Insertion rules are designed to create new data rows by populating a single column with realistic looking data. An Insertion rule is typically used to create the initial rows and populate one column. Subsequent Substitution rules are then applied to fill in the rest of the contents of the table.
The choice of the inserted data is configurable by associating a Data Set with the rule. A variety of Data Sets are available to provide a wide range of realistic looking data. An Insertion rule will create new rows by inserting into a single specified column. This implies that the remaining columns in the table will contain NULL values. Typically further Substitution rules are used to populate the remaining columns in the table.
For example, a column containing 1000 customer ID numbers could be created by implementing an Insertion rule on it using the Sequential Integers Data Set with the Number of Rows to Insert option set to 1000. When the Insertion rule is executed as part of the Masking Set, 1000 numeric sequential values (with a specified start point and increment) would be generated and inserted into the table. After the rule execution completes, the table will contain 1000 rows with reasonable looking customer ID numbers and the remaining fields (first names, last names, addresses, company names etc) can be filled in through the use of Substitution rules.
Once the rule has begun to execute, the insertion continues until all specified rows have been created. Commits happen at user configurable intervals (every 5000 rows is the default).
Insertion rules do have options. These options are associated with the rule when it is created using the New Insertion Rule dialog box and can be adjusted at any time using the Options panel on the Set Rules tab.
The available options for Insertion rules are discussed in detail in the following help files.
