Astera Data Pipeline Builder (Centerprise) vs. IBM DataStage

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Astera Data Pipeline Builder (Centerprise)
Score 8.9 out of 10
Mid-Size Companies (51-1,000 employees)
Astera Data Pipeline Builder is a no-code solution for designing and automating data pipelines. It allows users to read and write data across various file formats, databases, and applications. Users can execute ETL and ELT pipelines manually, schedule automated reruns, or integrate them into broader data management processes.N/A
IBM DataStage
Score 7.7 out of 10
N/A
IBM® DataStage® is a data integration tool that helps users to design, develop and run jobs that move and transform data. At its core, the DataStage tool supports extract, transform and load (ETL) and extract, load and transform (ELT) patterns. A basic version of the software is available for on-premises deployment, and the cloud-based DataStage for IBM Cloud Pak® for Data offers automated integration capabilities in a hybrid or multicloud environment.N/A
Pricing
Astera Data Pipeline Builder (Centerprise)IBM DataStage
Editions & Modules
Centerprise Enterprise
Contact rep
Lifetime License per Seat
No answers on this topic
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Astera Data Pipeline Builder (Centerprise)IBM DataStage
Free Trial
YesYes
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
YesNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional DetailsDiscounts are provided for 10 pack, 20 pack, 50 pack, and enterprise wide Centerprise Professional licenses.
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Astera Data Pipeline Builder (Centerprise)IBM DataStage
Features
Astera Data Pipeline Builder (Centerprise)IBM DataStage
Data Source Connection
Comparison of Data Source Connection features of Product A and Product B
Astera Data Pipeline Builder (Centerprise)
8.2
32 Ratings
0% below category average
IBM DataStage
8.2
11 Ratings
0% below category average
Connect to traditional data sources9.032 Ratings8.411 Ratings
Connecto to Big Data and NoSQL7.31 Ratings8.010 Ratings
Data Transformations
Comparison of Data Transformations features of Product A and Product B
Astera Data Pipeline Builder (Centerprise)
7.0
33 Ratings
14% below category average
IBM DataStage
7.7
11 Ratings
5% below category average
Simple transformations9.433 Ratings8.011 Ratings
Complex transformations4.731 Ratings7.511 Ratings
Data Modeling
Comparison of Data Modeling features of Product A and Product B
Astera Data Pipeline Builder (Centerprise)
7.1
31 Ratings
10% below category average
IBM DataStage
6.9
11 Ratings
13% below category average
Data model creation9.420 Ratings6.68 Ratings
Business rules and workflow9.928 Ratings7.010 Ratings
Collaboration6.41 Ratings7.011 Ratings
Testing and debugging2.928 Ratings6.511 Ratings
Metadata management00 Ratings5.010 Ratings
Data Governance
Comparison of Data Governance features of Product A and Product B
Astera Data Pipeline Builder (Centerprise)
8.2
1 Ratings
3% above category average
IBM DataStage
5.5
10 Ratings
36% below category average
Integration with data quality tools8.21 Ratings5.510 Ratings
Integration with MDM tools8.21 Ratings5.510 Ratings
Best Alternatives
Astera Data Pipeline Builder (Centerprise)IBM DataStage
Small Businesses
Skyvia
Skyvia
Score 10.0 out of 10
Skyvia
Skyvia
Score 10.0 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
IBM InfoSphere Information Server
IBM InfoSphere Information Server
Score 8.0 out of 10
IBM InfoSphere Information Server
IBM InfoSphere Information Server
Score 8.0 out of 10
Enterprises
IBM InfoSphere Information Server
IBM InfoSphere Information Server
Score 8.0 out of 10
IBM InfoSphere Information Server
IBM InfoSphere Information Server
Score 8.0 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
Astera Data Pipeline Builder (Centerprise)IBM DataStage
Likelihood to Recommend
8.9
(46 ratings)
7.0
(11 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
9.2
(7 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Usability
7.3
(10 ratings)
8.0
(4 ratings)
Availability
9.0
(2 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Performance
8.5
(2 ratings)
9.0
(1 ratings)
Support Rating
8.4
(21 ratings)
9.6
(3 ratings)
Implementation Rating
8.2
(4 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Configurability
9.1
(1 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Contract Terms and Pricing Model
7.4
(2 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Ease of integration
9.0
(2 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Product Scalability
7.6
(2 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Professional Services
8.3
(2 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Vendor post-sale
9.0
(2 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Vendor pre-sale
9.0
(2 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
Astera Data Pipeline Builder (Centerprise)IBM DataStage
Likelihood to Recommend
Astera Software
I have only been using Astera Centerprise for about 6 months and I am still learning the ins and out of it. A scenario where it seems to do well is in generating reports from SQL queries that we already had and no longer have to run the reports manually. The SQL Query Source object has been the most useful tool for me thus far. I have yet to fully stress test the server side of Astera Centerprise, but currently there have been some version updates that required me to re-set up all the scheduled jobs that we have. We only have 8 jobs thus far but have plans to expand this into the hundreds and those same updates would require exponential amounts of work.
