An active source is an active transformation the Integration Service uses to generate rows. An active source can be any of the following transformations:
Aggregator
Application Source Qualifier
Custom, configured as an active transformation
Joiner
MQ Source Qualifier
Normalizer (VSAM or pipeline)
Rank
Sorter
Source Qualifier
XML Source Qualifier
Mapplet, if it contains any of the above transformations
The Filter, Router, Transaction Control, and Update Strategy transformations are active transformations in that they can change the number of rows that pass through. However, they are not active sources in the mapping because they do not generate rows. Only transformations that can generate rows are active sources.
Active sources affect how the Integration Service processes a session when you use any of the following transformations or session properties:
XML targets.
The Integration Service can load data from different active sources to an XML target when each input group receives data from one active source.
Transaction generators.
Transaction generators, such as Transaction Control transformations, become ineffective for downstream transformations or targets if you put a transaction control point after it. Transaction control points are transaction generators and active sources that generate commits.
Mapplets.
An Input transformation must receive data from a single active source.
Source-based commit.
Some active sources generate commits. When you run a source-based commit session, the Integration Service generates a commit from these active sources at every commit interval.
Constraint-based loading.
To use constraint-based loading, you must connect all related targets to the same active source. The Integration Service orders the target load on a row-by-row basis based on rows generated by an active source.
Row error logging.
If an error occurs downstream from an active source that is not a source qualifier, the Integration Service cannot identify the source row information for the logged error row.