Migrating data from Postmark to Databricks using CData SSIS Components.
Databricks is a unified data analytics platform that allows organizations to easily process, analyze, and visualize large amounts of data. It combines data engineering, data science, and machine learning capabilities in a single platform, making it easier for teams to collaborate and derive insights from their data.
The CData SSIS Components enhance SQL Server Integration Services by enabling users to easily import and export data from various sources and destinations.
In this article, we explore the data type mapping considerations when exporting to Databricks and walk through how to migrate Postmark data to Databricks using the CData SSIS Components for Postmark and Databricks.
Data Type Mapping
| Databricks Schema | CData Schema |
|---|---|
|
int, integer, int32 |
int |
|
smallint, short, int16 |
smallint |
|
double, float, real |
float |
|
date |
date |
|
datetime, timestamp |
datetime |
|
time, timespan |
time |
|
string, varchar |
If length > 4000: nvarchar(max), Otherwise: nvarchar(length) |
|
long, int64, bigint |
bigint |
|
boolean, bool |
tinyint |
|
decimal, numeric |
decimal |
|
uuid |
nvarchar(length) |
|
binary, varbinary, longvarbinary |
binary(1000) or varbinary(max) after SQL Server 2000 |
Special Considerations
- String/VARCHAR: String columns from Databricks can map to different data types depending on the length of the column. If the column length exceeds 4000, then the column is mapped to nvarchar (max). Otherwise, the column is mapped to nvarchar (length).
- DECIMAL Databricks supports DECIMAL types up to 38 digits of precision, but any source column beyond that can cause load errors.
Prerequisites
- Visual Studio 2022
- SQL Server Integration Services Projects extension for Visual Studio 2022
- CData SSIS Components for Databricks
- CData SSIS Components for Postmark
Create the project and add components
-
Open Visual Studio and create a new Integration Services Project.
- Add a new Data Flow Task to the Control Flow screen and open the Data Flow Task.
-
Add a CData Postmark Source control and a CData Databricks Destination control to the data flow task.
Configure the Postmark source
Follow the steps below to specify properties required to connect to Postmark.
-
Double-click the CData Postmark Source to open the source component editor and add a new connection.
-
In the CData Postmark Connection Manager, configure the connection properties, then test and save the connection.
Using API Key Authentication
Postmark uses server API tokens to authenticate requests. Each Postmark server has its own API token, which controls access to messages, bounces, templates, and statistics associated with that server.
To obtain your Server API Token, log in to your Postmark account and navigate to the server you want to connect to. Go to API Tokens under the server settings and copy the token labeled Server API token.
After setting the following connection properties, you are ready to connect:
- AuthScheme: Set this to APIKey.
- APIKey: Set this to your Postmark Server API Token. This value is sent as the X-Postmark-Server-Token header on every request.
Example connection string:
Profile=C:\profiles\Postmark.apip;AuthScheme=APIKey;ProfileSettings="APIKey=your-server-api-token"
Connecting to Postmark
Once the authentication is configured, you can connect to Postmark and query data from any of the available tables such as OutboundMessages, Bounces, and Templates.
-
After saving the connection, select "Table or view" and select the table or view to export into Databricks, then close the CData Postmark Source Editor.
Configure the Databricks destination
With the Postmark Source configured, we can configure the Databricks connection and map the columns.
-
Double-click the CData Databricks Destination to open the destination component editor and add a new connection.
-
In the CData Databricks Connection Manager, configure the connection properties, then test and save the connection. To connect to a Databricks cluster, set the properties as described below.
Note: The needed values can be found in your Databricks instance by navigating to Clusters, selecting the desired cluster, and selecting the JDBC/ODBC tab under Advanced Options.
- Server: Set to the Server Hostname of your Databricks cluster.
- HTTPPath: Set to the HTTP Path of your Databricks cluster.
- Token: Set to your personal access token (this value can be obtained by navigating to the User Settings page of your Databricks instance and selecting the Access Tokens tab).
Other helpful connection properties
- QueryPassthrough: When this is set to True, queries are passed through directly to Databricks.
- ConvertDateTimetoGMT: When this is set to True, the components will convert date-time values to GMT, instead of the local time of the machine.
- UseUploadApi: Setting this property to true will improve performance if there is a large amount of data in a Bulk INSERT operation.
- UseCloudFetch: This option specifies whether to use CloudFetch to improve query efficiency when the table contains over one million entries.
-
After saving the connection, select a table in the Use a Table menu and in the Action menu, select Insert.
-
On the Column Mappings tab, configure the mappings from the input columns to the destination columns.
Run the project
You can now run the project. After the SSIS Task has finished executing, data from your SQL table will be exported to the chosen table.