Refactoring of databases to include soft type information

A system for refactoring a database, comprising:

• at least one hardware processor configured to:
• profile soft type data to generate an attribute list and one or more mapping suggestions for mapping the soft type data to another database structure, wherein the soft type data include data stored in a database table external of a defined database table to extend the defined database table to include additional attributes without modifying a definition of the defined database table, wherein the soft type data in the external database table includes one or more tuples each corresponding to an additional attribute and comprising a value for the additional attribute and a row identifier indicating a row in the defined database table associated with the additional attribute, and wherein profiling the soft type data to generate an attribute list and one or more mapping suggestions to another database structure includes:
• performing column analysis on the soft type data and applying statistics on frequency, uniqueness and value distribution of attributes to determine additional columns present in the soft type data extending the defined database table;
• generate a data model definition and extract, transform, and load logic for transforming the soft type data based on the attribute list and at least one of the one or more mapping suggestions;
• execute the data model definition to create a target database structure incorporating the additional columns as structured columns into one or more defined database tables, wherein the additional columns are directly accessible by a query in a relational structured query language specifying the additional columns and received by the database from an external application;
• move data from an existing database structure to the target database structure, wherein moving data from the existing database structure to the target database structure includes:
• processing requests by one or more external applications for data records by performing an access operation to access the requested data records from soft type data within the external database table;
• and
• moving data records of soft type data incrementally from the external database table to the additional structured columns of the one or more defined database tables of the target database structure as each data record is requested, wherein each data record is transformed from the soft type data to hard type data and stored in the target database structure after the access operation for that data record;
• and
• provide access to the soft type data within the defined database tables of the target database structure.

A computer program product for refactoring a database, comprising:

• a non-transitory computer readable storage medium having computer readable program code embodied therewith for execution on a processing system, the computer readable program code comprising computer readable program code configured to:
• profile soft type data to generate an attribute list and one or more mapping suggestions for mapping the soft type data to another database structure, wherein the soft type data include data stored in a database table external of a defined database table to extend the defined database table to include additional attributes without modifying a definition of the defined database table, wherein the soft type data in the external database table includes one or more tuples each corresponding to an additional attribute and comprising a value for the additional attribute and a row identifier indicating a row in the defined database table associated with the additional attribute, and wherein profiling the soft type data to generate an attribute list and one or more mapping suggestions to another database structure includes:
• performing column analysis on the soft type data and applying statistics on frequency, uniqueness and value distribution of attributes to determine additional columns present in the soft type data extending the defined database table;
• generate a data model definition and extract, transform, and load logic for transforming the soft type data based on the attribute list and at least one of the one or more mapping suggestions;
• execute the data model definition to create a target database structure incorporating the additional columns as structured columns into one or more defined database tables, wherein the additional columns are directly accessible by a query in a relational structured query language specifying the additional columns and received by the database from an external application;
• move data from an existing database structure to the target database structure, wherein moving data from the existing database structure to the target database structure includes:
• processing requests by one or more external applications for data records by performing an access operation to access the requested data records from soft type data within the external database table;
• and
• moving data records of soft type data incrementally from the external database table to the additional structured columns of the one or more defined database tables of the target database structure as each data record is requested, wherein each data record is transformed from the soft type data to hard type data and stored in the target database structure after the access operation for that data record;
• and
• provide access to the soft type data within the defined database tables of the target database structure.