DSXchange

Hi There,

Is there any advantage having parameterset over defining user defined varibales in datastage admin? Please someone can help me on this?

Imagine having 100 jobs and having to add a parameter to each one (perhaps $APT_DUMP_SCORE or the like). With a parameter set you declare the set once and then use it in jobs, if you add a new parameter all you need to do is recompile your jobs.

Thanks for reply,

Is there any other advantges than what you said?

Yes, there are other advantages but the one I mentioned is what I feel has the most impact on development.

The ability of a Parameter Set to read its default values from different files in different environments is a good feature to have.

Primarily the benefits of Parameter Sets can be summed up in the phrases "lower maintenance" and "developer productivity".

The parameter selection box still needs improvement - i should be able to search for parameter by name ,description or select from a category of parameters , and multi select parameters and load them into a job parameter definition.. like some of those selector boxes in a few OLAP tools..

Also it would be good if i can derive an expression for a parameter value in the value box

It's a very good question! A lot comes down to those values in your parameters that need to be manually maintained and change frequently - your passwords. No other parameter values need to be manually adjusted as often. All your other parameters should be changed rarely or automatically modified (such as dates and sequences).

This leads to two questions about your passwords:
- Do both methods protect your passwords? I know that Project Specific Environment variables encrypt passwords on entry and store the encrypted value.
- Who manages passwords and what GUI do they want to use to set them? The DataStage Administrator is not a good GUI, in fact it sucks. It takes a lot of clicks just to find project specific env variables and then the list doesn't support folders so you have to scroll around to find the password fields. I used to hack the DSParams file just to add sub folders. What is the parameter set interface like? How do you change passwords and retain encryption? Is it something a support person can do more easily?

You also need some discipline around parameter sets. Project Specific keeps all parameters in one place, parameter sets could lead to duplication. You need to make sure parameters only appear in one parameter set.

Where in the documentation for version 8 do I find details about parameterset I am on version 8.0

Thanks

Desinger client guide

DSXchange Learning Center recently had a webinar on Parameter Sets. It can be viewed from the linked web site.

Thank you guys the presentation was really informative

Can you parameterize the values to take env. variables?