Map XML Data to/from DB Fields
MapForce enables you to map data to or from database fields (columns) that store XML content. This means that XML data stored by the database field (column) can be extracted and written to any other structure supported by MapForce, and the other way round. You can map data as follows:
1.To or from fields of a dedicated XML type (for example, Xml in SQL Server, XMLType in Oracle). Reading or writing XML to/from dedicated XML fields is applicable to databases that have native support for XML (such as IBM DB2, Oracle, and SQL Server).
2.To or from text fields storing XML content (for example, Text, Varchar). This applies to any database where the text field has sufficient length to store an XML document.
In either of the cases, a valid XML schema must exist for each database column to/from which you want to map data. When a database column stores XML, MapForce provides you with the choice to assign an XML schema directly from the database (if supported by the database), or select a schema from an external file. You can assign one XML schema per database column. If the schema has multiple root elements, you can select a single root element of that schema.
When XML is stored as a string field in a database, the character encoding of the XML document is that of the underlying string field. If the database field does not store text as Unicode, some characters cannot be represented.
Some databases support XML encoding for XML fields (which may not necessarily be the same as that of the database character set). If supported by the database, the XML document encoding declaration is assumed to be the one declared in the XML field. For information about the XML encoding support provided by various databases, refer to their documentation.
See also:
•Assigning an XML Schema to a Database Field