Creating test data using Excel

Another useful method of creating test data is to define the data in MS Excel, and then create a job to convert the Excel worksheets into the format required by the application, such as a CSV file or database table.

Getting ready

Open the Excel workbook chapter10_jo_0130_ExcelTestData.xlsx that can be found in the data directory. You will see two worksheets: customer and item.

How to do it...

The steps for creating test data using Excel are as follows:

1. Highlight the first two rows in the customer table and drag them down to create two more customers.
2. Copy the first 4 lines from the order workbook and change the customers to be 3 for the first two new rows and 4 for the final two. Ensure that order ids are contiguous.
3. Open the jo_cook_ch10_0130_excelTestDataLoad job. You will see that the customer Excel file is being copied to an equivalent XML file.
4. Drag the order Excel object from the repository location, shown as follows:
   
5. Drag a tXMLOutput component and link it to...