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Export Data Definitions from a Governance Platform and into SqlDBM

SqlDBM Support
Updated

Synchronizing metadata between SqlDBM and a data governance platform ensures consistent and accurate data management across the organization. SqlDBM offers various import and export formats, including a GET API to programmatically obtain project metadata and sync it to any external tool using a script.

Excel upload remains the recommended method for importing metadata into SQLDBM, and this guide outlines the steps required to do so.

Export from your governance platform

  1. To start the process, open the platform and navigate to the Export section.

    1. Most governance platforms, such as Collibra, Alation, or Informatica Axon, have an export function under their metadata management module.

    2. Look for options like "Export Metadata," "Export Data Dictionary," or "Download Table Definitions."

  2. Select relevant metadata

    1. Choose the dataset, glossary, schema, or tables you wish to export.

    2. Ensure that all required metadata is included in the export, for example:

      1. Table names

      2. Column names

      3. Descriptions

      4. Logical names

  3. Choose the export format

    1. Recommended format: tabular formats such as Excel (XLSX) or CSV

    2. Most platforms allow metadata exporting in Excel and CSV, but they also offer alternatives such as JSON and XML. To avoid scripting workarounds, please use a tabular Excel-compatible format.

Transform the metadata into SqlDBM format

SqlDBM uses a project-specific Excel format to maintain structure (e.g., tables, columns, relationships) and metadata (e.g., logical names, flags, glossary). There are several ways to import Excel into SqlDBM, which offer safer or more advanced import options. These include:

  • Documentation import - this method provides guardrails against changing the object structure, such as removing or renaming columns. Only logical names, descriptions, and Model Governance Fields are updated.

  • Structure and metadata import - includes all the functionality of the previous method and allows users to add, remove, and modify project objects and their metadata.

  • Glossary import - upload the naming glossary

More information about each method can be found in the related documentation at the end of this post.

Import into SqlDBM

Once you have downloaded the SqlDBM Excel template and added the desired information, follow the instructions for the import method of your choice. Detailed steps are provided in the "See also" section at the end of this post.

High level, the procedure looks the same for all methods:

  1. Open SqlDBM and navigate to the upload screen for your desired import method.

  2. Upload the updated template file.

  3. Confirm and complete the upload.

Validation and quality check

SqlDBM provides version control and comparison through project revisions. Once changes are made to a project, they can be compared to a previous revision to highlight all the differences. Even an unsaved (i.e., draft) revision can be compared.

After changes have been imported, use the compare revisions screen to verify that:

  • All the imported entities and their columns are present.

  • Descriptions and metadata are correctly assigned.

See also

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