Query matches are returned as a collection of subgraphs called a container. Containers and subgraphs are structural views of the data that are added as persistent items to the database.

Subgraphs include the database objects and links that match the originating query. Importantly, these are the actual objects and links in the database and not copies. If you modify a database entity, every subgraph that includes that entity will be correspondingly modified. Similarly, if you modify an object or link in a subgraph, you are modifying the underlying database entity. Deleting an object or link from the database will similarly impact existing subgraphs, potentially resulting in disconnected or invalid subgraphs.

Changes that delete database entities or alter attribute values may change subgraphs so that they no longer satisfy the original query. Proximity does not re-evaluate the query to update containers when the underlying database changes. Any subgraphs rendered invalid by database changes remain in the container until the query is re-executed.