Informatica PowerCenter Reviews, Competitors and Pricing

it_user808662

Works at a tech services company with 10,001+ employees

Jan 28, 2018

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UI-based ability to create data mapping

Pros and Cons

"Reusable definition of data sources and the out-of-the-box availability of a large number maplets for common transformation functions."
"Easy, scalable, robust platform to integrate heterogeneous source platform's data into the unified data warehouse."
"UI-based ability to create data mapping."

"While Informatica is great for data-integration, it does not have any analytics features. Thus, organizations have to always look for another product for their BI needs."

What is our primary use case?

Data Integration: Integrates heterogeneous source platforms data into the unified data warehouse.

How has it helped my organization?

Easy, scalable, robust platform to integrate heterogeneous source platform's data into the unified data warehouse.

What is most valuable?

Data Integration. The UI-based ability to create data mapping. Also, reusable definition of data sources and the out-of-the-box availability of a large number maplets for common transformation functions.

What needs improvement?

Cost!

Also, BI features. While Informatica is great for data-integration, it does not have any analytics features. Thus, organizations have to always look for another product for their BI needs.

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For how long have I used the solution?

More than five years.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.

reviewer1498596

Senior Consultant at a computer software company with 1,001-5,000 employees

Feb 10, 2021

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Easy to use, fairly powerful, good integrations, and useful for quick development

Pros and Cons

"It is easy to use, and it is quick for developing things. It is fairly powerful, and it can integrate with a lot of different platforms without much hassle."

"Its interface can be modernized. It is an old product. I have been working with it for 14 years, and it still looks the same. It hasn't been modernized much. It also needs to handle more modern formats, such as JSON files. It works with the old text files and databases, but it does not always work with the newer, modern stuff. You need to make your own programs to support that kind of stuff. Support is also a kind of difficult with Informatica. They don't do direct support and rely on using their distributors around the globe for support, which means that you kind of have to go through this layer of different companies before you get help."

What is most valuable?

It is easy to use, and it is quick for developing things. It is fairly powerful, and it can integrate with a lot of different platforms without much hassle.

What needs improvement?

Its interface can be modernized. It is an old product. I have been working with it for 14 years, and it still looks the same. It hasn't been modernized much.

It also needs to handle more modern formats, such as JSON files. It works with the old text files and databases, but it does not always work with the newer, modern stuff. You need to make your own programs to support that kind of stuff.

Support is also a kind of difficult with Informatica. They don't do direct support and rely on using their distributors around the globe for support, which means that you kind of have to go through this layer of different companies before you get help.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using this solution for about 14 years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It is stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It has a cluster repository kind of thing where you can add multiple server nodes.

How are customer service and technical support?

That's actually one of the parts that are kind of difficult with Informatica. They don't do direct support. They rely on using their distributors around the globe for support. In Norway, there is a specific company that has the license to sell Informatica, and they also provide the support, which means that whenever there is a problem, you kind of have to go through this layer of different companies before you get help.

How was the initial setup?

It requires consultants. I won't be able to do it by myself. I would need some help to do it.

What about the implementation team?

Whenever we need to do an upgrade, we need to call a consultant to do it. It takes about a week for the preparation and all other stuff.

What other advice do I have?

I would recommend this solution to others depending on whether they are on-prem based or cloud-based. If most of their data is on-prem, I would recommend this solution. If they are not on-prem, I would recommend looking for another tool that is more suitable.

I would rate Informatica PowerCenter an eight out of ten.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner

Buyer's Guide

Informatica PowerCenter

November 2024

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Learn what your peers think about Informatica PowerCenter. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: November 2024.

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it_user1119516

Project Manager at a comms service provider with 1,001-5,000 employees

Jul 31, 2019

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Good performance, but it has issues with connecting to big data sources

Pros and Cons

"The performance and design of Informatica have been very valuable. I find the performance faster than, say, Oracle Data Integrator or DataStage."

"As a connector to big data, it is not well developed. We've had problems connecting Informatica with Hadoop. The functionality to connect Informatica with Hadoop, for me it's not good."

What is our primary use case?

