We use SSIS for transformation and migration.
Founder and CEO at Zertain
A stable and scalable solution that can handle real complex transformations
Pros and Cons
- "The most valuable feature of SSIS is that it can handle real complex transformations."
- "SSIS should be made a little bit more intuitive and user-friendly because it needs an expert-level person to work on it."
What is our primary use case?
What is most valuable?
The most valuable feature of SSIS is that it can handle real complex transformations.
What needs improvement?
SSIS should be made a little bit more intuitive and user-friendly because it needs an expert-level person to work on it.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using SSIS for more than 10 years.
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January 2025
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What do I think about the stability of the solution?
SSIS is a stable solution.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
SSIS is a scalable solution.
How was the initial setup?
The solution's initial setup is easy, but you'd need expert-level knowledge to work on it.
What other advice do I have?
Overall, I rate SSIS an eight 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.
Platform Lead: Global Markets Data Analytics at Rand Merchant Bank
A solution that offers excellent compatibility with Microsoft products and an easy interface
Pros and Cons
- "Its compatibility with Microsoft products has been very valuable to our company. It fits well within the architecture."
- "We're in the process of switching to Informatica, and we need to work out data lineage and data profiling and to improve the quality of our data. SSIS, however, is not that compatible with Informatica. We managed to connect it to Informatica Metadata Manager, but we don't get good lineage, so we have to redo all our ETLs using the Informatica process in order to accept the proper data lineage."
What is our primary use case?
Our primary use is as an ETL tool to move data across our various environments.
What is most valuable?
Its compatibility with Microsoft products has been very valuable to our company. It fits well within the architecture.
The interface is also very good. If users are familiar with Microsoft, then they'll be quite familiar with the interface.
What needs improvement?
We're in the process of switching to Informatica, and we need to work out data lineage and data profiling and to improve the quality of our data. SSIS, however, is not that compatible with Informatica. We managed to connect it to Informatica Metadata Manager, but we don't get good lineage, so we have to redo all our ETLs using the Informatica process in order to accept the proper data lineage.
As an example of what I'd like to see in SSIS is something that I think is very effective in Informatica. In Informatica PowerCenter, you define your sources and destinations once and after that, you can simply drag and drop into the designer. It's quite a nice feature. I don't know if SSIS has that feature, but if they don't, if they could allow the setup system configurations in one step and then offer drag and drop functionality, that would be extremely useful.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've been using the solution for six years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The solution is quite stable. I don't think we've had any issues.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
In terms of scalability, we haven't tried big data because in our enterprise we have to use Informatica to connect to the dedupe. I can't say how well it reads with the file, but we've never had an issue. However, I can't speak to scalability because we're never really, really big data.
How are customer service and technical support?
We've never had to contact technical support. Our developers would just use Google, and usually, they'll be able to find answers on the Internet.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup was straightforward. We've got quite a strong SQL experience in my team. We have about five people working on the solution, including Data engineers and BI developers. They're all admins.
What about the implementation team?
We did the implementation ourselves. We have in-house database administrators. They usually set up all the services.
What other advice do I have?
We're using the on-premises version of the solution.
My only recommendation to those considering implementation of the solution would be, if they want to check data lineage, they should set up the packages with a particular configuration that they would have to follow in order to get data lineage. If they were to start it from scratch, my recommendation would be just to follow the pattern to ensure data lineage.
I would rate this solution eight out of ten.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
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SSIS
January 2025
Learn what your peers think about SSIS. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: January 2025.
832,138 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Senior BI Developer at a music company with 501-1,000 employees
Integrates well with other solutions in our on-premise data warehouse
Pros and Cons
- "It is easily scheduled and integrates well with SQL Server and SQL Server Agent jobs."
- "Improving the login procedure would make our reporting easier on monitoring our ETL processes."
What is our primary use case?
We use this solution for data warehousing.
We are using the on-premise deployment model.
How has it helped my organization?
This solution allows us to be repeatable in the sense of how we move data from A to B. It is easily scheduled and integrates well with SQL Server and SQL Server Agent jobs. We also use it with Microsoft BizTalk, and it's quite handy.
What is most valuable?
We use everything in this solution, including a third party component called COZYROC. We try to explore and use this product to its fullest.
What needs improvement?
The login process needs improvement. At the moment, when you run SSIS and it's logging on SysTD within the server itself, I think that you have the option to do verbose and a couple of others. Sometimes, it is difficult to follow how executions are actually working. They are just one after another with an execution set. If you're running multiple packages at the same time, it's difficult to track which packages are running and to locate those specifically.
