1. What is Informatica IDMC CDI?

Answer:
IDMC CDI is a cloud-native ETL/ELT service used for data integration across cloud and on-prem systems. It supports batch, real-time, API-led, and serverless data pipelines.

2. What is a Secure Agent and why is it required?

Answer:
Secure Agent is the runtime engine installed on-prem or cloud VM that executes mappings and connects securely to local databases and file systems.
It performs:

• Data movement

• Transformation execution

• Encryption & authentication

• Connectivity to sources/targets

3. What is the difference between Mapping and Mapping Task (MTT)?

Answer:

• Mapping → ETL logic design

• Mapping Task → Executable version of mapping with parameters, scheduling, and runtime configuration

4. Explain Taskflow in Informatica CDI.

Answer:
Taskflow is an orchestration framework to run multiple tasks in sequence, parallel, or condition-based logic. It supports loops, decision steps, email notifications, and input/output parameters.

5. What are the commonly used CDI transformations?

Answer:

• Expression

• Filter

• Lookup

• Aggregator

• Joiner

• Router

• Rank

• Source/Target
  Also advanced transformations like:

• Mass Ingestion

• AI/ML transformations

• Dynamic Mapplets

6. What is Pushdown Optimization (PDO)?

Answer:
PDO pushes transformation logic to the database engine, reducing data movement and improving performance. Types:

• Source pushdown

• Target pushdown

• Full pushdown

7. What is parameterization in CDI?

Answer:
Parameterization makes mappings dynamic by using:

• Parameter files

• In-session runtime parameters

• MTT parameters (path, file name, table, queries)
  Used heavily in production pipelines.

8. How do you schedule and monitor CDI tasks?

Answer:
Using the Monitor section:

• Check success/failure

• Review logs

• Monitor throughput

• Resubmit failed jobs
  Also Operational Insights (OI) provides cost, execution, and performance analytics.

9. How does CDI support real-time integration?

Answer:

• CDC (Change Data Capture)

• Streaming ingestion

• Webhook/API trigger

• Serverless tasks
  Enables low-latency pipelines for real-time data movement.

10. How do Lookups work in CDI?

Answer:
Lookups can be connected or unconnected.
Supports:

• Persistent caching

• Dynamic caching

• Condition-based lookup overrides
  Used for referencing master tables in pipelines.

11. What is Mass Ingestion in IDMC?

Answer:
A high-speed ingestion service used for:

• File ingestion

• Database ingestion

• Real-time CDC

• Data Lake loads
  Ideal for bulk onboarding of large datasets.

12. What is the difference between CDI and CAI?

Answer:

• CDI → ETL/ELT, data pipelines, data movement

• CAI → Application integration, API workflows, event-driven orchestration
  Both complement each other in IDMC.

13. What types of connections can CDI create?

Answer:

• DB connections (Oracle, Snowflake, SQL Server, MySQL)

• Cloud warehouses (BigQuery, Redshift, Synapse)

• Apps (Salesforce, Workday, SAP)

• File systems (S3, ADLS, GCS)

14. What is the difference between Standard Mapping & Advanced Mapping?

Answer:

• Standard mappings → Auto-generated, easy to use

• Advanced mappings → Full control with transformations, reusable logic, parameters

15. How do you handle error logging in CDI?

Answer:

• Error files in Cloud integration hub

• On-error links

• Taskflow failure handlers

• Custom error tables

• Automatically generated error logs in Monitor