Use of an InfoSource
The complexity of data flows varies. As an absolute minimum, you need a DataSource, a Transformation, an InfoProvider, and a Data Transfer Process.
The transformation process allows you to consolidate, cleanse, and integrate data. You can semantically synchronize data from heterogeneous sources. A Transformation converts the fields of the source into the format of the target.
Regarding the objects that we have discussed so far in this course, a DataSource, DataStore Object (advanced) and InfoObject can serve as source objects for a Transformation and an InfoObject and DataStore Object (advanced) can serve as target objects.
Let's introduce an SAP BW/4HANA object that can also be used as a source and target in a Transformation.
An InfoSource is a structure consisting of InfoObjects without persistence for connecting two Transformations. You use an InfoSource when you want to perform two (or more) transformations consecutively in the data flow, without additional storage of the data. For example, you can specify the format and assignment to InfoObjects in the first transformation. The actual business rules can be performed in the next transformation, which is a common transformation independent of the DataSources.
Using an InfoSource (optional in the data flow), you can connect multiple sequential transformations. You only require an InfoSource for complex transformations (multi-step procedures). Since the InfoSource is not a persistent data store, it cannot be used as a target for a Data Transfer Process.
Scenario
InfoSources are not mandatory to set up data flows. Also, in our scenario, we are not using InfoSources. However, for our scenario, for cost center actual transactional data, we could have designed our data flows more flexibly by using different transformations between DataSources and an InfoSource that deals with different formats of the source fields. Then we would have needed only one transformation from the InfoSource to the Data Mart DataStore Object, where common business rules could have been defined.