We primarily use the solution for data integration.

What is most valuable?

The performance and design of Informatica have been very valuable. I find the performance faster than, Oracle Data Integrator or DataStage.

What needs improvement?

As a connector to big data, it is not well developed. We've had problems connecting Informatica with Hadoop. The functionality to connect Informatica with Hadoop is not good. Right now, we use Informatica to connect with the tools of big data. We have been able to connect Informatica with Teradata. I use Informatica to integrate the data of Teradata. Although we have a lot of functionality in Teradata, when you use Informatica as a connector, the compatibility with Teradata and Informatica it's not sufficient.

In future releases, they need to have a good version of the cloud.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using the solution for five years.

What other advice do I have?

We run the solution on our servers, not the cloud.

I would rate this solution seven out of ten.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.

it_user202221

Business Intelligence Analyst at a comms service provider with 10,001+ employees

Feb 25, 2016

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There were many performance problems during the implementation, but you will be happy with the final result.

What is most valuable?

With this product, we managed to implement all of our ETL, including those with many sources, and complex transformations.

How has it helped my organization?

With this product we can centralize all our ETL needs in one technology. One unique team with the right expertise is responsible for developing, implementing, and tuning it. We eliminated the variety of different solutions and different technologies. This means that the knowledge and skills are not spread-out.

What needs improvement?

One area for improvement is with huge ETLs, where the product has to extract large amounts of information. That's because some sources wait for others inside the map to finish, and only afterwards do they continue extracting data from other sources in the database.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've used it for six years.

What was my experience with deployment of the solution?

No issues encountered.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

No, but after some errors, the cache directory, where we keep the temp files, fills up, and you have to drop them in manually or have a process to delete unused files periodically.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

A fast SSD disk is needed for better performance to locate the temp files.

How are customer service and technical support?

Customer Service:

3/10.

Technical Support:

3/10.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We previously used Oracle Warehouse Builder. We switched because Warehouse Builder generated PL/SQL code and the transformation resided inside the database. With PWC, the transformation is on a different server.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was complex. There were many performance problems and some migrations took a long time to be implemented. After many meetings with different experts both problems were solved.

What about the implementation team?

We used a vendor team, who were 4/10.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We also looked at ODI (Oracle data integration).

What other advice do I have?

Be persistent in trying to implement all kinds of transformations with Power Center, you will be happy with the final result.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.

it_user202221Business Intelligence Analyst at a comms service provider with 10,001+ employees

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May 5, 2015

There is still a lack in this areas, but you can manage to solve that lack:
- The conditional execution is not directly supported. We manage to use a second workflow that write a file under the condition we want. The main workflow wait until the appearance of the file to run and then delete the file, and so on. Also the same written file, or another, can have de parameter for the execution.
- You can have a log file for each mapping execution, and you can set the log level. Also there is a tool to get reports from the repository (which has performance problem). But for some needs we had to write sql over the repository, wich is hard because there is not an easy ER model.
- We don't use the push-down. We design, and develope all our maps without that feature. We made some probes a few months ago and find that it require a re-design to get benefits (which was out of our planning). But we heard that it manage to get really good performance.

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it_user90069

BI Expert at a healthcare company with 1,001-5,000 employees

Feb 20, 2014

Informatica PowerCenter vs. Microsoft SSIS - each technology has its advantages but also have similarities

Technology has made it easier for businesses to organize and manipulate data to get a clearer picture of what’s going on with their business. Notably, ETL tools have made managing huge amounts of data significantly easier and faster, boosting many organizations’ business intelligence operations.

There are many third-party vendors offering ETL solutions, but two of the most popular are PowerCenter Informatica and Microsoft SSIS (SQL Server Integration Services). Each technology has its advantages but there are also similarities on how they carry out the extract-transform-load processes and only differ in terminologies.

If you’re in the process of choosing ETL tools and PowerCenter Informatica and Microsoft SSIS made it to your shortlist, here is a short comparative discussion detailing the differences between the two, as well as their benefits.

