Develop > Persistence layer > Data assets
Work with the Data load utility
Work with the data load utility involves defining how business data maps to WebSphere Commerce business objects as well as physical database schema, providing customization for specific business needs, and deploying the customization.
You can load data into a workspace using the Data load utility. When loading data into a workspace, the data load utility respects the locking policy set in the workspace. For more information about workspace locking policies, see Workspaces locking policies
The table object mediator does not support workspace locking.
- Data load architectural overview
In order to work with the data load utility, first have an understanding of how it works.
- Customize the data load utility
The data load utility is based on an extensible infrastructure, which can be customized to meet specific business needs.
- Configure the CSV data reader
Configure the comma separated values (CSV) data reader in the business object configuration file to modify the way data is read from CSV source files. You might want to change the default settings of the CSV data reader to better work with the format of the existing source data.
- Configure the BusinessObjectBuilder
The business object builders provided with the data load utility are the BaseBusinessObjectBuilder and TableObjectBuilder. You can configure the business object builders by defining sub elements and attribute values in the business object configuration file.
- Configure the business object configuration file
The business object configuration file defines how to load the data into the database. In this file, you specify the implementation classes for the Data Reader, Business Object Builder, and Business Object Mediator components. You also specify the attributes and properties for these components.
- Data load business object mediators
The data load business object mediator converts the business objects into physical objects. Two types of mediators provided with the data load utility are the component-based mediator and the table-based mediator. Several component-based mediators are available for catalog, inventory, and price components. You are also provided with a TableObjectMediator to support loading data directly into a table.
- Run the data load utility in the WebSphere Commerce development environment
Run the data load utility inside the development environment when testing customizations or when debugging issues with the utility. This is less time-consuming than first deploying to a runtime environment, then running the utility for test purposes.
Related concepts
Data load architectural overview