Column-Store Databases and DW Appliances

With data volumes exploding, conventional enterprise data warehouses are fast running out of headroom. Data warehouse appliances are starting to fill the gap, but the emerging category of column-oriented databases may offer a better option. The key to success is matching your application to the right product.

Hubs, Spokes and Buses: How to Get to a Better Data Warehouse

Are you frustrated by the inefficiency, rigidity and latency of a first-generation, hub-and-spoke-architecture data warehouse? Here's a six-step guide to evolving to a streamlined, robust Kimball Dimensional Bus Architecture that will reduce time to reporting, lower data latency, and deliver more detailed, analytically useful information.

Master Data

Data Stores

Kimball University: Handling Arbitrary Restatements of History

How do you cope with an executive's request to "bring back a time series of activity for all subscribers who were in platinum status as of X date," or "show me a time series of orders by sales region according to the sales organization as of Y"? Here's how data warehouse pros can cope with the common requirement to look back in time.

Implementing Common Reference Data in a Data Warehouse

This article provides an architecture and process framework for implementing common reference data in a data-warehousing environment.

Data is at the Heart of Enterprise-Wide BI and DW, Part 3

My online series of articles has been focused on the need for businesses to "get serious" about their approach to developing an enterprise business intelligence (BI) and data warehousing (DW) capability. When pursuing this capability it is important to adopt a holistic view, followed by disciplined investment and execution.

The Logical/Physical Challenge in Data Management

A challenge is presented for data managers

Data Warehouse Quality Assurance Best Practices

Collaboration between IT and the business will help identify the reasonable issues versus the issues that cannot be resolved for the current release of the data warehouse.

UDF: Estimating the size of a table

In database planning and design it is essential to plan out how much HD space you are going to need to store your data. If you use BOL and do a search for "Estimating Table Size" you get three articles: - Estimating the size of a table - Estimating the size of a table with […]