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 Large Data Import

Author  Topic 

john.burns
Posting Yak Master

100 Posts

Posted - 2007-02-12 : 13:28:00
I need to import 150 or so table from a nasty old dbms called rbase.
Anyway DTS is a little buggy with this and there are alot of transforms I will need to key in. Also I need to be able to update data now and again.


Any ideas for any other ways this may be accomplished.

thanks much

Kristen
Test

22859 Posts

Posted - 2007-02-13 : 02:23:42
Export from RBASE to some sort of delimited (or even fixed length) files.

Import with BCP (or DTS if you prefer)

Probably import into "bare" tables (no FKs or grueling constraints) and then "Insert" into the proper tables from there - which will allow any additional "handling logic" to be added - e.g. making sure that Parents are inserted before Children, and converting column values that fail constraints to something acceptable.

Kristen
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eyechart
Master Smack Fu Yak Hacker

3575 Posts

Posted - 2007-02-13 : 03:02:52
I think DTS would be your easiest solution - or a hybrid DTS solution (see below). What problems are you running into when you import the tables?

Personally, I would DTS all the tables into a staging db on SQL Server. Once I get the tables and data in staging, I would interrogate each table one at a time, massaging the data as necessary while copying it to the real destination (with proper datatypes, RI, naming convention, etc.). This step would be done using TSQL becuase I find it easier to manipulate data with TSQL. Once fully copied I would enable any constraints that were disabled for import and see if anything breaks. If it does break, truncate tables and re-work the import from stage. wash, rinse, repeat. This way you wind up with a DTS package that can be used to stage the data, as well as a final set of SQL scripts (functions, sprocs, whatever) that you can execute that finalizes the data.

Anyway, that would be my approach. YMMV.


-ec
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Kristen
Test

22859 Posts

Posted - 2007-02-13 : 03:31:38
"wash, rinse, repeat"

Ah, so you're not a politician then? You left out the "spin" ...
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