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The process of probing into a set of information for descriptive and predictive purposes is called data mining . The purpose is to identify those trends and patterns which indicate the direction of effort to achieve desired outcomes. SQL Server 2000 and Analysis Services, has inbuilt powerful data mining capabilities including algorithms for Clustering and for Decision Trees. Before actually studying the data mining capabilities of Analysis Services, let us briefly look at some terminology generally used while discussing data mining Understanding Terms used in Data Mining A case is the term used for the facts being studied. The data used to study these facts are called case sets. Each data mining case has a unique identifier called a key. Descriptive pieces of information are called attributes or measures. The case may contain information about a single table or from multiple tables. If there are multiple tables from which data is derived, such a case is defined as a case with nest...

How to Check Opening and Closing Amount using MDX. Here is MDX Query:   SELECT [Measures].[Actual GWP Sum] ON 0, OpeningPeriod ([dimTimeDimension].[Calendar Year].[Date], [dimTimeDimension].[Calendar Year].[Year].&[2009]) ON 1 FROM [cubePolicyFact] SELECT [Measures].[Actual GWP Sum] ON 0, ClosingPeriod ([dimTimeDimension].[Calendar Year].[Date], [dimTimeDimension].[Calendar Year].[Year].&[2009]) ON 1 FROM [cubePolicyFact]

Part 88: Introduction to Security in Analysis Services Part 87: Cube Storage: Planning Partitions from a SQL Server Management Studio Perspective Part 86: Cube Storage: Planning Partitions (Business Intelligence Development Studio Perspective) Part 85: Cube Storage: Introduction to Partitions Part 84: Introduction to Cube Storage

Problem Configuring Excel Services in SharePoint 2007 is fairly simple. However, in SharePoint 2010, Microsoft has changed the "Unattended Service Account" to use an "Application ID" from the "Secure Store Service Application". If you don't setup an Unattended Service Account then all of your data connections in Excel will need the credentials within the connection or will need to revert to the current user. Configuring the "Unattended Service Account" means you can set your authentication on the Excel data connection to None and use the credentials in the Secure Store Service application instead. This is an easy step to miss. Solution Please follow the steps below to correctly configure SharePoint 2010 Excel Services to use an Application ID from the Secure Store Services. More: http://www.mssharepointtips.com/tip.asp?id=1041

http://www.mssqltips.com/tip.asp?tip=1840 http://www.mssqltips.com/tip.asp?tip=1867 http://www.mssqltips.com/tip.asp?tip=1885

Problem I'm ready to install SQL Server 2008 R2 and SharePoint 2010 in a test environment.  I'm trying to decide whether to run SQL Server Reporting Services in SharePoint Integrated mode or native mode.   What are the advantages of running Reporting Services in SharePoint Integrated mode?  Can you provide an overview of what I need to do to get Reporting Services installed and running in SharePoint Integrated mode? Solution The biggest advantage to running Reporting Services in SharePoint Integrated mode is that you can deploy data sources, reports, etc. to SharePoint document libraries instead of the Report Manager web application that Reporting Services creates for you.  Since your users are probably familiar with SharePoint this makes sense.  In addition your users can take advantage of the new version of Report Builder that came with SQL Server 2008 R2 and deploy their reports to SharePoint document libraries, leveraging SharePoint for security....

Problem I noticed a new Lookup function in SQL Server 2008 R2 Reporting Services.  This sounds like something that I've needed for quite some time.  Can you provide an example of how I can use this? Solution There are three lookup functions in SQL Server 2008 R2 Reporting Services: Lookup, LookupSet and MultiLookup.  In this tip I will review each function and provide a simple report to show how it is used.  More on: http://www.mssqltips.com/tip.asp?tip=2141

NOTE: This article was written with PerformancePoint Server 2007 (CTP3). UI and features subject to change. One of the strategic benefits of performance scorecards is the ability to understand cause-and-effect relationships between scorecard metrics and objectives. For example: Does an increase in "cost of goods sold" affect the organization's profitability? How does employee attrition rate impact the organization's ability to increase shareholder return? Cause-and-effect diagrams can help drive organizational alignment be showing how lower-level KPIs impact strategic objectives, in turn helping individual contributors understand how their day-to-day actions impact those objectives. Strategy maps use cause-and-effect relationships to visually describe how an organization creates value, aligned on the four perspectives of the business outlined in the Balanced Scorecard Framework : · Financial · Customer · Business Process · Learning and Growth

Conceptual Framework for Business Intelligence The term Business Intelligence (BI) incorporates the concept of deriving useful information from the data in an organization. Designing a BI application involves multiple layers. The goal of this section is to provide a common framework for architects and developers. This framework is conceptual, technology agnostic, and covers the major phases, features, and functionality required to effectively implement a BI solution. The conceptual architecture in below Figure is comprised of five major areas and a set of cross-cutting concerns. Conceptual system architecture

Introduction This paper outlines the recommended best practices for designing OLAP databases in Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Analysis Services to better meet the functional and performance needs of users. Designing a database for Online Analytical Processing (OLAP) databases is very different from designing a database for Online Transaction Processing (OLTP) and requires a different approach for achieving optimal results. The best practices recommendations are grouped into the following sections: Data Source Design Best Practices Dimension Design Best Practices Cube Design Best Practices Partition Design Best Practices Aggregation Design Best Practices Within each section, these best practices are ordered roughly by priority, where priority is a combination of how important the best practice is and how often you must worry about it. Major topics not covered include best practices for the design of calculations and for server management and operations.  These two topics are s...

Introduction Microsoft® SQL Server™ Reporting Services is a comprehensive reporting tool. In using Reporting Services, you can design and deliver a wide range of reports, from simple tables to online free-form reports with graphical items and interactive links. Reporting Services can render reports for a variety of client-viewing formats, including HTML, PDF, Excel, and image formats. The wide variety of options and choices can be problematic for report authors who must make numerous decisions when choosing how to lay out a report. This paper provides a few guidelines to make these decisions easier and answers common questions.