The OPM data management toolkit includes a core of tools for constructing, maintaining, and querying OPM databases, as well as for constructing OPM views on top of existing databases (see figure 2).
OPM schema editing and browsing tools are provided for specifying and examining an OPM schema for a particular application. The OPM schema translator can then be used to generate complete definitions for the underlying relational (Sybase or Oracle) database automatically, including the rules and constraints required for maintaining data integrity. A mapping dictionary records the correspondences between the classes and attributes of an OPM schema and the underlying relational tables, and is used to translate OPM queries and updates into their relational (SQL) correspondents.
Pre-existing non-OPM databases can be retrofitted with an OPM view (schema) using the OPM retrofitting tools. Retrofitting involves first generating a canonical OPM schema from the native database schema, and then refining, and thus semantically enhancing, this view via a series of schema restructuring manipulations. The retrofitting tools can be used for constructing multiple OPM views for a single (OPM or non-OPM) database. The resulting mapping dictionary can then be used in conjunction with the other OPM tools in order to browse or query the underlying databases. Retrofitting tools are currently available for relational databases and for files structured using the ASN.1 data exchange format. Versions of these tools for other databases and files will be also developed in future.
The OPM query translator processes OPM-QL queries. Two alternative approaches to OPM-QL processing are supported: (1) using stored procedures, which provides the maximum efficiency for fixed-form queries on a native OPM database, and (2) generating SQL queries on the fly, which is suitable for free-form (ad-hoc) queries and/or for querying databases retrofitted with OPM schemas.
In addition the core OPM toolkit includes tools for publishing OPM schemas in a variety of formats, including HTML, PostScript, and LaTeX.
