Command-line interface for InfoSphere Metadata Asset Manager

You can use the command-line interface to import metadata, delete import areas, and perform other actions. You run the imam command from a Windows batch (.bat) script or a Linux or UNIX shell (.sh) script.

The command-line interface uses HTTPS to communicate with the services tier computer.

The following command-line actions are supported:

import: Creates a new import area and runs an express import
reimport: Reimports the most recent staged import in an import area as an express import
list: Lists import areas
purge: Deletes staged imports from an import area
delete: Deletes an import area.
createMis: Designates a metadata interchange server

Command syntax and the available parameters and options are described in the topics for each action.

If you have the Common Metadata Administrator role, you can perform all actions on any import area.

If you have the Common Metadata Importer role, you cannot designate metadata servers, but you can perform all other actions. You can perform the actions only on import areas that you create.

Credentials

Command-line imports might require separate sets of credentials for connecting to InfoSphere Information Server and for connecting to the source of the metadata that you are importing:

The user name and password are required for connecting to InfoSphere® Information Server. If you do not enter the user name and password as command parameters, you are prompted to enter them.
If the original import used a bridge, and the password was not saved, you will not be able to invoke the reimport by using the reimport action. You can enable saving of passwords on the Administration tab of InfoSphere Metadata Asset Manager.
If the previous import used a connector, you can specify a user name or password for the data connection even if you did not save the password during the original import. Specify the data connection credentials in the parameters file, by using the –dcAuthFile parameter, or by specifying the –dcUser and –dcPassword parameters on the command-line. You must specify the same user name that was specified for the original import.

Using imam command-line scripts

Use the imam.bat or imam.sh script file to run the command line.

You can run the script from the InformationServer\ASBNode\bin folder for client or engine tier installations, and in the InformationServer\ASBServer\bin folder for services tier installations. For example, if the Information Server home directory is C:\IBM\InformationServer, the path of the script file in a services tier installation would be C:\IBM\InformationServer\ASBServer\bin\imam.bat.

Preventing prompts during unattended sessions

When you schedule a command or run an unattended command, use the –silent parameter for each command-line action. Otherwise, the command line might prompt for credentials, or prompt you to accept an SSL certificate and the operation would not complete. When you use the –silent parameter, the command fails if required credentials are not provided on the command line, or if a certificate is not available.

To prevent such failures, provide credentials on the command line or in a credentials file, if necessary, and Run the UpdateSignerCerts command to retrieve the certificate before you schedule a command-line session.