1.

What is Data warehousing and its purpose

Data Warehousing refers to the process of collecting, storing, and managing
large volumes of data from different sources in a centralized system. It is
designed to support business decision-making processes by providing a
consolidated and historical view of data. The data is organized and structured
in a way that makes it easy for users to retrieve, analyze, and generate insights.
Purpose of Data Warehousing:
1. Centralized Data Storage: A data warehouse integrates data from
multiple operational databases into a central repository, making it easier
2. to manage and analyze.
3. Support for Business Intelligence (BI): It enables businesses to perform
complex queries, analysis, and reporting, helping decision-makers make
informed choices based on historical data.
4. Historical Analysis: Data warehouses store historical data, allowing
businesses to track trends over time, compare past and current
performance, and predict future outcomes.
5. Data Quality and Consistency: It improves data quality by cleaning,
transforming, and validating data during the extraction process. This
ensures that data across the organization is consistent and accurate.
6. Faster Query Performance: Data warehouses are optimized for read-
heavy operations, making queries faster and more efficient than in
transactional databases.
7. Data Integration: It integrates data from various heterogeneous sources,
such as databases, flat files, and external systems, providing a unified
view of all enterprise data.
Key Features of a Data Warehouse:
 ETL Process (Extract, Transform, Load): Data is extracted from different
sources, transformed into a common format, and then loaded into the
data warehouse.
 Subject-Oriented: Data is organized around key subjects, such as sales,
finance, or customer data, rather than individual transactions.
 Non-Volatile: Once data is stored in the warehouse, it is not changed or
updated regularly, ensuring historical consistency.
  Time-Variant: It supports the tracking of historical changes over time,
often by storing data snapshots at different points.
In short, a data warehouse helps organizations store data in an organized way
for better decision-making, performance analysis, and reporting.

1. Architecture of Data warehousing

The architecture of a Data Warehouse is structured to facilitate the efficient

collection, storage, and analysis of large amounts of data. It typically consists of
multiple layers, each serving a specific purpose in the process of data
collection, transformation, storage, and retrieval. The architecture can vary
depending on the needs of an organization, but a typical data warehouse
architecture follows a three-tier model:
1. Three-Tier Architecture of a Data Warehouse:
1.1. Bottom Tier (Data Sources/Operational Databases)
This layer consists of the source systems from which data is extracted. These
can be transactional databases, external data sources, or flat files.
 Source Systems: These are the operational databases (OLTP systems)
that contain real-time transactional data.
 Extract Process: Data from these systems is extracted for the purposes of
analysis, reporting, and decision-making in the warehouse. This process
is done through ETL (Extract, Transform, Load).
 Data Staging Area: Often, before data is loaded into the data warehouse,
it may be temporarily stored in a staging area where it can be cleaned
and transformed.
1.2. Middle Tier (Data Warehouse or Data Mart)
This is the core of the data warehouse architecture, where the actual
warehouse or data marts are located. The middle tier consists of the data
storage structures that house integrated, cleaned, and transformed data ready
for analysis.
  Data Warehouse: This is the central repository where data from multiple
sources is stored and organized. It holds historical data that is used for
reporting and decision-making.
 Data Marts (Optional): A data mart is a smaller, specialized subset of the
data warehouse that focuses on specific business areas (e.g., sales,
finance). Data marts make querying faster and easier for specific user
groups.
 Data Models: The data in the warehouse is often stored in dimensional
models (star schema, snowflake schema) that make it easier to run
queries and perform analysis.
1.3. Top Tier (Front-End Applications / Business Intelligence Tools)
This tier represents the presentation layer where users access and analyze the
data. It includes the business intelligence (BI) tools and reporting applications
that provide users with the ability to generate insights and make data-driven
decisions.
 BI Tools: These tools allow users to query the data warehouse, generate
reports, create dashboards, and perform analytics. Examples of BI tools
include Tableau, Power BI, SAP BusinessObjects, and QlikView.
 OLAP (Online Analytical Processing) Servers: OLAP systems enable fast
query and analysis operations. They support multidimensional queries,
allowing users to analyze data from multiple angles.
 End-User Interfaces: These are the dashboards, reports, and
visualizations used by business analysts, executives, and other end users
to view the results of their analysis.
2. Additional Components in Data Warehouse Architecture:
2.1. ETL Layer (Extract, Transform, Load)
The ETL layer handles the extraction, transformation, and loading of data into
the data warehouse. It ensures that data is collected from source systems,
cleaned, transformed to a usable format, and then loaded into the warehouse.
 Extract: Data is extracted from various source systems, including
databases, flat files, and external applications.
  Transform: The extracted data is cleaned, validated, and transformed
into a consistent format, often using business rules (e.g., removing
duplicates, correcting inconsistencies).
 Load: The transformed data is loaded into the data warehouse for
further analysis.
2.2. Metadata Layer
Metadata refers to the "data about the data." This layer contains information
that helps users and systems understand the structure, source, and meaning of
the data in the warehouse.
 Metadata Repository: Stores details such as data definitions, mappings,
data lineage, and business rules.
 Data Dictionary: Helps users understand what data elements mean and
how they relate to each other.
2.3. Data Governance and Security Layer
Data governance refers to managing the quality, privacy, and access control of
the data within the data warehouse.
 Data Quality: Ensures that the data in the warehouse is accurate,
consistent, and reliable.
 Security and Access Control: Protects sensitive data and ensures that
only authorized users can access certain parts of the warehouse.
3. Data Warehouse Models:
 Enterprise Data Warehouse (EDW): A centralized data warehouse that
serves the entire organization. It contains all the organization's data and
provides a comprehensive view.
 Data Marts: Smaller, department-specific data warehouses that contain
only the data relevant to specific business areas.
 Hybrid Data Warehouse: A combination of both EDW and data marts,
where data is stored in an enterprise data warehouse and replicated or
filtered into smaller data marts for specialized needs.
Summary of Data Warehouse Architecture:
 1. Bottom Tier: Data sources, operational systems, and staging areas for
data extraction.
2. Middle Tier: The data warehouse or data marts where the integrated
data is stored.
3. Top Tier: Business Intelligence tools, reporting applications, and OLAP
systems that allow users to query and analyze the data.
This multi-layered architecture allows organizations to efficiently manage large
volumes of data while making it easily accessible for analysis and decision-
making.
2. OLTP Vs Data warehouse Applications

OLTP (Online Transaction Processing) Applications and Data Warehouse

Applications serve very different purposes within an organization's data
management ecosystem. They have distinct characteristics, use cases, and
architectures, but they complement each other in terms of supporting the
organization's overall information needs.
Here's a comparison of OLTP vs. Data Warehouse Applications:
1. Purpose and Function:
 OLTP (Online Transaction Processing):
o OLTP systems are designed for transaction-oriented applications
such as order processing, customer management, and inventory
management. They handle a high volume of small, routine
transactions.
o The focus is on real-time operations and ensuring data accuracy
during transaction processing (insert, update, delete operations).
 Data Warehouse Applications:
o Data warehouses are used for analytical purposes, providing a
consolidated, historical view of data from various sources. They
support decision-making, business intelligence, and complex
queries.
 o The focus is on querying, reporting, and analysis of large datasets
that span long periods of time.
2. Data Structure and Design:
 OLTP:
o OLTP systems are designed to handle normalized data, which
reduces data redundancy and optimizes transaction speed.
o The database schema typically uses relational models and focuses
on ensuring data integrity.
o Data is stored in a way that supports efficient real-time updates
and the execution of simple queries.
 Data Warehouse:
o Data in a data warehouse is usually denormalized to enhance
query performance by reducing the number of joins needed in
queries.
o Data is typically stored in dimensional models like star schema or
snowflake schema, which are optimized for reading large volumes
of data rather than updating data frequently.
3. Transaction Volume and Type:
 OLTP:
o OLTP systems handle a high volume of small, simple transactions.
For example, when a customer places an order, an OLTP system
will process that transaction in real-time.
o OLTP systems need to handle frequent insert, update, and delete
operations in real-time.
 Data Warehouse:
o Data warehouses handle large-volume, complex queries rather
than real-time transactions. These queries typically involve
aggregating large sets of data and performing analysis over time.
o The focus is on read-heavy operations, such as running reports or
querying historical data.
4. Data Update Frequency:
 OLTP:
o Data is constantly updated and modified in real-time. For example,
when a customer purchases an item, the inventory, order status,
and customer data are updated immediately.
o OLTP systems require very high levels of concurrency control and
data integrity.
 Data Warehouse:
o Data in a data warehouse is not updated frequently. The data is
typically updated in bulk during ETL (Extract, Transform, Load)
processes. These updates might happen daily, weekly, or on
another schedule.
o Data in a data warehouse is mainly historical and is used for
analysis, not for real-time updates.
5. Query Complexity:
 OLTP:
o Queries in OLTP systems are simple and transactional. These
include retrieving, inserting, updating, or deleting specific data
from one or a few tables.
o OLTP queries tend to focus on transaction-specific data with very
fast response times for individual transactions.
 Data Warehouse:
o Queries in data warehouses are complex and analytical. They
often involve multi-table joins, aggregations, and large-scale data
analysis over a period of time.
o These queries are designed to generate reports, trends, and
insights and are usually slow in comparison to OLTP systems due
to the large volumes of data involved.
6. Data Volume:
 OLTP:
 o Data volume in OLTP systems is generally smaller and grows at a
slower pace compared to data warehouses. This is because the
focus is on individual, real-time transactions (such as sales orders
or customer records).
 Data Warehouse:
o Data warehouses handle huge volumes of data. They store
historical data that aggregates across different time periods and
departments. This can include years' worth of data from multiple
sources, often in the terabytes or petabytes.
7. Users and Use Cases:
 OLTP:
o Users: Typically, transactional users such as sales staff, customer
service representatives, or inventory managers who perform day-
to-day operational tasks.
o Use Cases: Online order processing, banking transactions, real-
time customer support, and inventory management.
 Data Warehouse:
o Users: Primarily business analysts, decision-makers, and
executives who need to generate reports, insights, and perform
strategic analysis.
o Use Cases: Business intelligence (BI) reporting, trend analysis,
forecasting, and data mining.
8. Performance and Optimization:
 OLTP:
o OLTP systems are optimized for quick transaction processing and
ensuring data consistency. Performance tuning focuses on
minimizing transaction delays and ensuring that data is accurate
and reliable.
o Indexing and normalization techniques are used to improve
performance for individual transactions.
 Data Warehouse:
 o Data warehouse systems are optimized for complex queries and
read-heavy operations. This involves using indexing, OLAP (Online
Analytical Processing) cubes, and other optimizations to speed up
complex analytical queries over large datasets.
9. Example Systems:
 OLTP Systems:
o Examples: Online banking systems, e-commerce platforms (e.g.,
Amazon, eBay), airline reservation systems, retail POS systems.
 Data Warehouse Applications:
o Examples: Business Intelligence platforms (e.g., SAP
BusinessObjects, Microsoft Power BI, Tableau), data warehouse
platforms (e.g., Amazon Redshift, Google BigQuery, Snowflake).
Summary of Differences:
OLTP (Online Transaction
Feature Data Warehouse Applications
Processing)
Handle daily transactions and Support decision-making,
Purpose
operational tasks analysis, and reporting
Data Type Real-time, transactional data Historical, aggregated data
Normalized data for fast Denormalized data for fast
Data Structure
transactions read queries
Transaction Small, frequent transactions
Complex, read-heavy queries
Type (insert, update, delete)
Update Real-time updates and Bulk updates during ETL
Frequency modifications processes
Query
Simple, transactional queries Complex, analytical queries
Complexity
Smaller volume, focused on Large volume, often in
Data Volume
current transactions terabytes or petabytes
Operational users (e.g., Business analysts, decision-
Users
customer service, sales) makers, and executives
 OLTP (Online Transaction
Feature Data Warehouse Applications
Processing)
Optimized for complex
Optimized for high transaction
Performance queries and large data
throughput and data integrity
analysis
In essence, OLTP systems are focused on supporting the daily operations of a
business, while data warehouse applications are focused on aggregating,
storing, and analyzing data for strategic decision-making. Both systems are
complementary and play distinct but vital roles within an organization's IT
infrastructure.

