the parent registry’s policy but may appoint subregistry administrators or stewards. Submissions and changes are evaluated against criteria such as uniqueness, consistency with the parent registry, documentation adequacy, and impact on users. Updates are generally versioned and announced to the community to maintain transparency and traceability.

Lifecycle: The creation of a subregistry is followed by population with initial entries, ongoing maintenance, and eventual deprecation or archival when appropriate. End-of-life timelines and sunset plans are commonly defined to minimize disruption.

Examples: In standards and technical ecosystems, registries often support subregistries to organize values for specific fields, such as error codes or protocol option types, allowing modular updates while preserving a coherent global registry.

Relation to registries: Subregistries reduce namespace contention and enable modular governance, but require coordination with the parent registry to ensure consistency and avoid duplication.

See also: registry, governance, code set, taxonomy, interoperability.