DataFlux Data Management Studio 2.6: User Guide

Data Target (Update) Node

You can add a Data Target (Update) node to a data job to output data in a variety of database formats. Unlike the Data Target (Insert) node, which you can use to create a new data source, the Data Target (Update) node is designed for updating existing data. For example, if your existing data has questionable ZIP codes, you might update a data target in conjunction with Geocoding to write verified ZIP codes over the questionable codes without changing any other fields.

Note that the data to be updated must be formatted in a database that uses DataDirect drivers and supports updates. Some of these drivers, such as those for text files, might not support updates. Also note that this update operation is not supported for SAS data files. One way to perform updates for SAS data is to use the Execute SQL node. See also the Usage Notes for this node.

Once you have added the node, you can double-click it to open its properties dialog. The properties dialog includes the following elements:

Name - Specifies a name for the node.

Notes - Enables you to open the Notes dialog. You use the dialog to enter optional details or any other relevant information for the node.

Output table - Enables you to enter the path and name of your output file. You can also click Browse to navigate to the output file location.

Commit Interval - Displays the Commit Interval dialog, where you can specify how often DataFlux Data Management Studio should send a commit command to the data source. The smaller the interval, the more frequent the commit, and the less likely data will not be written because of an unexpected event such as a power failure. On the other hand, the larger the interval, the faster the data will be written. The following commit intervals are available:

• Commit every row
• Commit every [x] rows
• Commit all rows in a single transaction

The Primary key mappings section of the dialog includes a table that enables you to specify at least one relationship (key) between the existing table and the results of your data job. The key or keys that you select should allow the application to identify each existing record uniquely, match records to data job results, and match existing fields to result fields. In most cases, it is best to specify keys for all fields with relationships. This approach minimizes the number of fields in the resulting data set.

The Output fields section of the dialog includes the following elements:

Available - Displays the fields that you can make available for the next step in your data job. Items displayed in this list are dependent on your data sources and any preceding steps in your data job.

Selected - Displays the fields that will be made available to the next node in your data job.

Override - Displays the Override Defaults dialog. You can use the dialog to override the default field lengths.

You can access the following advanced properties by right-clicking the Data Target (Update) node:

• BIND_USING_TABLE_TYPE
• CATALOG_NAME
• COMMIT_EVERY
• DSN
• ENABLE_DDL
• FIELDS
• MAX_ERROR_COUNT
• POOL_NAME
• PRIMARY_KEY
• SCHEMA_NAME
• STATUS_FIELD
• TABLE_NAME

Usage Notes

The output of the Data Target (Update) node is NUMERIC by default. The NUMERIC type has the advantage of preserving precision, but it has limits on how large of a number it can hold. If you want to output large numbers with the Data Target (Update) node, you can force the node to output floating-point data for specified fields. Perform the following steps.

Open the advanced properties dialog for the Data Target (Update) node. Right-click the FIELDS property and select Edit Default Values. In the Default Values dialog, locate the field whose values should be output as a floating-point type. In the SQL_OVERRIDE attribute for that field, enter SQL_TYPE=DOUBLE.