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OLAP - OLAP
Computer Applications (IRDA37)
Annamalai University
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ON-LINE ANALYTICAL PROCESSING (OLAP)
OLAP can be defined as the process of converting raw data in to business information through multi dimension analysis. For a data warehouse application a well designed metadata layer will provide a multi dimensional view of data OLAP is a key technology for successful management that describes a class of applications that require multi-dimensional analysis of business data. OLAP systems enable managers and analysts to rapidly and easily examine key performance data and perform powerful comparison and trend analyses, even on very large data volumes. They can be used in a wide variety of business areas, including sales and marketing analysis, financial reporting, quality tracking, profitability analysis, manpower and pricing applications, and many others. OLAP technology is being used in an increasingly wide range of applications such as sales and marketing analysis, financial reporting and consolidation, and budgeting and planning. It is being used for applications such as product profitability and pricing analysis, activity-based costing, manpower planning, quality analysis, in fact for any management system that requires a flexible, top down view of an organization. The OLAP application contains logic, which includes: o Multi-dimensional data selection o Sub-setting of data o Retrieval of data, via the metadata layer o Calculation formulas The OLAP application layer is accessed via a front-end query tool, which uses tables and charts to ‘drill down’ or navigate through dimensional data or aggregated measures.
USES OF OLAP
Finance departments use OLAP for applications such as budgeting, activity- based costing (allocations), financial performance analysis, and financial modeling.
Sales analysis and forecasting are two of the OLAP applications found in sales departments. Marketing departments use OLAP for market research analysis, sales forecasting, promotions analysis, and customer analysis and market / customer segmentation.
Manufacturing OLAP applications include production planning and defect analysis.
The key indicator of a successful OLAP application is its ability to provide information, as needed, i., its ability to provide ‘just-in-time’ information for effective decision-making.
OLAP enables analysts, managers, and executives to gain insight into data through fast, consistent, interactive access to a wide variety of possible views of information. OLAP transforms raw data so that it reflects the real dimensionality of the enterprise as understood by the user.
OLAP plays the role of a mediator to the various types of data sources and front-end interfaces. Mediating role of the OLAP
True OLAP systems understand the sequential nature of time. OLAP systems must understand the concept of balances over time.
DIFFERENT STYLES OF OLAP
The four major alternatives for implementing OLAP applications are:
Multi-dimensional OLAP Hybrid OLAP Desktop OLAP Relational OLAP
Multi-dimensional OLAP
Multi-dimensional OLAP (MOLAP) is based on a multi-dimensional data base architecture. This stores data in a three-dimensional data cube that is already in the OLAP multi- dimensional format for ‘slicing and dicing’ into analysis views. Multi-dimensional architectures provide performance benefits where the data retrieval paths follow the pre-defined structure of the data cubes.
Hybrid OLAP
Hybrid OLAP products integrate specialized multi-dimensional data storage with relational database management technology. This allows businesses to link multi-dimensional data to the underlying source data in a relational database. HOLAP is best suited to applications that require heavy analysis, must provide predictable response times to resource intensive queries, will have a small number of concurrent users (i. fewer than 20), etc. It is not suitable for ad hoc analysis, for example, when attempting to discover why customers are being lost to competitors.
Desktop OLAP
The desktop style of OLAP allows users to perform limited analysis, directly against data held within a relational database, while avoiding many of the problems that affect the hybrid and relational OLAP styles.
The desktop OLAP is suitable for an enterprise that wants to provide pre- defined analysis capabilities to business users without incurring the higher purchase and maintenance cost of more functional products. This type of OLAP is not suitable where there is a requirement for flexible analysis or where multiple users require access to a common view of the business data.
Relational OLAP
Relational OLAP (ROLAP) is the fastest growing area of OLAP technology, with new vendors entering the market at an accelerating pace. Relational OLAP products are designed to operate directly on a data warehouse built on relational databases, through a comprehensive metadata layer. The ROLAP is suitable for situations , o Where users require unrestricted analysis of a large volume of data, o Where different business areas require different multi-dimensional views over the same source data, o Where there is a requirement to drill down to a low level of detail without impacting on the operational system, etc. This is not suitable where data storage is a limiting factor due to data redundancy.
BENEFITS OF OLAP
Successful OLAP applications increase the productivity of business managers, developers, and whole organizations. IT developers also benefit from using the right OLAP software OLAP reduces the applications backlog still further by making business users self-sufficient enough to build their own models. OLAP enables the organization as a whole to respond more quickly to market demands. Market responsiveness, in turn, often yields improved revenue and profitability.
OLAP - OLAP
Course: Computer Applications (IRDA37)
University: Annamalai University
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