Version Control

Rana Kassel · Post by **Rana Kassel** » Tue Apr 20, 2004 2:55 pm

Any recommendations on using Version Control vs using a product like CVS?

We are running DataStage on UNIX - how does Version Control (on a Windows Server) get managed by Version Control?

Thanks,
Rana Kassel

ray.wurlod · Post by **ray.wurlod** » Tue Apr 20, 2004 4:28 pm

Welcome aboard! :D

The best way to think of Version Control is as the "fifth DataStage client". Version Control actually uses a dedicated project on the DataStage server for storing versioned DataStage objects; they are not stored on the client machine where the Version Control client is installed.

Version Control uses the same connection dialog as the Designer, Manager and Director clients. Initially you connect to the dedicated project. Once you need to move DataStage objects into or out of another project, irrespective of where that project is, you must authenticate to that other project using the standard connection dialog.

chulett · Post by **chulett** » Tue Apr 20, 2004 8:20 pm

In addition to what Ray said:

Version Control uses dedicated Projects to store versions of jobs and to control promotion of these versions between your 'regular' projects. New to the 7.x version is the ability to easily support multiple VERSION projects, typically in support of different Subject Areas.

It doesn't store deltas like a CVS or SCCS would, but instead stores complete versions of jobs in the VERSION project. But like a SCCS, it allows you to maintain multiple versions of a job in the pipeline and to easily roll-back to an older version. Promotions out to Test and Production can be set to be Read Only so that changes can only be made in Dev, but Design Time information is available outside of your development project. That kind of thing isn't easy to manage with an external tool like CVS unless you invest alot of time into developing code to help automate the process.

Athorne · Post by **Athorne** » Thu May 13, 2004 12:48 pm

I have not been able to find much documentation on Version Control. Does anyone know where I can find some documentation that explains a bit more of the function and methodology of using "Version Control".

chulett · Post by **chulett** » Thu May 13, 2004 1:00 pm

You've probably found what there is - a VersionControl.pdf that covers all of the basics. There's also online help from inside the tool itself, but I think it prety much regurgitates what's in the pdf.

If you have some specific questions that don't seem to be covered there, fire away.

Athorne · Post by **Athorne** » Thu May 13, 2004 2:02 pm

Actually I don't have the VersionControl.pdf. Our DataStage Software is licensed and distributed to us through PeopleSoft. ::cringes:: The distribution they gave to us was a ZIP file of the software but no VersionControl.pdf is anywhere to be found. On a related note, I'm sure this forum will be overrun in the next year with some hopeful newbies such as myself, seeking knowledge to this newly acquired software direction for PeopleSoft and it's Data Warehouse suite.

Athorne · Post by **Athorne** » Thu May 13, 2004 2:06 pm

Oops my bad, I was looking at the delivered pdf documents. I found the versioncontrol.pdf on the workstation. Must have been put out as part of the install for versioncontrol.

vmcburney · Post by **vmcburney** » Thu May 13, 2004 6:45 pm

It's good to hear from someone using the PeopleSoft version. As I understand it PeopleSoft give you a full working version of DataStage licensed for a single server with up to two CPUs. Do you have the ability to run seperate development and production servers or are you limited to a single license?

One thing Version Control is especially useful for is the promotion of components from development to other projects such testing and production as read only.

Athorne · Post by **Athorne** » Fri May 14, 2004 7:39 am

The licensing agreement with PeopleSoft allows you to install on as many boxes as you want up to 16 cpu's per box. Actually I don't know if that is how it was intended to work, but you could go that route if you wanted. Anything over 16 cpu's and you have to go through PeopleSoft to purchase more licenses. The user count is limited to 25 and more licenses must be purchased from PeopleSoft if needed. Hope that helps answer your question.

ray.wurlod · Post by **ray.wurlod** » Fri May 14, 2004 4:17 pm

PeopleSoft DataStage installation will also be including lots of "maps" (transforms and/or routines) that mimic what they used to have on Informatica, and a number of canned DataStage jobs for accessing the PeopleSoft application.
These canned jobs make use of two custom plug in stages (one for DA, the other for hierarchy), and use of the new (at 7.1) Dynamic Relational stage, which can connect to the usual database types (Oracle, Sybase, etc) using the appropriate native API - the database type is a property of the stage, and can be parameterized.