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some thoughts... - May, 2007
IT makes the world go round - and sometimes stops it...
 
 Tuesday, May 22, 2007

15. Treffen der Regionalgruppe Ruhrgebiet am 10. April 2007 ab 18.00 Uhr.
Veranstaltungsort: ELBA Buerosysteme GmbH & Co. KG in Gelsenkirchen - Anfahrtsplan & Adresse

  • Abstimmung weiterer Aktivitäten, Veranstaltungen und Termine der Regionalgruppe (alle)
  • Themen 2007 (alle)
  • Einführung in MDX (Ahmad Fani)
  • MDX relational nutzen (Markus Fischer)
  • [...]
  • weitere Themen ...

 

You will find a PPT (PASS_RG_Ruhrgebiet_20070410_MDX.ppt (823 KB)) and Examples for MDX-Statements (Tutorial.mdx (9,21 KB) Tutorial2.mdx (1,46 KB)) attached.

The Slidedeck is a merger of Slides from:

  • intellinet called "Atlanta.MDF - MDX Overview"
  • Microsoft TechEd 2006 "SQL Server 2005 Analysis Services: Deep dive" from Thierry D’hers
  • "MDX Basics" from Katherine Splett

The link for the usage of MDX in a relational scenario is this one - "Extracting Olap Data from SSAS using SSIS - Darren Gosbell"

Tuesday, May 22, 2007 6:04:44 AM (Mitteleuropäische Zeit, UTC+01:00)  #     Author:Markus Fischer   Comments [0]   |  |   | 
 Thursday, May 10, 2007

Today at the BI Conference in Seattle Jeff Raikes from Microsoft has given a first official impact - just slides - on the next SQL Server version.

I have seen a new feature called Change Data Capture (also mentioned in the datasheet) in the session "PL208 Data Warehousing with Microsoft SQL Server 2005" presented by Gopal Ashok, Program Manager with the SQL Server Product team, which was quite impressive.

Ever dealt with the problem of having mass data in a table and no "real" marker to identify the specific rows for incremental data operations like inserts, updates and deletes?
The Change Data Capture should ease your pain by creating a kind of audit table to watch data modification without the need of programming stored procedures, triggers and so on.
I am extremely curious how this feature proves in real life scenarios. And I am also a little bit surprised if the SSIS team will not bring up some new tasks to enable the use of the audit table of the Change Data Capture - or do we still need to develop the handling concerning load cycles, deleting of successfully loaded records, etc by our own? A kind of automatic delta queue mechanism and handling like in SAP systems would be great!

Tomorrow Ted Kummert, corporate vice president of the Data and Storage Platform Division at Microsoft will have a keynote at the morning - I hope that he will show some more live impressions.

You will find the official press release here.

And there also is a information website online.

Regarding to the press release, "SQL Server “Katmai” is scheduled to be delivered in 2008" - but there is no information about CTP´s available on the website yet.

Thursday, May 10, 2007 3:03:05 AM (Mitteleuropäische Zeit, UTC+01:00)  #     Author:Markus Fischer   Comments [0]   |  |  |  |  |  |   | 
 Monday, May 07, 2007

 

With the conference beginning on Tuesday with the Welcome Reception, I tried to build my schedule online today.
But as expected I have had a problem while choosing my schedule because there are some slots with many interesting session - I will have to choose spontaneously which session I attend...

Tuesday, May 8

3:00 PM - 8:30 PM
Registration   North Lobby, WSCTC    
 
6:00 PM - 8:30 PM
Welcome Reception   Hall 4CD, WSCTC    
 

Wednesday, May 9

7:00 AM - 7:00 PM
Registration   North Lobby, WSCTC    
 
7:00 AM - 8:00 AM
Breakfast   Hall 4AB, WSCTC    
 
8:00 AM - 10:15 AM
General Session - Jeff Raikes, Michael Treacy   Hall 4F    
 
10:15 AM - 10:30 AM
Break       
 
10:30 AM - 11:45 AM
BV108 Building a Plan for Success and Avoiding the Five Fatal Flaws of Business Intelligence   6C    
CL208 Enabling End-User, Ad-Hoc Reporting with Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Reporting Services   608/609    
 
11:45 AM - 1:00 PM
Lunch   Hall 4AB, WSCTC    
 
11:45 AM - 12:45 PM
 
11:45 AM - 2:30 PM
Solution Expo Hall Open   Hall 4E    
 
1:30 PM - 2:15 PM
Platinum Sponsor Session: Hewlett-Packard (HP) Transforming Information for Better Business Outcomes   6B    
 