Read full review
IBM
DataStage is somewhat outdated for an ETL. I guess that's what makes it a bit lagged behind its competitors. It can be used for data processing, sure, but its performance seems to be lagging behind or quite slow given the server it is running from. I won’t depend on this application if it's handling a lot of mission-critical banking and business data.
Read full review
Pros
Astera Software
  • API integrations vis REST Web Service transformation
  • Stored Procedure integration via SQL statement Lookup transformation
  • Bulk imports and exports to and from tables
  • Data dumps from SQL tables to excel, csv, text files etc...
  • EDI Integrations like 810, 856, 940, 945 etc.. via Astera Centerprise Data Integrator plus EDI Connect
Read full review
IBM
  • Connect to multiple types of data-sources including Oracle, Teradata, Snowflake, SQl Server.
  • Powerful tool to load large volumes of data.
  • Transformation stages allow us to reduce the amount of code needed to create ETL scripts.
  • Allow us to synchronize and refresh data as much as needed.
Read full review
Cons
Astera Software
  • When purchasing Astera Centerprise you are given options on how you would like to be trained and each option comes with a different price tag. We chose to be trained using online meetings over several days. The training went too fast and it was not always easy to understand until I started using the product.
  • I am a person that wants to learn how and why something works so that I can use the knowledge in the future. When contacting the support team they take the problem, create a solution for you and send it back. The solutions always work, but when I get the solution I have to review every field and function to understand how it works so that I can re-create it for another solution I need. I would much rather have the support team explain what I had done incorrectly and what they changed or I would like to find a solution with them instead of having it handed to me.
  • Astera uses license keys to allow their customers rights to only the functionality that was purchased. Each user and server has its own key and each key is only good for one year. There have been 2 different times that we received keys that had less functionality that we purchased. It wasn't until it created problems that we noticed and had to request new keys. This year our sales representative made sure she was available when we updated our keys so that if there was a problem she could fix it right away; however, there were not issues this year. I believe this is something they pay closer attention to now.
Read full review
IBM
  • Technical support is a key area IBM should improve for this product. Sometimes our case is assigned to a support engineer and he has no idea of the product or services.
  • Provide custom reports for datastage jobs and performance such as job history reports, warning messages or error messages.
  • Make it fully compatible with Oracle and users can direct use of Oracle ODBC drivers instead of Data Direct driver. Same for SQL server.
Read full review
Likelihood to Renew
Astera Software
We've been using Astera Centerprise application for the last 6 years and we've already added EDI connect to it. Both applications are working really well for our enterprise needs so far with no issues, so we'll continue renewing the licenses.
Read full review
IBM
No answers on this topic
Usability
Astera Software
Centerprise is highly usable; however the version we are currently using could be a little more intuitive in some areas though by no means unworkable. I think some of the issues we have have been addressed and solved in the latest version.
Read full review
IBM
Because it is robust, and it is being continuously improved. DS is one of the most used and recognized tools in the market. Large companies have implemented it in the first instance to develop their DW, but finding the advantages it has, they could use it for other types of projects such as migrations, application feeding, etc.
Read full review
Reliability and Availability
Astera Software
In most cases Astera is stable. However, our client experiences the error from time to time. Mostly they are related to cdc file and ServerAdminConfig.xml file.
Read full review
IBM
No answers on this topic
Performance
Astera Software
I think the performance for Astera is great when compare with other similar software.
