By PenchalaRaju.

Yanamala

Version 8.1.1 New Features and Enhancements

This section describes new features and enhancements in Power Center 8.1.1:

• Code Pages
• Command Line Programs
• Data Analyzer (PowerAnalyzer)
• Data Profiling
• Data Stencil (Visio Client for PowerCenter)
• Domains
• Integration Service
• Metadata Manager (SuperGlue)
• Repository and Repository Service
• Transformations and Caches
• Unstructured Data
• Web Services Provider
• Workflow Monitor
• XML
• PowerCenter Connects
• PowerExchange Client for PowerCenter

You can find information about newly supported platforms and databases on
my.informatica.com.

Code Pages

PowerCenter 8.1.1 supports the following code pages:

IBM833
IBM 834
IBM850
IBM933

Command Line Programs

infacmd Changes

The infacmd command line programs contain new commands in the following
groups:

Alert. Added commands for the following actions: subscribe to, remove from, list
or update SMTP options, and list alert users.
Domain. Added commands related to service levels and domain options.
Folder. Added commands for the following actions: create, get info about, list,
move, move objects between, remove, and update.
Node. Added commands for the following actions: get node name, list node
options, and switch to gateway or worker node.
Service. Added commands for the following actions: list nodes assigned to
service, list services, and create or update SAP BW Service.
User. Added commands for the following actions: add, create, remove users, or
reset password.

infasetup Changes

The infasetup command line program contains a DeleteDomain command.

pmrep Changes

The pmrep command line program contains new commands to manage

connections and versions. New commands are GetConnectionDetails,
ListConnections, PurgeVersion, and DeleteObject. Changed commands include
ObjectExport, ObjectImport, UpdateSeqGenValues, ListAllUsers, and
TruncateLog.

Data Analyzer (PowerAnalyzer)

Data Analyzer accessibility. You can use the keyboard to access all areas of
Data Analyzer.
Global cache enhancements. Data Analyzer creates a global cache in
memory for repository objects accessed by Data Analyzer users. The global
cache uses a locking scheme to prevent deadlocks from occurring. In a
clustered environment, Data Analyzer replicates the global cache across all
nodes in the cluster when you modify an object on one node. You can manage
the size of the global cache by configuring the eviction policy.
Composite reports. You can use the Data Analyzer SDK to access composite
reports from your client application.
Cluster on JBoss Application Server. You can set up a Data Analyzer cluster
on JBoss Application Server.

Data Profiling

Partitioning. You can create multiple partitions for profile sessions containing
source-level and column-level functions.
Data Profiling Data Analyzer reports. You can view the Join Complexity
Evaluation and Intersource Structure Analysis Data Profiling reports through
Data Analyzer. You can use the new Data Analyzer Intersource Function
Statistics composite report and Intersource Function Metadata report to view
profile statistics for intersource functions.

Data Stencil (Visio Client for PowerCenter)

Name change. Visio Client for PowerCenter is renamed Data Stencil.

Publish template. After you create a drawing in Visio (.vsd) you can publish it.
When you publish a template, you generate a parameter file (param.xml) and a
mapping template file (.xml). You can create a mapping from the published
template.
Import mapping template. After you publish a template, you can import and
define parameters for Data Stencil mapping templates. You can create a
mapping from the mapping template using the command line utility mapgen or
the Mapping Template Import Wizard.
Domains

Alerts

Subscribe to alerts. You can subscribe to alerts to receive email notification

about node events such as node failure or a master gateway election. When
you subscribe to alerts, you receive notifications for all domains and services
you have permission on.

Users

Set permissions by user. You can view and edit permissions and privileges for
each user on the Administration tab. You can assign multiple permissions to a
user when you add a user account or edit the permissions.
Status added to each log event. The User Activity Monitoring report shows the
status of each log event. The report indicates whether each log event
succeeded or failed.

High Availability

Resilience for sources and Lookup transformations. The Integration Service

is resilient to temporary network failures or relational database unavailability
when the Integration Service retrieves data from a database for sources and
Lookup transformations. If the Integration Service loses the connection after
making the initial connection, it attempts to reconnect for the amount of time
configured for the retry period in the connection object.
Operating mode. You can run the Integration Service in safe mode to limit
access to the Integration Service during deployment or maintenance. You can
enable the Integration Service in safe mode and you can configure the
Integration Service to run in safe mode on failover.