3. Data Marts

A Data Mart is a subset of a data warehouse that is designed to serve the

specific needs of a particular department or business unit. It contains a focused
collection of data that is relevant to a specific group, such as sales, finance,
marketing, or HR.
Key Features of Data Marts
1. Subject-Oriented – Focuses on a specific business function (e.g., sales,
inventory, customer service).
2. Smaller in Scope – Contains a subset of enterprise-wide data rather than
the entire data warehouse.
3. Optimized for Performance – Since it contains relevant data for a
specific department, queries are faster and more efficient.
 4. Easy to Implement – Can be built quicker than a full-fledged data
warehouse.
5. Improves Decision-Making – Provides relevant data for business analysis
in a specific domain.
Types of Data Marts
1. Dependent Data Mart – Extracts data from an existing centralized data
warehouse.
2. Independent Data Mart – A standalone system built from various
operational sources without relying on a data warehouse.
3. Hybrid Data Mart – Combines data from both a data warehouse and
operational systems.
Benefits of Data Marts
 Faster access to relevant data
 Cost-effective compared to full-scale data warehouses
 Reduces complexity by focusing on specific business areas
 Enhances data security by restricting access to relevant teams

4. Data Warehouse Lifecycle with Real-Time Examples

The Data Warehouse Lifecycle follows multiple phases, from requirement
gathering to deployment and maintenance.
Phases of Data Warehouse Lifecycle
1. Requirement Gathering & Business Analysis
o Identify business objectives, key performance indicators (KPIs),
and data sources.
o 📌 Example: A retail chain wants to analyze sales trends across all
stores.
2. Data Modeling
o Define schema (Star Schema, Snowflake Schema), fact and
dimension tables.
 o 📌 Example: The retail company designs a Star Schema with a Sales
Fact Table and Product, Store, and Time Dimension Tables.
3. ETL Process (Extract, Transform, Load)
o Extract data from operational systems, transform it (clean,
validate), and load it into the warehouse.
o 📌 Example: Data is extracted from POS Systems, transformed
(removing duplicates), and loaded into a Snowflake Data
Warehouse.
4. Data Warehouse Development
o Set up the data warehouse infrastructure (on-premises or cloud-
based).
o 📌 Example: The retail company chooses Google BigQuery for its
cloud-based warehouse.
5. Data Integration & OLAP
o Organize data for fast analytical processing using OLAP Cubes.
o 📌 Example: A Finance OLAP cube enables managers to analyze
revenue by region, product, and quarter.
6. BI & Reporting
o Use tools like Power BI, Tableau, Looker for visualization.
o 📌 Example: A dashboard shows monthly revenue, top-selling
products, and low-performing stores.
7. Performance Optimization
o Indexing, partitioning, caching to improve query speeds.
o 📌 Example: Indexes are created on Date and Store ID columns for
faster queries.
8. Security & Data Governance
o Role-based access control (RBAC), encryption, compliance (GDPR,
HIPAA).
o 📌 Example: Only Finance Team can access profit margin reports.
 9. Maintenance & Continuous Improvement
o Monitor system, resolve data quality issues, scale as needed.
o 📌 Example: Alerts notify engineers if daily ETL jobs fail.

5. Definitions
 Data Warehouse (DWH) – A centralized repository for structured data
used for reporting and analytics.
 ETL (Extract, Transform, Load) – A process for moving data from multiple
sources into a warehouse.
 Fact Table – Stores measurable business events (e.g., sales, revenue).
 Dimension Table – Stores descriptive attributes (e.g., product details,
customer info).
 Data Mart – A subset of a data warehouse focused on a specific
business function.
 OLAP (Online Analytical Processing) – Enables fast multi-dimensional
data analysis.
 Schema – Defines the structure of the data warehouse (Star, Snowflake,
etc.).
 SCD (Slowly Changing Dimensions) – Tracks historical changes in
dimension tables (Types 1, 2, 3).

6. ETL Process
Steps in ETL:
1. Extract – Retrieve data from sources (Databases, APIs, Files).
2. Transform – Data cleaning, deduplication, aggregation, and formatting.
3. Load – Store the cleaned data in the warehouse.
Example ETL Process for an E-Commerce Company:
 Extract: Pull order data from MySQL, Salesforce, Google Analytics.
  Transform: Standardize product names, remove duplicates, calculate
total revenue.
 Load: Store the processed data in Amazon Redshift.

7. Types of Tables in Data Warehouse

1. Fact Tables – Stores business metrics (e.g., Sales, Orders).
2. Dimension Tables – Stores descriptive attributes (e.g., Product,
Customer).
3. Lookup Tables – Holds reference data (e.g., Country Codes).
4. Bridge Tables – Resolves many-to-many relationships (e.g., Customers &
Accounts).
5. Audit Tables – Tracks ETL job success/failures for data quality checks.

8. Types of Fact Tables

1. Transaction Fact Table – Records business transactions (e.g., Sales).
2. Snapshot Fact Table – Captures periodic snapshots (e.g., Monthly
Inventory Levels).
3. Accumulating Snapshot Fact Table – Tracks events over time (e.g., Order
Processing Lifecycle).

9. Types of Dimension Tables

1. Conformed Dimension – Shared across multiple fact tables (e.g., Date
Dimension).
2. Junk Dimension – Stores miscellaneous attributes (e.g., Order Status,
Flags).
3. Slowly Changing Dimensions (SCD) – Tracks historical changes:
o Type 1: Overwrites old data.
o Type 2: Keeps history with versioning.
o Type 3: Stores both old & new values.
10. Types of Schemas in Data Warehouse
1. Star Schema – Central fact table connected to dimension tables (Simple,
fast queries).
2. Snowflake Schema – Dimension tables are normalized (Reduces
redundancy, complex joins).
3. Galaxy Schema – Combination of multiple Star Schemas.

11. What is a Data Mart?

A Data Mart is a subset of a data warehouse, focused on a specific department
(e.g., Sales, Finance).
🔹 Example: A Marketing Data Mart stores customer engagement data for
campaign analysis.

12. Warehouse Approaches

1. Top-Down Approach (Inmon Methodology) – Build a central data
warehouse first, then create data marts.
2. Bottom-Up Approach (Kimball Methodology) – Start with data marts,
then integrate them into a data warehouse.
3. Hybrid Approach – Combination of both approaches.
13. Data Modeling
Data Modeling is the process of designing the structure of a database or data
warehouse. It defines how data is stored, organized, and related.

14. Introduction to Data Modeling

 Concept: A blueprint that defines tables, columns, relationships, and
constraints.
 Levels of Data Modeling:
1. Conceptual Data Model – High-level business view (Entities &
Relationships).
 2. Logical Data Model – Detailed data structure (Tables, Attributes,
Relationships).
3. Physical Data Model – Implementation-specific (Indexes, Storage,
Partitioning).

15. Entity-Relationship Model (E-R Model)

The E-R Model visually represents data objects (entities), their attributes, and
relationships.
🔹 Example: A Retail Business ER Model includes:
 Entities: Customer, Order, Product.
 Relationships: Customer places Order, Order contains Product.

16. Data Modeling for Data Warehouse

 Uses Fact and Dimension tables instead of E-R models.
 Supports denormalization for faster query performance.
 Designs include Star Schema, Snowflake Schema, Factless Tables,
Coverage Tables.

17. Dimensions and Fact Tables

 Fact Table: Stores business events (sales, transactions).
 Dimension Table: Stores descriptive data (customer, product, time).
🔹 Example:
Fact Table: Sales_Fact (Order_ID, Product_ID, Date_ID, Amount)
Dimension Table: Product_Dim (Product_ID, Name, Category)

18. Star Schema & Snowflake Schema

1. Star Schema:
o A central Fact Table connected to Dimension Tables.
o Denormalized (faster queries).
 o ✅ Best for reporting.
2. Snowflake Schema:
o Normalized dimensions reduce redundancy.
o More complex joins but saves space.
o ✅ Best for detailed analysis.

