The Set Extractor is one component in a suite of applications used to accomplish the task of building a smaller Oracle Database from the contents of a larger one. For a step-by-step guide to DataBee and the tools and processes involved please see the DataBee manual home page. If you are unsure about what an Extraction Set is and why you might need one please see the useful Extraction Set Overview page.

The DataBee Set Extractor Application

As with all DataBee applications, the Set Extractor presents its global functions (loading, saving, exiting etc.) as a column of buttons in the right hand side of the application window. The tabs on the top left are used to provide areas of major functionality where the currently loaded Extraction Set can be used to extract rows from the source Oracle database. Along the bottom of the window are three status line areas where DataBee provides information about its current state.

Command Line Options and Batch Mode

The DataBee Set Extractor application can be used in a "batch" mode to automate the extraction of data from a source schema. Please see the detailed discussion on the Set Extractor Command Line Arguments help page.

The Global Functions

The Bee Logo Button

The Bee Logo button brings up an "About" dialog box which provides information on the DataBee version and support contact information.

Load Set from File

The Load Set from File button reads in an Extraction Set and configures the Set Extractor to use it. Extraction Sets contain the rules that govern which rows are extracted and are built by the Set Designer application.

Discard Set

The Discard Set button clears the existing Extraction Set information from the Set Extractor application. If the current Extraction Set has extracted rows the option of discarding or saving the Extracted Row Database will be offered.

Extract Data Using Set

This is the button that does the work! Once the Extraction Set has been loaded, press this button to retrieve the rows from the source Oracle database. There are two stages to the extraction process. In the first stage the Set Extractor application will acquire all of the rows to support the WHERE Clause rules contained in the Extraction Set. Once the WHERE Clause rules have supplied the initial conditions for the extract, the Set Extractor application will iterate repeatedly through the Table-To-Table rules and make sure every table has the required rows extracted for it. The extracted rows are written to a binary file on disk called an Extracted Row Database.

Stop Data Extract

This button will stop any extracts which are currently in progress. Extracts are restartable so you can stop and restart them as required.

Clear Extracted Data

As the rows are extracted by the Set Extractor application they are written to a binary file called an Extracted Set Database. This button clears any existing Extracted Data Set and resets internal parameters. Use this button to discard any currently extracted data and to reset the Set Extractor application.

Detach Extracted Data

This button saves the Extracted Set Database to a disk file and removes it from the Set Extractor applications visibility. The detached Extracted Set Database file is a binary data file readable only by the Set Loader application. A detached Extracted Set Database contains all of the schema information from the Extraction Set as well as a list of the rows which need to be loaded. An Extracted Set Database must be detached from the Set Extractor application before the Set Loader application can read it.

Reports

The Reports button starts a dialog box which can print out a report of the tables and rows extracted from the database. This is very useful for comparison purposes. See the specific help of the Extraction Reports dialog box for more information.

Known Schemas

The Known Schemas Tab tells the Set Extractor application the names of the source Oracle users. In general, this information is usually obtained from the Extraction Set when it is loaded - however it can be modified as required. Please see the specific Known Schemas Tab page for detailed information on this topic.

Rules in Set

This Tab displays the rules contained in the currently loaded Extraction Set. The rules cannot be edited here (that is the function of the Set Designer application) but they can be disabled if required. Please see the specific Rules in Set Tab page for detailed information on this topic.

Table Statistics

The Set Extractor application keeps an accurate count as the rows are extracted from the source Oracle database. This tab shows a continuously updated display of the number of rows extracted for each table. Please see the specific Table Statistics Tab page for detailed information on this topic.

Rule Statistics

As the Set Extractor iterates through the rules in the Extraction Set it acquires the appropriate rows from the source Oracle database tables to support those rules. The Rule Statistics Tab shows a continuously updated count of the number of rows each rule extracted. Please see the specific Rule Statistics Tab page for detailed information on this topic.

Misc. Setup

This Tab contains a few configuration items (locations of output and log files). Please see the specific Misc. Setup Tab page for more detailed information.