General tab

Use the General tab parameters to define the data to extract.

Example of the General tab on the Extract Request Editor, described as follows.

Extract File

Enter the name of a new or existing Extract File to store the extracted data. Extract Files have an .xf extension by default. If you want to write the Extract File to secondary media, specify the path to the appropriate device.

If you do not include a path with the file name, the default Data Directory that is specified in Personal Options is used. Network drives resolve to the appropriate Universal Naming Convention (UNC) name, as applicable.

You can browse the contents of an existing Extract File by right-clicking its name and selecting Browse from the shortcut menu. For more information about the Browse Utility, see the Common Elements Manual.

If you specify the name of a file that exists, a dialog prompts you to confirm that you want to overwrite the file when you run the Extract Request. To disable this feature, see Personal Options in the Common Elements Manual.

Access Definition

Local
Select this option to create an Access Definition that is stored and can be used only with the Extract Request.
Named
Select this option to specify the name of a new or existing Access Definition. A named Access Definition can be used with more than one process request. The name of an Access Definition is composed of two parts: identifier.name.
identifier
Qualifier to identify the Access Definition (1 - 8 characters).
name
Name of the Access Definition (1 - 12 characters).

An Access Definition identifies the Start Table and other tables to be traversed during the Extract, and the relationships that govern traversal paths. You can define an Access Definition to include:

When you specify the name of an existing Access Definition in the Extract Request, you can use the definition as it is, or you can edit it. If changes to database tables were made since the last time the Access Definition was used, the specifications might no longer be valid. If any specification is invalid, a warning message is displayed when you open, save, or use the Access Definition.

To edit an Access Definition, click Tools > Edit Access Definition from the Extract Request Editor to open the Access Definition Editor. For details, see the Common Elements Manual.

Items to Extract

Select the types of objects to extract.

Data
Extract data rows only.
Objects
Extract object definitions only.
Both
Extract data rows and object definitions.
Note:
  • When you select Objects or Both, you must select the types of objects to extract on the Objects tab or specify explicit objects to extract on the Object List tab, or both.
  • In Optim 11.3, if the access definition includes PostgreSQL objects, you can extract only Data rows, so you cannot select Objects or Both.

Row Limit

Maximum number of rows to extract. You can specify a row limit if you are extracting rows by selecting Data or Both. Clear the Row Limit box to use the maximum limit. The row limit for an Extract Process is any number from 1 to the maximum limit specified in Product Options. For more information, see the Installation and Configuration Guide.

Database Connections

Increase the number of concurrent database connections for the Extract Process. Increasing database connections improves performance when you process large quantities of data by allowing multiple threads to extract rows concurrently.

To increase the maximum number of connections, select an even number from 2 to the site maximum as specified on the Personal Options dialog. This option is available only if Maximum Database Connections on the Database tab of Product Options is 2 or greater.

Note:
  • For performance reasons, you can select only an even number of maximum database connections.
  • Increasing the number of database connections to process small amounts of data might decrease performance, rather than increase it.

Run Convert after Extract

Select this check box to specify parameters for running a Convert Process immediately following the Extract Process. When you select this check box, the Convert tab in the Extract Request Editor is enabled. Use the Convert tab to specify whether to use a named or local Convert Request.

The Convert Process can transform or mask data in the Extract File. To specify or modify parameters for the Convert Process, click Tools > Edit Convert Request to display the Convert Request Editor. For more information, see Open the Convert Request Editor.

Generate Statistical Report

This check box is selected by default to include statistical information in the Extract Process Report. For more information, see Statistical Information.

Note: Statistical information might indicate whether you can improve performance by overriding the default method (scan or key lookup) of accessing a table. For more information, see the Common Elements Manual.

Process File Attachments

Select this check box to extract file attachments that are specified in the Access Definition.

Compression Options

Select this box to choose options for compressing the Extract File or specific tables in the Extract File. The Compression Options dialog is displayed with the following options:

Compress Extract File
Select this check box to compress the Extract File. Next, select a Compression Model.
Compression Models
Choose the type of compression from this selection list:
Inline Compression
Data is compressed as it is extracted and before it is written to the Extract File. Inline Compression has lower I/O, when compared with Post Compression, but uses database resources during the Extract process.

Inline Compression requires less storage resources during the Extract when compared to Post Compression.

Post Compression

Data is extracted and written to an uncompressed Extract File. In a second step, Optim reads the uncompressed Extract File, and writes a compressed version of the Extract File. The benefit of Post Compression is that database connections are closed earlier with Post Compression than with Inline Compression. However, with Post Compression, the total elapsed time is increased because the uncompressed Extract File must be closed, read, and a new compressed version must be created.

Sites having concerns about database resource contention might find Post Compression useful as it shortens the time database resources are needed. However, Post Compression increases the elapsed time and storage requirements for processing the Extract Request. Although increased storage is necessary during the compression operation, that temporary storage is released when the compression is completed.

Enable Active Compression
Select this check box to do compression on an individual table basis.
Default Table Threshold
Specify the default threshold for compressing the tables in the Extract File. Choose a value for the percentage of reduction in table size that you expect compression to achieve. For example, if you specify a value of 20, Optim compresses any table in the Extract File that can be reduced in size by 20 percent or more. Allowable values are 1 - 99.
Table Threshold
Select this box to specify compression options for individual tables. The Compression Table Threshold dialog displays:
Example of the Compression Table Threshold dialog, described as follows.
Threshold
For each table, specify ON or OFF for compression or specify a value for Optim to use as the compression threshold. If no value is specified for a table, the default is to set compression to ON and use the Default Table Threshold. You can specify the following values:
ON
Sets compression to ON for this table, which is the default value. The Default Table Threshold value is used to determine whether compression is done. If no value is specified for Default Table Threshold, the table is compressed, which is the default.
OFF
Sets compression to OFF for this table.
n
Sets compression to ON for this table and uses this value as the threshold. Allowable values are 1 - 99. The threshold value is the minimum amount of reduction in size that you expect to achieve by compressing the table. Enter a value in the range 1 - 99 to set a threshold value for that table.

Right-click on the line next to the table name to display these options:

Clear
Clears any Threshold column setting for this table. Use Clear All to clear Threshold column settings for all tables in this Extract File.
Compression Off
Turns off compression for this table. Use Compression Off All to turn off compression for all tables in this Extract File. Selecting Compress Off All overrides any value in the Threshold column.
Compression On
Turns on compression for this table. If Default Table Threshold is specified, that value determines whether to compress the table. If no Default Table Threshold is specified, the table is compressed. Use Compression On All to turn on compression for all tables in this Extract File. Selecting Compression On All overrides any value in the Threshold column.


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