Defining a step that runs a user-defined program

Use the User-programs notebook to define a step that runs a program that you previously defined to the Data Warehouse Center. You use the Define Program notebook to define a program to the Data Warehouse Center.

When you define a step that runs a user-defined program, you can change the parameters values that are defined for the program. If you change the parameter values for the program, the changes affect only the instance of the program that is being used in the step. The changes do not affect the original program definition.

To permanently change the parameter values of a user-defined program, you must edit the program definition.

You must link this step to a source before before you can promote it and run it.

Authorities and privileges

To define a step that runs a user-defined program:

1. Open the step notebook.

2. Specify information for your step:

   • In the Name field, you can type a new name for the step. Otherwise, you can keep the name that the Data Warehouse Center automatically supplied for the step. This field is required.

   • In the Administrator field, type the name of the person who is responsible for the maintenance of this step. This field is optional.

   • In the Description field, type a business description for your step. This description can be a maximum of 255 characters. This field is optional.

   • In the Notes field, type detailed information that might be helpful to users who can access this step. This field is optional.

3. On the Parameters page, view or edit the parameters and the parameter values that the program uses. To edit a parameter value, double-click the Parameter value field for a parameter and type the new parameter value. If you change a parameter value, the change affects only the instance of the program that is run by this step. The original program parameter values are not changed.

4. On the Processing Options page, in the Agent Site list, select an agent site where you want your step to run. The selections in this list are agent sites that are common to the source tables, the target table, and the transformer or program that you are defining.

5. If you want to have the option to to run your step at any time, select the Run on demand checkbox. Your step must be in test or production mode before you can run it.

6. Optional: Select the Populate externally check box if the step is populated externally, meaning that it is invoked in some way other than by the Data Warehouse Center. The step does not have to have any other means of running in the Data Warehouse Center in order to change the mode to production.

   If Populate externally is not selected, then the step must either have a schedule, be linked to a transient table that is input to another step, or be started by another program in order to change the mode to production.

7. In the Retry area, specify how many times you want the step to run again if it needs to be retried and the amount of time that you want to pass before the next run of the step.

8. Click OK to save your changes and close the step notebook.

Related information

Defining a user-defined program to the Data Warehouse Center

Editing a program definition

Moving and transforming data

Population type descriptions

List of steps and step subtypes

Data Warehouse Center concepts