19. Coverage Tables

 Special Fact Tables used when multiple dimensions need to be grouped.
 Helps with hierarchical relationships (e.g., Customer Coverage across
Regions).

20. Factless Fact Tables

 No numeric facts, only keys (e.g., Tracking Events, Attendance).
 Example: A Student_Attendance fact table records (Date, Student_ID,
Course_ID) without any numeric measures.

21. What to Look for in Modeling Tools?

 Support for Star & Snowflake Schema.
 Ability to reverse-engineer databases.
 Integration with ETL & BI Tools.

22. Modeling Tools

1. Erwin Data Modeler
2. IBM InfoSphere Data Architect
3. Oracle SQL Developer Data Modeler
4. SAP PowerDesigner
5. Microsoft Visio
23. ETL Design Process
The ETL (Extract, Transform, Load) process is the backbone of a data
warehouse. The design process includes:
1. Requirement Gathering – Understanding business needs.
2. Data Extraction – Fetching data from sources.
3. Data Transformation – Cleaning, aggregating, and structuring data.
4. Data Loading – Inserting transformed data into the warehouse.
5. Performance Tuning – Optimizing ETL jobs for speed.
6. Monitoring & Maintenance – Handling failures and logs.
🔹 Example: An e-commerce company extracts sales data from MySQL, cleans
and transforms it using IBM DataStage, and loads it into a Snowflake Data
Warehouse.

24. Introduction to Extraction, Transformation & Loading

 Extract → Fetch data from Databases, APIs, Flat Files, SAP, etc.
 Transform → Apply business rules, format changes, and data cleansing.
 Load → Push the cleaned data into the Data Warehouse (D/W) for
reporting.
🔹 Example: Extracting customer orders from Oracle, converting dates, and
loading into a Sales Fact Table in Amazon Redshift.

25. Types of ETL Tools

ETL tools are categorized into:
1. Enterprise ETL Tools – IBM DataStage, Informatica PowerCenter, Talend,
Ab Initio.
2. Cloud ETL Tools – AWS Glue, Azure Data Factory, Google Dataflow.
3. Open Source Tools – Apache NiFi, Talend Open Studio, Pentaho.
 4. Custom ETL (Scripting-Based) – Python (Pandas, Airflow), SQL
procedures.

26. What to Look for in ETL Tools?

 Connectivity – Supports databases, APIs, and cloud.
 Performance – Can handle large data loads efficiently.
 Error Handling & Logging – Auto-recovery from failures.
 Ease of Use – GUI-based vs. scripting.
 Scalability – Works for small & big data.

27. Key ETL Tools in the Market

Tool Key Features
IBM DataStage Enterprise-grade, parallel processing
Informatica PowerCenter GUI-based, metadata-driven
Talend Open-source, cloud-friendly
AWS Glue Serverless, cloud-native
Apache NiFi Streaming & batch ETL
🔹 Example: A financial company uses IBM DataStage for high-volume
transactions, while a startup might use Talend for flexibility.

28. ETL Trends & New Solution Options

1. Cloud-Based ETL – AWS Glue, Azure Data Factory.
2. ELT (Extract, Load, Transform) – Data lakes using BigQuery, Snowflake.
3. AI & Automation in ETL – Self-healing ETL pipelines.
4. Streaming ETL – Apache Kafka, Apache Flink for real-time data
processing.
🔹 Example: Netflix uses real-time ETL with Apache Flink to personalize
recommendations.
29 & 30. DataStage Installation
IBM DataStage is part of IBM InfoSphere Information Server. The installation
process includes:
 Installing IBM Information Server (which includes DataStage).
 Configuring databases and metadata repository.
 Setting up client and server components.

31. Prerequisites to Install DataStage

 Operating System: Windows/Linux (RedHat, AIX, SUSE).
 Database: DB2 (default metadata repository), Oracle, SQL Server.
 Memory: Minimum 16GB RAM for production.
 Disk Space: At least 100GB free.
 User Permissions: Admin access required.

32. Installation Process

1. Download IBM InfoSphere Information Server from IBM.
2. Run the Installation Wizard and choose DataStage components.
3. Configure Repository Database (DB2, Oracle, or SQL Server).
4. Install DataStage Client on developer machines.
5. Start IBM Information Server Console to verify the installation.

33 & 34. Introduction to DataStage & Version 8.x

IBM DataStage is an ETL tool that supports:
 Parallel processing for big data.
 Graphical UI for ETL job design.
 Supports multiple databases (DB2, Oracle, SQL Server, etc.).
🔹 Example: A banking system uses DataStage to process millions of
transactions per day with parallel jobs.

35. IBM Information Server Architecture

IBM Information Server is a data integration platform that includes:
1. IBM DataStage – ETL processing.
2. IBM QualityStage – Data cleansing.
3. IBM Information Analyzer – Data profiling.
4. IBM Business Glossary – Metadata management.
5. IBM Metadata Workbench – Data lineage tracking.
🔹 Example: A retail company uses DataStage for ETL and QualityStage for
cleansing duplicate customer records.

36. DataStage Within IBM Information Server Architecture

DataStage interacts with:
 Databases (DB2, Oracle, SQL Server, etc.).
 File Systems (Flat files, XML, JSON).
 ETL Jobs (Designed in DataStage Designer).
 Parallel Execution Engine for performance optimization.
🔹 Example: A healthcare provider integrates patient data from different
hospital systems using DataStage workflows.

37. DataStage Components

1. Client Components – Designer, Director, Administrator.
2. Server Components – Job execution engine, Metadata Repository.
3. Parallel Engine – Optimizes performance.

38. DataStage Main Functions

  Extract data from multiple sources.
 Transform data (apply business rules, clean, and aggregate).
 Load data into Data Warehouse.

39. Client Components

 DataStage Administrator – Manages projects, users, and configurations.
 DataStage Designer – Creates ETL jobs.
 DataStage Director – Runs and monitors jobs.
🔹 Example: A telecom company runs batch ETL jobs in DataStage Director
every night to update customer billing data.

40. DataStage Administrator

The DataStage Administrator is used to:
✅ Manage projects
✅ Set user permissions
✅ Configure job runtime settings
✅ Enable parallel job features
🔹 Example: An admin sets up a new project for a bank’s credit card processing
ETL pipeline.

41. DataStage Project Administration

A Project is a workspace containing ETL jobs, metadata, and configurations.
Tasks include:
 Creating new projects
 Assigning users and permissions
 Managing project properties
🔹 Example: A retail company creates separate projects for Sales ETL, Inventory
ETL, and HR ETL.
42. Editing & Adding Projects
To add a project:
1. Open DataStage Administrator
2. Click "Add" and specify the project directory
3. Configure default environment settings
4. Assign users and roles

43. Deleting Projects

To delete a project:
 Backup jobs first!
 Use DataStage Administrator → Select project → Click "Delete"
🔹 Example: A retired project for an old ERP system is deleted after migrating
data to a new Data Warehouse.

44. Cleaning Up Project Files

Cleaning up removes unused datasets, logs, and cache to free up space.
 Use Auto-Purge settings
 Delete old datasets
 Archive unused ETL jobs
🔹 Example: A finance team cleans up logs every 3 months to reduce storage
costs.

45. Auto Purging

Auto Purging deletes old job logs automatically.
✅ Prevents logs from filling up disk space
✅ Keeps the environment clean
Set in DataStage Administrator → Logging & Auto Purge Settings.
🔹 Example: A healthcare company sets auto-purge to keep only the last 30
days of ETL job logs.

46. User Permissions in DataStage

User roles in DataStage:
👨‍💻 Developer – Can design and test ETL jobs.
👨‍🔧 Administrator – Manages projects, users, and resources.
👀 Operator – Can run and monitor jobs but not edit them.
🔹 Example: A Data Engineer is given Developer access, while a Support Analyst
gets Operator access.

47. Runtime Column Propagation (RCP)

RCP allows jobs to pass extra columns between stages without explicitly
defining them.
✅ Useful in dynamic ETL processes
✅ Reduces job maintenance efforts
🔹 Example: If a new column is added in a source table, an RCP-enabled job will
pass it through automatically.

48. Enable Remote Execution of Parallel Jobs

 Allows running parallel jobs on multiple nodes (servers).
 Improves performance and scalability.
🔹 Example: A large retail chain processes millions of transactions per hour by
running parallel jobs across multiple servers.

49. Add Checkpoints for Sequencer

Checkpoints allow jobs to resume from failure points, instead of restarting
from scratch.
✅ Improves job recovery
✅ Saves processing time
🔹 Example: If an ETL pipeline fails at Step 4, checkpoints allow it to restart
from Step 4 instead of Step 1.

50. Project Protect

Protects a project from:
 Accidental job modifications
 Unauthorized changes
 Unintended deletions
🔹 Example: A locked production project ensures that developers cannot
accidentally modify live ETL jobs.

51. APT Config File

The APT (Ascential Parallel Technology) Config File defines:
✅ Number of processing nodes
✅ Scratch disks for temporary data
✅ Resource allocation for parallel jobs
🔹 Example: A big data ETL pipeline in DataStage uses a 4-node APT Config for
parallel processing of 1TB data daily.

52. DataStage Designer

DataStage Designer is the ETL job development environment where:
✅ Jobs are created, modified, and tested
✅ Data transformations are designed
✅ Connections to databases and files are configured
🔹 Example: A bank’s ETL developer designs a job in DataStage Designer to
extract customer transactions, transform currency values, and load them into a
data warehouse.

53. Partitioning Techniques in DataStage

Partitioning divides data into chunks for parallel processing.
🔹 Types of partitioning:
✅ Round Robin – Distributes data evenly
✅ Hash Partitioning – Groups similar records
✅ Range Partitioning – Distributes based on value ranges
✅ Modulus Partitioning – Based on remainder values
🔹 Example: A retail store partitions sales data by store ID using Hash
partitioning to improve lookup speed.

