what is Abinitio?

The Ab Initio software is a fourth generation  data analysis, batch processing, data manipulation graphical user interface (GUI)-based parallel processing product which is commonly used to extract, transform, and load (ETL) data.

Ab initio is a Latin term which means to "from the beginning"

Architecture of Ab initio :

            

• Graphical Development Environment [GDE] :  GDE is a graphical application for developers which is used for designing and running AbInitio graphs. It also provides:
  - The ETL process in AbInitio is represented by AbInitio graphs. Graphs are formed by components (from the standard components library or custom), flows (data streams) and parameters.
  - A user-friendly frontend for designing Ab Initio ETL graphs
  - Ability to run, debug Ab Initio jobs and trace execution logs
  - GDE AbInitio graph compilation process results in generation of a UNIX shell script which may be executed on a machine without the GDE 

• Co>Operating System [co>op] : It is used to validate and execute the Graphs which are developed by GDE.   Co>Operating System is a program provided by AbInitio which operates on the top of the operating system(Native Operating System) and is a base for all AbInitio processes. It provdes additional features known as air commands which can be installed on a variety of system environments such as Unix, HP-UX, Linux, IBM AIX, Windows systems. The AbInitio CoOperating System provides the following features:
  - Manage and run AbInitio graphs and control the ETL processes
  - Provides AbInitio extensions to the operating system
  - ETL processes monitoring and debugging
  - Metadata management and interaction with the EME

• Enterprise Meta Environment [EME] : It is a repository used to store the graphs and all related information.  Enterprise Meta>Environment (EME) is an environment for storing and managing metadata. It provides capability to store both business and technical metadata. EME metadata can be accessed from the Ab Initio GDE, web browser or AbInitio CoOperating system command line (air commands) 

• Conduct>IT : Conduct It is an environment for creating enterprise Ab Initio data integration systems. Its main role is to create AbInitio Plans which is a special type of graph constructed of another graphs and scripts. AbInitio provides both graphical and command-line interface to Conduct>IT.