May 11, 2009 at 2:03 pm
I'm being pushed off the DTS pier into the SSIS 2008 ocean. Can anyone recommend a good book for someone learning SSIS 2008 when all they've ever used is DTS?
And while I'm asking, any recommended web sites? I've looked at http://www.sqlis.com/, and that seems helpful for specific tasks, but not so much a 'getting started with basic tasks' approach.
Thanks,
Mattie
May 11, 2009 at 2:58 pm
I fell into SSIS from DTS and was researching, reading and generally becoming frustrated. Then I found out how to do it! Simply go to the database engine and right click on a database and select TASKS/Import or Export. Select a table and move it or import it from a file, whatever. What you are trying to do is generate an SSIS package automatically. Then after the package is saved (you have to select that option as in DTS) open Visual Studio 2005. Start or open an Integration Services project. Right click on SSIS packages in the Solution Explorer and choose to add an existing package. This will open a window where you select the server you saved the SSIS package you just generated and it will place it in the list of packages under SSIS packages in Solution Explorer. Double click on that entry and you will see the completed package. What you have in front of you is the SSIS version of the DTS Transform task. As in DTS, you just have to drag any of the many tools onto the work space and open them up to modify them to your need. There are ActiveX scripts (which if you are on SQL 2008 will not exist - use Script instead. It will be in VB.NET, but the transition from ActiveX is easy - just some syntax changes - but you can use FSO, ADO and most other features of ActiveX.) , SQL command, etc. etc.
Once you get over the fear of SSIS, it will become your best friend just like DTS was. Trust me I came into this job 11 months ago with zero experience with all of this. One other thing that you might try which is the "hot setup" is SSRS. Once you successfully setup a report, that will become your second best friend in this environment.
Good luck!
May 11, 2009 at 3:15 pm
Start with the samples and use BOL and you should know if you need to connect to Oracle and Teradata there is a new connector from Microsoft partners. The DTS features comes with SQL Server Standard and Enterprise. The above is very good start but the samples comes with some options. One more thing if your packages are automated permissions have changed.
http://www.codeplex.com/SqlServerSamples#ssis
Kind regards,
Gift Peddie
May 14, 2009 at 6:46 am
Obviously there's not a lot of enthusiasm for writing competing SSIS training books. Thanks for these suggestions. I'll just have to remember that I wasn't born knowing DTS either.
Mattie
May 14, 2009 at 7:07 am
I can highly rate these 2:
both refer to 2005 but a lot of the principles are the same
I wouldn't recommend using the import/export data tasks to generate SSIS for you to learn from. From my own experience what they generate is rubbish!
May 15, 2009 at 8:48 am
May 15, 2009 at 9:19 am
I guess I'm just too impatient. I can't take the time to go through a 500 page book, even the first 200 pages, just to learn how to do something. Learning through example is the most efficient form of education. I've learned SSRS, SSIS, VB.Net, ASP.net, ASP, JScript, RPG, COBOL, Fortran, Assembler, and any number of other languages/tools through example. The examples just get you started and over the concept phase of the learning process. I've spent thousands of dollars on books and yet have to have one actually teach me from scratch how to do anything. In school they have to have professors to show students how things are done in classes like logic and math before turning them loose with books. I can't even imagine how someone could get started in formal logic without someone helping them understand the concepts. Programming is much the same.
But to each his own without disparaging others.
May 15, 2009 at 9:27 am
I have read several (including some mentioned here) but I cannot say that I was very pleased with any of them. They all seem very spotty in their coverage and very long on exposition, rumination and screen-shots of questionable value but short on well organized comprehensive instructional reference material.
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May 18, 2009 at 7:36 am
Each to their own I guess
Personally I prefer the step by step hand holding, repetition and over description that the books give. It's very rare to find an online resouce that does that well
After a few chapters, when all the basics have been covered I usually then revert to trying to build something big and learning by error
May 18, 2009 at 9:22 am
I have read several (including some mentioned here) but I cannot say that I was very pleased with any of them. They all seem very spotty in their coverage and very long on exposition, rumination and screen-shots of questionable value but short on well organized comprehensive instructional reference material.
My exact sentiments, the problem with buying SSIS books if your needs are ETL with other RDBMS you quickly run into Oracle x64 problems and IBM driver and automation permissions problems which are not documented because the original Microsoft employees who created SSIS wants SSIS to do Admin tasks and intra SQL Server data transfer.
That is one of the most wasteful use of a tool that is much better than DTS to be relegated to SQL Server admin. I see it as a platform agnostic data automation service that can connect to any data source to move data to SQL Server for persistence. Then there is the IBM EBCDIC code pages which may appear to require third party tools but some EBCDIC code pages are defined so why give money to leeches? If a book will cover all of the above I may buy it but I am not hopeful. I think Microsoft needs to cleanly separate it to SSIS Admin and SSIS ETL.
Kind regards,
Gift Peddie
May 18, 2009 at 9:29 am
My fellow team members and I have been quite happy with the WROX SSIS books.
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