Using 3.x DataSources 

Use

Before you can transfer data from a database source system, the metadata (the table, view and field information) must be available in BI in the form of a DataSource.

If your dataflow is modeled with objects based on the old concept (3.x InfoSource, 3.x transfer rules, 3.x update rules), you can use a 3.x DataSource to transfer data into BI from a database source system.

You can use a 3.x DataSource with restrictions in a data flow with transformation. This emulation can be used to prepare a migration of the 3.x DataSource.

Prerequisites

See Requirements for Database Tables or Views.

Generating 3.x DataSources

In the context menu of a database source system, choose Additional Functions  →  Select Database Tables to generate a 3.x DataSource for database source systems. First, you choose a selection of tables for a database source system and create a connection to the database source system.Next, you select the table fields for a specific table of the database source system and specify whether you want these table fields to be available for selection in BI. Finally, you generate the 3.x DataSource. The DataSource includes the set of fields that you want the system to read from the database source system during extraction.

You are on the DB Connect: Overview of Tables and Views screen.

...

       1.      In the first step, you select a table or view catalog from a database source system.

a.       Select the database source system from which you want to transfer data. The database source system or database connection is uniquely identified by the name of the logical system.

b.       Specify which tables or views you want to be displayed for selection.

We recommend that you use the views in the schema of the database user in the Database Management System (DBMS) to access the tables and views containing application data.

For more information, see Database Users and Database Schemas.

c.       Specify whether you want tables or views to be displayed for selection.

d.       Choose   Execute.

The database connection is established and the database tables are read.

The DB Connect: Overview of Tables and Views screen appears. On this screen the system displays, in accordance with your selections, the tables and views that are stored in the database schema of the database user for which the connection has been established.

The technical name, type, and database schema for a table or a view are displayed in the Selection of Database Tables/Views. The entry in field  Table Information shows whether the table or view is available for extraction. The  icon indicates that tables and views are not available for extraction. If a table or view has no entry in this field, it is available for extraction. The DataSource Name field tells you whether a DataSource has already been generated for a table or a view.

■       Make sure that you only use tables and views in the extraction whose technical names consist solely of upper case letters, numbers, and underscores (_). Problems may arise if you use other characters.

■       A DataSource whose technical name consists of the prefix 6DB_ and the technical name of the table or view is generated from the table or view. Since the names for DataSources in BI are limited to 30 characters, the technical name of the database table or view can be no longer than 26 characters.
Tables and views with longer technical names are therefore not available for extraction.

       2.      In the second step, you specify the table fields for the DataSource that you are going to generate.

a.       In the overview, select a table or a view and choose Edit DataSource.

The DB Connect: Select Fields screen appears. The following is displayed:

-         Information about the database

-         Information about the DataSource that you are going to generate

-         The fields for the table or view 

b.       For the DataSource that you are going to generate, specify the application component in the source system tree of the Data Warehousing Workbench under which you want to add the DataSource. For the database source system, this application component hierarchy corresponds to the hierarchy in the InfoSource tree. In the default settings, the DataSource is assigned to the NODESNOTCONNECTED (unassigned nodes) application component.

c.       Select the DataSource type.

The overview of the database fields tells you which fields are key fields, the length of the field in the database compared with the length of the field in the ABAP data dictionary, and the field type in the database and the field type in the ABAP dictionary. It also gives you additional information to help you check the consistency of your data.

When you use data types, be aware of database-specific features. For more information, see the database-specific comments under Requirements for Database Tables and Views.

d.       Set the Selection indicator and select the table fields and view fields that you want to be available for extraction from this table or view.

■       The entry in field  Information tells you whether the field is available for extraction. The  icon indicates fields that are not available for extraction. Table fields and views fields, for which there is no entry next to this field, are available for extraction.

■       Note that technical field names can be no longer than 16 characters long and must contain solely upper case letters, numbers, and underscores (_). Problems may arise if you use other characters. You cannot use fields with reserved field names, such as COUNT. Fields that do not comply with these restrictions are not available for extraction.

e.       Select the fields for which you want to be able to set selection criteria when you schedule a data request with an InfoPackage. Data for this type of field is transferred in accordance with the selection criteria specified in the InfoPackage.

We recommend that to improve system performance during extraction, you only make selections using key fields and fields for which the secondary index is X.

       3.      If you choose the  Display Table Contents option, a maximum of 20 data records that correspond to your field selection are displayed in a preview screen.

This function allows you to check whether the data formats and data are correct. If you can see in the preview that the data is incorrect, try to localize the error.

       4.      Check the DataSource.

The field names are checked for upper and lower case letters, special characters, and field length. The system also checks whether an assignment to an ABAP data type is available for the fields.

       5.      Generate the DataSource.

Result

The DataSource is generated. It is visible in the Data Warehousing Workbench in the DataSource overview for the database source system under the assigned application component.

After you have assigned the DataSource to an existing InfoSource or a new InfoSource, assigned the DataSource fields to InfoObjects and activated the transfer rules, you need to create an InfoPackage. In the InfoPackage, you define the selections for the data request.

You have to use the PSA to load the data.

You cannot use the delta update method with DB Connect. In this case, you can perform a delta request using the selections (time stamp, for example).

Using and Migrating Emulated 3.x DataSources

For more information, see Emulation, Migration and Restoring DataSources.