DSXchange

I need to extract data from some SalesForce.com objects. Since we do not have a license for SalesForce.com pack, is there any way i can use Web Services pack [preferred] or Java Pack to do that ?
The only alternative i have otherwise is to have somebody write this as XML data to an XMLTYPE or CLOB column in an Oracle database.

If somebody has encountered this issue before let me know if there is any other way of dealing with it.

Upgrade to DataStage 11.5. The SalesForce.com pack is included for free.

I'm going to go out on a limb here and guess they meant in their current version.

Isn't the SalesForce API... published?

As the connectivity is included in 11.5 at no additional charge, it is good to be aware the option is available. At least make the management aware it's yet another reason to upgrade.

For the most part, the SalesForce.com pack is mainly just a lot of pre-created schemas that define the various structures returned by particular calls into SalesForce.com.

So since the SalesForce.com schemas are publicly defined, you can use the Information Services Director and write your own interface to pull data. However the ISD product is also chargeable, and most sites do not own it. You should have your license checked prior to using it, as it can easily be installed accidentally, which will lead to a hefty bill from the IBM auditors.

And though I haven't done it, you could use the Java Integration stage as well. You'd need a java developer to modify the example interfaces to SalesForce.com and then pass the data back to DataStage. However, that solution is all "free". There are several interfaces available depending on data volumes:

https://developer.salesforce.com/docs/a ... _intro.htm

Side note: SalesForce.com has "busy" periods where it is hard to establish or maintain a connection since they are getting hammered by all their clients. I would suggest taking this into account in your designs (ie: sleep / retry connections several times before aborting, etc).