Improving the login procedure would make our reporting easier on monitoring our ETL processes.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using this solution for approximately eleven years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The stability is very good. I've been using it for a long time. If you know how to use it then it works fairly well.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The scalability is fairly good. I've used it from very, very small instances to two very large ones, where we're moving large quantities of data on a daily basis.
The actual tool itself, in a sense of transformations, your ability to pick and look up and do certain things is fairly good. Scalability, you can either have it on the same server as the database or you can move it onto its own server. It just depends on the situation.
If you've got a heavy load on the database during the day and you're doing SSIS then you have the option to separate them. But as in our case, which is a data warehouse, you can keep them on the same server because you're getting a lot of your batch processes overnight. So, most of the resources are being used by SSIS. Then during the day, you have the users using the database server for reporting or data capture or data inserts and data updates.
Our users for this solution are primarily BI developers, and we have twenty to twenty-five of them, mostly offshore.
If we grow here then we'll need more SSIS servers, or we'll get bigger boxes. At the moment, I think that we're where we need to be, and I don't have any plans moving forward at this stage.
How are customer service and technical support?
We have not had to contact Microsoft technical support. We tend to be able to solve most of the issues that crop up with SSIS, which I suppose is another reason why we have it. If there are issues then we can fix them pretty quickly.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
Prior to this solution, before 2005, we used DTS.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup of this solution is part of the DBA's role, and I did not involve myself in this installation. However, I have done it before. To set up a SysTD is pretty straightforward, and it can be configured to your own company ETL framework.
The length of time required for deployment depends on how good your DBAs are. Some of them take quite a while because they have to install, configure, and then do some test runs. Then all of the permissions, etc, have to be taken care of. Some of these things are easy and some of them are difficult. I would say that it will take a least a week.
We have five people maintain this solution at the moment. We have the DBAs on standby before we do any sort of deployment to UAT or production.
What about the implementation team?
We handled the implementation with our in-house DBAs.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
When you purchase SQL Server, SSIS tends to come with it. Whether you purchase the standard edition or an enterprise edition, SSIS comes with it. Whether you choose to install it on a separate server, or the same server as the database, that really comes down to Microsoft's charging.
My advice is to look at what your configuration will be because most companies have their own deals with Microsoft.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
We did not evaluate other products before choosing this solution. However, in the last couple of years, I have researched a few others. One of these solutions looks good, but I'm not sure how well it would be in a data warehouse situation.
What other advice do I have?
My advice for anybody who is considering this solution is to install the trial version first. You can get the SQL development edition, which pretty much has everything the enterprise edition has. You can download it, put it somewhere and use it as a development or testing area. Then, if you like it, look to purchase it.
We're looking to move more to the cloud at some point. I don't know when, but we'll be doing more research before we do.
Overall, I think for what this solution does, it's pretty much all there. I don't see any way or any changes that can be made to make it work faster, or easier. I know the tool inside out, so we know what to do with it.
The other solutions that I have looked at appear to be very good in certain situations. These are good for specific information, for situations that cover everything. With SSIS, it is specific to SQL and what we do, but it's lacking in some things like logging. Monitoring itself, for example, is what is missing.
I would rate this solution an eight out of ten.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
Director at Ingenia
Easy to install, performs well, and provides good data integration functionality
Pros and Cons
- "The performance and stability are good."
- "The security could be improved, as it is more important in our context."
What is our primary use case?
We are a solution provider and SSIS is one of the products that we implement for our clients. I work as an integrator and a data flow developer.
SSIS is primarily used as part of the data flow for loading data into the data warehouse and exchanging data between applications.
What is most valuable?
The most valuable feature is the data integration process. It includes helpful functions such as data mapping, creating a connection, and loading.
The performance and stability are good.
What needs improvement?
The security could be improved, as it is more important in our context.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been working with SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS) for six years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The stability is good.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
We have four customers that are using this product.
How are customer service and support?
I have never been in contact with technical support.
How was the initial setup?
It's easy to install and create the first flow.
What about the implementation team?
We have an in-house team of four engineers for maintenance.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
All of my clients have this product included as part of their Microsoft license.
What other advice do I have?
In summary, this is a good product and I recommend it. For people that are working in a Microsoft environment with the SQL Server database, it's the most recommended tool.
I would rate this solution an eight out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Integrator
Senior Analyst at a tech services company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Getting, extracting, converting, and dumping data doesn't require much effort because we can do everything in the user interface
Pros and Cons
- "You can get data from any data source with SSIS and dump it to any outside source. It is helpful. Getting, extracting, converting, and dumping data doesn't require much effort because we can do everything in the user interface. You drag and drop, then give the required input. It's intuitive."