54. Creating DataStage Jobs

1. Open DataStage Designer.
2. Create a Parallel or Server job.
3. Drag & Drop stages (e.g., Source, Transformer, Target).
4. Define business rules and transformations.
5. Compile and test the job.
🔹 Example: A telecom company creates an ETL job to extract customer call
records, clean data, and load it into a data warehouse.

55. Compiling and Running Jobs

After job creation:
 Compile – Converts the job into executable format.
 Run – Executes the job with data.
🔹 Example: A job that aggregates daily sales must be compiled before running
on a production server.

56. Exporting & Importing Jobs

 Export – Saves job as a .dsx file (for backup or migration).
 Import – Loads a .dsx file into a new project.
🔹 Example: A team working in different environments (Development → Test →
Production) exports jobs from Dev and imports them into Test.

57. Parameter Passing in DataStage

Parameters make jobs dynamic by allowing different values at runtime.
✅ Job Parameters – Passed when the job runs.
✅ Environment Variables – System-level settings.
🔹 Example: A job that extracts sales data can use a date parameter to run for
different days (2025-03-28, 2025-03-29, etc.).

58. SMP & MPP Systems

🏗 SMP (Symmetric Multi-Processing)
 Single machine with multiple CPUs
 Shared memory architecture
 Used for small to medium workloads
🌐 MPP (Massively Parallel Processing)
 Multiple machines with independent CPUs
 Distributed memory architecture
 Used for big data processing
🔹 Example: A financial institution uses an MPP system to process millions of
stock market transactions in parallel.

59. Importing Methods (Flat File, Excel, Database Files)

 Flat Files – .csv, .txt
 Excel Files – .xls, .xlsx
 Database Tables – DB2, Oracle, SQL Server
🔹 Example: A retailer imports customer order data from an Excel file into a
staging table before processing.
60. OSH Importing Method
OSH (Orchestrate Shell) allows importing job definitions via scripts.
🔹 Example: A Data Engineer uses OSH commands to automate the import of
100+ ETL jobs into DataStage.

61. Configuration File

The APT Config file controls:
✅ Number of parallel nodes
✅ Memory allocation
✅ Resource disks
🔹 Example: A 4-node config file is used to improve performance for heavy ETL
workloads.

62. Importing Table Definitions

Table definitions include metadata like:
✅ Column names
✅ Data types
✅ Constraints
🔹 Example: A banking ETL job imports the customer table definition before
designing the job.

63. Importing Flat File Definitions

Defines schema for flat files (.csv, .txt).
🔹 Example: A DataStage job importing a .csv file of customer addresses
requires an imported file definition.

64. Managing Metadata Environment

Metadata includes:
 Data lineage
 Source-to-target mappings
  Business rules
🔹 Example: A Data Governance team uses metadata to track how customer
data flows from source to reports.

65. Dataset Management

 Persistent datasets store intermediate results.
 Dataset stages are used in parallel jobs.
🔹 Example: A retailer’s sales pipeline creates datasets for daily transactions,
which are later aggregated into monthly reports.

66. Deleting Datasets

 Unused datasets consume disk space.
 Use orchadmin command to delete datasets.
🔹 Example: An old dataset from 2023 is deleted to free up storage.

67. Importing Jobs

 Jobs from one project can be imported into another.
 .dsx or .isx files are used.
🔹 Example: A job designed in the Dev environment is imported into Test for
validation.

68. Exporting Jobs (Backup)

 Use Designer or Administrator to export jobs.
 Saves as .dsx file for backup or migration.
🔹 Example: A company migrating to a new DataStage server exports all jobs
before reinstalling.

69. Configuration File View

Shows:
✅ Processing nodes
✅ Memory allocation
✅ Disk usage
🔹 Example: A Data Engineer checks the configuration file to optimize parallel
processing settings.

70. Explanation of Menu Bar

Includes:
 File – Save, Import, Export
 Edit – Modify jobs
 View – Show logs, metadata
 Tools – Debug, Transform, Compile
🔹 Example: A developer uses the "Tools" menu to debug a failing ETL job.

71. Palette in DataStage Designer

The Palette contains stages like:
 Passive Stages (Sequential File, Dataset)
 Active Stages (Transformer, Aggregator, Join)
🔹 Example: A developer drags a Transformer stage from the palette to modify
customer names.

72. Types of Stages in DataStage

🔹 Passive Stages – Data storage (e.g., Dataset, Sequential File).
🔹 Active Stages – Data processing (e.g., Transformer, Lookup).
🔹 Database Stages – Connects to DBs (e.g., Oracle, DB2).
🔹 Processing Stages – Modifies data (e.g., Aggregator, Join).
🔹 Example: A job reads a CSV (Passive), transforms names (Active), and writes
to Oracle (Database Stage).
73. Multiple Instances in DataStage
Multiple instance jobs allow the same job to run concurrently with different
parameters.
✅ Useful when processing multiple data sources in parallel
✅ Each instance has a unique invocation ID
🔹 Example: A customer ETL job runs simultaneously for different regions (USA,
UK, India).

74. Runtime Column Propagation (RCP)

🔹 RCP enables jobs to handle columns dynamically, even if they are not
explicitly defined.
✅ Allows schema evolution
✅ Useful for generic ETL jobs
🔹 Example: A data integration pipeline processes files with changing column
structures.

75. Job Design Overview

A DataStage Job consists of:
✅ Source Stage – Extracts data
✅ Processing Stage – Transforms data
✅ Target Stage – Loads data
🔹 Example: A retail ETL job extracts sales data, applies discounts, and loads it
into a warehouse.

76. Designer Work Area

The work area is where ETL jobs are designed.
✅ Drag-and-drop stages and links
✅ Define job flow and transformations
🔹 Example: A banking ETL developer creates a fraud detection pipeline in the
work area.

77. Annotations in DataStage

Annotations add comments and descriptions inside jobs.
✅ Helps document transformations
✅ Improves job maintainability
🔹 Example: An ETL developer adds comments explaining a complex
Transformer logic.

78. Creating & Deleting Jobs

🔹 Creating a job
✅ Open DataStage Designer
✅ Add stages and links
✅ Configure transformations
🔹 Deleting a job
✅ Remove job from the repository
🔹 Example: A failed ETL job is deleted and recreated with new business rules.

79. Compiling Jobs

✅ Compiling converts job logic into an executable format
✅ Jobs must be compiled before running
🔹 Example: A developer compiles a job that processes customer invoices.

80. Batch Compiling

✅ Compiles multiple jobs at once
✅ Useful when migrating or updating multiple jobs
🔹 Example: After a DataStage upgrade, all jobs are batch compiled to ensure
compatibility.
81. Active Stages in DataStage
✅ Active stages modify or process data
 Transformer – Data modification
 Aggregator – Summarization
 Join – Combining datasets
🔹 Example: A Transformer stage calculates discounts on customer purchases.

82. Passive Stages in DataStage

✅ Passive stages store or read data
 Sequential File – Reads/writes text files
 Dataset – Stores intermediate data
🔹 Example: A Sequential File stage reads a CSV file of sales transactions.

83. Database Stages in DataStage

✅ Used to read/write data from databases
 Oracle Stage – Connects to Oracle DB
 DB2 Stage – Connects to IBM DB2
 ODBC Stage – Generic database connection
🔹 Example: A job loads transformed customer data into a SQL Server
database.

84. Debug Stages in DataStage

✅ Debug stages help analyze and validate data during job execution
 Peek Stage – Displays intermediate data
 Head Stage – Shows the first few records
 Tail Stage – Displays the last few records
🔹 Example: A developer uses Peek stage to verify if salary calculations are
correct.

85. Processing Stages in DataStage

✅ Transform or manipulate data
 Filter Stage – Removes unwanted data
 Sort Stage – Arranges data
 Modify Stage – Changes column types
🔹 Example: A Filter stage removes invalid transactions from a banking dataset.

86. Aggregator Stage in DataStage

✅ Used for grouping and summarizing data
 Performs SUM, AVG, MIN, MAX
 Works like SQL GROUP BY
🔹 Example: A job calculates total sales per region using the Aggregator stage.

87. Copy Stage in DataStage

✅ Used to duplicate data to multiple outputs
🔹 Example: A Copy stage splits customer data into two different processing
pipelines.

88. Change Capture & Change Apply Stages

✅ Change Capture – Identifies differences between datasets
✅ Change Apply – Applies changes to a target
🔹 Example: A Change Capture job detects new customer orders and updates
the database.

89. Filter Stage in DataStage

✅ Removes unwanted records based on conditions
🔹 Example: A Filter stage removes orders with negative amounts.

90. Funnel Stage in DataStage

✅ Merges data from multiple input sources
🔹 Example: A Funnel stage combines sales data from multiple regions into one
dataset.

91. Modify Stage in DataStage

✅ Changes column types or renames columns
🔹 Example: A Modify stage converts date formats before loading data into a
warehouse.

92. Join vs. Lookup Stages in DataStage

✅ Join Stage – SQL-style joins (Inner, Outer)
✅ Lookup Stage – Used for smaller reference data
🔹 Example:
 Join stage merges customer and transaction tables.
 Lookup stage fetches country names for customer IDs.

93. Merge Stage in DataStage

✅ Merges two datasets based on common keys
🔹 Example: Merging customer profiles from multiple sources.

94. Lookup vs. Merge Stage in DataStage

✅ Lookup Stage – Fast for small datasets
✅ Merge Stage – Best for large datasets with primary keys
🔹 Example: Lookup for small reference tables, Merge for large transactional
tables.

95. Remove Duplicates Stage in DataStage

✅ Eliminates duplicate records based on key columns
🔹 Example: Removing duplicate customer records before reporting.

96. Sort Stage in DataStage

✅ Sorts data based on key columns
🔹 Example: Sorting sales transactions by date before aggregation.

97. Pivot Stage in DataStage

✅ Converts rows to columns or vice versa
🔹 Example: Transforming monthly sales rows into a single row with multiple
columns.

