TM Flexible Deployment in any Architecture:
Transforms can be built automatically, as Java transform components, or as XML transform statements to be run in a fixed Java or .NET run-time. A test tool is included to enable rapid testing and iterative development of transforms, and a debugger analyses transform statements as they run. A deployment tool is soon to be released which will allow non-Java users to easily deploy transforms.
TM provides such flexibility that the transforms can easily fit into clients architectures (see Figure 3) whether, for example, deployed as a single bulk load of a data warehouse or acting as a near real-time transform as part of a messaging system.
Figure 4 below shows the three main stages for building transforms with Transformation Manager. A group adapter allows transforms to be created from a variety of source and target instances. As transforms are being developed, the Test Tool can be run immediately to verify results and if transforms are not fully understood, a Debugger can be used to set breakpoints and step through transforms as they execute. A variety of options are provided to deploy the transforms. Java code components can be easily integrated into a client architecture,although the XML transforms running in a fixed run-time can provide an easier deployment solution with very little overhead at run-time. Fixed run-times are provided for Java and .NET architectures.
Using a high-level tool such as Transformation Manager, which is specifically designed to build transform components, can dramatically reduce both the time and skills required to create and maintain a solution. Indeed, the majority of the lower-level detail can be generated automatically from knowledge of source and target data. Such automatic generation is not only much quicker than using a team of programmers, but avoids the costly human errors that are often hidden in low-level implementation details.
