Creating a data mapping table

You can associate a single resource with more than one data mapping table where each data mapping table has only some of the attributes of a resource. With such associations you can get a specific view of the resource. A data mapping table is linked to a data mapping template so that the mapping of XML elements to a relational table can be accessed.
Before you begin
A data mapping table must be associated with a resource. Ensure that there are resources to which you can link the new data mapping table.
About this task
To create a new data mapping table:
  1. Click File > New > Data Mapping Table.
  2. Specify a name and description and click Next. The name cannot contain spaces or special characters and must be unique within the resource group to which the resource belongs. The description is optional.
  3. Select the XML nodes you want to be used for defining the XPath for the columns in the data mapping table. An XML node can be associated with only one column of the data mapping table.
    Note: You can create table columns without any associated XPath. When a column does not have an associated XPath, it is not tied to a specific data source. A data mapping template with such columns can be reused for any generic XML data source.
  4. If the container resource does not have a schema, specify the XPaths of the selected nodes.
    Note: You can create valid table columns without specifying an XPath.
  5. Click Next.
  6. Create a template for the data mapping table:
    • If you want to base your data mapping table on another template that you can modify and want to initialize the template with the column definitions of the selected template, select Create a new template based on an existing template.
    • If you want to reuse another template, select Choose an existing template.
    • If you want to create a template, select Create a new template.
    If there are no templates that you can base your new data mapping table on, the Create a new template based on an existing template and Choose an existing template options are not available. If the container resource for the data mapping table does not have a schema, you can select only Create a new template.
    Note: Skip the next step if you did not choose the Create a new template option.
  7. Specify a name and description. The name cannot contain any special characters and must be unique within an XML data configuration file. The description is optional.
  8. Define the mapping between the XML nodes and the relational table:
    • If the resource is associated with an XML schema, for each table column, select an extractable node from the XML schema and click Create. The XPath and the properties of the table columns are defined automatically. You can change any of these values.
    • If the resource is not associated with an XML schema:
      1. For each table column, select an extractable node from the XML schema and click Create.
      2. Specify the XPath.
        Note: You can create table columns without any associated XPath. Columns without an XPath are valid columns and, because they are not associated with a specific data source, are generic in nature. If the table template contains such columns, it can be reused for any XML data source.
      3. Specify the names of the table columns. The name of a column cannot contain any special characters and spaces, and must be unique within a template.
      4. You can modify the following elements: Type, Length, Precision, Scale, Nullable, and Primary Key.
  9. Click Finish.

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