98. Surrogate Key Stage in DataStage

✅ Generates unique keys for each record
🔹 Example: Assigning unique IDs to new customers.

99. Switch Stage in DataStage

✅ Routes data to different outputs based on conditions
🔹 Example: Orders > $1000 go to “High Value” stream, others to “Regular”
stream.

100. Slowly Changing Dimensions (SCD)

Slowly Changing Dimensions (SCD) are dimension tables that change slowly
over time.
🔹 Example: A customer's address or job title changes over time.
There are three main types of SCD:
 SCD Type 1 – Overwrites old data
 SCD Type 2 – Keeps history using a new row
 SCD Type 3 – Stores partial history in extra columns

101. SCD Type 1 (Overwrite the old data)

✅ The old values are replaced with the new values.
✅ No history is maintained.
🔹 Example: A customer changes their phone number – the old number is
replaced.

102. SCD Type 2 (Keep full history)

✅ A new row is created with a new surrogate key.
✅ The old record is kept for historical tracking.
🔹 Example: A customer's address changes → The old address is stored as a
historical record, and a new row is added with the new address.
🔹 Implementation in DataStage:
 Use Surrogate Key Stage to generate a new key.
 Use Change Capture Stage to identify changes.
 Use Insert/Update logic to maintain history.

103. SCD Type 3 (Store limited history)

✅ Instead of adding a new row, an extra column is used to store the previous
value.
✅ Only limited history is maintained.
🔹 Example: If a customer's job title changes, a column Previous_Job_Title
keeps the old value.

104. Implementing SCD Type 1 in DataStage

1️⃣ Extract data from source.
2️⃣ Compare new data with existing data.
3️⃣ Overwrite existing values if changes are found.
4️⃣ Load the updated records into the dimension table.
🔹 Example: Updating customer email addresses in the dimension table.

105. Implementing SCD Type 2 in DataStage

1️⃣ Extract data and compare with existing records.
2️⃣ Detect changes using Change Capture stage.
3️⃣ Assign a new surrogate key for changed records.
4️⃣ Insert the new record while keeping the old one.
🔹 Example: Tracking historical address changes for a customer.

106. Introduction to DataStage Director

✅ DataStage Director is used to run, monitor, and schedule jobs.
✅ Provides options to validate, debug, and log job execution details.

107. DataStage Director Window

The main components in the Director window:
 Job Status View – Shows the execution history.
 Log View – Displays job logs (errors, warnings).
 Schedule View – Manages job scheduling.
🔹 Example: Checking job logs to troubleshoot a failed ETL job.

108. Job Status View in DataStage Director

✅ Displays job status:
 Compiled – Job is ready to run.
 Running – Job is currently executing.
 Finished – Job completed successfully.
 Aborted – Job failed.
🔹 Example: A failed ETL job shows “Aborted” in the status view.

109. DataStage Director Options

✅ Key options in Director:
 Run job
 Stop job
 View logs
 Schedule jobs
🔹 Example: A job is scheduled to run every night at 12 AM.

110. Running DataStage Jobs

✅ Jobs can be run manually or scheduled.
✅ Uses parameters for dynamic execution.
🔹 Example: Running an incremental ETL job that processes only new data.

111. Validating a Job

✅ Checks if a job is correctly configured before running.
✅ Ensures no missing connections, parameters, or errors.
🔹 Example: A job fails validation if a database connection is missing.

112. Running a Job

✅ Click Run in DataStage Director.
✅ Job executes based on defined parameters.
🔹 Example: A job runs daily to load sales data into a warehouse.

113. Batch Running of Jobs

✅ Multiple jobs can be executed together using Job Sequencer.
🔹 Example:
 Job 1: Extract customer data
 Job 2: Transform and clean data
 Job 3: Load data into a data mart

114. Stopping and Resetting a Job

✅ If a job fails or hangs, it can be stopped.
✅ Resetting clears logs and prepares it for re-run.
🔹 Example: A stuck ETL job is stopped and reset before restarting.

115. Monitoring a Job

✅ View job progress, logs, and errors in Director.
✅ Helps identify failures and performance issues.
🔹 Example: Monitoring a job that loads millions of customer records.

116. Job Scheduling in DataStage

✅ Jobs can be scheduled to run daily, weekly, or based on events.
✅ Uses cron jobs (Unix) or Windows Scheduler.
🔹 Example: A job runs automatically at 1 AM every day.

117. Unscheduling a Job

✅ Removes a job from the schedule.
🔹 Example: Stopping a temporary data migration job from running again.
118. Rescheduling a Job
✅ Modify run frequency or time.
🔹 Example: Changing a job from daily execution to hourly execution.

119. Deleting a Job

✅ Removes a job from the repository.
✅ Logs and dependencies must be cleared before deletion.
🔹 Example: Deleting old ETL jobs no longer in use.

120. Unlocking Jobs

✅ If a job is locked by another user, it must be unlocked.
🔹 Example: A developer accidentally left a job open, preventing others from
editing.

121. Viewing Job Log Files

✅ Logs contain execution details, errors, warnings, and runtime info.
🔹 Example: Checking logs for a job that failed due to a missing source file.

122. Clearing Logs in DataStage

✅ Old logs can be purged to free space.
🔹 Example: Clearing logs for a high-volume ETL job running every 5 minutes.

123. Fatal Error Descriptions

✅ Fatal errors stop job execution.
✅ Usually caused by missing connections, data format issues, or code errors.
🔹 Example: A database connection failure results in a fatal error.

124. Warning Descriptions

✅ Warnings do not stop jobs but indicate potential issues.
🔹 Example: A job has a column mismatch but still runs.

125. Information (Info) Descriptions

✅ Info messages provide general execution details.
🔹 Example: “Job completed successfully in 2 minutes.”

126. Difference between Compile and Validate

✅ Compile: Converts job logic into an executable format.
✅ Validate: Checks if all components are correctly configured.
🔹 Example:
 Compile before running.
 Validate to detect missing links or bad parameters.

127. Difference between Validate and Run

✅ Validate: Checks job structure but does NOT execute it.
✅ Run: Executes the job.
🔹 Example: A developer validates before running to avoid runtime errors.

128. Job Sequencer in DataStage

✅ Job Sequencer is used to control the execution order of multiple jobs.
✅ It helps in dependency handling, error recovery, and automation.
🔹 Example:
 Job 1: Extract customer data
 Job 2: Transform and clean data
 Job 3: Load data into a data mart
 Job Sequencer ensures Job 2 runs only after Job 1 completes
successfully.
129. Arrange Job Activities in Sequencer
✅ Job activities in a sequencer can be arranged using different control flows:
 Sequential execution (one after another)
 Parallel execution (multiple jobs run together)
 Conditional execution (run based on job status)
🔹 Example: A sequencer first runs an extract job, then a transform job, and
finally a load job, ensuring correct order.

130. Triggers in Sequencer

✅ Triggers define when the next job should execute based on conditions.
✅ Two types of triggers:
1️⃣ Conditional Triggers: Run the next job based on previous job status
(Success/Failure).
2️⃣ Custom Triggers: Use custom conditions (e.g., check file availability).
🔹 Example: If Job 1 fails, Job 2 is skipped, and a notification is sent.

131. Reset Method in Sequencer

✅ If a job fails or aborts, it needs to be reset before running again.
✅ Reset method clears checkpoints and prepares for re-execution.
🔹 Example: A failed job is reset and restarted from the beginning.

132. Recoverability in Sequencer

✅ If a sequencer job fails, recovery options allow it to restart from the point of
failure instead of running all jobs again.
✅ Uses Checkpoints to track progress.
🔹 Example:
 Job 1 → Completed
 Job 2 → Failed
  Restart from Job 2 instead of running Job 1 again.

133. Notification Activity

✅ Sends email or message alerts when a job succeeds, fails, or reaches a
specific point.
🔹 Example: If a job fails, an email is sent to the support team.

134. Terminator Activity

✅ Used to stop a sequencer job forcefully if needed.
🔹 Example: If a job detects an invalid file format, it terminates execution to
prevent bad data from loading.

135. Wait for File Activity

✅ Pauses the job execution until a specific file is found.
🔹 Example: A DataStage job waits for an incoming sales data file before
processing.

136. Start Loop Activity

✅ Used for iterative processing when a job needs to run multiple times.
🔹 Example: If a job needs to process 10 different files, Start Loop runs the
same job for each file.

137. Execute Command Activity

✅ Runs Unix/Linux or Windows shell commands from within DataStage.
🔹 Example: A DataStage job zips log files after job completion using a Unix
command.

138. Sequence
✅ A sequence is a collection of jobs linked together in an execution flow.
🔹 Example: A complete ETL process that extracts, transforms, and loads data is
structured as a sequence.

Containers in DataStage

139. What are Containers in DataStage?

✅ Containers are reusable components that help organize job design.
✅ They help in:
 Reusability – Can be used in multiple jobs.
 Minimizing complexity – Simplifies job designs.
🔹 Example: A common transformation logic (like date conversion) can be put
in a container and reused in multiple jobs.

140. Reusability with Containers

✅ Containers allow reusing the same logic across multiple jobs.
🔹 Example: A shared container for cleaning customer data can be used in
multiple ETL jobs.

141. Minimizing Complexity with Containers

✅ Containers help reduce job complexity by grouping related stages together.
🔹 Example: A complex transformation logic with 10+ stages can be placed in a
single container to simplify the job flow.

142. Local Container

✅ A Local Container is specific to a single job.
✅ Cannot be reused in other jobs.
🔹 Example: If a job has a complex transformation that’s only needed within
that job, use a Local Container.
143. Shared Container
✅ A Shared Container can be used in multiple jobs.
✅ Reusable across different ETL jobs.
🔹 Example: A Shared Container for loading customer data can be used in
different jobs that load different datasets.

144. Some Jobs in Container

✅ Containers can hold multiple jobs that perform related tasks.
🔹 Example: A container might hold jobs for data validation, data
transformation, and data load, keeping them organized.

