Metadata Collection - SQL Server Integration Services Design Patterns - page 3

Figure 1-1 . The MetadataCollection package
If this is not your first Integration Services package, maybe you've noticed that this
package is missing a few best practices, such as error handling. In the interest of clar-
ity, the package you create in this chapter will focus only on core design patterns;
however, we will call out best practices when applicable.
Also, please note that the T-SQL examples will only work with SQL Server 2005
or later.
SQL Server Metadatacatalog
Although metadata can be collected from any RDBMS that provides an interface for
accessing it, this chapter uses SQL Server as its metadata source. The focus of this
chapter is not on the actual metadata, but rather the pattern of metadata collection. Still,
it is useful for you to have a basic understanding of the type of metadata that is avail-
able.