2:15 PM - 2:30 PM
Break       
 
2:30 PM - 3:45 PM
PL203 Innovating Data Integration with Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Integration Services   6B    
 
3:45 PM - 4:00 PM
Break       
 
4:00 PM - 5:15 PM
CL301 Extending Enterprise Search Capabilities to your BI Applications   6B    
CT30 Writing MDX for KPIs   Chalk Talk Theater 3    
PL306 Practical Design Techniques for Modeling Common Business Scenarios in Analysis Services 2005   6E    
 
5:15 PM - 5:30 PM
Break       
 
5:30 PM - 6:45 PM
BV102 Business Value of Master Data Management   6C    
CT31 SQL Server Integration Services: Moving from development to test, from test to production   Chalk Talk Theater 3    
PL207 Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Reporting Services Integration with Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007   6B    
 
6:45 PM - 9:00 PM
Partner Solution Expo Reception/ Community Area Open   Hall 4E    
 

Thursday, May 10

7:00 AM - 7:00 PM
Registration       
 
7:00 AM - 8:00 AM
Breakfast   Hall 4AB, WSCTC    
 
8:00 AM - 10:15 AM
General Session - Ted Kummert, Dr. Robert Kaplan   Hall 4F    
 
10:15 AM - 10:30 AM
Break       
 
10:30 AM - 11:45 AM
CL201 Microsoft Office PerformancePoint Server2007: Business Modeling and Planning   6E    
PL204 Business Intelligence at Microsoft – a Center of Excellence View   6B    
 
11:45 AM - 1:00 PM
Lunch   Hall 4AB, WSCTC    
 
11:45 AM - 12:45 PM
 
11:45 AM - 2:30 PM
Solution Expo Hall Open   Hall 4E    
 
1:30 PM - 2:15 PM
Platinum Sponsor Session: Tata Consultancy (TCS) Creating Agile, Adaptable and Efficient Enterprises via Fast Track and Cost-Effective BI Solutioning: Speedily and Cost-Effectively filling the gap between People and Data   6C    
 
2:15 PM - 2:30 PM
Break       
 
2:30 PM - 3:45 PM
CL206 Delivering intelligence through Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 (MOSS)   6E    
PL209 Microsoft Business Intelligence for SAP   608/609    
PL410 Real-World Microsoft BI Implementations: Lessons Learned the Hard Way   6B    
 
3:45 PM - 4:00 PM
Break       
 
4:00 PM - 5:15 PM
CL211 BI Power Hour   6E    
CL212 Reporting Services: Enrich your report authoring experience through Microsoft Office   608/609    
PL302 Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Analysis Services Best Practices around Performance and Scale   6B    
PL303 Using SQL Server 2005 Integration Services to Populate a Kimball Method Data Warehouse   6C    
 
6:30 PM - 11:30 PM
Microsoft BI Conference 2007 Attendee Party & Awards Ceremony at Experience Music Project       
 

Friday, May 11

7:00 AM - 12:00 PM

Registration     

 

7:00 AM - 8:00 AM

Breakfast   Hall 4AB, WSCTC  

 

8:00 AM - 9:15 AM

General Session - Steve Ballmer   Hall 4F  

 

9:15 AM - 9:45 AM

Break     

 

9:45 AM - 11:00 AM

BV109 Aligning IT with Business Needs Around BI: War Stories and Lessons Learned   6C  

 

CL204 Master Data Management: What's Microsoft Thinking?   6E  

 

CL210 PerformancePoint Server for the Mid-Market   608/609  

 

11:00 AM - 11:15 AM

Break     

 

11:15 AM - 12:30 PM

CL207 Microsoft Office Excel 2007 and Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Analysis Services   6E  

 

PL201 SOA and Business Intelligence   6B  

 

12:00 PM - 1:15 PM

Lunch   Hall 4AB, WSCTC    
 
Monday, May 07, 2007 1:00:08 AM (Mitteleuropäische Zeit, UTC+01:00)  #     Author:Markus Fischer   Comments [0]   |   | 
 Tuesday, May 01, 2007

Vera Noest provides a really great link collection of ressources which will be very usefull while doing troubleshoting.

Vera also provides troubleshooting tips for Terminal Server and Citrix.

Worth reading - check it out!

Tuesday, May 01, 2007 11:34:30 PM (Mitteleuropäische Zeit, UTC+01:00)  #     Author:Markus Fischer   Comments [0]   |  |  |  |  |  |   | 

Darren Gosbell has posted a very interesting article about querying SSAS and use the result in the relational part of SQL Server.

