ssma console

Author's original introduction

Use when: SSMA console operations — create project, generate assessment report, convert schema, migrate data, Oracle to SQL Server migration, schema conversion, data migration

SkillPi interpretation

Tasks

ssma console

Audience

Use the scenarios stated in the author's introduction.

Inputs and outputs

See the complete author document; outputs have not been runtime verified by SkillPi.

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Limits and differences

Functionality, version status and outcome statements in the introduction are author claims. Only pinned source and static attachment evidence were checked; runtime behavior, external services and compatibility are not guaranteed.

Testing

Not tested

Security rating and access scope

caution · Static evidence review; not a runtime safety guarantee.

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Original SKILL.md

---
name: ssma-console
description: "Use when: SSMA console operations — create project, generate assessment report, convert schema, migrate data, Oracle to SQL Server migration, schema conversion, data migration"
---

# SSMA Console — Oracle to SQL Server Migration

Generate XML configs and invoke `SSMAforOracleConsole.exe` directly — no external scripts or wrappers.

**Operations** (run in order for "full migration"):
1. **create-project** — connect source & target, map schema
2. **generate-report** — assessment report
3. **migrate-schema** — convert & deploy schema
4. **migrate-data** — convert, deploy, migrate data end-to-end

## Collect Inputs

Ask for missing parameters. Defaults in parentheses.

**Oracle**: Host (`localhost`), Port (`1521`), Instance *(required, service name)*, User, Password, Schema
**SQL Server**: Server, Database, User, Password, Encrypt (`true`), Trust Server Certificate (`true`), Target Schema (`dbo`)
**Project**: Name (`ssma-migration`), Folder (`.`), Type (`sql-server-2022` — also `2016`/`2017`/`2019`/`2025`/`sql-azure`), SSMA Path (`C:\Program Files\Microsoft SQL Server Migration Assistant for Oracle\bin\SSMAforOracleConsole.exe`)

## Generate XML Files

Resolve ALL `{PLACEHOLDER}` tokens before writing. Generate 3 files:

### `ssma-variables.xml`

```xml
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<variables>
  <variable name="$WorkingFolder$" value="{PROJECT_FOLDER}" />
  <variable name="$ProjectType$" value="{PROJECT_TYPE}" />
  <variable name="$ProjectName$" value="{PROJECT_NAME}" />
  <variable-group name="OracleConnection">
    <variable name="$OracleHostName$" value="{ORACLE_HOST}" />
    <variable name="$OracleInstance$" value="{ORACLE_INSTANCE}" />
    <variable name="$OraclePort$" value="{ORACLE_PORT}" />
    <variable name="$OracleUserName$" value="{ORACLE_USER}" />
    <variable name="$OraclePassword$" value="{ORACLE_PASSWORD}" />
    <variable name="$OracleSchemaName$" value="{ORACLE_SCHEMA}" />
  </variable-group>
  <variable-group name="SQLServerConnection">
    <variable name="$SQLServerName$" value="{SQL_SERVER}" />
    <variable name="$SQLServerDb$" value="{SQL_DATABASE}" />
    <variable name="$SQLServerUsrID$" value="{SQL_USER}" />
    <variable name="$SQLServerPwd$" value="{SQL_PASSWORD}" />
  </variable-group>
  <variable-group name="ReportSettings">
    <variable name="$SummaryReportFile$" value="Reports\Assessment\AssessmentReport.xml" />
    <variable name="$ConversionReportFile$" value="Reports\Conversion\ConversionReport.xml" />
    <variable name="$ConversionReportFolder$" value="Reports\Conversion" />
    <variable name="$DataMigrationReportFile$" value="Reports\Migration\DataMigrationReport.xml" />
    <variable name="$SynchronizationReportFolder$" value="Reports\Synchronization" />
  </variable-group>
</variables>
```

