ETL+ Concepts & Definitions

API (Application Programming Interface). Interfaces between software systems that enable them to send and receive data and commands.

The commands sent to the Windows Command Prompt are commonly referred to as "Command-line commands.", "Command Prompt commands", or “CMD commands”.

Configuring ETL+ describes modifying/adjusting ETL+ settings, options, preferences or parameters. Configuration settings allow users to tailor ETL+ to specific users needs or preferences.

Data access layer and data access technology are generic terms for software that is used to read or write data. Examples include ODBC.

From some online sources In the context of ETL (Extract, Transform, Load) systems, "source container," "data store," and "data source" are all related terms, but with slightly different meanings. A "source container" refers to the specific storage location or repository that holds the data to be extracted for processing in an ETL system. This could include various types of storage systems such as databases, files, cloud storage, or other structured or unstructured data sources. A "data store," on the other hand, is a more general term that refers to any system or technology that is designed to store and manage data, including both the source and target containers in the ETL process. A data store can include databases, data warehouses, data lakes, cloud storage, or other storage solutions. Finally, a "data source" is any external system, application, or service that provides data to an ETL system, including source containers. A data source could include APIs, web services, streaming platforms, or any other system that can provide data to an ETL system. In summary, while "source container" and "data store" are related terms that specifically refer to the location of data in the ETL process, "data source" is a broader term that refers to any system that provides data to an ETL system, including both source containers and other external data sources.

A data warehouse is a centralized data store for structured business data used to generate reports and conduct analysis. Data warehouse modeling is the process of designing and structuring data within a data warehouse to support effective business intelligence, decision-making, and complex queries.

See ETL+ Data Source List: 500,000+for a comprehensive list. In the context of ETL+, the term refers to various types of connections to data stores (files or data bases) or source systems supported by ETL+. The term Source systems (ERP, CRM and other business systems or databases and ETL+ Source Drivers.

ETL is an acronym for Extract, Transform, Load. Definition and conceptual description of ETL.

A fundamental object or concept in ETL+. Encompasses the objects/things/elements seen on ETL+ sessions and logs such as ETL+ Extract, Transform and Load (ETL) page, ETL+ Job, and ETL+ Settings pages. Identified by Entity ID on the Client Information page.

Keyboard Shortcuts involve pressing specific keys or key combinations to select buttons on the ETL+ user interface.

ETL+ uses the term Objects in the Source Objects and Target Objects panels to refer to connections to data sources and data warehouses, databases, tables or files, columns/fields, and data warehouses.

API Endpoints are URLs where a web service or API receives requests. DataSelf employs endpoints for the SQL Extractor API and Tableau Extractor API.

The term mapping or mappings in ETL and data processing is a useful but generic term. However, It’s often not clear what is mapped to what.

Pre-built, also known as OOTB (out-of-the-box), pre-mapped, or preconfigured templates that configure the DataSelf solution to work with ERP, CRM and other business systems.

On-premises means hosting the software on one's own hardware or on hardware that you control such as a server on a data center or cloud service. The short form is: on-prem. In DataSelf documentation cloud generally refers to software hosted on cloud server managed by DataSelf.

Exploration of different types, concepts and meanings about “keys”. Discussion includes primary keys, unique keys, the Key+ column on the Design page and more.

A public IP (Internet Protocol) address is a unique identifier that is visible to the internet. Also definition of static vs. dynamic IPs.

Values that increase in a sequential and incremental manner. Sequentially incremented values are commonly used to assign unique identifiers to records in database tables. These values are typically integers that automatically increase in value by one with each new record added.

Source Container – also known as a Source System – refers to a specific data source repository such as a database management system (DBMS). For ETL+ Source System is generally the preferred term.

Source drivers are modules in ETL+ that 1) connect to and extract data from data sources and 2) create and maintain ETL+ Source Objects which identify named data source connections within ETL+. See also ETL+ Source Drivers.

A data source such as a ERP, CRM system or other business system. For ETL+ all source systems have data sources, but not all data sources are source systems. Source system, Source Type and data source are related concepts. Often used interchangeably with data source. System in source system refers to the database centric business software/business application that maintains the data in the data source / source database.

The objects in the Target Objects panel are, in hierarchical order, target objects (databases / data warehouses), target tables and finally, target columns. Columns are also less formally known as “fields”.

User guide page for the special use zData Warehouse and zData Warehouse (Reimport) source and target objects. zData Warehouse is a unique data source in the administered by ETL+ for two primary purposes. First to lookup and retrieve data in static reference tables. Second in order to allow re-importing data from existing target tables in the data warehouse for further transformations.