This feature is used to develop ETL definitions.

Navigate to the ETL > Definitions.

The ETL Definitions page displays a list of existing definitions, as shown in the image below.  

Create Definition.

Select Actions > Create on the ETL Definitions page. 

A pop-up window appears for configuration. Enter a new name for the definition. Select the checkbox for the designer canvas. Click the “Create” button.

The definition is displayed on the new page, with an empty designer canvas in the center, a tool menu on the left, and statistics on the right. 

Drag and drop ETL steps to create a definition. By design, the definition should start with an input file, followed by one or more transformation steps, and end with an output step, as shown below. Connect the steps in order, starting with the input step and moving through the other steps to the output step. 

Click the CSV Input File step to configure its “Required” properties. Enter a step name. Enter the input file path on the application server. Select the data schema from the drop-down list. Click the “Save” button.

Click the transformation step to configure its “Required” properties. Provide a step name. Click the button to access additional configuration. A pop-up window appears. Click the Add Row (+) button to insert an empty row. Provide references for the “In and Out” columns. Here, the “IN” column from the input file is mapped to the “OUT” column defined in the schema file. Click the “Save” button to confirm. Add more items to the list as needed. 

Click the CSV Output File step to configure its “Required” properties. Enter a step name. Enter the output file path on the application server. Click the “Save” button. Your ETL definition is now ready for execution. 

Design Definition.

This function modifies the ETL definition.

Select Actions > Design on the ETL Definitions page. 

The definition is displayed on a new page and locked for other users. 

The following pop-up window appears when a definition is locked by other users. Select the “Render” button to view the definition in read-only mode. 

Select the “Save” button to confirm changes to the definition. A confirmation message appears in the top-right corner, as shown below. 

Rename Definition.

This function is used to rename the ETL definition.

On the ETL Definitions page, select the definition in the table, then click Actions > Rename.

A configuration pop-up window is displayed. Enter a new name, then click the “Update” button to confirm. 

The definition is renamed, and a confirmation message is displayed in the top-right corner. 

Copy Definition.

This function creates a copy of the ETL definition.

On the ETL Definitions page, select the definition in the table, then click Actions > Copy.

A pop-up window is displayed for configuration. Provide a new name and click the “Copy” button to confirm. 

A copy of the definition is created, and a confirmation message appears in the top-right corner. 

Remove Definition.

This function permanently removes a definition.

On the ETL Definitions page, select the definition in the table, then click Actions > Remove.  

A pop-up window is displayed for confirmation. Select the checkbox and click the OK button. Note: All related instances will be removed. 

The definition is permanently removed, and a confirmation message is displayed in the top-right corner. 

Manage Snapshots.

This function helps you manage the snapshots of the definition. 

Let's create a few definition snapshots to start with. 

On the ETL Process Designer page, select the Actions > Snapshot Management. 

The right-side pane displays the snapshot management functions as follows. Provide a snapshot name, or use the “Generate” button to create a unique name for you. Click the “Create” button to initiate. 

The snapshot is created, and a confirmation message appears in the top-right corner. 

Now, make some changes to the definition, like removing an ETL process step. Select the process step and right-click to remove it from the designer canvas. 

The ETL process step is removed as follows. Navigate to the snapshot management menu option. Provide a different snapshot name, OR use the Generate button to create a unique name for you. Click the “Create” button to initiate. 

The second snapshot is created, and a confirmation message appears in the top-right corner. 

On the ETL Definitions page, select the definition in the table, then click Actions > Manage Snapshots.

The ETL Definition Snapshots are rendered on a new page. The snapshots created by the user and the system are listed in the table below. 

Use the drop-down list to select the source and target snapshots, and then click the “Compare” button.

The snapshots are compared, and the differences are listed in the table below. Use the button to switch between “Table View and Image View”. 

The Image View renders the snapshot differences using color legends as shown below. 

To restore the snapshot, select the item from the list. 

Click the OK button. 

The selected snapshot is restored and click the OK button and refresh the page. 

The snapshot is restored and the ETL definition is locked to the user.  

Validate Definition.

This function validates an ETL definition.

On the ETL Definitions page, select a definition in the table, then click Actions > Validate > Selected. Select the “All” menu option to validate all ETL definitions. 