145. Parallel Processing in DataStage

✅ Parallel processing allows multiple tasks to run simultaneously to improve
performance.
✅ Two types:
1️⃣ Pipeline Parallelism – Data flows through different stages at the same time.
2️⃣ Partition Parallelism – Data is split into smaller chunks and processed in
parallel.
🔹 Example:
 Instead of loading 1 million records sequentially, DataStage splits the
data into multiple partitions and loads them in parallel.

146. Pipeline Parallelism

✅ Data is processed in a continuous flow through different stages.
✅ Each stage works on different data at the same time.
🔹 Example:
1️⃣ Extract stage reads batch 1 of data.
2️⃣ While transformation starts on batch 1, extract stage reads batch 2.
3️⃣ Load stage loads batch 1 while transformation starts batch 2.
This overlapping execution speeds up processing.
147. Partition Parallelism
✅ Splits large datasets into multiple partitions and processes them in parallel.
✅ Data is divided based on partitioning techniques like Hash, Round Robin, or
Range.
🔹 Example: A table with 10 million rows is divided into 4 partitions and
processed simultaneously by 4 CPU cores.

148. Partitioning and Collecting

✅ Partitioning: Divides data into chunks to be processed in parallel.
✅ Collecting: Combines data from multiple partitions into a single dataset.
🔹 Example: A file with customer transactions is split into 5 partitions,
processed in parallel, and then collected back into a final dataset.

149. Configuration File in DataStage

✅ Defines the execution environment for parallel jobs.
✅ Specifies number of nodes, scratch disk locations, and resource allocation.
🔹 Example: A 4-node configuration file allows a job to run on 4 parallel
processes.

150. Fast Name, Pools, Resource Disk, Resource Scratch Disk

✅ Fast Name: A label for a resource disk.
✅ Pools: Logical grouping of resources for optimized processing.
✅ Resource Disk: Permanent storage for datasets.
✅ Resource Scratch Disk: Temporary storage for intermediate processing.
🔹 Example: A Scratch Disk is used for temporary storage while sorting large
datasets.

151. Running Jobs with Different Nodes

✅ Nodes represent parallel processing units in DataStage.
✅ The number of nodes in a configuration file determines how many parallel
processes run.
🔹 Example: A job with 8 nodes will process 8 parallel data streams.

152. Symmetric Multi-Processing (SMP)

✅ Single server with multiple CPUs sharing memory.
✅ Jobs execute parallel tasks within the same system.
🔹 Example: A 4-core server processes 4 data partitions in parallel.

153. Massively Parallel Processing (MPP)

✅ Multiple servers work together in a distributed system.
✅ Each server has its own memory and processors.
🔹 Example: A cluster of 10 servers processes 10 partitions of data in parallel.

154. Partitioning Techniques in DataStage

✅ Determines how data is split for parallel processing.
✅ Common partitioning methods:
1️⃣ Round Robin Partitioning
✅ Evenly distributes data across all partitions.
🔹 Example: 100 rows → distributed 25 rows per partition in a 4-node setup.
2️⃣ Random Partitioning
✅ Randomly assigns records to partitions.
🔹 Example: Records are scattered randomly across available partitions.
3️⃣ Hash Partitioning
✅ Uses a key column (like Customer_ID) to ensure the same data goes to the
same partition.
🔹 Example: Orders for Customer A always go to Partition 1, while orders for
Customer B go to Partition 2.
4️⃣ Entire Partitioning
✅ Replicates the entire dataset to each partition.
🔹 Example: Every partition receives a full copy of the dataset.
5️⃣ Same Partitioning
✅ Maintains the original partitioning from the previous stage.
🔹 Example: If data was already partitioned, this option keeps that partitioning.
6️⃣ Modulus Partitioning
✅ Uses modulo function on key values for partitioning.
🔹 Example: Customer_ID % 4 distributes data across 4 partitions.
7️⃣ Range Partitioning
✅ Divides data based on a range of values.
🔹 Example:
 Partition 1: Customer ID 1 - 1000
 Partition 2: Customer ID 1001 - 2000

155. DB2 Partitioning

✅ Used for DB2 database parallelism.
✅ Data is partitioned based on DB2 internal mechanisms.

156. Auto Partitioning

✅ DataStage automatically chooses the best partitioning method based on job
design.
157. DataStage Components Overview
IBM DataStage consists of four main components:
1️⃣ Server Components – The backend where jobs are executed.
2️⃣ Client Components – The frontend tools for job design and monitoring.
3️⃣ Datastage Repository – Stores job metadata.
4️⃣ Datastage Engine – Executes the ETL jobs.

158. Server Components

These components are installed on the server where DataStage runs.
✅ DataStage Engine – Executes ETL jobs.
✅ DataStage Repository – Stores metadata for jobs, tables, and
transformations.
✅ Job Execution Services – Manages job running, monitoring, and logging.
🔹 Example: When a job runs, the DataStage Engine pulls metadata from the
Repository, executes transformations, and loads data into the target system.

159. Client Components

Installed on developer and administrator machines to interact with the server.
✅ DataStage Designer – Used for designing ETL jobs.
✅ DataStage Director – Used for job scheduling, monitoring, and execution.
✅ DataStage Administrator – Used for project and user management.
🔹 Example: A developer designs a job in Designer, an admin runs it in Director,
and security settings are managed in Administrator.

160. DataStage Server

✅ The core environment where all DataStage jobs are executed.
✅ Manages job scheduling, execution, and resource allocation.
✅ Can run in single-server (SMP) or multi-server (MPP) environments.
🔹 Example: A high-performance ETL job extracts data from multiple sources
and transforms it using a cluster of 4 DataStage nodes.

161. DataStage Repository

✅ Stores job metadata, table definitions, parameter sets, and job logs.
✅ Contains four main areas:
1️⃣ Jobs – Stores job designs and execution details.
2️⃣ Table Definitions – Stores source/target table structures.
3️⃣ Routines & Functions – Custom scripts for transformations.
4️⃣ Job Logs – Stores execution history and errors.
🔹 Example: If a job fails, you can check Job Logs in the Repository to find the
error.

162. Naming Standards for Jobs

✅ Following naming conventions improves maintainability and readability.
✅ Best practices:
 Prefix jobs based on function (e.g., EXTRACT_CustomerData,
TRANSFORM_SalesData).
 Use meaningful names for variables and stages.
 Follow a consistent structure for job design.
🔹 Example: Instead of naming a job Job1, name it LOAD_SalesData_To_Oracle.

163. Document Preparation

✅ Every ETL project needs proper documentation for development and
support.
✅ Includes:
 Job Flow Diagrams – Visual representation of the ETL process.
 Field Mapping Documents – Source-to-target field mappings.
 Transformation Logic – Explanation of business rules applied.
 Error Handling Strategy – What happens when a job fails?
🔹 Example: Before deploying a job, the ETL team documents all field mappings
and business rules.

164. ETL Specs Preparation

✅ Specifies exact ETL processing rules for a project.
✅ Covers:
 Source & Target details (Database, File format, APIs).
 Transformation logic (Joins, Lookups, Aggregations).
 Performance tuning parameters (Partitioning, Parallelism).
 Error handling mechanisms (Reject handling, Logging).
🔹 Example: An ETL spec document might define how customer records are
cleansed before loading into the warehouse.
165. Unit Test Cases Preparation
✅ Unit testing ensures ETL jobs function correctly before deployment.
✅ Includes:
 Test scenarios (Valid data, Invalid data, Boundary cases).
 Expected vs. Actual results comparison.
 Performance testing (Does the job run within expected time limits?).
🔹 Example: Before deploying an ETL job, a developer runs test cases to
validate if duplicate records are correctly removed.

Final Thoughts on DataStage Components 🚀

 Understanding server and client components helps in efficient job
development.
 Following naming standards and documentation best practices ensures
better job maintainability.
 Unit testing and ETL specifications are critical for successful
deployment.

166. DataStage Administrator Overview

DataStage Administrator is a client tool used to manage projects, configure
system settings, set permissions, and optimize performance.
✅ Main Functions:
 Create, edit, and delete projects
 Set user permissions and security
 Configure parallel job settings
 Manage Runtime Column Propagation (RCP)
 Enable remote execution of jobs
 Set up auto-purging for logs
🔹 Example: A DataStage admin creates a new project, assigns developer
access, and configures default runtime settings.

167. DataStage Project Administration

A DataStage project is a container where ETL jobs are developed and executed.
✅ Project setup includes:
 Creating a new project in DataStage Administrator
 Configuring data sources, runtime properties, and logging
 Assigning user roles and privileges
🔹 Example: A finance project is created with separate access for developers,
testers, and admins.

168. Editing Projects & Adding Projects

✅ New projects can be added or modified using the Administrator tool.
🔹 Steps to add a project:
1️⃣ Open DataStage Administrator
2️⃣ Click on ‘Add Project’
3️⃣ Select server path and provide a name
4️⃣ Configure default properties and user permissions
5️⃣ Click OK to create the project
🔹 Example: A Sales Data Warehouse project is created to manage ETL jobs for
sales data.

169. Deleting Projects

✅ Deleting a project removes all associated jobs, logs, and metadata.
🔹 Steps to delete a project:
1️⃣ Open DataStage Administrator
2️⃣ Select the project to be deleted
3️⃣ Click on ‘Delete Project’
4️⃣ Confirm deletion
⚠️Warning: This action CANNOT be undone!
🔹 Example: An old HR project is deleted after migrating all data to a new
system.

170. Cleansing Up Project Files

✅ Over time, unused job logs and datasets can slow down performance.
✅ Cleaning up project files improves system efficiency.
🔹 Methods for cleanup:
 Manually delete unused datasets and logs
 Enable auto-purge for job logs
 Use scripts to clean up temp files
🔹 Example: A script runs every weekend to delete datasets older than 30 days.

171. Auto-Purging
✅ Automatically removes old job logs to improve performance.
🔹 How to enable auto-purge:
1️⃣ Open DataStage Administrator
2️⃣ Select a Project
3️⃣ Navigate to Auto Purge Settings
4️⃣ Set log retention period (e.g., Keep logs for 10 days)
5️⃣ Click Apply
🔹 Example: If auto-purge is set to 7 days, logs older than a week are
automatically deleted.

