Book Image

Microsoft Tabular Modeling Cookbook

By : te Braak
Book Image

Microsoft Tabular Modeling Cookbook

By: te Braak

Overview of this book

Business Intelligence Semantic Models (BISM) is a technology that is designed to deliver analytical information to users through a variety of mechanisms that include model structure, definition, and design. This book demonstrates how to create BISM models so that information can be presented to users in an intuitive and easy-to-use format. Once the model is defined, we also show you how it can be managed and maintained so that the data in it remains current and secure. Microsoft Tabular Modeling Cookbook is an all-encompassing guide to developing, managing, creating, and using analytical models using the Business Intelligence Semantic Model (BISM). This title covers a range of modeling situations and common data analysis related problems to show you the techniques required to turn data into information using tabular modeling. Microsoft Tabular Modeling Cookbook examines three areas of tabular modeling: model development, model management and maintenance, and reporting. This book is a practical guide on how to develop semantic models and turn business data into information. It covers all phases of the model lifecycle from creation to administration and finally reporting. It also shows you how to create models which are designed to analyze data. All sections of BISM modeling from development to management and finally reporting are covered. The sections on development examine a wide range of techniques and tricks required to build models, including moving data into the model, structuring the model to manipulate the data, and finally the formulas required to answer common business questions; all of these are discussed in this book in detail. Finally, the book examines methods of reporting on the data within the model, including the creation of data-driven workbooks and reports for a powerful end user experience.
Table of Contents (13 chapters)
12
Index

DirectQuery and real-time solutions


The ability to routinely process data with SQL Server Agent (see the Processing the data recipe) gives the model designer a large degree of flexibility to determine when data in the model is refreshed. In fact, the standard practice for Business Intelligence solutions is that data is updated on a nightly basis and therefore model processing becomes part of the nightly refresh.

However, where the source data is rapidly changing, there may be a requirement to implement a DirectQuery solution. This is an environment that is conceptually similar to Relational Online Analytical Processing (ROLAP). Here, the model passes all queries through to the relational database (rather than querying its own data store).

A DirectQuery solution may seem like an extremely attractive option for real-time data access since the model is essentially a semantic definition used to define the model structure. Further, there is no requirement for the model to process data since all...