What is SQL Server BI anyway?

One of the major focuses for a lot of companies these days, even in these tough times, is BI. I have wrote about this recently, specifically with the move of PerformancePoint as being part of the SharePoint offerings.

Direct link to my last post here: Dynamics BI: BI for the Masses

That post gave a real broad picture into what BI will look like from an overall Microsoft BI strategy.

However, what is BI in terms of SQL Server? Why is this important to understand?

Well Dynamics, and therefore Dynamics AX, makes use of SQL Server to run on top of. And more and more SQL Server features are being tightly integrated and very much a part of Dynamics AX solution.

Since this is the case, it makes sense, that one needs to understand BI from SQL Server point of view. In doing this, then the incorporation can better be unnderstood, and the use of SQL Server BI solutions inside Dynamics AX can be better made use of.

So what is BI in terms of SQL Server?

BI for SQL Server is made up of several key technologies / terms. They are:

• SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS).
  


• SQL Server Analysis Services (SSAS)
  - Multidimensional Data
  
  - Data Mining
  


• SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS)
  

These technologies make up what can be used to create BI solutions from SQL Server's point of view. Each of the above links goes to the home page found on MSDN, which contains to wonderful amounts of information about each of these topic area's.

SSRS can be used to create functional / procedural reports, where SSAS can be used to mine data, create predication based cubes, and other OLAP data dimensional cubes from transactional data. SSIS can be used to ETL, or Extract, Transform and Load data from many, many sources into a SQL Server staging or Datawarehouse that can then be used by SSRS and SSAS for reporting and knolwedge management about a businesses operations.

These are the key to understanding BI solutions from SQL Server's point of view, and answer the question What is BI in terms of SQL Server?

Next I will move forward with these topic area's for help in understanding them, and answer the next question in line: Why is this important to understand?

Check back soon, and see you later!




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Business Intelligence in Dynamics AX 2009 (Part I)

When you think of Business Intelligence in Dynamics AX 2009, what comes to mind? There will actually be several ways to get data, reports, and information feeds that help build one's business intelligence from their given Dynamics AX 2009 instance. What I want to cover in this post, is what Microsoft is calling Business Intelligence in Dynamics AX 2009, talk about Microsoft Office PerformancePoint Application and working with Dynamics AX 2009, as well as using Applications like Excel for retrieving data from Dynamics AX 2009 and creating Ad Hoc Business intelligence reports and information applications.

First lets start with what Microsoft is calling Business intelligence in Dynamics AX 2009. In order to do that, let me point out the MSDN home for Business Intelligence in Dynamics AX 2009:

MSDN: Dynamics AX 2009, Business Intelligence

In looking over this, it's actually similar to Dynamics AX 4.0, in what is considered to be Business Intelligence, which revolves around OLAP cubes, creating OLAP cubes, and working with / processing OLAP cubes from Dynamics AX that can be defined and created from the Transactional Data in your Dynamics AX instance.

With that said, Microsoft has done a Lot under the covers to SQL Server 2008, specially in regard to OLAP and OLAP services, processing engine, etc. So this new benefits can now be used in Dynamics AX 2009. There is a good write up on what all is new and improved in SQL Server 2008, Analysis Services located here: Cube Squared: Migrating Analysis Services to the SQL Server 2008 Platform, Part 1 of 2

So in Dynamics AX 2009, there are improvements already in what is referred to as Business Intelligence, and for sure you should be installing Any new Dynamics AX 2009 instance on SQL Server 2008, so if you do, then you will see a lot more benefits and improvements to Analysis Services and Business Intelligence together!

Next post I will talk about Microsoft Office PerformancePoint and using that with Dynamics AX 2009 to create and define Business Intelligence Processes! Check back soon!



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Office PerformancePoint Server 2007 released to manufacturing this week

Microsoft said in a press release that Office PerformancePoint Server 2007 is being release to manufacturing this week. Here is the link to the post: MSFT Press Release

And from the post:
Strong Customer and Market Momentum

“Microsoft has developed and assembled and is launching a formidable business intelligence and performance management (BI/PM) strategy that will change market dynamics…,” said John Hagerty, vice president of AMR Research Inc. “Because of Microsoft’s ubiquitous presence within enterprises of all sizes, its BI/PM products will certainly have long-term impact on how buyers perceive and purchase information-based products across all areas of their companies.”

Greater Business Opportunities for Partners

“Office PerformancePoint Server 2007 has expanded our portfolio of custom solutions and now enables us to more easily meet the needs of our existing customers,” said Eddie Short, vice president and global lead of business information management at Capgemini. “There’s been such a growth in customers wanting solutions to truly help improve business performance, and with Office PerformancePoint Server 2007, the open platform allows us to create Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and dashboards that are tailored to our customers’ needs, and helps us build a revenue stream around BI.”


For sure this is something that myself and more important Sunrise Technologies, Inc. [Sunrise Website] will be focusing on as an offering to our current and future clients. I am really excited to hear this news, and I am looking forward to implementing this.

Check back soon!

Find a job at: www.DynamicsAXJobs.com

Katmai and you!

With the next release of SQL Server code named Katmai, due next year and Dynamics AX 5.0 to follow right behind, its time to start thinking about what this means for the Dynamics AX eco-system.

Basically if you read up on Katmai, one of the major goals is Business Analaysis, and tighter integration with the Office 2007 platform, including SharePoint. For Dynamics AX, this means more out of the box ability for Ad-Hoc report generation from Excel, with Dynamics AX data. What comes to mind here is the Business Data Catalog. This will enable Report Models (refernce current perspectives in DAX 4.0) that will allow an end user to select from a given report model set, and drag and drop into Excel, SSRS, and work with that via SharPoint.

Ok maybe I am getting ahead of the ability curve here, but it will be close. This also means that the Business Scorecard manager will become more web part based, and start to turn into a RIA (Rich Interactive Application) experince hosted via SharePoint. This also means the business analysis in Dynamics AX will have more interactivity and interaction abilities with Excel 2007, SharePoint, etc.

So when we look at the overall picture, one of the big pushed for Katmai SQL Server, and Dynamics AX 5.0 is tighter integration with the Office 2007 platform. This means for the information worker, more and more job role responsibilities can start to live back into the Office domain, and less dependant on having to live and work inside Dynamics AX client itself.

Well check back soon!

Find a job at: www.DynamicsAXJobs.com