- "Sometimes we need to connect to AWS to get additional data sources, so we have to install some external LAN and not a regular RDBMS. We need external tools to connect. It would be great if SSIS included these tools. I'd also like some additional features for row indexing and data conversion."
What is our primary use case?
We have data that needs to be migrated. There is also a scan inventory. We create web data, pull it, search it, and then find answers and report stakeholders. So for this process, we use the SSIS.
What is most valuable?
You can get data from any data source with SSIS and dump it to any outside source. It is helpful. Getting, extracting, converting, and dumping data doesn't require much effort because we can do everything in the user interface. You drag and drop, then give the required input. It's intuitive.
What needs improvement?
Sometimes we need to connect to AWS to get additional data sources, so we have to install some external LAN and not a regular RDBMS. We need external tools to connect. It would be great if SSIS included these tools. I'd also like some additional features for row indexing and data conversion.
For how long have I used the solution?
We've been using SSIS for about four and a half years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
If you run SSIS from the local system, it will lag, but it will work properly if you host on the cloud somewhere. It's a headache every time you run this locally.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Almost 10 percent of our users work with SSIS. It's more than a hundred.
How are customer service and support?
We haven't had that many problems. I have interacted with Microsoft support for some things, but it was a few minor issues. And with the updated VPA, it has been clear. I was satisfied with the support. We don't need support for these types of issues. We don't need to contact the support team or stop our business.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is never a complex process because the interface is user-friendly. If you are working with complex situations, then it can get complicated. We have a DBA team to handle the deployment. We must follow a process to deploy, so we need to get approval whenever there is a change. It's not easy for us, but it's still good, and it doesn't take much time.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
SSIS is on the cheaper side. In terms of value for the money, rivals are offering more database formats and cost processing, so SQL is lagging somewhat.
What other advice do I have?
I rate SSIS eight out of 10. I recommend it.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
Data Engineer at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
Good support, user-friendly, and easy to integrate with Microsoft tools, but needs a better console, more features, and better capability to handle a large volume of data
Pros and Cons
- "The most valuable thing is that it is easy to connect with Microsoft tools. In Europe, particularly in France, a lot of companies use Excel, SQL Server, and other Microsoft tools, and it is easier to connect SSIS with Microsoft tools than other products."
- "It is also easy to learn and user-friendly. Microsoft is also good in terms of technical support. They have built a large community all over the world."
- "When I compare Talend and SSIS, Talend provides more features. With Talend, we can handle a large volume of data. Talend is usually used to treat a large volume of data, which makes it better than SSIS on the data side. Talend also has a very good Talend Management Console to schedule the jobs and do other things. It can also be easily connected to version control tools such as GitHub or SVN. The last time I used SSIS, it was connected through TSS for the Windows Console version. I am not sure it has been improved or not. If it is not improved, Microsoft should improve it. They should change the product to provide another console."
What is our primary use case?
We are using it in our company and for our clients. I have experience in working with the whole data cycle, which includes data collection, transformation, and visualization. I have worked with the end-to-end process, and I have handled data integration, analysis, and visualization.
I specialize in Microsoft tools, and I have used SSIS for data integration and Power BI for data visualization. I have also worked with Tableau for data visualization and Talend for data integration.
What is most valuable?
The most valuable thing is that it is easy to connect with Microsoft tools. In Europe, particularly in France, a lot of companies use Excel, SQL Server, and other Microsoft tools, and it is easier to connect SSIS with Microsoft tools than other products.
It is also easy to learn and user-friendly. Microsoft is also good in terms of technical support. They have built a large community all over the world.
What needs improvement?
When I compare Talend and SSIS, Talend provides more features. With Talend, we can handle a large volume of data. Talend is usually used to treat a large volume of data, which makes it better than SSIS on the data side.
Talend also has a very good Talend Management Console to schedule the jobs and do other things. It can also be easily connected to version control tools such as GitHub or SVN. The last time I used SSIS, it was connected through TSS for the Windows Console version. I am not sure it has been improved or not. If it is not improved, Microsoft should improve it. They should change the product to provide another console.
How are customer service and technical support?
Microsoft is good in terms of technical support. They provide 24-hour support. They have built a large community all over the world, and one can find easily the answer to an issue or problem by searching on the web.
How was the initial setup?
Its installation wasn't my job. We have a team that specializes in infrastructure, and they install and set up the tool. When I was a student, I used to install it myself, and it wasn't really difficult, but I have not installed it on a professional site or for a company.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
Based on my experience and understanding, Talend comes out to be a little bit expensive as compared to SSIS. The average cost of having Talend with Talend Management Console is around 72K per region, which is much higher than SSIS.
