News

Attunity Adds Change Data Capture Links Between SQL Server and Oracle

• By Jeffrey Schwartz
• 05/27/2009

Attunity Ltd. today released software that allows developers to apply change data capture (CDC) between Microsoft's SQL Server and Oracle databases.

Oracle-CDC for SSIS replicates and synchronizes updated data between Microsoft's SQL Server Integration Services and Oracle databases in real time, according to Attunity officials. The CDC tool works in conjunction with connectors the company released in October that provide high-speed links between SSIS and Oracle and Teradata platforms.

SSIS is a free component offered with SQL Server 2005 and 2008 that enables integration and extract, transform and load (ETL) with third-party databases, reporting tools and data warehouses. It has become a de facto ETL tool for large Microsoft-centric enterprises looking to integrate data across platforms, said Gartner analyst Ted Friedman.

"[Users] are finding it to be a very cost-effective alternative to some of the heavier-weight, more comprehensive solutions out there," Friedman said. Among those higher-end data integration and ETL tools are IBM's DataStage and Informatica's PowerCenter.

Within the realm of data integration, CDC has emerged in recent years as a key function for organizations that need to conduct bulk data transfers and batch processing in short windows of time. While the amount of data might be substantial, typically only a small percentage of the overall data within a repository has changed. CDC only replicates the changed information to speed the data transfers and minimize infrastructure requirements.

CDC is used by some large banks that expect data from a customer's online transaction to be updated in real time throughout other channels, including branch systems, ATM machines and call centers. Point-of-sale is also a suitable application.

It is also becoming popular for situations in which decision makers need to act on current data, Friedman said. "I clearly see a trend where CDC is on the rise," he said. "Things like real-time or operational business intelligence that require rapidly sensing important changes to data and getting those changes out so they can be analyzed."

Attunity first started offering CDC tools in 2004, and while it offers leading technology, the company is struggling financially, Friedman said. The company last month reported that its $2.2 million in revenues for the first quarter of this year were down 32 percent over the same period last year. A partnership with Microsoft could boost its fortunes because SSIS falls short when it comes to handling batch-oriented data, according to Friedman.

Attunity's CDC tool will appeal to developers who need to apply that capability to Oracle data but are not skilled in that database platform, said Itamar Ankorion, the company's director of business development.

"We hide all of the complexity of working with the Oracle data and how changes are captured and we automatically generate all of the packages within SSIS," Ankorion said. Packages are created via the SSIS wizard to move data from one source to another. Developers can edit SSIS packages via Visual Studio or Business Intelligence Development Studio.

The software starts at $2,500. An average installation costs around $40,000 Ankorion said.