Metadata names and datatypes are converted between PowerCenter and Business Objects Designer when you exchange metadata. MIMB converts metadata types to classes and objects in Business Objects Designer.

If Business Objects Designer does not support a specific PowerCenter metadata name or column property, PowerCenter does not export the metadata. For example, a source definition in PowerCenter might use the HIDDEN property for a column, which Business Objects Designer does not support. PowerCenter does not export the column property to Business Objects Designer.

When you export metadata from PowerCenter to Business Objects Designer, MIMB converts PowerCenter metadata names and datatypes to the corresponding values in Business Objects Designer. Likewise, when you import metadata from Business Objects Designer, MIMB converts Business Objects Designer metadata object name and datatypes to the corresponding PowerCenter values. If PowerCenter supports a Business Objects datatype, MIMB does not convert the Business Objects datatype when it imports the metadata.

When you export source or target definitions that contain foreign keys, PowerCenter also exports the metadata referenced by the foreign keys to Business Objects Designer. You can define the types of joins PowerCenter performs when it exports metadata that includes foreign keys when you export the metadata in PowerCenter.

Business Objects Designer does not support all metadata names, column properties, and datatypes supported by PowerCenter.

The following table lists the PowerCenter metadata names and the corresponding Business Objects Designer metadata:

The following table lists the PowerCenter datatypes and the corresponding Business Objects Designer datatypes: