ProductsMapForceETL

Altova MapForce® 2012 is a robust and affordable graphical ETL tool that extracts and transforms data from/to XML, databases, flat files, EDI, Excel 2007, XBRL, and/or Web services.

ETL (Extract-Transform-Load) tools provide a mechanism for extracting data from external sources, transforming it to a normalized data format, and then loading it into an end target or repository. ETL is traditionally discussed in relation to data warehousing, but the process can also be a great asset when implemented for legacy data integration and other common business needs.

Enterprise ETL

With support for prevalent enterprise data formats (XML, databases, flat files, EDI, etc.), MapForce is an extremely effective, lightweight, and scalable tool for ETL. MapForce offers a straightforward, visual user interface that lets you easily load any supported mapping structures and then use drag and drop functionality to connect nodes and add data processing functions and filters, or use the visual function builder for more complex ETL projects.

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In addition to its visual interface, MapForce is also accessible through a command line interface and a flexible Java or COM-based API, providing an integrated automation layer to your ETL implementations.

Full details on the command line parameter syntax for MapForce, as well as a Command Table and Object Reference, are provided in the User & Reference Manual that ships with the product.

ETL Data Processing

Most ETL implementations require the use of advanced data processing functions to manipulate data between source and target data formats. MapForce allows you to easily associate your ETL data structures using drag and drop functionality. Advanced data processing filters and functions can be added via a built-in function library, and you can use the visual function builder to combine multiple inline and/or recursive operations in more complex ETL or data integration projects, and even save functions for use in other mapping projects.

MapForce also supports advanced ETL scenarios involving multiple input and output schemas, multiple source and/or target files, or advanced multi-pass data transformations.

Learn more in the Data Processing Functions section.

Direct File Input and Output (Data Streaming)

Support for data streaming gives your ETL projects a huge performance boost with the ability to stream input from arbitrarily large XML, CSV, and FLF files and relational databases, and stream output to to equally large XML, CSV, and FLF files or insert it into a database. This built-in functionality means that MapForce can easily process massive data sets and ETL projects, limited only by the amount of disk space available on your local machine or accessible on a network.

In order to activate this feature, simply select the BUILTIN icon from the toolbar in the MapForce design pane, or use the BUILTIN parameter from the command line.

Generating Program Code

An integral part of any ETL or business intelligence strategy is the ability to automate data processing. MapForce supports automation through the command line and also through the generation of royalty-free Java, C#, and C++ class files resulting in a complete application that performs ETL operations for you. The application code can also be easily embedded into virtually any other application.

Read more about automating your ETL on our Automate Data Integration page.

API & ActiveX Control

In addition to generating reusable program code, you can also call MapForce functionality through its API, ActiveX control, or the command line. This lets you easily embed MapForce functionality in your own applications for a rich user experience without the high development costs associated with building this functionality from scratch. For more information, see our API & ActiveX Control page.

See how MapForce can provide a powerful, flexible, and cost-conscious alternative to your enterprise ETL implementations. Download a free 30-day trial of MapForce.