SSIS Flat Files with Variable Column Numbers

Question

SSIS does 2 things in relation to handling flat files which are particularly frustrating, and it seems there should be a way around them, but I can\'t figure it out. If you

Answer 1

Glenn, i feel your pain :) SSIS cannot make the columns dynamic, as it needs to store metadata of each column as it come through, and since we're working with flat files which can contain any kind of data, it can't assume that the CRLF in a 'column-that-is-not-that-last-column', is indeed the end of the data line its supposed to read.

Unlike DTS in SQL2000, you can't change the properties of a SSIS package at runtime.

What you could do is create a parent package, that reads the flat file (script task), and only reads the first line of the flat file to get the number of columns, and the column names. This info can be stored in a variable.

Then, the parent package loads the child package (script task again) programmatically, and updates the metadata of the Source Connection of the child package. This is where you would either 1. Add / remove columns to match the flat file. 2. Set the column delimiter for the columns, the last column has to be the CRLF - matching the ROW delimiter 3. Reinitialise the metadata (ComponentMetadata.ReinitializeMetadata()) of the Source Compoenent in the Dataflow task (to recognize the recent changes in the Source Connection). 4. Save the child ssis package.

Details on programmatically modifying a package is readily available only.

Then, your parent package just executes the Child package (Execute Package Task), and it'll execute with your new mappings.