Programming Meta Data Services Applications
Microsoft® SQL Server™ 2000 Meta Data Services is an object-oriented repository technology that stores and manages meta data for SQL Server and its components.
Meta Data Services is intended to store meta data, and it is designed to be integrated with other tools and applications. It provides a solution for storing and managing data warehousing definitions, OLAP definitions, design data used in development tools, and any other type of meta data used in a programming environment.
For tool and application developers, Meta Data Services provides an application programming interface (API) that exposes the repository engine and meta model definitions that the engine can manipulate.
With the repository API, you can create tools and applications that use or manipulate data already stored in your repository. You can also add new meta data to accomplish new programming objectives that you define.
Meta Data Services relies on information models to provide meta data definitions. For more information about information models, see Information Model Fundamentals and Information Models.
The following topics provide more information about how to deploy Meta Data Services in a programming environment.
| Topic | Description |
|---|---|
| Repository Object Architecture | Describes repository engine objects and repository type information objects used to define and manage meta data. |
| Getting Started with Meta Data Services | Describes the programming environment requirements and provides basic information you should know before you start. |
| Connecting to and Configuring a Repository | Explains how to create and open a repository database. |
| Defining Information Models | Describes how to define an information model. |
| Installing Information Models | Explains how to install an information model in a repository database. |
| Programming Information Models | Describes how to program against an information model in a repository database. |
| Storage Strategy in a Repository Database | Explains how Meta Data Services stores data in a repository database. |
| Using OLE DB Scanner | Describes how to use the OLE DB Scanner utility that imports relational data into a repository database. |
| Using XML Encoding | Describes how to use the Meta Data Coalition (MDC) Extensible Markup Language (XML) Encoding feature for interchanging meta data in XML. |