Data Warehouse Center Application Integration Guide

Exporting metadata from Information Catalog Manager

You can export metadata from the Information Catalog Manager for use by partner applications. For example, you can export Information Catalog Manager metadata for use by a CASE tool that application developers use to develop applications for the data warehouse.

Exporting metadata from the Information Catalog Manager involves the following tasks:

Select the types of metadata to export.
Export the metadata from the Information Catalog Manager.

When you export metadata from the Information Catalog Manager, you can generate tag language in two formats. For example:

If you export using the Information Catalog Manager product windows or the FLGExport API, the tag language generated is in the Information Catalog Manager tag language format. You can export metadata from the Windows 95, Windows NT, or Windows 2000 command line. For more information, see the Information Catalog Manager Administration Guide.
If you export using the FLGMdisExport API, the tag language generated is in MDIS format. For more information on Information Catalog Manager APIs, see the Information Catalog Manager Programming Guide and Reference.

Selecting metadata to export

The metadata that you can export from the Information Catalog Manager is in the form of object types. An object type is a classification for objects that is used to reflect a type of business information, such as a table, report, or image.

An information catalog can contain predefined object types and object types that the information catalog administrators define. Predefined object types are object types whose definitions are shipped with the Information Catalog Manager. See Information Catalog Manager object types for a description of those object types.

For information on creating object types using the Information Catalog Manager product windows or tag language, see the Information Catalog Manager Administration Guide.

Exporting tag language files

Note to those currently using MDIS with other products and Visual Warehouse 3.1: If you already had MDIS configuration and profile files, the Visual Warehouse installation program did not overwrite them. However, before you use the MDIS function of the Information Catalog Manager for the first time, you must merge the information in the Information Catalog Manager MDIS profile and configuration files with your existing files. Complete the following steps:

Check the MDIS environment variable setting to locate your existing MDIS profile file (MDISTOOL.PRO) and configuration file (MDISTOOL.CFG).
Using a text editor, append the contents of X:\VWSLIB\METADATA\PROFILES\MDISTOOL.PRO to your existing profile file. (X is the drive where you installed the Information Catalog Manager.)
Using a text editor, append the contents of X:\VWSLIB\METADATA\PROFILES\MDISTOOL.CFG to your existing configuration file. (X is the drive where you installed the Information Catalog Manager.)

Exporting MDIS-conforming tag language files

To export an MDIS tag language file directly from your information catalog, enter the DGUIDE command from an MS-DOS command prompt. Adhere to the following rules for the command syntax:

All the parts, except where specified, are case-insensitive.
Either a slash (/) or a hyphen must precede each keyword (-).
All keywords that follow the DGUIDE command are required. All keywords that follow the /MDIS_EXPORT keyword are required.

DGUIDE /USERID userid /PASSWORD password /DGNAME dgname /MDIS_EXPORT filename /LOGFILE filename /OBJTYPE object_type /OBJECTS name

Optional keywords:

/ADMIN /TRACE 0|1|2|3|4

For example, to export MDIS metadata from your information catalog to a file, type the following command (do not enter line breaks):

DGUIDE /USERID longods /PASSWORD secret /DGNAME ICMSAMP /ADMIN
/MDIS_EXPORT c:\mdis.tag /LOGFILE c:\mdis.log 
/OBJTYPE database /OBJECTS server01.payroll.valdezma

/ADMIN

Specifies that you are logging on as an administrator. If you do not specify this optional keyword for the DGUIDE command, you log on as a user. You can export metadata as a user; however, you cannot perform all administrator tasks.

/DGNAME

Your information catalog name.

If the information catalog is local, specify the database name. If the information catalog is remote, specify the alias under which it was cataloged.

Example:

/DGNAME ICMSAMP

/LOGFILE

Specifies the file destination for messages that the Information Catalog Manager generates during MDIS import or MDIS export.

Unless you specify a full drive, path, and file name, the Information Catalog Manager places the file in the path specified on the DGWPATH environment variable. You must specify a fixed drive.

Example:

/LOGFILE d:\tagfile.log

/MDIS_EXPORT

Exports MDIS-conforming metadata into an MDIS-conforming tag language file with the name that you specify. Unless you specify the full drive, path, and file name, the Information Catalog Manager places the file in the path specified on the DGWPATH environment variable.

Example:

/MDIS_EXPORT d:\tagfile.tag

The information catalog from which you export MDIS metadata can contain metadata other than MDIS metadata, but /MDIS_EXPORT exports only metadata that conforms to MDIS.

/OBJECTS

This parameter is required.

Specifies the objects you want to export. Depending on the object type that you specified on the /OBJTYPE keyword, the name value is from three to five property values, separated by periods.

/OBJTYPE: /OBJECTS
Database: ServerName.DatabaseName.OwnerName
Dimension: ServerName.DatabaseName.OwnerName.DimensionName
Subschema: ServerName.DatabaseName.OwnerName.SubschemaName
Record: ServerName.DatabaseName.OwnerName.RecordName
Element: ServerName.DatabaseName.OwnerName.RecordName.ElementName

In this list, the parts of the name are represented with their MDIS name. To find the equivalent information catalog names, see Data Warehouse Center Application Integration Guide, available from the Data Warehouse Center Web site at http://www.software.ibm.com/data/vw/.

/OBJTYPE

This is a required parameter.

Specifies one of the following MDIS object types that you want to export:

Database

Dimension

Subschema

Record

Element

The object type name is not case sensitive.

Example:

/MDIS_EXPORT d:\tagfile.tag /OBJTYPE record

/PASSWORD

Your password for this user ID.

Example:

/PASSWORD secret

Passwords are case-sensitive for accessing databases on the following operating systems, you must type them exactly as specified.

AIX
Windows NT and Windows 2000
Solaris Operating Environment

/TRACE

The level of trace information to send to the Information Catalog Manager trace file. Each higher level includes the functions of the levels below it (for example 3 includes the functions of levels 0, 1, 2, and 3). You might need to specify a higher level if you call IBM Software Support to diagnose the Information Catalog Manager problems.

0: The default. Level includes all messages and warning, error, and severe error conditions.
1: Includes entry and exit records of the highest level Information Catalog Manager functions.
2: Includes extremely granular entry and exit records of the Information Catalog Manager functions.
3: Includes input and output parameters (that exclude input or output structures).
4: Includes all input or output structures that are passed to and used by the Information Catalog Manager.

/USERID

Your information catalog user ID. Type the user ID required by the database where the information catalog resides. For example, the user ID might be your local, LAN, AS/400, AIX, or OS/390 TSO user ID.

Example:

/USERID longods

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