### `ssma-servers.xml`

**CRITICAL**: Use `tns-name-mode` — `standard-mode` treats instance as SID and fails with ORA-12505.

```xml
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<servers>
  <oracle name="source_oracle">
    <tns-name-mode>
      <connection-provider value="OracleClient" />
      <service-name value="(DESCRIPTION =(ADDRESS_LIST =(ADDRESS = (PROTOCOL = TCP)(HOST = $OracleHostName$)(PORT = $OraclePort$)))(CONNECT_DATA =(SERVICE_NAME = $OracleInstance$)))" />
      <user-id value="$OracleUserName$" />
      <password value="$OraclePassword$" />
    </tns-name-mode>
  </oracle>
  <sql-server name="target_sqlserver">
    <sql-server-authentication>
      <server value="$SQLServerName$" />
      <database value="$SQLServerDb$" />
      <user-id value="$SQLServerUsrID$" />
      <password value="$SQLServerPwd$" />
      <encrypt value="{ENCRYPT}" />
      <trust-server-certificate value="{TRUST_CERT}" />
    </sql-server-authentication>
  </sql-server>
</servers>
```

### Operation Script XML

Generate one script per operation. All scripts share this common `<config>` block (add `<object-overwrite action="overwrite" />` for migrate-schema/migrate-data, add `<data-migration-connection source-use-last-used="true" target-server="target_sqlserver" />` for migrate-data, use `every-5%` progress for schema/data ops):

```xml
<config>
  <output-providers>
    <output-window suppress-messages="false" destination="stdout" />
    <upgrade-project action="yes" />
    <user-input-popup mode="continue" />
    <progress-reporting enable="true" report-messages="true" report-progress="every-10%" />
    <log-verbosity level="info" />
  </output-providers>
</config>
```

All scripts start with this **preamble** in `<script-commands>`:

```xml
<create-new-project project-folder="$WorkingFolder$" project-name="$ProjectName$"
                    overwrite-if-exists="true" project-type="$ProjectType$" />
<connect-source-database server="source_oracle">
  <object-to-collect object-name="$OracleSchemaName$" />
</connect-source-database>
```

**CRITICAL**: Always include `<object-to-collect>` — without it, `map-schema` fails with "Source namespace was not found".

**Per-operation commands** (after preamble, before `<save-project />`):

| Operation | File | Commands after preamble |
|-----------|------|------------------------|
| create-project | `ssma-create-project.xml` | `connect-target-database` → `map-schema source-schema="$OracleSchemaName$" sql-server-schema="$SQLServerDb$.{TARGET_SCHEMA}"` |
| generate-report | `ssma-assessment.xml` | `generate-assessment-report object-name="$OracleSchemaName$" object-type="Schemas" write-summary-report-to="$SummaryReportFile$" verbose="true" report-errors="true"` |
| migrate-schema | `ssma-schema.xml` | `connect-target-database` → `map-schema` → `convert-schema` (to `$ConversionReportFile$`) → `synchronize-target object-name="$SQLServerDb$.{TARGET_SCHEMA}"` |
| migrate-data | `ssma-data.xml` | Same as migrate-schema + `refresh-from-database` → `migrate-data object-name="$OracleSchemaName$.Tables" object-type="category"` (to `$DataMigrationReportFile$`) → `close-project` |

## Execute

Show resolved XML and command to user. Confirm before running.

```powershell
New-Item -ItemType Directory -Force -Path "Reports\Assessment","Reports\Conversion","Reports\Migration","Reports\Synchronization","Logs" | Out-Null
& "{SSMA_CONSOLE_PATH}" -s "{SCRIPT_XML}" -c "ssma-servers.xml" -v "ssma-variables.xml" -l "Logs\{OPERATION}.log"
```

## Report Results

Check exit code (`0` = success), read logs and reports (`Reports\Assessment\`, `Reports\Conversion\`, `Reports\Migration\`), summarize findings.

## Constraints

- No external scripts — no `.ps1`, `.bat`, `.sh`
- Confirm connection details before executing
- Resolve all placeholders — no `{...}` in final XML
- Create output directories before execution

## Known Pitfalls

| Symptom | Fix |
|---------|-----|
| `ORA-12505: SID not registered` | Use `tns-name-mode`, not `standard-mode` |
| `Source namespace was not found` | Add `<object-to-collect>` to `connect-source-database` |
| `not found in metabase` on `force-load` | Use `object-to-collect` instead — `force-load` is unreliable |
| `SQL Server Agent is not running` | Warning only — BCP client-side migration still works |

Copyright and license notice

MIT License

Copyright GitHub, Inc.

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