Difference between UniVerse & XMETA

mavrick21 · Post by **mavrick21** » Fri Oct 09, 2009 4:59 pm

Hello,

Can anyone please point out the differences between UniVerse database and XMETA? What do they contain and how they are related to each other? Is there DataStage documentation for both?

Thanks for your time.

eostic · Post by **eostic** » Sat Oct 10, 2009 9:37 am

If we're referring to their content, they represent the underlying datastore for DataStage metadata, run time information, table definitions, etc. etc. etc. etc..... XMETA is the 8.x implementation, which uses a hybrid, as there are some functions that were better kept in the pre-8.x storage model. In 8.x the metadata picture is far more vast, including not only DataStage/QualityStage, but Information Analyzer, Business Glossary, FastTrack, Metadata Workbench, and more. There is no formal documentation on either, as they can be changed and altered at any time. There are myriad of ways to get metadata out thru formal APIs, etc. and custom activities for access, while frowned upon, will work, provided one understands the risk that the structures might change, go away, or not be valid for the purpose they might be using them for....think of XMETA and its predecessor as a "black box" for metadata that makes the tooling "go"....as with any such complex tool, they may as well be sequential files out on disk managed entirely by the Information Server infrastructure.

Ernie

ray.wurlod · Post by **ray.wurlod** » Sat Oct 10, 2009 3:59 pm

UniVerse is a database product (as is DB2, as is Oracle and so on). Until recently UniVerse was owned by IBM, though they've now sold it. UniVerse was the original engine and metadata store for DataStage.

Version 8.0 of DataStage introduced the unified (for all products in the Information Server suite) metadata repostiory. This is stored in a DB2, Oracle or SQL Server database, the default instance name for which is XMETA. That is, XMETA is not a database product name.

Oritech · Post by **Oritech** » Sat Oct 10, 2009 7:44 pm

Ray,

Bit confused,you mean to say in new IS-8.x,UniVerse has become irrelevant/no more utilized?

then why still all the project are created/entered as UV.Account & UV.Schemas etc in UniVerse

chulett · Post by **chulett** » Sat Oct 10, 2009 7:58 pm

Oritech wrote:Bit confused,you mean to say in new IS-8.x,UniVerse has become irrelevant/no more utilized?

He's not saying that at all. 8.x leverages both.

mavrick21 · Post by **mavrick21** » Sat Oct 10, 2009 8:21 pm

Thanks Craig & Ray.

If there is no IBM documentation for UniVerse then how do I learn more about it?

Thanks

chulett · Post by **chulett** » Sat Oct 10, 2009 8:25 pm

Search for 'Rocket Software' here, they own the software now and the first post that comes up should contain a link to the manuals.