172. Permissions to Users

✅ Controls who can access and modify projects.
✅ Uses Windows authentication or LDAP for user management.
🔹 Common roles:
 Administrator – Full access
  Developer – Can create and modify jobs
 Operator – Can only run and monitor jobs
 Viewer – Read-only access
🔹 Example: A developer has access to job creation, but an operator can only
run jobs and view logs.

173. Runtime Column Propagation (RCP)

✅ Allows unknown columns to pass through jobs without explicit mapping.
🔹 When to use RCP?
 When dealing with dynamic schemas
 When columns may change over time
 When you don’t want to modify jobs every time a column is added
🔹 Example: A job is designed to load customer data. If a new "Email" column
is added, the job still works without modifications if RCP is enabled.

174. Enable Remote Execution of Parallel Jobs

✅ Allows jobs to run on multiple servers for better performance.
🔹 How to enable remote execution:
1️⃣ Open DataStage Administrator
2️⃣ Select Parallel Jobs tab
3️⃣ Enable remote execution option
4️⃣ Configure remote nodes and resources
🔹 Example: A large ETL job is executed across 3 servers to speed up processing.

175. Add Checkpoints for Sequencer

✅ Checkpoints allow failed jobs to restart from the last successful step.
🔹 How to enable checkpoints:
1️⃣ Open Job Sequencer
2️⃣ Select Enable Checkpoints
3️⃣ Save and compile the sequencer
🔹 Example: A 5-step ETL job fails at step 3. With checkpoints enabled, it
restarts from step 3 instead of rerunning from the beginning.

176. Project Protect

✅ Prevents unauthorized changes to projects.
🔹 How to enable project protection:
1️⃣ Open DataStage Administrator
2️⃣ Select Project Settings
3️⃣ Enable Project Protection
4️⃣ Set user roles and restrictions
🔹 Example: Only senior developers can modify production jobs, while junior
developers have read-only access.

177. .APT Config File

✅ Controls parallel processing settings for DataStage jobs.
✅ Defines:
 Number of nodes
 CPU & Memory allocation
 Resource distribution
🔹 Example: A job designed for high-performance parallelism uses an .APT file
with 4 processing nodes.

Final Thoughts on DataStage Administration 🚀

 Managing projects, permissions, and settings is critical for a smooth ETL
environment.
 Auto-purge, RCP, and checkpoints improve performance and
maintainability.
  Remote execution and parallel processing help scale ETL operations
efficiently.

178. Introduction to DataStage Designer

DataStage Designer is the main development tool used to create, edit, and
compile ETL jobs.
✅ Key Features:
 Graphical Interface – Drag-and-drop job design
 Job Development – Create Server, Parallel, and Sequence jobs
 Job Compilation – Convert designs into executable jobs
 Metadata Management – Import/export table structures
🔹 Example: A developer uses DataStage Designer to build a job that extracts
data from a database, transforms it, and loads it into a data warehouse.

179. Partitioning Techniques

Partitioning divides large data into smaller chunks for parallel processing,
improving job performance.
✅ Types of Partitioning:
Partitioning
Description Example Use Case
Type
Round Robin Distributes data equally among Evenly distribute customer
Partitioning
Description Example Use Case
Type
nodes records
Uses a key column to distribute Partition sales data by
Hash
data Customer_ID
When all nodes need full
Entire Sends all data to each node
dataset
Modulus Distributes based on remainder Partitioning on numeric ID
Divides data based on a value
Range Data partitioned by date
range
🔹 Example: A job processing 1 million sales records is partitioned using Hash
(on Customer_ID) for even distribution.

180. Creating Jobs

✅ Jobs in DataStage are designed using stages and links.
✅ Types of Jobs:
 Parallel Jobs – Use parallel processing for high performance
 Server Jobs – Use single-threaded processing
 Job Sequences – Automate and control execution of multiple jobs
🔹 Example: A job extracts data from Oracle, applies business rules, and loads it
into a warehouse.

181. Compiling and Running Jobs

✅ Compilation converts a job design into an executable format.
✅ Running a job executes the ETL process.
🔹 Steps to Compile & Run a Job:
1️⃣ Open DataStage Designer
2️⃣ Create or edit a job
3️⃣ Click Compile (Fix errors if any)
4️⃣ Click Run and monitor execution in DataStage Director
🔹 Example: A developer compiles and runs a job that loads daily transactions
into a warehouse.

182. Exporting and Importing Jobs

✅ Jobs can be exported and imported to move between environments (Dev,
Test, Prod).
🔹 Steps to Export a Job:
1️⃣ Open DataStage Designer
2️⃣ Select Export → DataStage Components
3️⃣ Choose jobs, table definitions, parameters
4️⃣ Save as a .dsx file
🔹 Steps to Import a Job:
1️⃣ Open DataStage Designer
2️⃣ Select Import → DataStage Components
3️⃣ Browse and select the .dsx file
4️⃣ Click OK
🔹 Example: A job developed in Dev is exported and imported into the Test
environment for validation.

183. Parameter Passing

✅ Instead of hardcoding values, parameters make jobs flexible.
🔹 Common Parameters:
 Database connection details (Username, Password, Server Name)
 File paths
 Job control parameters (Batch Size, Date Ranges)
🔹 Example: A job fetching sales data uses a parameterized date range instead
of a fixed date.

184. System (SMP) & Cluster (MPP) Architectures

✅ Symmetric Multi-Processing (SMP) – Multiple processors share the same
memory.
✅ Massively Parallel Processing (MPP) – Each processor has its own memory
and works independently.
🔹 Example:
 A small organization may use SMP for ETL jobs.
 A large enterprise with big data uses MPP to distribute workload across
multiple servers.

185. Importing Methods (Flat File, Excel, DB Files)

✅ DataStage can import metadata from multiple sources.
🔹 Steps to Import Table Definitions:
1️⃣ Open DataStage Designer
2️⃣ Select Import → Table Definitions
3️⃣ Choose Flat File, Excel, or Database
4️⃣ Map columns and data types
🔹 Example: Importing customer data structure from an Oracle database for
ETL processing.

186. OSH Importing Method

✅ OSH (Orchestrate Shell) is a scripting language for DataStage parallel jobs.
✅ Used to import and manipulate job metadata via command line.
🔹 Example: A developer uses OSH scripts to automate the import of multiple
table definitions.

187. Configuration File

✅ The .APT configuration file controls parallel job execution.
✅ It defines:
 Number of nodes
 Disk and memory resources
 Parallel processing settings
🔹 Example: A job runs with 4 nodes to speed up execution.
188. Importing Table Definitions
✅ Table definitions store metadata about database tables used in jobs.
🔹 Steps to Import Table Definitions:
1️⃣ Open DataStage Designer
2️⃣ Select Import → Table Definitions → Database
3️⃣ Connect to database
4️⃣ Select tables to import
🔹 Example: Importing Sales Orders table to use in a DataStage job.

189. Importing Flat File Definitions

✅ Defines metadata for CSV, TXT, or fixed-width files.
🔹 Steps to Import Flat File Definitions:
1️⃣ Open DataStage Designer
2️⃣ Select Import → Table Definitions → Flat File
3️⃣ Select file format and define column structure
🔹 Example: Importing a Product List CSV file for ETL processing.

190. Managing Metadata Environment

✅ Metadata management ensures consistency across DataStage projects.
🔹 Best Practices:
 Use standardized table definitions
 Maintain documentation of changes
 Automate metadata imports where possible
🔹 Example: An organization maintains a central repository of metadata
definitions for all ETL jobs.

191. Dataset Management

✅ DataStage datasets store data temporarily between ETL stages.
🔹 Key Actions:
 Create datasets for intermediate storage
 View dataset contents
 Delete old datasets to free up space
🔹 Example: A job extracts customer data into a dataset before transforming
it.

192. Deletion of Dataset

✅ Old datasets take up space and must be deleted periodically.
🔹 Command to delete a dataset:
sh
CopyEdit
rm -rf /data/dataset1.ds
🔹 Example: Deleting temporary staging datasets after job execution.

Final Thoughts on DataStage Designer 🚀

 Job design, partitioning, and metadata management are key skills.
 Parameterization and parallel processing improve job efficiency.
 Import/export options allow easy migration of ETL jobs.

Section 14: DataStage Stages 🎭

193. Explanation of Menu Bar

The Menu Bar in DataStage Designer provides access to essential features:
Menu Description
File Open, Save, Import, and Export jobs
Edit Copy, Paste, Undo, Redo
Menu Description
View Display different job components (Palette, Properties)
Tools Job Compilation, Configuration Settings
Help DataStage documentation and support
🔹 Example: A developer uses File → Export to back up a DataStage job.

194. Palette 🎨
The Palette contains all DataStage stages used for ETL job design. It is divided
into:
1️⃣ Database Stages (Oracle, DB2, SQL Server)
2️⃣ File Stages (Sequential File, Dataset)
3️⃣ Processing Stages (Transformer, Aggregator)
4️⃣ Debug Stages (Peek, Head, Tail)
🔹 Example: A developer drags a Transformer Stage from the Palette into the
job canvas.

195. Passive Stages

✅ Passive Stages do not alter data; they simply read or write it.
Stage Name Purpose
Sequential File Reads/writes flat files (CSV, TXT)
Dataset Stores intermediate data
External Source Reads data from scripts or external sources
🔹 Example: A Sequential File Stage reads a CSV file for further processing.

196. Active Stages

✅ Active Stages process and transform data dynamically.
Stage Name Purpose
Transformer Applies rules, calculations, and conditions
Stage Name Purpose

Join Combines data from multiple sources

Lookup Matches data with reference tables
🔹 Example: A Transformer Stage calculates Total Sales = Quantity × Price.