I have used it in a project to retransfer data which was calculated due to a parent child dimension containing items for a financial analysis.
Calculating this via the relational data would have been a mess, because of having to rebuild the whole calculation from the bottom to the top of the hierarchy.

All you have to do is to define a linked server in the first step:

USE master 
GO 

/* Add new linked server */ 
EXEC sp_addlinkedserver 
@server='LINKED_OLAP', -- local SQL name given to the linked server 
@srvproduct='', -- not used 
@provider='MSOLAP.3', -- OLE DB provider (the .2 means the SQL2K version) 
@datasrc='localhost', -- analysis server name (machine name) 
@catalog='Adventure Works DW' -- default catalog/database

After successfully defining the linked server you will be able to query any SSAS cube based on your security like this way:

SELECT * 
FROM OpenQuery(linked_olap,'SELECT --measures.members 
  {Measures.[Internet Sales Amount]} ON COLUMNS, 
  [Date].[Month].members ON ROWS 
FROM [Adventure Works]') 

While writing this blog entry I tested it on my notebook also - and was very astonished that querying the cube does not work, while testing the linked server worked well.
I am getting an error message like:
"Msg 7399, Level 16, State 1, Line 1
The OLE DB provider "MSOLAP.3" for linked server "linked_olap" reported an error. The provider did not give any information about the error.
Msg 7330, Level 16, State 2, Line 1
Cannot fetch a row from OLE DB provider "MSOLAP.3" for linked server "linked_olap"."

Maybe it depends on Windows Vista, even with the security set in the right way and also running SSMS as an administrator...

Tuesday, May 01, 2007 11:05:16 PM (Mitteleuropäische Zeit, UTC+01:00)  #     Author:Markus Fischer   Comments [3]   |  |  |   | 

Interested in downloading music for free? Without DRM?
You will just be targeted with advertising and the advertiser pays the artist. We will have to see if the advertising is implemented in a smooth way or just is annoying.

All you have to do is to visit We7 and register - for sure you do not get the superstars, I am curious which known bands and artists will join.
Knowing that Peter Gabriel is a member of the team, we will have some surprises I think...

Referring to the website, "The real secret of We7 is our Web 2.0 based, 'pat.pending' MediaGraft engine"...
Huh... :-)

Just another Web 2.0 hype? We will see... But the idea is nice...
The website will start early in Summer 2007.

Tuesday, May 01, 2007 10:41:06 PM (Mitteleuropäische Zeit, UTC+01:00)  #     Author:Markus Fischer   Comments [0]   |   | 

Narayana Vyas Kondreddi has published some nice little sql helpers to search and replace data in various tables - therefor the following content is intellectual property of Narayana Vyas Kondreddi.

Maybe you will have to adjust the sql commands to search only special tables via a prefix for example or to just search via a special column...


The first one, SearchAllTables, can search all the columns of all the tables in a given database for a specific keyword:

CREATE PROC SearchAllTables
(
@SearchStr nvarchar(100)
)
AS
BEGIN

-- Copyright © 2002 Narayana Vyas Kondreddi. All rights reserved.
-- Purpose: To search all columns of all tables for a given search string
-- Written by: Narayana Vyas Kondreddi
-- Site: http://vyaskn.tripod.com
-- Tested on: SQL Server 7.0 and SQL Server 2000
-- Date modified: 28th July 2002 22:50 GMT


CREATE TABLE #Results (ColumnName nvarchar(370), ColumnValue nvarchar(3630))

SET NOCOUNT ON

DECLARE @TableName nvarchar(256), @ColumnName nvarchar(128), @SearchStr2 nvarchar(110)
SET @TableName = ''
SET @SearchStr2 = QUOTENAME('%' + @SearchStr + '%','''')

WHILE @TableName IS NOT NULL
BEGIN
SET @ColumnName = ''
SET @TableName =
(
SELECT MIN(QUOTENAME(TABLE_SCHEMA) + '.' + QUOTENAME(TABLE_NAME))
FROM INFORMATION_SCHEMA.TABLES
WHERE TABLE_TYPE = 'BASE TABLE'
AND QUOTENAME(TABLE_SCHEMA) + '.' + QUOTENAME(TABLE_NAME) > @TableName
AND OBJECTPROPERTY(
OBJECT_ID(
QUOTENAME(TABLE_SCHEMA) + '.' + QUOTENAME(TABLE_NAME)
), 'IsMSShipped'
) = 0
)