Package Configuration

Most enterprise data integration projects would require the capacity to develop a solution in one platform and test and deploy it in a separate environment without having to manually change the established workflow. In order to achieve this seamless movement between two environments, your ETL technology should allow the dynamic update of the project’s properties using the content or a parameter file or configuration.

Both Informatica and SSIS support this functionality using different methodologies. In Informatica, every session can have more than one source and one or more destination connections. There are different kinds of connections the primary being relational connections. Every session can be set up dynamically by changing parameters contained in a parameter file.

The same thing can be achieved in SSIS via Configurations. Using the SSIS Configuration Wizard, configuration data is saved in XML files. Unlike Informatica wherein there can be multiple connections, SSIS only allows a single defined connection that can be applied across all tasks in a package.

In short, Informatica parameters are defined at the session level while SSIS configurations are set at the package level.

Data Staging

When you use SSIS, you will use the Connection Manager to generate a connection defining the physical location of the file. Multiple files that need to be loaded from multiple connections would require multiple connections. All information set in the connection manager can be incorporated in the Configuration File and can be dynamically updated during run-time.

On the other hand, if you’re using Informatica, you will use the Workflow Manager tool to assign a location to each file. Every task that needs to access that file can be configured with the location and name of that specific file.

Value Extraction

One of the main functions of ETL tools is being able to extract meaning from the information that is currently being ran or to supplement that information with extra information obtained from the current information in the data processing pipeline.

Both SSIS and Informatica have this functionality through the use of derived columns or the capacity to draw new information from existing data. Informatica does this via its expression transformation component while Microsoft SSIS does this via the Derived Column transformation.

The logic used to complete both operations is the same and the syntax involved is also identical. The difference between the two technologies lies in the expression language utilized to obtain the new data and the notation style involved. Informatica uses Character, Conversion, Data, Numerical, Scientific, Special and Test. On the other hand, SSIS uses Mathematical, String, Date/Time, NULL, Type Casts and Operators.

Sorting

Simply defined, sorting is having the ability to sort information into a chronological data set. While the order of the information may appear to be immaterial for loading into a relational data warehouse or database, it may matter for the other tasks later on in the transformation process.

The difference on how SSIS and Informatica carry out this functionality cannot be subtler. Informatica’s Sorter and SSIS’ Sort can both chronologically organize data and eliminate duplicate data. In SSIS, de-duplication can be done by setting the eliminate duplicates option to TRUE. For Informatica, this can be done by selecting the distinct option.

Detection of Data Quality Issues

Similar to all data integration solutions, ETL technologies can be susceptible to data quality problems. Fortunately for users of Microsoft SSIS, it allows for the creation of checkpoints within the data transformation process that can reveal and repair data quality problems. SSIS has a feature called Fuzzy Lookup transform that pairs incoming “dirty” information – unexpected abbreviations, null fields, inserted or missing tokens, truncations, misspellings and other data abnormalities – with clean records contained in a reference table. There is also the Fuzzy Grouping tool that finds similarities among input rows and unites duplicate data.

Unfortunately, Informatica does not have the same functionality out of the box. If you want to recreate this capability in Informatica, it would require human intervention to make a mapping table that contains every referrer value that came across the input stream and their equivalent mapping values.

However, take note that even if you’re using SSIS, you may still need to manually intervene to detect and repair data quality issues. Even the most advanced algorithm may miss something so you still need to manually check for the accuracy and integrity of your data.

Modularity

Modularity is concerned with the manner in which the work units that make up an end-to-end ETL solution are created and reused.

There’s a slight difference between PowerCenter Informatica and Microsoft SSIS on how they build modular data integration and ETL solutions.

Informatica involves a bottom-up framework to ETL implementation by permitting a library of components – mappings, mapplets, transformations, targets, and sources – that can be employed across numerous worklets in the solution. A worklet is composed of a sequence of mapping instances.

On the contrary, SSIS uses a top-down approach in wherein a general sequence of tasks is defined before setting the specifics on how these tasks are going to be carried out. Reusability of ETL components is achieved by creating libraries of packages which can then be implemented together with a master package. A package is the counterpart of Informatica’s worklet.

