FastLoad Commands

Here is a table of some key FastLoad commands and their definitions. They are used to provide flexibility in control of the load process. Consider this your personal redi-reference guide! You will notice that there are only a few SQL commands that may be used with this utility (Create Table, Drop Table, Delete and Insert). This keeps FastLoad from becoming encumbered with additional functions that would slow it down.

AXSMOD	Short for Access Module, this command specifies input protocol like OLE-DB or reading a tape from REEL Librarian. This parameter is for network-attached systems only. When used, it must precede the DEFINE command in the script.
BEGIN LOADING	This identifies and locks the FastLoad target table for the duration of the load. It also identifies the two error tables to be used for the load. CHECKPONT and INDICATORS are subordinate commands in the BEGIN LOADING clause of the script. CHECKPOINT, which will be discussed below in detail, is not the default for FastLoad. It must be specified in the script. INDICATORS is a keyword related to how FastLoad handles nulls in the input file. It identifies columns with nulls and uses a bitmap at the beginning of each row to show which fields contain a null instead of data. When the INDICATORS option is on, FastLoad looks at each bit to identify the null column. The INDICATORS option does not work with VARTEXT.
CREATE TABLE	This defines the target table and follows normal syntax. If used, this should only be in the initial script. If the table is being loaded, it cannot be created a second time.
DEFINE	This names the Input file and describes the columns in that file and the data types for those columns.
DELETE	Deletes all the rows of a table. This will only work in the initial run of the script. Upon restart, it will fail because the table is locked.
DROP TABLE	Drops a table and its data. It is used in FastLoad to drop previous Target and error tables. At the same time, this is not a good thing to do within a FastLoad script since it cancels the ability to restart.
END LOADING	Success! This command indicates the point at which that all the data has been transmitted. It tells FastLoad to proceed to Phase II. As mentioned earlier, it can be used as a way to partition data loads to the same table. This is true because the table remains empty until after Phase II.
ERRLIMIT	Specifies the maximum number of rejected ROWS allowed in error table 1 (Phase I). This handy command can be a lifesaver when you are not sure how corrupt the data in the Input file is. The more corrupt it is, the greater the clean up effort required after the load finishes. ERRLIMIT provides you with a safety valve. You may specify a particular number of error rows beyond which FastLoad will immediately precede to the abort. This provides the option to restart the FastLoad or to scrub the input data more before loading it. Remember, all the rows in the error table are not in the data table. That becomes your responsibility.
HELP	Designed for online use, the Help command provides a list of all possible FastLoad commands along with brief, but pertinent tips for using them.
HELP TABLE	Builds the table columns list for use in the FastLoad DEFINE statement when the data matches the Create Table statement exactly. In real life this does not happen very often.
INSERT	This is FastLoad’s favorite command! It inserts rows into the target table.
LOGON/LOGOFF or, QUIT	No, this is not the WAX ON / WAX OFF from the movie, The Karate Kid! LOGON simply begins a session. LOGOFF ends a session. QUIT is the same as LOGOFF.
NOTIFY	Just like it sounds, the NOTIFY command used to inform the job that follows that some event has occurred. It calls a user exit or predetermined activity when such events occur. NOTIFY is often used for detailed reporting on the FastLoad job’s success.
RECORD	Specifies the beginning record number (or with THRU, the ending record number) of the Input data source, to be read by FastLoad. Syntactically, This command is placed before the INSERT keyword. Why would it be used? Well, it enables FastLoad to bypass input records that are not needed such as tape headers, manual restart, etc. When doing a partition data load, RECORD is used to over-ride the checkpoint. What does this mean???
SET RECORD	Used only in the LAN environment, this command states in what format the data from the Input file is coming: FastLoad, Unformatted, Binary, Text, or Variable Text. The default is the Teradata RDBMS standard, FastLoad.
SESSIONS	This command specifies the number of FastLoad sessions to establish with Teradata. It is written in the script just before the logon. The default is 1 session per available AMP. The purpose of multiple sessions is to enhance throughput when loading large volumes of data. Too few sessions will stifle throughput. Too many will preclude availability of system resources to other users. You will need to find the proper balance for your configuration.
SLEEP	Working in conjunction with TENACITY, the SLEEP command specifies the amount minutes to wait before retrying to logon and establish all sessions. This situation can occur if all of the loader slots are used or if the number of requested sessions are not available. The default is 6 minutes. For example, suppose that Teradata sessions are already maxed-out when your job is set to run. If TENACITY were set at 4 and SLEEP at 10, then FastLoad would attempt to logon every 10 minutes for up to 4 hours. If there were no success by that time, all efforts to logon would cease.
TENACITY	Sometimes there are too many sessions already established with Teradata for a FastLoad to obtain the number of sessions it requested to perform its task or all of the loader slots are currently used. TENACITY specifies the amount of time, in hours, to retry to obtain a loader slot or to establish all requested sessions to logon. The default for FastLoad is “no tenacity”, meaning that it will not retry at all. If several FastLoad jobs are executed at the same time, we recommend setting the TENACITY to 4, meaning that the system will continue trying to logon for the number of sessions requested for up to four hours.