Astera Blog

We are currently beta testing Centerprise Integration Pack for Salesforce CRM. This product brings the ease, power, flexibility, scalability, and performance of Centerprise to Salesforce CRM integration.

Integrate and synchronize Salesforce CRM data with your environment easily and affordably. Centerprise Data Integrator Salesforce Edition is designed for companies looking for an easy-to-use, powerful, yet affordable solution for Salesforce CRM Integration. Here are some of the product features.

Features

• Bidirectional data exchange and synchronization
• Powerful data mapping capabilities
• Fast upload of data to Salesforce
• Data profile and record- and field-level error information
• Build sophisticated Salesforce data extracts using a point-and-click interface. Use Incremental loading feature to efficiently keep your database in sync throughout the day.
• Run SOQL queries from a full-featured query editor
• Build a graphical data model of the entire Salesforce database with a few clicks
• High speed parallel-processing transformation engine
• Streamlined deployment
• Schedule synchronization jobs to run hourly, daily, weekly, monthly, on file drop or continuously.

Centerprise Integration Pack for Salesforce CRM is available for trial free of charge.Please call 1-805-579-0004 or email to sales@astera.com if you would like a test drive.

Centerprise Data Integrator 3.0 comes with a rich set of APIs exposing the entire gamut of functionality for data transformation making it’s underlying engines available for integration with the outside systems.
Centerprise Integration Framework is carefully designed to address varying needs of custom integration with existing systems.

The goal of the Centerprise Integration Framework is to expose the Centerprise Data Integrators’ functionality for the API users in such a way that a custom solution for data integration can be built both in conjunction with or independent of the Centerprise Studio. While designing the framework, we made sure that we expose all the functionality available via the user interface of the Centerprise Data Integrator to the programmer using the APIs. It exposes all the key objects required for creating, running and monitoring transfers. Also, the APIs expose the entire transfer process as a transparent pipeline where the user can do the custom implementation at any step of the entire lifetime of the data flowing through the transfer process pipeline.

Centerprise Integration Framework APIs can be grouped into four main areas:

• Creating Transfers and Batches
• Running and Scheduling Transfers
• Monitoring, Managing and Administering Servers
• Transfer Plug-Ins and Custom Rules Language Functions

These areas mirror the functionality provided by Centerprise Integration Studio. Programmers may choose to use APIs to create custom functionality for some areas while using the Studio for the rest. For instance, you may choose to build transfers using Studio’s user interface but run them on the server using the Framework. Conversely, you may build transfers using Framework and run and monitor them from the Studio.

A most common use of CIF is to develop custom functions that are used in the business rules governing validation, filtering, transformations, and writing. The custom functions can be developed using any .Net language.  Deployment of the custom functions’ library is as simple as dropping the dll into a plugin folder where the application is deployed.

Another common use of CIF is to create “Plugins”. These plugins are
.Net objects that “listen” to events in the transformation engine and perform appropriate actions. These actions include performing additional validations, setting data values at various points, or executing outside components and logic.  CIF developers have access to record and field-level objects and have the ability to modify these objects as they move through the transfer pipeline.

The user might also choose to programmatically create transfers
or modify existing transfers. For instance, one may create a template transfer and modify the transfer according to user provided data. In some cases, ISVs can integrate Centerprise with their application and create transfers based on user entered data mapping.

If you receive data from a number of partners, you may choose to provide a user interface to these partners and create transfers based
on these user entered mappings. CIF provides verification APIs to check that mapping parameters, expressions, lookups, and other artifacts are correct.

In addition to bringing the power of the transformation engine, CIF also provides access to complete functionality of the Integration Server. This includes running, scheduling, monitoring and terminating
transfer jobs and administering a server.

Web-help with a detailed description of the Centerprise Integration Framework APIs and an exaustive set of examples for different usage scenarios is now available online.

We are pleased to announce the release of release Centerprise Data Integrator 3.0. This release represents a major upgrade with a completely redesigned user interface and hundreds of additional
features. APIs have been refined and extended. Server received major functionality, security, and performance
upgrade.