Tracking Changes in Slowly Changing Dimensions

Slowly changing dimensions address the issue of capturing and documenting a history of modifications or changes to entities within a database that are not reflected in a System of Record for that particular data. A common example of slowly changing dimensions is an item moving to another product category in a department store. This will modify the said product’s category attribute but its SKU will remain unchanged.

Informatica and SSIS both have the functionality to track these changes with very similar features. Informatica is equipped with a “slowly changing dimension wizard” that will allow you to create the sources, transformations, ports and destinations that are pertinent to accommodate these slowly changing requirements. SSIS also comes with a slowly changing dimension wizard that works similarly. Aside from the ability to keep track of slowly changing attributes, it can also recognize changes to attributes that are not supposed to change. These are known as fixed attributes. You have the option to enable the wizard to raise an error warning accordingly when this happens.

Dimension Loading

In terms of dimension loading, a surrogate key is necessary. As a substitute to a natural key, a surrogate key is where every join between fact tables and dimension tables are based.

Informatica and SSIS have varying ways on how they generate surrogate keys.

Out of the box, Informatica PowerCenter comes with a component dubbed as Sequence transformation that has the capacity to create a surrogate key. It produces an incremental value for every row in the pipeline which can then be incorporate into a destination table via a surrogate key column.

SSIS does not have a Sequence transformation component. Instead, it uses its Script transform component to generate surrogate keys.

Fact Table Loading

Populating fact tables usually involved two processes: (1) aggregating the data to the needed granularity and (2) retrieval of dimensional surrogate keys.

Informatica PowerCenter carries out these operations via a transformation dubbed as “Aggregator.” This component cuts across groupings of values from chosen input columns. SSIS has the same capability through the component called “Aggregate.” The slight difference between the two is that SSIS only has the most used functions such as Minimum and Maximum, Average, Count Distinct, Count and Sum. Informatica has all these and other extra capabilities such as Variance, Standard Deviation, Percentile, Median, First and Last.

Which ETL Technology is Right for Your Business?

There are other aspects that illustrate the difference between Informatica PowerCenter and Microsoft SSIS such as Design Time Debugging, Collaborative Development, Security, Integration with Packaged Applications, and Web Services & Service Oriented Architecture. However, the things discussed above cover the basic concepts in ETL technology.

As businesses encounter bigger challenges to synergize data from a constantly increasing number of different systems, your choice of an ETL solution to fit your needs is more crucial than ever.

As for the choice between Informatica PowerCenter and Microsoft SSIS, many analysts consider Informatica as the leader in ETL technology while reputable research firm Forrester firm once called SSIS’ price-to-performance ration “downright seductive.”

However, proclaiming a winner in this battle between two ETL technology giants would greatly depend on your business requirements. Of course, there are pricing differences between the two technologies and notable difference in their features, capabilities and differences as well as their level of usability. It’s for you to analyze which technology is the perfect fi

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.

GaryMData Architect at World Vision

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Sep 17, 2014

Use of configuration files for SSIS is a really bad idea and in fact is deprecated by Microsoft with 2012. Not only is using them no longer advisable but the new method of using job and package parameters significant advantage over many competing ETL tools. Managing parameters through use of files of any sort is an incredibly maintenance and problematic method and I would not advise using any ETL tool that still requires this.

AliRaza1

Senior Technical Lead at Speridian Technologies

Oct 14, 2021

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Simple to set up, stable, scalable, simple to manage and debug

Pros and Cons

"It's a complete package, which is why we use this solution."

"There is some room for improvement in terms of pricing."

What is our primary use case?

I have worked with Informatica PowerCenter in different companies for different projects.

We use Informatica PowerCenter for ETL. We need it for our data integration project.

What is most valuable?

It's quite suitable for our needs.

It's a complete package, which is why we use this solution.

We have not had any issues with this solution.

What needs improvement?

There is some room for improvement in terms of pricing.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been working with Informatica PowerCenter for four years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Informatica PowerCenter is a stable solution.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Informatica PowerCenter is a scalable product.

How are customer service and support?

We haven't encountered any problems that would require assistance from the technical support team.

