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What is the difference between reference lists and data tables?

Both let a rule or search reference external, maintainable data rather than hardcoding values directly into rule logic, but they differ in structure: a reference list holds a simple set of single values, while a data table holds structured, multi-column rows — closer to a small relational table.

Reference ListData Table
A flat set of single values, e.g. IPs or hashes.Structured rows with multiple named columns.
Good for simple membership checks (in a list).Good for lookups needing multiple related fields per entry.
Example: a blocklist of known-bad domains.Example: asset inventory mapping hostname to owner, criticality, and location.

The choice between them comes down to what the enrichment or filtering logic actually needs: a rule that just needs to check "is this IP in our known-bad set" fits a reference list well, while a rule that needs to pull several related attributes for a matched entry — like looking up an asset's owning team and criticality tier once its hostname matches — is better served by a data table's multi-column structure, since a reference list alone can't represent that relationship between multiple fields for the same entry.

What structural difference distinguishes a data table from a reference list?
When is a data table a better fit than a reference list?

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