Most common Grid-Tools FAQ
"It is a great benefit to know the data we have in our test environments is very much like the data we have in production. Before using the tools, the bugs we found in test environments were a direct result of the quality of the data we were using. It is good to know the data model we put into the tool is now correct and we can rely heavily on this data."
Jochen Westheide,
The ARAG Group
Got a question?
- What is the expertise of Grid-Tools?
- How does the tool "create" data?
- How can you ensure the data meets compliance standards like HIPAA or the PCI DSS?
- Can the products be bought standalone or as a full data suite?
- Is training provided? If so, how?
- Is there documentation?
- Do you offer support?
- How much does it cost?
- How is the software delivered?
- Can we have a free trial of the software?
- Will there be support during the trial?
- Are you compatible with existing in-house tools?
- Does Datamaker support DB2 on the iseries or do you have any plans to?
- Are you compatible with existing in-house tools?
- What are the benefits of implementing data archiving besides space and system maintenance costs?
- How long does it take to get the system up and running?
- System stabilization
- How do I connect to my data sources?
FAQ questions and answers
- What is the expertise of Grid-Tools?
- How does the tool "create" data?
- How can you ensure the data meets compliance standards like HIPAA or the PCI DSS?
- Can the products be bought standalone or as a full data suite?
- Is training provided? If so, how?
- Is there documentation?
- Do you offer support?
- How much does it cost?
- How is the software delivered?
- Can we have a free trial of the software?
- Will there be support during the trial?
- Are you compatible with existing in-house tools?
- Does Datamaker support DB2 on the iseries or do you have any plans to?
- What are the benefits of implementing data archiving besides space and system maintenance costs?
- How long does it take to get the system up and running?
- System stabilization
- How do I connect to my data sources?
Datamaker™ is our signature product. The solution has the ability to create and generate "synthetic" test data. The real Grid-Tools expertise is in creating and generating a wide variety and spectrum of data covering all scenarios. Our philosophy is centered around creating the right kind of data for non-production environments. Alongside this we can create subsets of production environments and have sophisticated data masking capabilities. However, we try to stress the value of synthetic data generation above all other methods.
The easiest way to explain this is that Datamaker™ uses initial data (which can be provided in multiple formats) to create a wide spectrum of data (in multiple formats).
It is difficult for data masking solutions to guarantee 100% compliancy for certain measures, regardless of the vendor. Some masking algorithms can be re-engineered, which is a security risk for many organizations. Data masking is a perfect technique for quick fixes, but the security risks must be noted when you are looking for a solution to de-identify highly sensitive records.
Test data creation is a perfect solution for such highly sensitive environments, as the generated data isn't "real". In fact, it is synthetic data, so data privacy will never be a concern. Contact us for more information about security and the difference between data masking and data creation. You can also read more about this on our blog.
Either. There are 3 Editions available of GT Datamaker™: Standard, Professional and Enterprise. Contact Grid-Tools for details. We also offer project licenses (or rental licenses) if you are not interested in the full license.
Yes. Courses are available online via web delivery or face to face.
Yes. User guides are provided. Online audio-visual demos are also available.
Yes. Support is provided via telephone, email and remote support software.
Datamaker™ costs depend upon the number of users and types of targeted databases (no CPU usage costs). Data Archive™ costs depend upon the volume of data to be archived. Data Subset™, Fast Data Masking™, Simple Data Masking™, Intelligent Virtual Services™, Data Design™ and Data Shaper™ are components inside the suite and costs depend on project requirements. Use our quotation request form to get a better understanding of the costs involved.
All software and associated documentation are downloadable.
Yes, of course. An evaluation copy will be offered following a one hour webinar demo by Grid-Tools.
Yes. Grid-Tools will help you with the install and provide some training and guidance to get you started.
Yes. It is easy for us to integrate with existing tools and we complement many of the market leading products.
Yes we do support DB2 on the iseries
We’ve been in the archiving game for a long time and understand the ups and downs of an archiving project. Please contact sales to talk through your specific requirements.
It takes about 3-4 days to set up the tool and get it running. 1-2 days of training are recommended and given.
Once you have a steady amount of data going in and a steady amount going out into the archive, you no longer have to constantly upgrade your hardware, cpu, disk etc, (i.e. things tend to settle down).
You can use JDBC, ODBC or native database utilities such as SQL*Net