SSIS works very well with Microsoft technologies, and if you have Microsoft technologies, it is not really expensive to have SSIS. If you have SQL Server, SSIS is free.
What other advice do I have?
I would rate SSIS a six out of ten. I prefer Talend over SSIS.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
Database Consultant
Easy data retrieval and data flow with excellent reporting features
Pros and Cons
- "The reporting on the solution is perfect. I didn't expect to see reporting features, but they are great."
- "There was also not enough instructions from Microsoft in regards to this application or this technology, which can easily be improved upon."
What is our primary use case?
We've used the solution to create some data flows for one of the governmental sectors here in Saudi Arabia. I have created some applications for exporting data from Oracle databases to SQL databases.
What is most valuable?
I like that the data connections and all ODB connections are able to retrieve data from so many different databases. That's not only from SQL but also from other data sources as well. The data flow, which controls the data, including where to store it, is an excellent feature and is one of the most interesting points about SQL Integration Services.
The reporting on the solution is perfect. I didn't expect to see reporting features, but they are great.
What needs improvement?
More coding is needed to make it easier. It needs more development and enhancement. It also needs to offer different integration services for SQL. We had to do a lot fo the implementation ourselves, but more automating of the processes would make things easier.
Data migration needs to be simplified. I've found that it is really difficult to match, especially regarding data types. The old records often have different data types than we have now have in newer databases. Converting or transferring this kind of data is very important, and right now it's very difficult.
There were also not enough instructions from Microsoft in regard to this application or this technology, which can easily be improved upon.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've been using the solution for one year.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The solution is stable, as long as you provide good infrastructure for the servers you're dealing with. That means making sure the SQL will be very stable as well as the SAN storage, the RAM, the CPU, and other components of the server. It is quite important.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The solution is very scalable. A client contacted me two months after deployment with a request to enlarge the services and add some more customization, which I managed to do easily. It's an enterprise-level solution, with the whole of Saudi Arabia using it for something called an E-Visa. People are applying for a visa to get into Saudi Arabia through this application. The number of users is quite high and worldwide.
How are customer service and technical support?
We haven't needed the assistance of technical support so far.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
Previously, we used the .NET framework, which we are still using as well.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup of the solution was easy. Deployment took less than two hours. You only need one person to implement and maintain it. At the same time, we do have another person who monitors the server-side.
What about the implementation team?
I deployed the solution myself.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
As a teacher, I worked with SSIS, so I previously used this solution. I didn't look at other options.
What other advice do I have?
In terms of advice I would give in regard to implementing this product, I'd say to examine your business needs in relation to the solution. You need to make sure those are met before implementing it. A lot of companies use data filers and they already have existing databases. You need to make sure the solution you choose is able to deal with old databases of client records.
I would rate this solution ten out of ten.
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Reseller.
Information Technology Support Engineer/ Implementation Analyst /DBA at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
It's easy to use, but complex to set up and local support is slow
Pros and Cons
- "Like most Microsoft products, SSIS is user-friendly and easy to use."
- "Sometimes, there are compatibility issues with some features. From time to time, I also face issues when trying to migrate. If I misconfigure things when I use Snapshot, the migration will fail.It can take a long time to migrate huge amounts of data, so it would be nice if that could be faster."
What is our primary use case?
We use SSIS to migrate from an old server to a new one and to add some services.
What is most valuable?
Like most Microsoft products, SSIS is user-friendly and easy to use.
What needs improvement?
Sometimes, there are compatibility issues with some features. From time to time, I also face issues when trying to migrate. If I misconfigure things when I use Snapshot, the migration will fail.It can take a long time to migrate huge amounts of data, so it would be nice if that could be faster.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using SSIS for less than two years.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
If you want to scale SSIS, you might face performance issues. I'm not sure SSIS has robust scalability.
How are customer service and support?
I rate Microsoft support six out of 10. Interacting with Microsoft support is challenging because it takes a lot of time, and sometimes you need to repeat your issue over to different support engineers. It was easier to contact support in India because Microsoft had a local presence there, but getting support in Cameroon is difficult. The response time is slower.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Neutral
How was the initial setup?
Setting up SSIS is complex, and if you misconfigure something, you'll have problems during migration. I rate SSIS six out of 10 for ease of setup.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
I have only used the free developer edition.
What other advice do I have?
I rate SSIS seven out of 10. This is the only product I've used so far, so I don't know how it compares to others.
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.
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