Data Load

Data Load is how rows in a staging table become data in a model. Whether the rows came from a flat file, an integration, or a SQL job, the path into the model is the same:

1. Stage the data. The rows land in a staging table, one column per source field.
2. Describe the load. An Import Definition says which column feeds which dimension and measure, how source values are turned into members, which existing data is cleared before the new rows are written, and which dimension members are created on the way.
3. Translate values. Where the source uses different codes or names than the model, a Data Map turns each source value into a member of the target dimension.
4. Run it. A run is called a Data Load. Start one from the Import Definition itself, or from a workflow with the ETL activity so it happens on a schedule or after a staging load.

Pages in this section

• Import Definitions — field mappings, slicers, dimension updates, and how a Data Load runs.
• Data Maps — translation rules, match types, and rule order.

Related

• Staging Tables — where the data waits before a load.
• Integrations — connections that stage data and create their own, read-only Import Definitions and Data Maps.
• Fact tables — where a load writes.
• ETL workflow activity — running a Data Load from a workflow.