Read full review
IBM
It could load thousands of records in seconds. But in the Parallel version, you need to understand how to particionate the data. If you use the algorithms erroneously, or the functionalities that it gives for the parsing of data, the performance can fall drastically, even with few records. It is necessary to have people with experience to be able to determine which algorithm to use and understand why.
Read full review
Support Rating
Astera Software
Support is great! No matter if you need technical assistance or you have general questions about the tool - the support is very responsive and provides solutions quickly. They are available via various channels, which makes it very convenient to get in touch with them (Support portal, direct email contact, LinkedIn).
Read full review
IBM
IBM offers different levels of support but in my experience being and IBM shop helps to get direct support from more knowledgeable technicians from IBM. Not sure on the cost of having this kind of support, but I know there's also general support and community blogs and websites on the Internet make it easy to troubleshoot issues whenever there's need for that.
Read full review
Implementation Rating
Astera Software
Astera support provided us implementation/installation tutorial and we were able to perform all the activities. Also one of the support was there to shadow us to make sure the process was smooth with no issues
Read full review
IBM
No answers on this topic
Alternatives Considered
Astera Software
We looked at continuing to use SSIS as an alternative. Although we own SSIS as part of our SQL licensing, we found that it takes a much higher skill level to create solutions. It also does not have the ability to parse unstructured data the way that Centerprise Data Integrator can. We also looked at Datawatch Monarch as a possibility but found it over-all to be cost-prohibitive. We also looked at a cheaper alternative called SimX but did not have a strong confidence in the product as we evaluated it. We landed on Centerprise Data Integrator as it met all of our business requirements and we know we could leverage it for many uses across our enterprise.
Read full review
IBM
With effective capabilities and easy to manipulate the features and easy to produce accurate data analytics and the Cloud services Automation, this IBM platform is more reliable and easy to document management. The features on this platform are equipped with excellent big data management and easy to provide accurate data analytics.
Read full review
Contract Terms and Pricing Model
Astera Software
I was helping on purchase this product but I am not sure about the term and pricing for it. But based on what I understand that the term of the licenses are good.
Read full review
IBM
No answers on this topic
Scalability
Astera Software
I think Astera can do multiple things. However, we are not sure what it can do. We only know the basic features. If they can give us some kind of training, then we maybe able to benefit for it. We are planning to use their Azure connection in the future. If they can provide the training for it, it will be wonderful.
Read full review
IBM
No answers on this topic
Professional Services
Astera Software
Centerprise is very easy to use and can transfer the data quickly
Read full review
IBM
No answers on this topic
Return on Investment
Astera Software
  • It is tough to say on how Centerprise would have helped us with ROI. Unfortunately our project (after 3 years) was scrapped (put on hold) due to the impromptu purchase of another Crop Insurance company. But with that, Centerprise was huge in getting our warehouse loaded for our BI Team to make important decisions about our policies.
Read full review
IBM
  • It’s hard to say at this point, it delivers, but not quite as I expected. It takes a lot of resources to manage and sort this out (manpower, financial).
  • Definitely, I don’t have the exact numbers, but given the data it processes, it is A LOT. So props to the developer of this application.
  • Again, based on my experience, I’d choose other ETL apps if there is one that's more user-friendly.
Read full review
ScreenShots

Astera Data Pipeline Builder (Centerprise) Screenshots

Screenshot of Centerprise's data profiling feature, that ensures that only quality data is delivered to end users.Screenshot of a variety of write strategies available for workflows.Screenshot of the built-in scheduler used to automate most tasks. Triggers can be based on time, event or even a file or mail drop.Screenshot of the AI-powered mapping that allows users to automate the mapping process from source to destination. The tool also supports The Dynamic Layout/Template Mapping feature in Astera Centerprise that allows users to create a template dataflow that can be used to process multiple files and generate copies of the same dataflow, without changing the mapping links individually for each source dataset. Upon execution, Centerprise replaces the values dynamically and generates a new dataflow automatically for all source files.Screenshot of the two types of transformations supported by Astera Centerprise: record level and set level transformation. Record level transformations are used to create derived values by applying a Lookup, Function, or Expression to fields from a single record. Set level transformations, on the other hand, operate on a group of records and may result in the Joining, Reordering, Eliminating, or aggregating of records.