Optim™ Database
Administrator works
with entity-relationship modeling (ERM) tools such as InfoSphere™ Data Architect. It is helpful
to understand how the tools differ and how they work together.
Optim Database
Administrator and
InfoSphere Data Architect
Optim Database
Administrator and
InfoSphere Data Architect help address closely related business problems.
For example,
- With Optim Database
Administrator you
can:
- Migrate data objects between environments, compare data models,
and visualize dependencies. You can also change data objects in place,
analyze your data models, and preserve data.
- With InfoSphere Data Architect you can:
- Create logical models and view the model entities and relationships
in the Data Design Project.
- With InfoSphere Data Architect and Optim Database
Administrator you
can:
- Manage the life cycle of your database. InfoSphere Data Architect
is useful for Business Analysts and Database Architects where Optim Database
Administrator is
useful for Database Administrators.
Product differences by role
Optim Database
Administrator and
InfoSphere Data Architect can be used in different role-oriented contexts.
Business
Analysts and Data Architects can use InfoSphere Data Architect to:
- Work together on specifications
- Create database changes
- Use diagramming and visualization
- Analyze the impact of changes
- Develop data models iteratively
- Develop logical models
- Compare data models
Database Administrators can use
Optim Database
Administrator to:
- Migrate data object changes throughout Enterprise environments
- Compare data models
- Create complex database changes
- Analyze the impact of changes
- Preserve data
- Preserve authorizations
- Preserve database application bindings
- Deploy complex database changes
Operations Managers can use
Optim Database
Administrator to:
- Audit changes
- Handle contingencies by using the undo and redo capabilities
Product differences by object
Certain objects
are handled differently by the two products:
- Data models
InfoSphere Data Architect supports logical data models and
physical data models.
Optim Database
Administrator supports
physical data models.
You can translate the logical data models
used by InfoSphere Data Architect into physical data models that can
then be incorporated into Optim Database
Administrator.
Transformation from logical data models to physical data models must
be completed within InfoSphere Data Architect. When you
transform a logical model to a physical model, the logical entities
map to physical objects. For example, entities become tables, attributes
become columns, and relationships become referential integrity.
The
physical models can be copied between the two products.
- Projects
- Both InfoSphere Data Architect and Optim Database
Administrator use
Data Design Projects.
- Scripts
- Both InfoSphere Data Architect and Optim Database
Administrator support
SQL scripts such as DDL, DML, and DCL. Optim Database
Administrator supports
additional DB2 commands and utilities such as import, export, load,
reorg, and rebind.
If a script contains commands that Optim Database
Administrator supports,
but that InfoSphere Data Architect does not, it will have a file extension
of .chx.
In summary, you can:
- Use physical data models that were created by using InfoSphere
Data Architect in Optim Database
Administrator
- Check InfoSphere Data Architect data design projects out of library
control and use them in Optim Database
Administrator
- Use SQL scripts that were generated with InfoSphere Data Architect
or other ERM tools and reverse engineer them with Optim Database
Administrator to
implement databases or make changes to database schemas