Integration Service

Email Task

Email recipients. You can send email to any valid email address. On Windows,
the mail recipient does not have to have an entry in the Global Address book of
the Microsoft Outlook profile.

Load Balancer

You can configure the way the Load Balancer dispatches tasks by defining the
following properties:

Resource provision thresholds. You can configure resource provision

thresholds for each node in a grid to cause the Load Balancer to consider or
eliminate a node for the dispatch of a task. You can define the Maximum CPU
Run Queue Length and Maximum Memory % thresholds in addition to Maximum
Processes.
Dispatch mode. You can configure the way the Load Balancer dispatches
tasks by setting the dispatch mode for the domain. You can choose round-robin,
 metric-based, or adaptive dispatch mode.
Service levels. The Load Balancer uses service levels to determine the order in
which to dispatch tasks from the dispatch queue. You create service levels in
the Administration Console. When you configure a workflow, you assign a
service level to the workflow.

Operating Mode

Normal and safe operating mode. You can run the Integration Service in
normal or safe operating mode. Run the Integration Service in safe operating
mode to limit access to the Integration Service during migration and
maintenance activities. You configure the operating mode in the Administration
Console.

Parameters and Variables

New sections in parameter

files. You can define service
variables, service process
variables, workflow
variables, session
parameters, mapping
parameters, and mapping
variables in the following
sections in a parameter file:
Section Scope
[Global] Parameters and variables
defined in this section apply
to all Integration Services
and Integration Service
processes in the domain,
plus all workflows, worklets,
and sessions.
[Service:Integration_Service_name] Parameters and variables
defined in this section apply
to the named Integration
Service, plus all workflows,
worklets, and sessions the
service runs.
[Service:Integration_Service_name.ND:node_name] Parameters and variables
defined in this section apply
to the Integration Service
that runs on the named
node (the Integration
Service process), plus all
workflows, worklets, and
sessions the service
process runs.
The parameters and variables you define in these sections apply when you run a
workflow or session that uses the parameter file.
 Defining session parameters. You can define session parameters in the
workflow section of a parameter file. If you do this, the parameters apply to all
sessions in the workflow as long as you do not override the values in the
session section.
Expanded support for parameters and variables. You can use parameters
and variables in the following input fields in the Designer and Workflow
Manager:
Field Valid Parameter and Variable Types
Table owner name for relational sources All
Table name prefix for relational targets All
FTP file name and directory All
Lookup cache file name prefix All
Email task (user name, subject, and text) Service service process, workflow, and
worklet variables
Suspension email (user name, subject, and Service service process, workflow, and
text) worklet variables
Post-session email (user name, subject, All
and text)
Connection and transaction environment All
SQL
Source and target pre- and post-session All
SQL commands
Pre- and post-session shell commands All
Call text for an unconnected Stored All
Procedure transformation
Target update overrides All
Table name prefix for relational error logs All
Command tasks Service service process, workflow, and
worklet variables
Workflow log file names Service service process, workflow, and
worklet variables
Workflow variables in sessions. You can use user-defined workflow variables
in sessions. If you do this, the Integration Service treats them as parameters.
Therefore, the values do not change when the session runs.

Performance

Pushdown optimization. You can push transformation logic to the source or

target database when the Lookup transformation contains a lookup override. To
perform source-side, target-side, or full pushdown optimization for a session
containing lookup overrides, configure the session for pushdown optimization
and select a pushdown option that allows you to create views. You can also use
full pushdown optimization when you use the target loading option to treat
source rows as delete.
Sorter transformation. The Sorter transformation has been enhanced to use a
more compact format which will significantly reduce the temporary disk space
necessary to sort large a data set that does not fit into in-memory sort. In
addition, the sort algorithm is improved to significantly reduce sort time.
Session Parameters

General session parameter. You can parameterize general session properties

such as table owner name, table name prefix, FTP file name and directory,
Lookup cache file name prefix, and email addresses using the general session
parameter “$ParamName.”

Targets

Generate flat file targets by transaction. You can generate a separate flat file
target each time the Integration Service starts a new transaction. You can
dynamically name each file. To generate a separate output file for each
transaction, you add a FileName port to the flat file target definition. When you
connect the FileName port in the mapping, the Integration Service writes a
target file at each commit. The Integration Service uses the FileName port value
to name the output file. You can generate output files from source-based or
user-defined commits.

