Read the question and answer process below to discover how SmartReplica can
revolutionize your Development and Testing environments.
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Customer: Why can't we maintain our development and test environments today?
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Answer: NCR Teradata does not have a warehouse link to a separate
Teradata warehouse. This means the only way to build your Dev/Test environment
today is using Backup/Restore processes. It is not an easy task.
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Customer: What is wrong with using the Backup/Restore processes for maintaining
our Dev/Test environments?
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Answer: When building a mirrored sample of production on your Dev/Test
system, you need to prepare the sample on your production system first before
making a backup to restore on your Dev/Test system.
This takes up to 100 Gig of Perm Space depending on the size of your sample
data. In order to make this a repeatable process, you will need to dedicate
this Perm Space and space can be very expensive in your warehouse.
The backup/restore process is not usually a data warehousing group task.
It requires the cooperation of the system administration group so backup/restore
becomes a multi-departmental effort. If you do not maintain due diligence
in your setup the entire process becomes a major effort each time with no
credibility in what is delivered.
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Customer: So if we do not use
the backup/restore process and we have become out of sync with our production
system, how do we get back in sync?
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Answer: SmartReplica...
SmartReplica enables your team to build a credible sample of your production
system and move it directly to your Dev/Test system. Your team can maintain
the configuration and sample criteria to repeat the process on a scheduled
basis.
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Customer: It is important
that the data we sample be relational so when we run queries we get the right
results.
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Answer: SmartReplica enables the DBA to manage criteria sets for
relationships in the sample data that is pulled from production. These criteria
sets can be saved/edited to repeat the SmartReplica process. The terminology is
Repeatable Process.
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Customer: How is SmartReplica different from the backup/restore process?
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Answer:
SmartReplica uses minimal Perm Space on production, about 2 Gig. SmartReplica
supports database name changes. Once SmartReplica is setup, you can rerun the
process over again to get the latest and greatest production sample on your
Dev/Test systems.
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Customer: I can appreciate the minimal Perm Space used but
why do I care about database name change support?
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Answer: In Teradata, database names must be unique. Most companies
share their Dev/Test environments and therefore must rename either their
Dev or their Test database to something different than the production database.
When changing the database name you must consider how the views, macros,
triggers and stored procedures are created. These objects reference tables
within the database using a common format of "databasename.tablename".
When copying a mirrored sample from production to the Dev or Test environment,
these references must be changed or the objects will reference the wrong
data and could cause problems.
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Customer: Once the database name is changed why would
the objects reference the wrong tables or data?
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Answer: Views, macros and triggers can reference several different
databases. This information is embedded within the create text of these
objects. Stored Procedures are compiled using external files and once again
can have multiple database name references.
When using backup/restore these objects do not get changed even if you restore
them into a different database with a different database name.
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Customer: How does SmartReplica solve this problem?
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Answer: SmartReplica has an algorithm that captures and parses
the create text for all objects.
This enables SmartReplica to rebuild the create text statements using the
proper database name changes.
Users can now run their Macros, Triggers or Stored Procedures with confidence
that they are referencing the proper database and tables. Views are also
referencing the proper databasename.table data.
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Customer: How many times will we have to run
this process?
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Answer: As many times as you like.
SmartReplica is a repeatable process that can be run unattended. This is
perfect for syncing up your Dev or Test environment during maintenance windows.
Once SmartReplica is configured, it can become part of a scheduled process
to insure that your Dev/Test environments maintain credible samples of production.
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Customer: Our users have grown accustomed to using the production
system as a test environment because we have had so many challenges in maintaining
a credible Dev/Test system.
Now that we have a solution using SmartReplica, how do we get all of our
users to stop using our Production system as a test bed for their applications
and queries?
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Answer: Coffing Data Warehousing can assist you in setting up the
SmartReplica solution and provide your users with a focused education course
that walks them through the value and process of taking advantage of their
Dev/Test environment.
Most users do not understand the warehouse environment so once they have
something that works, it is hard to get them to change. Education is the
best way to show the users the way to a better and more productive path
in meeting their business goals.
This reduces, if not eliminates, the non-Production use of the production
warehouse. Users get their testing results back much faster due to less
data to distribute and once the application or query is tested using an
exact SmartReplica of production, it can be migrated to the production environment
with confidence.
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Summary: SmartReplica is the solution of choice for maintaining a
mirrored sample of production on your Dev/Test systems. By reducing the
amount of development and testing on the production system, you can reduce
the load on production and maintain a credible sample on your Dev/Test System.
SmartReplica uses minimal Perm Space on Production, reduces the administrative
overhead of maintaining the Dev/Test environment and supports database name
changes. SmartReplica is the solution of choice for your Teradata Warehouse.
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