The system validates the ETL step configuration settings, and a confirmation message is displayed in the top-right corner. Validating an ETL process workflow involves ensuring that the steps, unique variables and globals, logic, and outcomes effectively and accurately achieve the intended goal.

The ETL definition is validated on the designer page by selecting “Actions > Validate.”  

The validation status is displayed in the right pane, as shown in the example below. Any duplicate step names or placeholders are identified here and must be corrected by the user. 

Remove Instances.

This function removes selected instances by status or all instances for an ETL definition.

On the ETL Definitions page, select the definition that has instances in the table, then click Actions > Remove Instances. 

A pop-up window appears for configuration. The drop-down list lets you select all instances or filter by status, as shown below. Select the Remove instance status option, then click the “Remove” button to initiate.  

Click OK to confirm the removal of the instances. 

The instances are permanently removed, and a confirmation message appears in the top-right corner. 

Favorites.

This function marks an ETL definition as a favorite and moves it to the favorite folder.

On the ETL Definitions page, select the definition in the table, then click Actions > Favorite > Add. 

The ETL Definition is marked and moved to the Favorites folder, and a confirmation message appears in the top-right corner.  

In the Favorites folder, select the ETL Definition, then click Actions > Favorites > Remove. 

The ETL Definition is removed from Favorites and moved back to the All folder, and a confirmation message appears in the top-right corner. 

Render Definition.

This function renders the ETL definition, helping us visualize the design workflow.

On the ETL Definitions page, select the definition in the table, then click View > Render. 

The ETL Definition is displayed on the new page. You can view the creation and modification details, along with the instance count. Use the search text box to find a specific process step. 

Select the “Render > Definition” to navigate to the ETL Definition page. 

Select the “Utils” menu to access the “History, Inline Comments and Comments” feature. 

View Definition History.

This function displays the history of changes for an ETL definition.

On the ETL Definitions page, select the definition in the table, then click View > History. 

The history of changes is displayed in a table on a new page, as shown below. 

Select the “Actions” menu to access the “History, Comments, Permissions, and Table” features. 

Select “Actions > History” to view the history information as a table. 

Select “Actions > Comments” to view the comments information in a table. 

Select “Actions > Permissions” to view the permissions granted information as a table. 

Export - XML.

This function downloads the ETL Definition as an XML file.  

On the ETL Definitions page, select a definition from the table, then click Export > XML. The XML file is generated and downloaded to the local folder. Move ETL Definitions between FlowWright environments using the Export-Import functions. 

The XML content of the file is included here for reference. 

Export - PNG.

This function downloads the ETL Definition as a PNG file.  

On the ETL Definitions page, select the definition from the table list, then click Export > PNG. The PNG file is generated and downloaded to the local folder. 

The PNG file is included below for reference.

Export - SQL.

This function downloads the ETL Definition as an SQL file.  

Select a definition from the table list on the ETL Definitions page, then click Export > SQL. The SQL file is generated and downloaded to the local folder. Execute this SQL in SQL Server Management Studio to insert the ETL Definition into the FlowWright target database.

The SQL content is included below for reference.

Import - XML.

This function imports and overwrites the ETL Definition from an XML file.  

Select the definition from the table list on the ETL Definitions page, then click Import > XML.  

A pop-up window opens for configuration. Select the XML file from the local folder, then click the Import XML button. The definition file is imported, overwriting the selected ETL Definition item in the table list. 

After successfully importing the definition, a confirmation message appears in the top-right corner. 

Definition Locks.

This function identifies ETL Definitions that are locked for design modifications and allows the FlowWright Admin user to unlock specific or all definitions.   

In the example below, the ETL definition is locked by the “Admin” user. 

Attempting to modify (design) an existing ETL Definition locked by another user results in an alert, as shown below. 

Select Security > Definition Locks on the ETL Definitions page. 

The locked ETL definitions are listed on a new page, as shown.

Select the locked definition, then right-click it to unlock. 

Select the FlowWright user, then right-click to unlock all definitions. 

Usage.

This function generates a graph showing the usage count of the ETL Definitions.   

Select the Utils > Usage menu option on the ETL Definitions page. 

The usage graph is shown below. Use the mouse cursor on the graph to view the count.