Override SSIS package configurations through an SQL Server 2008 R2 Job

ByAdam Gilmore Updated on
1 Comment

If you thought you could override an SSIS package’s configurations when running it through an SQL Server 2008 R2 Job… think again.

In the SQL Server Job Step Properties dialog, there is a  Configuration tab that allows you to specify configuration files. The logical assumption is that this will override existing configurations with the same configuration file name. Unfortunately this isn’t the case.

A quote from MSDN DTEXEC Utility Documentation: “You can use the /ConfigFile option to load additional configurations at run time that you did not specify at design time. However, you cannot use the /ConfigFile option to replace configured values that you also specified at design time.”

The proper way to use SQL Server 2008 R2 Job Configurations, is to not define configurations in the package, and only specify them in the Job. This means that at design time the packages will need to contain hard coded values for you to run them on your development workstation.  A definite hassle if there are 2 or more developers with different local setups (Drives, Instance names etc). This is the reason, among others, that I always recommend developers have exactly the same configuration, and that it mirrors the production environment if possible.

Adam Gilmore

Adam Gilmore is a Data Architect with 20 years' experience in the Data field. He writes for dimodelo.com and develops courses covering Data Analysis to Data Architecture.

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One Comment

  1. I know this is a little late for your post, but so far yours is the one that makes the most sense to me. I understand that the BIDS config file will take precedence over the job configuration tab. Here is my confusion, in BIDS I have a specific location I keep the config files. The same file path exists on the prod and dev servers. When I build the deployed version and move it to the prod server, the config file it uses is in the deployed location, not the specified location within BIDS. For example in BIDS the config file is in d:applicationsSSISSSISConnectionsx.dtsconfig but the deployed version is using d:applicationsSSISSSISProjectsxbinx.dtsconfig. I endup with config fiels everywhere. Can I force the deployed version to use the d:applicationsSSISSSISConnections location? Or should I just put everything in the bin directory and have BIDS point to it instead?

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