Forum Discussion
best method for migrating a large microsoft access database to data warehouse
I recently have been asked to migrate a large microsoft access database to a fabric data warehouse. From what I have read, exporting the tables into CSVs and then using datatflow gen2 to import them seems to be the preferred method. I am wondering if anyone has come up with a more elegant solution?
Thanks,
matt
Hi mklevemann ,
Yes, As per this documentation you can utilise data flow gen2 to get the data from access db to fabric. Please check the pre-requisites and authentication type it supports.
https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/fabric/data-factory/connector-access-database-overview
https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/fabric/data-factory/connector-access-database
Regards,
Srisakthi
2 Replies
Hi mklevemann ,
Yes, As per this documentation you can utilise data flow gen2 to get the data from access db to fabric. Please check the pre-requisites and authentication type it supports.
https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/fabric/data-factory/connector-access-database-overview
https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/fabric/data-factory/connector-access-database
Regards,
Srisakthi
Hello mklevemann,
For a large Microsoft Access migration into Fabric, I would not start with CSV exports.
It works, but it quickly becomes something you regret once refreshes, retries, and schema changes show up.
A better pattern is to stay inside Fabric from the start:
Step 1: Pull data from Access using ODBC or Power Query
Step 2: Land tables directly in Dataflow Gen2
Step 3: Store everything raw in a Lakehouse first
Step 4: Do cleaning and shaping in Fabric (Dataflow Gen2 or Spark)
Step 5: Load curated tables into the Data Warehouse
This keeps the process repeatable. No file handling in the middle, no manual steps to manage later.
CSV is fine for quick extracts or small one-off moves.
For anything large or ongoing, it just adds friction without giving much back.
Docs:
Microsoft Open Database Connectivity (ODBC)
Connectors in Power Query
