Chapter 3
SSIS Tasks
WHAT’S IN THIS CHAPTER?
- Working with the task editor
- Extending SSIS with scripting tasks
- Using data preparation tasks
- Integration into the database with the RDMS tasks
- Performing common DBA tasks with the DBA tasks in SSIS
SSIS tasks are the foundation of the Control Flow in SSIS. When you are on the Control Flow design surface in SSDT, the SSIS Toolbox is populated with a set of task components that can be snapped together to represent a workflow for your package. You’ll also learn later in Chapter 17 how tasks can also react to failures in the package in the Event Handler tab.
A task is a discrete unit of work that can perform typical actions required by an ETL process, from moving a file and preparing data sources to sending e-mail confirmations when everything is complete. This is most evident in the fact that the Data Flow is tied to the Control Flow with a specific Data Flow Task. More advanced tasks enable you to perform actions like executing SQL commands, sending mail, running VB or C# code, and accessing web services. The SSIS Toolbox contains a large list of out-of-the-box tasks that you can use for ETL package development. Most of the tasks are covered in this chapter, with some in less detail because they are covered in other chapters. Two exceptions are the Looping and Sequence Containers, which are covered separately in Chapter 4. This chapter introduces you to most of the tasks you’ll be using on a frequent basis and provides some examples ...
