CODEWITHSUNDEEP
ssisduplicatespackage
Unbound
Unbound

Reputation: 197

What is the best way to create a duplicate package?

I would really like to know what is the best way that you can create another copy of a package inside the same project for e.g. you have created a package called A and you would like to use the developed package A to turn (or extend) that into B so that both the packages A and B are inside the same package.

Currently if you "Save As" it would leave A out of the project and only have B. If you add A as an existing package then it does not seem to like it (seems to think that some of the internal elements are the same).

I have to tweak by trying different techniques like renaming and creating a duplicate file from windows explorer and then trying my luck and this can really become bothersome.

Please can someone shed light into this.

Please note that I am not talking about keeping different versions but rather separate SSIS packages.

I am currently using SQL Server 2012 but I would also like to know how you can do this in 2008.

Thanks in advance.

Upvotes: 3

Views: 8229

Answers (1)

VKarthik
VKarthik

Reputation: 1429

In order to achieve what you are trying to do immaterial of the SQL Server version, you can go about doing it in the following ways -

  1. Use a version controller such as TFS or VSS to maintain different versions of the same package, using which you can anytime retrieve whichever version you want anytime.
  2. In the solution explorer, right-click on the package you want to maintain versions of, click on copy. Again right-click on the package, click paste. You would get a new package with a copy extension. Rename it with a suffix say _base. (In 2012 and later it would just rename it whereas in the other versions it would prompt you to confirm the changes by opening the package).

I can't think of other 'cleaner' techniques. Also I don't understand what you mean by 'package A and package B inside the same package'. Are you referring to master-child package structure?

A useful note for those using 2005/2008. After copying and pasting a package, after you rename it (and VS prompts to rename the object), click on the background of the control flow and select Properties. There, find the ID property. Click the dropdown inside there and have it generate a new GUID. This way, logging will get rolled under the original, parent package. Dan English has a nice writeup on using BIDS Helper to reload the IDs

Upvotes: 1

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