This white paper describes how to set up a load-balanced scalable querying environment for Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Analysis Services so that you can handle a large number of concurrent queries to your Analysis Services servers.  Read more...

Analysis Services 2005 in SQL Server improves cube design and performance. Learn how attribute relationships advise Analysis Services how data should be rolled up.  Read more...

Check out our Top 10 tips on Analysis Services 2005 that will help you navigate through the features and functionality of this priceless Business Intelligence tool.  Read more...

This white paper describes how to set up a load-balanced scalable querying environment for Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Analysis Services so that you can handle a large number of concurrent queries to your Analysis Services servers. Load-balanced querying ensures that readers of OLAP cubes can consistently query for the latest aggregations throughout the day and distribute the load of all queries among the available servers. This scale-out querying architecture optimizes cube processing time, increases the frequency of cube update, and makes processing more robust as you can afford more frequent processing and transparent error recovery.  Read more...

Support conditional formatting for enterprise reports from the Analysis Services layer of the integrated Microsoft business intelligence solution.  Read more...

Planning for disaster recovery in SQL Server Analysis Services can be tricky. Fortunately SQL Server 2005 introduces the concept of a database synchronization, allowing you to transfer information and meta data from one server to another. Yaniv Mor brings us a look at this feature.   Read more...

Connecting to a SQL Server 2005 database is a simple process, but connecting to an Analysis Services 2005 database takes a bit more effort. Longtime data warehousing author Jacob Sebastian brings us a quick tutorial on how you can connect from Management Studio.   Read more...

In this demonstration, you'll quickly learn how to create a basic cube using the Cube Wizard upon a data warehouse. Brian walks through the entire process in this 10 minute video to get you started with creating a browsing a cube.  Read more...

Use SQL Server Profiler to “look behind the scenes” within Analysis Services 2005. BI Architect Bill Pearson leads a hands-on introduction to determining resource utilization effectiveness for both processing and query performance with profiling.  Read more...

A whitepaper on getting the best performance from your system.  Read more...

In this article, we will examine IsLeaf(), once again as a conditional logic modifier, but within the context of a filter. Combining IsLeaf() with the MDX Filter() function is another way we commonly see it in action in the business environment, and our exposure to the practical aspects of its employment in this way will serve to round out our overall awareness of the potential of IsLeaf().   Read more...

In this article, we will concentrate upon the useful IsLeaf() operator, from the perspective of its use within a calculation. We will discuss the straightforward purpose of the operator, to ascertain whether a member is a leaf-level member of a dimension; the manner in which IsLeaf() manages to do this; and ways we can leverage the operator to support effective conditional logic to meet various business needs within our own environments.  Read more...

In this lesson, we will expose another useful function in the MDX toolset, the .Ordinal function. The general purpose of the .Ordinal function is to return the ordinal value of a specified dimensional level.  Read more...

In this presentation, you'll see how you can use Excel 2007 to view data and create quick reports against data in Analysis Services. Then, you'll see how to conditionally format the data and apply rules to the data.   Read more...

Analysis Services and business intelligence are new structures for most of the SQL Server world. BI expert Yaniv Mor brings us another article on Analysis Services, this time explaining the various different options for storing your cube data.   Read more...

In this and the related articles, we will overview Actions in Analysis Services 2005. Much as they did in the previous version of Analysis Services, Actions allow information consumers to go beyond the robust OLAP perspective offered by Analysis Services, and to "step outside" for related information, or to generate commands or initialize programs, without leaving their current analysis focus.  Read more...

Need a quick KPI prototype, using Reporting Services / Analysis Services 2000 or 2005? BI Architect Bill Pearson leads hands-on practice in presenting simple KPIs to management with Reporting Services.  Read more...

Leverage Perspectives, new to Analysis Services 2005, through MDX. BI Architect Bill Pearson leads hands-on practice with this means of visually focusing data retrieved from the UDM.   Read more...

Support information consumers with easier navigation and more focused analysis choices. In this article, BI Architect Bill Pearson leads hands-on exposure to Perspectives, another new Analysis Services 2005 feature.  Read more...

For those of you using Analysis Services, Yaniv Mor takes a look at some of the manageablity tools with SQL Server 2005. The way you work with Analysis Services and your cubes has changed dramatically and this is a good overview to get you started.   Read more...