WHILE (@TableName IS NOT NULL) AND (@ColumnName IS NOT NULL)
BEGIN
SET @ColumnName =
(
SELECT MIN(QUOTENAME(COLUMN_NAME))
FROM INFORMATION_SCHEMA.COLUMNS
WHERE TABLE_SCHEMA = PARSENAME(@TableName, 2)
AND TABLE_NAME = PARSENAME(@TableName, 1)
AND DATA_TYPE IN ('char', 'varchar', 'nchar', 'nvarchar')
AND QUOTENAME(COLUMN_NAME) > @ColumnName
)

IF @ColumnName IS NOT NULL
BEGIN
INSERT INTO #Results
EXEC
(
'SELECT ''' + @TableName + '.' + @ColumnName + ''', LEFT(' + @ColumnName + ', 3630)
FROM '
+ @TableName + ' (NOLOCK) ' +
' WHERE ' + @ColumnName + ' LIKE ' + @SearchStr2
)
END
END
END

SELECT ColumnName, ColumnValue FROM #Results
END


The second one, SearchAndReplace, does not only perform the search but also will do a replace:

CREATE PROC SearchAndReplace
(
@SearchStr nvarchar(100),
@ReplaceStr nvarchar(100)
)
AS
BEGIN

-- Copyright © 2002 Narayana Vyas Kondreddi. All rights reserved.
-- Purpose: To search all columns of all tables for a given search string and replace it with another string
-- Written by: Narayana Vyas Kondreddi
-- Site: http://vyaskn.tripod.com
-- Tested on: SQL Server 7.0 and SQL Server 2000
-- Date modified: 2nd November 2002 13:50 GMT

SET NOCOUNT ON

DECLARE @TableName nvarchar(256), @ColumnName nvarchar(128), @SearchStr2 nvarchar(110), @SQL nvarchar(4000), @RCTR int
SET @TableName = ''
SET @SearchStr2 = QUOTENAME('%' + @SearchStr + '%','''')
SET @RCTR = 0

WHILE @TableName IS NOT NULL
BEGIN
SET @ColumnName = ''
SET @TableName =
(
SELECT MIN(QUOTENAME(TABLE_SCHEMA) + '.' + QUOTENAME(TABLE_NAME))
FROM INFORMATION_SCHEMA.TABLES
WHERE TABLE_TYPE = 'BASE TABLE'
AND QUOTENAME(TABLE_SCHEMA) + '.' + QUOTENAME(TABLE_NAME) > @TableName
AND OBJECTPROPERTY(
OBJECT_ID(
QUOTENAME(TABLE_SCHEMA) + '.' + QUOTENAME(TABLE_NAME)
), 'IsMSShipped'
) = 0
)

WHILE (@TableName IS NOT NULL) AND (@ColumnName IS NOT NULL)
BEGIN
SET @ColumnName =
(
SELECT MIN(QUOTENAME(COLUMN_NAME))
FROM INFORMATION_SCHEMA.COLUMNS
WHERE TABLE_SCHEMA = PARSENAME(@TableName, 2)
AND TABLE_NAME = PARSENAME(@TableName, 1)
AND DATA_TYPE IN ('char', 'varchar', 'nchar', 'nvarchar')
AND QUOTENAME(COLUMN_NAME) > @ColumnName
)

IF @ColumnName IS NOT NULL
BEGIN
SET @SQL= 'UPDATE ' + @TableName +
' SET ' + @ColumnName
+ ' = REPLACE(' + @ColumnName + ', '
+ QUOTENAME(@SearchStr, '''') + ', ' + QUOTENAME(@ReplaceStr, '''') +
') WHERE ' + @ColumnName + ' LIKE ' + @SearchStr2
EXEC (@SQL)
SET @RCTR = @RCTR + @@ROWCOUNT
END
END
END

SELECT 'Replaced ' + CAST(@RCTR AS varchar) + ' occurence(s)' AS 'Outcome'
END

Tuesday, May 01, 2007 8:37:56 PM (Mitteleuropäische Zeit, UTC+01:00)  #     Author:Markus Fischer   Comments [0]   |  |  |   | 

If you are working with a large .pst file or a large .ost file in Outlook 2007 you may have come across performance issues as described in KB932086.

Microsoft now has published an update in KB933493 which should fix this problem (including some other) and can be downloaded here.

Tuesday, May 01, 2007 8:14:10 PM (Mitteleuropäische Zeit, UTC+01:00)  #     Author:Markus Fischer   Comments [0]   | 
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