The target code page depends on the type of target:
Flat files. When you configure the flat file target definition, choose a code page that matches the code page of the data in the flat file.
XML files. Configure the XML target code page after you create the XML target definition. The XML Wizard assigns a default code page to the XML target. The PowerCenter Designer does not apply the code page that appears in the XML schema.
Relational databases. When you configure the relational connection in the PowerCenter Workflow Manager, choose a code page that is compatible with the code page of the database client. If you set a database environment variable to specify the language for the database, ensure the code page for the connection is compatible with the language set for the variable. For example, if you set the NLS_LANG environment variable for an Oracle database, ensure that the code page of the Oracle connection is compatible with the value set in the NLS_LANG variable. If you do not use compatible code pages, sessions may hang or you might receive a database error, such as:
ORA-00911: Invalid character specified.
The target code page must be a superset of the code page of transformations and sources that provide data to the target. The target code page does not need to be a superset of transformations or sources that do not provide data to the target.
The PowerCenter Integration Service creates session indicator files, session output files, and external loader control and data files using the target flat file code page.
Select IBM EBCDIC as the target database connection code page only if you access EBCDIC data, such as data from a mainframe extract file.