197. Database Stages

✅ Used for reading from and writing to databases.
Stage Name Purpose
Oracle Connector Connects to Oracle DB
DB2 Connector Connects to IBM DB2
ODBC Connector Connects to multiple databases
🔹 Example: An Oracle Connector Stage extracts customer records from an
Oracle database.

198. Debug Stages

✅ Used to debug and troubleshoot jobs.
Stage Name Purpose
Peek Displays sample data
Head Shows the first few rows
Tail Displays the last few rows
🔹 Example: A Peek Stage shows sample output data in the Director log.

199. File Stages

✅ Used to read and write files.
Stage Name Purpose
Sequential File Reads/writes CSV, TXT
Stage Name Purpose

Dataset Stores intermediate ETL data

File Set Splits large files across nodes
🔹 Example: A Sequential File Stage loads a Product Catalog CSV into the Data
Warehouse.

200. Processing Stages

✅ These stages modify, filter, and aggregate data.
Stage Name Purpose
Aggregator Summarizes data (SUM, AVG)
Filter Removes unwanted rows
Sort Arranges data in order
Remove Duplicates Eliminates duplicate records
🔹 Example: An Aggregator Stage calculates total sales per region.

201. Multiple Instances

✅ Allows a job to run multiple times in parallel with different parameters.
🔹 Use Case:
 Running a job simultaneously for different countries (US, UK, India).
 Helps in reducing execution time.
🔹 Example: The same ETL job processes sales data separately for each country.

202. Runtime Column Propagation (RCP)

✅ Allows unknown columns to pass through the job without defining them
explicitly.
🔹 Use Case:
  When input data changes frequently.
 Useful for dynamic ETL jobs.
🔹 Example: A file with changing columns is processed without modifying the
job.

203. Job Design Overview

✅ A DataStage job consists of:
 Stages (Extract, Transform, Load)
 Links (Connect stages)
 Properties (Define stage behavior)
🔹 Example: A job extracts sales data, applies calculations, and loads it into a
warehouse.

204. Designer Work Area

✅ The workspace where jobs are built.
✅ Includes:
 Canvas (Drag-and-drop job design)
 Palette (List of stages)
 Properties Window (Configure stage settings)
🔹 Example: A developer drags stages onto the canvas and connects them with
links.

205. Annotations
✅ Text boxes added to jobs for documentation and clarity.
🔹 Example: A job contains an annotation "This job loads daily transactions" for
future reference.

206. Creating, Deleting Jobs

✅ Steps to create a new job:
1️⃣ Open DataStage Designer
2️⃣ Click File → New
3️⃣ Select Parallel Job
4️⃣ Drag stages, connect links, configure properties
5️⃣ Click Save
✅ Steps to delete a job:
1️⃣ Right-click on the job in the repository
2️⃣ Click Delete
🔹 Example: A developer creates a new job to load customer orders.

207. Compiling Jobs

✅ Converts job design into an executable format.
🔹 Steps:
1️⃣ Click Compile
2️⃣ Fix any errors
3️⃣ Job is now ready to run
🔹 Example: A job compiles successfully and is deployed to production.

208. Batch Compiling

✅ Compiles multiple jobs at once.
🔹 Steps:
1️⃣ Select multiple jobs
2️⃣ Click Batch Compile
3️⃣ Fix errors if any
🔹 Example: A developer compiles 10 jobs at once after modifying shared
parameters.

Key Takeaways 🎯
✅ Stages are the building blocks of DataStage jobs.
✅ Passive vs Active Stages – Passive read/write data, Active process it.
✅ Partitioning, Debugging, and Multiple Instances improve performance.
✅ Annotations, Job Compilation, and Batch Processing enhance efficiency.

Next Up: DataStage Transformer Stage & Key Functions 🚀

Section 15: DataStage Transformer & Functions 🚀

209. Aggregator Stage

✅ Performs grouping and summary operations like SUM, AVG, COUNT, MIN,
and MAX.
🔹 Example:
A dataset of sales transactions contains Product_ID, Quantity, and Price.
 The Aggregator Stage calculates Total Sales per Product_ID.
SELECT Product_ID, SUM(Quantity * Price) AS Total_Sales
FROM Sales_Data
GROUP BY Product_ID;

210. Copy Stage

✅ Duplicates data to multiple output links.
🔹 Example:
A job reads customer data and sends a copy to two different databases
(Oracle & SQL Server).

211. Change Capture Stage

✅ Detects changes between two datasets (before & after updates).
✅ Outputs Insert, Update, Delete, or Copy flags.
🔹 Example:
 New customer records → Insert
 Modified addresses → Update
  Removed accounts → Delete

212. Compress Stage

✅ Reduces file size by compressing data.
✅ Supports formats like Gzip, Zip, Bzip2.
🔹 Example:
A daily ETL job compresses logs before storing them in an archive folder.

213. Filter Stage

✅ Removes unwanted records based on conditions.
🔹 Example:
Filter out inactive customers:
SELECT * FROM Customers WHERE Status = 'Active';

214. Funnel Stage

✅ Merges multiple input datasets into a single output.
✅ Used for appending data (NOT JOIN).
🔹 Example:
 Merge Sales_2023 and Sales_2024 tables into a single dataset.

215. Modify Stage

✅ Applies transformations like:
 Change data types
 Rename column names
🔹 Example:
Convert Order_Date from String to Date format.

216. Join Stage

✅ Combines datasets based on a common key (similar to SQL JOIN).
✅ Supports Inner, Left, Right, Full Outer Joins.
🔹 Example:
Join Customer Table with Orders Table using Customer_ID.
SELECT C.Customer_ID, C.Name, O.Order_ID, O.Amount
FROM Customers C
JOIN Orders O ON C.Customer_ID = O.Customer_ID;

217. Lookup Stage

✅ Matches input records against a reference dataset.
✅ Works like a SQL Left Outer Join.
🔹 Example:
 Find customer region from a lookup table.
SELECT C.Customer_ID, C.Name, R.Region_Name
FROM Customers C
LEFT JOIN Regions R ON C.Region_ID = R.Region_ID;

218. Difference Between Join and Lookup

Feature Join Stage Lookup Stage
Processing Uses partitioning Uses in-memory reference data
Performance Better for large datasets Faster for small lookup tables
Memory Usage High Low

219. Merge Stage

✅ Merges datasets with a primary and secondary source.
✅ Requires a key column.
🔹 Example:
 Merge updated sales data with existing records using Sales_ID.
MERGE INTO Sales S
USING Sales_Updates U
ON S.Sales_ID = U.Sales_ID
WHEN MATCHED THEN
UPDATE SET S.Amount = U.Amount
WHEN NOT MATCHED THEN
INSERT (Sales_ID, Amount) VALUES (U.Sales_ID, U.Amount);

220. Difference Between Lookup and Merge

Feature Lookup Stage Merge Stage
Type of Join Left Outer Join Inner & Outer Join
Performance Better for small datasets Better for large datasets
Data Handling In-memory processing Sort & match approach

221. Remove Duplicates Stage

✅ Eliminates duplicate records based on key columns.
🔹 Example:
Keep only one record per Customer_ID.
SELECT DISTINCT Customer_ID, Name FROM Customers;

222. Sort Stage

✅ Sorts data in ascending/descending order.
✅ Supports Stable Sort (maintains order of equal values).
🔹 Example:
Sort employees by Salary (Descending).
SELECT * FROM Employees ORDER BY Salary DESC;

223. Pivot Stage

✅ Converts multiple columns into rows (Vertical Pivot).
✅ Converts rows into columns (Horizontal Pivot).
🔹 Example:
Employee_ID Q1_Sales Q2_Sales Q3_Sales
101 500 700 900
👉 Becomes:
Employee_ID Quarter Sales
101 Q1 500
101 Q2 700
101 Q3 900

224. Surrogate Key Stage

✅ Generates unique keys (Surrogate Keys).
✅ Used for Data Warehousing.
🔹 Example:
Assign Customer_Key for each new customer.
Customer_ID Name Customer_Key
C101 John 1
C102 Alice 2

225. Switch Stage

✅ Routes records to different outputs based on conditions.
🔹 Example:
 Orders > $1000 → High Value
 Orders ≤ $1000 → Normal
CASE
WHEN Order_Amount > 1000 THEN 'High Value'
 ELSE 'Normal'
END

226. Types of Lookups

✅ Sparse Lookup – Direct database query for each record.
✅ Normal Lookup – Loads reference data into memory.
🔹 Example:
A job uses a Sparse Lookup to fetch customer credit scores directly from the
database.

227. Types of Transformer Stages

✅ Basic Transformer – Simple transformations.
✅ Advanced Transformer – Complex logic with stage variables and conditions.

228. Null Handling in Transformer

✅ Checks for NULL values and replaces them.
🔹 Example:
Replace NULL Salary with Default Salary = 3000.
IF IsNull(Salary) THEN 3000 ELSE Salary;

229. If-Then-Else in Transformer

✅ Conditional logic inside a Transformer stage.
🔹 Example:
Assign Employee Bonus:
IF Salary > 50000 THEN 'High' ELSE 'Low';

230. Stage Variables

✅ Stores temporary values within a Transformer stage.
🔹 Example:
Track previous row value for comparison.

231. Constraints
✅ Used to filter or redirect records based on conditions.
🔹 Example:
 Send Valid Orders to Target.
 Send Invalid Orders to Reject File.
IF Order_Amount > 0 THEN Target ELSE Reject;

232. Derivations
✅ Used to define expressions in transformers.
🔹 Example:
Calculate Net Price = Price * Quantity - Discount.
Net_Price = Price * Quantity - Discount;

233. Peek, Head, Tail Stages

✅ Peek Stage – Displays sample records in logs.
✅ Head Stage – Selects first N rows.
✅ Tail Stage – Selects last N rows.

📌 Key Takeaways
✅ Transformer stage is the heart of DataStage.
✅ Lookup, Join, and Merge are used for combining data.
✅ Aggregator, Sort, and Remove Duplicates help in data summarization.
✅ Pivot and Surrogate Key are essential for data warehousing.

Next Up: Slowly Changing Dimensions (SCD) Implementation 🚀