Connectors Microsoft SQL Server

Microsoft SQL Server data integration with Lima, in both directions.

SQL Server runs operational systems and many SSIS-fed warehouses. Lima reads it in partitions over JDBC, captures changes through SQL Server's change data capture tables or change tracking, and loads SQL Server targets with bulk copy and MERGE. Estates moving SSIS packages to Lima keep the database and change the pipelines.

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How Microsoft SQL Server fits the six Backbone steps. It is a source and a target: data comes out through the methods below, and results go back in with confirmation.
3
ways to read or write it
this connector
3
patterns supported
this connector
3
ways to run: SaaS, private cloud, on-premise
product
22 days
from contract to production
showcase estate
How Lima reads and writes Microsoft SQL Server

Method by method.

Each method has a job. The first load uses the bulk method; the daily run uses the incremental or change-capture method; write-back uses the interface the system itself uses.

MethodWhat it doesWhen it is used
Partitioned JDBC readsReads tables in parallel slices.First loads.
CDC tables / change trackingReads changes SQL Server records.Change capture.
Bulk copy + MERGELoads and applies changes.SQL Server as a target.
What it covers

Objects and patterns.

The objects are the tables, views or records Lima reaches through the methods above. The patterns say how a copy is made and kept current.

ObjectPlain meaning
Tables and viewsany database
cdc.* tablesthe change records
PatternSupported
Full loadYes
IncrementalYes
Change captureCDC tables or change tracking
Streaming—
Write-back—
Before you start

Prerequisites, then four steps.

The prerequisites are what the team that runs Microsoft SQL Server grants. The four steps are the same for every connector.

  • A login with SELECT (and on the cdc schema for change capture)
  • CDC or change tracking enabled by the DBA
  • Retention set for the run window
Register the connectionEndpoint, credentials from the vault, and the method. The connection is tested and a failed test names the cause.
Choose the objects and the patternPick tables or objects from the discovered schema, and the pattern: full, incremental, change capture or streaming.
Run the first load with checks onEvery row is valid or becomes an exception with an owner. The run ends with a count and a control total per table.
Schedule it on the business calendarA run window with a deadline; pause, resume and replay if a check trips; the report after every run.
What happens to a bad record

Incoming data = valid records + exception records. A row that fails a check is kept, routed to the person who owns it with a deadline, and replayed once fixed. The load carries on with the valid rows and the report says exactly what was held back. How exceptions work →

Terms on this page

Plain meanings.

ConnectorA packaged way to read or write one kind of system, with its authentication, methods and prerequisites described.
Full, incremental, change capture, streamingFour ways to make and keep a copy: read everything; read what changed since last time; read changes from a log as they happen; consume events in small batches.
Write-backWriting a result into the system that owns it through its released interface; the system's response is the confirmation.
Control totalThe sum of a key amount column compared between source and target, along with the row count, at the end of a run.
Exception recordA row that failed a check: kept, routed to an owner, replayed once fixed.
Questions

Asked about this connector.

Does Lima install anything in Microsoft SQL Server?

Lima connects from outside through the interfaces listed above with credentials your administrators grant. Where a vendor requires its own agent or add-on for a method, the prerequisites say so.

How is load on Microsoft SQL Server kept in check?

Parallel reads are capped and the cap is agreed with the team that runs the system. Large reads run inside an agreed run window. Change capture keeps the daily volume small.

What do we see when a run finishes?

A report per run: rows in, rows out, control totals and variance per table, the exceptions held back and who owns them, and whether the deadline was met.

Can we start small?

Yes. Most estates start with one source, one target and one dataset, then add tables and patterns on the same connection.

Try Microsoft SQL Server on your own estate.

A trial connects this system, runs a first load and ends with a reconciliation report. Your administrators see the prerequisites before anything is installed.