Metadata Manager (SuperGlue)

Administration

Authentication. You can use LDAP for Metadata Manager on JBoss

Application Server, WebLogic Application Server, or WebSphere Application
Server.
Clustering. You can use clusters for the Metadata Manager application on
JBoss Application Server, WebLogic Application Server, or WebSphere
Application Server. You use clusters to distribute the Metadata Manager
application load across multiple machines. Clustering may increase
performance when the application has a large number of concurrent users.
Secure Sockets Layer (SSL). You can configure Metadata Manager to use the
SSL protocol to provide a secure and authentic connection between the
Metadata Manager server and a web browser client.

Installation

Sybase ASE. You can install the Metadata Manager Warehouse and
PowerCenter repository for Metadata Manager on Sybase ASE.

Utilities

EAR Repackager utility. The EAR Repackager utility extracts files from and
repackages customized files to the Metadata Manager EAR file. You may need
to customize files in the Metadata Manager EAR file to customize the Metadata
Manager images, color schemes, style sheets, or configuration files.
License Update utility. The License Update utility updates the Metadata
Manager license. You may need to update an existing license with a new
license key to extend the expiration date.
Repository Backup utility. The Repository Backup utility backs up and
recovers a Metadata Manager repository.
Update System Accounts utility. The Update System Accounts utility modifies
the user name and password for the Metadata Manager system administrator
and system daemon.

XConnects

Business Objects XConnect. The Business Objects XConnect extracts

metadata from Business Objects XI.
PowerCenter XConnect. You can configure the PowerCenter XConnect to
capture information about flat file sources, lookups, and targets that are
specified in parameters files. You can view the flat files in data lineage and
where-used analysis.

Repository and Repository Service

Cancel auto-reconnect. In the Designer, Workflow Manager, and Repository

Manager, you can temporarily disable PowerCenter Client resilience to prevent
the client from attempting to reestablish a repository connection during the
resilience timeout period. You cancel automatic reconnection if you do not want
to wait for the 180-second resilience timeout period to expire.
Purge object versions. You can purge object versions from the repository or
folder. You can purge versions of all deleted objects or objects deleted before a
specified end time. You can also purge specified versions of active objects
based on a cutoff time. You specify the versions by designating the number of
checked-in versions to keep, by setting a purge cutoff time, or both. You can
preview the purge results to verify that the purge criteria produce the expected
results. You can also save the purge results to an output file.

Security

IBM DB2 client authentication. You can use IBM DB2 client authentication to
authenticate database users. IBM DB2 client authentication lets you log in to an
IBM DB2 database without specifying a database user name or password if the
IBM DB2 server is configured for external authentication or if the IBM DB2
server is on the same machine hosting the Integration Service process.
PowerCenter uses IBM DB2 client authentication when the connection user
name is PmNullUser and the connection is for an IBM DB2 database.

Transformations and Caches

HTTP transformation. You can connect to an HTTP server to use its services
and applications. When you run a session with an HTTP transformation, the
Integration Service connects to the HTTP server and issues a request to
retrieve data from or update data on the HTTP server, depending on how you
configure the transformation.
SQL transformation. You can process ANSI SQL queries midstream in a
pipeline. You can insert, delete, update, and retrieve rows from a database.
When you create an SQL transformation, you configure it to run in script mode
or query mode. Script mode allows you to run scripts that are external to the
transformation. Query mode allows you to run queries that you define in the
transformation. You can use an existing database connection or you can pass
database connection information to the SQL transformation as input data at run
 time.
Configure caches. When you configure caches sizes, you can use a cache
calculator to estimate the amount of memory required to process the
transformation. Based on the type of mapping object, you provide information
such as the number of groups, the number of source rows, or the number of
ranks.

Unstructured Data

Unstructured Data transformation. You can run the Unstructured Data

transformation on a 64-bit Integration Service on HP-UX (Itanium) and Solaris.