We did however contact technical support about pricing for the implementation of the site.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

I have been working on ODI (Oracle Data Integrator), but we prefer Informatica.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is quite easy. It is easy to handle and debug as well.

Normally, it doesn't take long, but it depends on the issues we face.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

I was unable to locate any pricing information on the website. I made an appointment to meet with a representative through the internet.

According to what I've heard and read on various blogs, it's quite expensive when compared to similar competitive products.

Based on what I've read, I believe the price can be customized.

What other advice do I have?

There are several products, but we recommend using this solution.

I would rate Informatica PowerCenter an eight out of ten.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.

SureshSwaminathan

Senior Software Engineer at Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation

Nov 30, 2020

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Doesn't require many resources but it is lacking monitoring features

Pros and Cons

"If the systems get migrated or upgraded, the amount of resources required are very minimal. We can change the connections and establish a new connection. It's very helpful."

"We need another tool for monitoring. It would be easier if all the features were consolidated into one tool."

What is our primary use case?

We use it for ETL. We have multiple systems, we extract the data, and create a report from it.

What is most valuable?

If the systems get migrated or upgraded, the amount of resources required are very minimal. We can change the connections and establish a new connection. It's very helpful.

What needs improvement?

We need another tool for monitoring. It would be easier if all the features were consolidated into one tool.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using PowerCenter for two years.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

We don't have any problems with scalability. You can increase the nodes and it has good performance.

We have around 25 users.

We have two to three employees for maintenance.

How are customer service and technical support?

I haven't had much experience with Informatica's support. We haven't had any issues that we needed their help for.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was complex. It depends on the security you're working on. There are no pre-defined rules. We have to create the rules and then start working on it.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

It's very expensive. We have other tools that are more reasonably priced. PowerCenter is very costly.

What other advice do I have?

I would recommend PowerCenter depending on the use case.

I would rate it a seven out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.

it_user1030422

Director of Innovation & Development Department at a tech services company with 51-200 employees

Jul 21, 2019

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Good user interface and the most user-friendly of all data integration tools

Pros and Cons

"Technical support is great. It's one of the reasons we really like them. When you compare support from IBM and support from Informatica, Informatica is much better."

"Now they are migrating to a new version, and they have something that is called Informatica Developer. Previously, they just had PowerCenter. Now, when they move everything to Informatica Developer it's not as good or stable like it was when it was PowerCenter, though it has some nice features. This Developer tool could be better."

What is most valuable?

The solution has the best user interface and it's the most user-friendly of all data integration tools.

What needs improvement?

Now they are migrating to a new version, and they have something that is called Informatica Developer. Previously, they just had PowerCenter. Now, when they move everything to Informatica Developer it's not as good or stable like it was when it was PowerCenter, though it has some nice features.

I would like the solution to offer better metadata management.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using the solution for more than 10 years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution is really stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

For scalability, all you have to do is buy licenses for more cores, so it's about licensing. If you want to add more CPU cores you have to pay more licensing. All of the providers of ETL tools have different licensing models, and it's something that is typical. So, if you have to process more data then you have to pay for more licenses. That's natural.

We have about 50 users and they're developers and consultants.

How are customer service and technical support?

Technical support is great. It's one of the reasons we really like them. When you compare support from IBM and support from Informatica. Informatica is much better.

How was the initial setup?

Initial setup is very easy. It's straightforward. They have really good manuals. They have a great installation manual. They have user manuals as well, so you just have to follow instructions. Everything is fine.

What about the implementation team?

Usually, we have system administrators do the implementation.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

Price-wise, it's more expensive than SSIS, but it's a better tool, so it has more features. Licensing is on a yearly basis.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We looked at IBM DataStage, Microsoft SSIS, and Oracle Data Integrator.

What other advice do I have?

We have some projects on call. I work for a professional services company, so we have different clients that have different types of infrastructure. For us in our region, most of the clients have an on-premise infrastructure. Usually, we have on-premise deployments.

I would recommend this solution to others.

I would rate this solution nine out of ten. It's almost perfect.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Reseller.