As with all of our products, usability, ease of deployment, and performance are major considerations and you will see that reflected throughout the product. 

We have added a number of exciting features including data models, visual query builder, pivot/unpivot mapping, and XML support. The integration server has received major focus in this release in the areas of scalability, usability, performance, and security.

The suite has been in beta testing with select customers for some time. We have posted a wealth of information about Centerprise 3.0 on the site. If you would like to test drive Centerprise, please contact sales@astera.com.

Key Features

Centerprise Data Integrator designed for superior usability and performance.  Every feature is carefully designed to make it easy to use while providing features that meet the demands of data transformation and integration professionals.

• Transform data between flat files, XML, and databases. Support for fixed length, delimited, Excel files with over a hundred encodings and languages.
• Extensive data mapping features including direct, lookup, and expression maps. Powerful and easy to use pivot and unpivot mapping.
• Full featured XML mapping capability including aggregate functions, node traversal, and schema generation.
• Database support includes SQL Server, Oracle, DB2, Sybase, MySQL, and Access. Support for other databases through a powerful ODBC implementation. These include QuickBooks, Postgres, Progress
  (OpenEdge), Informix, dBase, Paradox, Ingres, FoxPro, Teradata, MimerSQL, and Pervasive.
• Data quality and profiling capabilities enable you to define business rules for data quality checking and view field, rule, or record level data profile statistics.
• Instant preview capability to preview the result of data profile rules, mapping, or any other actions with a single click.
• High degree of automation reduces or eliminates manual work in many areas. This includes automatic determination of layout fields, data types, and lengths by reading the source files as well the functionality to define layouts using layout spec spreadsheets.
• Transfer jobs can comprise a single transfer or a batch of transfers.
• Quickly create batch to migrate data between databases.
• Reverse engineer existing database into a visual data model. Use the data model to view table structures, data, and easily build complex data exports.
• Query editor and database browser provide a consistent interface for editing, running queries and viewing database schema across all databases.

Server

Centerprise Server features a multithreaded engine that delivers very high performance. Its parallel processing architecture enables it to scale to take advantage of multicore and multiprocessor systems. Performance of Centerprise Integration Server scales approximately linearly to the processing power available.

• Server and Job monitoring enables you to view, monitor, and cancel jobs currently running on the server. You can also view detailed log of completed jobs including summary and detailed error information.
• Powerful scheduler gives you the ability to schedule jobs for hourly, daily, weekly, or monthly runs. You can also trigger jobs based on file drops to specified directories.
• Send notification email for server job events such as start, completion, or termination due to error.
• User and group level access control for the server. User permissions can include restrictions on job submission, cancellation, and viewing.
• Centerprise Suite is developed as a 100% managed .net application providing superior reliability and streamlined deployment.

Programming APIs

Centerprise provides a set of Microsoft.net APIs to create, run, and monitor data transformation and integration jobs. In essence, Developers using Centerprise.net have programmatic access to virtually all the features available in Centerprise Integration Studio and Centerprise Integration Server.

• Plugin Development. Centerprise provides a simple API to develop and integrate plugin for transfer jobs. These plugins are can be
  attached to transfers and perform a variety of functions.
• Custom Functions for Rules Engine. You can add custom function to rules engine that call outside components or services. These functions can then be used in rules expressions for validation, mapping, filtering, etc.
• Create, modify, and run transfer jobs using the framework. Centerprise APIs provide access to the entire object model of transfer objects enabling you to add the power and functionality of Centerprise to your applications.
• Interaction with Server. Using APIs, you can submit, schedule, cancel or monitor jobs as well as administer server.
• Create, modify, and run transfer jobs using the framework. Centerprise APIs provide access to the entire object model of transfer objects enabling you to add the power and functionality of Centerprise to your applications.
• Using APIs, submit, schedule, cancel or monitor jobs as well as administer server.