Informatica Introduction

 Informatica Overview

Informatica is one of the most popular ETL (Extraction, Transformation and Loading) tools in the market today. Informatica Power Center provides an environment to load data into a centralized location such as an Operational data Store (ODS) or a data mart or a data warehouse. U can extract the data from various data sources such as flat files, or any Database or even COBOL files, Transform the data based in business logic and load data into different types of targets including files and relational databases.

    Informatica provides the following components:

• Informatica Repository

• Informatica Client

• Informatica Server

  Informatica Repository:  The Repository is the core of the Informatica suite. Repository database contains a set of metadata tables that the Informatica tools and applications access. The Informatica Client and server access the repository to save and retrieve metadata. Informatica Client: The Power Center Client is comprised of applications that you use to manage the repository, design mappings and mapplets, create sessions and workflows to load the data, and monitor workflow progress.The Informatica Client consists of three client applications.

• Repository Manager

• Designer

• Server Manager

        In this tutorial, you use the following applications and tools:

Repository Manager. Use the Repository Manager to create and administer the metadata repository. You use the Repository Manager to create a repository user and group. You create a folder to store the metadata you create in the lessons. Repository Server Administration Console. Use the Repository Server Administration console to administer the Repository Servers and repositories. Designer Use the Designer to create mappings that contain transformation instructions for the Power Center Server. Before you can create mappings, you must add source and target definitions to the repository. Designer comprises the following tools:

• Source Analyzer. Import or create source definitions.

• Warehouse Designer. Import or create target definitions.

• Mapping Designer. Create mappings that the Power Center Server uses to extract, transform, and load data.

• Workflow Manager. Use the Workflow Manager to create and run workflows and tasks. A workflow is a set of instructions that describes how and when to run tasks related to extracting, transforming, and loading data.

• Workflow Monitor. Use the Workflow Monitor to monitor scheduled and running workflows for each Power Center Server.

Informatica Server: The Informatica Server extracts the source data, performs the data transformation and loads the transformed data into the targets. Sources accessed by Power center

• Relational: Sybase, Oracle, IBM DB2, Informix, MS SQL Server and Tera data.

• File: Fixed and delimited flat files, COBOL files and XML files

• Extended: If u use Power Center, u can purchase additional Power connect products to connect to other business sources such as SAP R/3, Siebel, etc.

• Mainframes: If u use Power Center, u can purchase additional Power connect products to connect to IBM DB2 on MVS

• Others: MS Access and MS Excel

   Informatica repository

The Informatica repository is at the center of the Informatica suite. You create a set of metadata tables within the repository database that the Informatica applications and tools access. The Informatica Client and Server access the repository to save and retrieve metadata.

  Informatica Client

Use the Informatica Client to manage users, define sources and targets, build mappings and mapplets with the transformation logic, and create sessions to run the mapping logic. The Informatica Client has three client applications: Repository Manager, Designer, and Workflow Manager.

  Informatica Server

The Informatica Server extracts the source data, performs the data transformation, and loads the transformed data into the targets.

  Process Flow

Informatica Server moves the data from source to target based on the workflow and metadata stored in the repository. 

A workflow is a set of instructions how and when to run the task related to ETL.
Informatica server runs workflow according to the conditional links connecting tasks. 

Session is type of workflow task which describes how to move the data between source and target using a mapping.

Mapping is a set of source and target definitions linked by transformation objects that define the rules for data transformation.

  Transformations

A transformation is a repository object that generates, modifies, or passes data
The Designer provides a set of transformations that perform specific functions
Data passes into and out of transformations through ports that you connect in a mapping or mapplet
Transformations can be active or passive