This chapter introduces the basic steps to creating an integration project with Oracle Data Integrator (ODI). It will help you get started with ODI by outlining the basic functionalities and the minimum required steps.
This section is not intended to be used for advanced configuration, usage or troubleshooting.
To perform the minimum required steps of a simple Oracle Data Integrator integration project, follow the ODI Project Quick Start list and go directly to the specified sections of this guide.
Before performing the Quick Start procedure ensure that you have installed Oracle Data Integrator, including setting up and configuring ODI agents, according to the instructions in Installing and Configuring Oracle Data Integrator. You (or an administrator) should perform post-installation configuration and user management tasks as described in Administering Oracle Data Integrator
You should also be familiar with the material presented in Understanding Oracle Data Integrator.
The ODI Project Quick Start list describes the essential steps to creating and running a simple integration project. Once you are familiar with these essential steps, you can review additional material in this guide to help you with more advanced topics, complex integrations, and optional steps.
In Oracle Data Integrator, you perform developments on top of a logical topology. Refer to Chapter 2, "Overview of Oracle Data Integrator Topology" if you are not familiar with the topology. Create logical schemas and associate them with physical schemas in the Global context. See 'Creating a Logical Schema" in Administering Oracle Data Integrator for more information.
Mappings use data models containing the source and target datastores, corresponding to data structures contained in a physical schema: tables, files, JMS messages, or elements from an XML file. Data models are usually reverse-engineered from your data server's metadata into an Oracle Data Integrator repository.
Create one ore more models and datastores according to Chapter 3, "Creating and Using Data Models and Datastores.".
The developed integration components are stored in a project. Creating a new project is covered in Chapter 6, "Creating an Integration Project.".
Consider how you will organize your integration project. Chapter 16, "Organizing and Documenting Integration Projects", describes several built-in tools to assist with organization: projects and models can be organized into hierarchical folders, you can cross-reference and annotate objects with metadata using markers and memos, and you can generate PDF-formatted reports for non-ODI users to review.
Version control can be a powerful tool for working on an integration project when there are multiple developers involved, or if you want to preserve versions of files so that you can revert to previous states of the project. Review Chapter 17, "Using Version Control", to see if ODI's build-in version control suits your development requirements.
Mappings use Knowledge Modules to generate their code. For more information refer to "What is E-LT?" in Understanding Oracle Data Integrator. Before creating mappings you need to import the Knowledge Modules corresponding to the technology of your data. Importing Knowledge Modules is described in "Importing Objects". Which Knowledge Modules you need to import is discussed in Connectivity and Knowledge Modules Guide for Oracle Data Integrator.
To load your target datastores with data from source datastores, you need to create an mapping. A mapping consists of a set of rules that define the loading from one or more source datastores to one or more target datastores. Creating a new mapping for your integration project is described in "Creating a Mapping".
Once you have finished creating a mapping, you can run it, as described in "Running Mappings". Select Local (No Agent) to execute the mapping directly by Oracle Data Integrator.
An integration workflow may require the loading of several target datastores in a specific sequence. If you want to sequence your mappings, create a package. This is an optional step described in "Creating a new Package".
If your workflow is complex, involves many source or target datastores, or if you need to manage execution of multiple mappings, packages, procedures, and variables in a specific logical sequence, consider using load plans. Load plans allow you to organize and run scenarios in a hierarchy of sequential and parallel conditional steps. Load plans are described in Chapter 12, "Using Load Plans."
You can view and monitor the execution results in the Operator navigator. Follow a mapping's execution using the Operator navigator is described in "Monitoring Integration Processes" in Administering Oracle Data Integrator.
While developing your integration, you can use the debugger functionality to identify and eliminate bugs in your project. The debugging tools are described in "Debugging Integration Processes" in Administering Oracle Data Integrator.