Web Services Provider

Stateful services. All services hosted by the Web Services Hub are now
stateful services. This state is the same state as in version 7.1.4. Stateful
operations available in version 7.1.4 are also available in version 8.1.1. A client
application must call the Login operation to access the repository before it calls
other web service operations.
Advanced properties. On the Administration Console, two additional advanced
properties are available for the Web Services Hub:
-SessionExpiryPeriod. The number of seconds that a session can remain idle
before the session times out and the session ID becomes invalid.
-MaxLMConnections. The maximum number of connections to the Integration
Service that can be open at one time for the Web Services Hub.
Web Services Hub URL. The URL for the Web Services Hub can use the
context name PowerCenter or wsh:

http://<hostname>:<portnum>/PowerCenter

http://<hostname>:<portnum>/wsh

Workflow Monitor

View binary log files. You can view existing binary log files for sessions and
workflows in the Log Events window.

XML

XML foreign key column names. You can configure the Designer to prefix
generated foreign key columns with the name of the XML view and the name of
the primary key column.

PowerCenter Connects

PowerCenter Connect for IBM MQSeries

Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) protocol. You can configure IBM MQSeries to
use the SSL protocol to provide a reliable end-to-end secure and authentic
connection between the Integration Service and MQSeries.
PowerCenter Connect for JMS

Durable subscriptions. PowerCenter Connect for JMS uses durable

subscriptions to enable a JMS subscriber receive messages, even if the
subscriber is inactive. Using durable subscriptions, the Integration Service
retains the messages that are published when the subscriber is not active and
delivers the messages after the subscriber becomes active again.
Secure Sockets Layer (SSL). PowerCenter Connect for JMS uses SSL to
encrypt information and authenticate data. SSL creates a secure connection
between a client and a server, over which data is transmitted securely. When
you configure PowerCenter Connect for JMS, add the SSL properties to the
jndi.properties file. The SSL properties are specific to JMS providers. You need
to add the SSL properties to the jndi.properties file and copy it to the Integration
Service source files directory.

PowerCenter Connect for Salesforce.com

HTTP proxy server support. PowerCenter Connect for Salesforce.com

supports HTTP proxy server authentication. You can create a pmsfdc.ini file to
configure the PowerCenter Client to connect to Salesforce using an HTTP proxy
server. Similarly, you can configure the Integration Service to connect to
Salesforce using an HTTP proxy server during a session.

PowerCenter Connect for SAP NetWeaver BW Option

Certification. PowerCenter Connect for SAP NetWeaver BW Option is certified

with SAP BW 7.0.

PowerCenter Connect for SAP NetWeaver mySAP Option

Certification. PowerCenter Connect for SAP NetWeaver mySAP Option is

certified with SAP ECC 6.0.

PowerCenter Connect for TIBCO

64-bit support. You can read messages from a TIB/Rendezvous source or

write messages to TIB/Rendezvous when the Integration Service runs on 64-bit
Solaris.
Secure connections.You can read and write TIB/Rendezvous messages using
a secure daemon. TIB/Rendezvous uses SSL to read and write
TIB/Rendezvous messages. You must configure the secure daemon if clients in
your network use SSL to connect to the secure daemon. TIB/Rendezvous
supports the following modes of communication through its Rendezvous
daemons:
-
Non-secure TCP connections
-SSL connections, allowing secure client communication over non-secure
networks
Each secure daemon instance authorizes a set of trusted users. The secure
daemon allows a client transport to connect if the client presents valid
identification as an authorized user.
PowerCenter Connect for Web Services

WSDL parsing. When you import a web service source or target definition, you
can prefix the XML view name to every foreign key column. Prefixing the XML
view name to foreign key columns prevents foreign key conflicts. You can
generate a foreign key with the format
FK_<nameOfChildView>_<nameOfPKView_nameOfPKColumn>. The foreign
key naming convention is applicable as long as the generated name is less than
80 characters long.

PowerExchange Client for PowerCenter

Target support. You can write to ADABAS databases, sequential files, and
VSAM datasets.
Restart token file. You can automatically keep numerous versions of the
Restart token file by specifying the number to keep in the new CHANGE
CAPTURE connection attribute Number of Runs to Keep Restart Token File.
Restart token file directory. You no longer need to pre-allocate the Restart
token file directory. There is a new default of $PMRootDir/Restart in the
CHANGE CAPTURE connection attribute “Restart Token File Folder” which will
be automatically created if it does not exist.
Real-time extraction. You can stop real-time extraction at the end of the
current log data by setting the idle time to 0 in the CHANGE CAPTURE
connection object.