Sybase operational BI Data management and data integration

This article reviews the Sybase Operational BI solution (operational bi) in order not to provide an in-depth product guide, but rather an overview of the key features of the solution, and how Sybase supports the operational BI environment ...

Data Management Services Component

Sybase can provide operational BI data management and data integration. It not only developed a product to manage BI information, but also developed a database design product. Sybase IQ and Sybase PowerDesigner are among the two key products.

Sybase IQ

The cornerstone of the Sybase operational BI solution is the Sybase IQ relational database system. The product was acquired from Expressway in 1995 and has steadily won the favor of its customers since then. The demand for High-performance BI information management capabilities makes the product more interesting. Today, more than 750 customers worldwide use Sybase IQ.

One of the key differences between Sybase IQ and the traditional relational database is that it is designed specifically for high-performance analytical processes. This performance is achieved by storing data in the form of column storage, rather than row storage in traditional relational databases.

The Sybase IQ column storage model improves performance because only columns are retrieved in the query, which reduces system I/O. By assigning threads to each column's access, parallel queries are allowed, and performance is further improved. This is especially beneficial for complex queries involving multiple columns. Another benefit of the column storage model is that it allows for extremely efficient data compression. For example, the Spanish Telefonica manages 70TB of the original data, which is stored in Sybase IQ, only 15TB. At the same time, they found that queries run at speeds of 200 times times faster than traditional solutions.

From outside the BI application, Sybase IQ databases are no different from other relational databases. The product supports standard SQL, providing a variety of functions such as stored procedures, functions, and so on. The application interface supports ODBC, JDBC, OLE DB, and WEB servers. The operating environment includes Linux, Windows, UNIX, and so on. The unstructured data options for the Sybase IQ database support storage of large binary objects, such as text and multimedia data.

In addition, Sybase provides an optional Sybase IQ multiplexing feature that allows a single Sybase IQ database to be shared by multiple computer nodes. This further improves the performance and scalability of large databases and workloads, and servers, processors, and hard disks can be added to the configuration as needed. This solution supports hardware and operating system software provided by traditional vendors such as HP, IBM, and Sun.

Sybase PowerDesigner

Sybase PowerDesigner is an industry-leading enterprise model tool that adds Business analytics and database design to the traditional software lifecycle. It uses a large number of modeling mechanisms together. Includes business process modeling, data modeling, object-based UML modeling, and XML modeling. It supports major industry development environments such as Java, Eclipse, Microsoft.NET, and supports more than 60 relational database products including Sybase IQ, IBM DB2, Oracle, Microsoft SQL Server, and so on.

PowerDesigner provides a meta data management capability that supports requirements management, impact analysis, documentation, data mapping, integrated management of SOA-driven projects, role-based security, and more. It strengthens business and it through teamwork and the ability to connect and synchronize business requirements with business and data models.

Data Integration Services Component

Sybase supports data syndication and data dissemination in data integration mechanisms. That is, Sybase Avaki EII supports data Federation, and Sybase Replication Server supports data dissemination. Data consolidation and ETL are supported by Sybase third party partners such as Business Objects, IBM ascential and Informatica.

Sybase Avaki EII

Sybase Avaki Eii was acquired by Sybase company in May 2005 through the acquisition of the Avaki company. Like other EII products, Sybase Avaki EII provides a virtual business view of distributed data. For BI applications, a virtual view is used, and the dispersed data appears to be stored in a single SQL relational table. When an application submits an SQL statement based on this view, the EII server accesses and operates the appropriate data source, combining it into a query result set, returning the result set to the application. EII server intelligently assigns SQL processes to the source system to reduce the amount of data that needs to be retrieved from a given source system.

The data sources supported by Avaki EII include plain text files (including XML, NFS, etc.), relational databases, business applications (such as JCA, Web server, or Third-party connectors provided by companies such as Iway Software).

The product contains features that are different from those of other competitors:

· The service view, available at any time, contains embedded program logic that supports more in-depth data transformation and analysis. In addition to the Services view that Sybase provides, developers can use JavaScript to write their own views. The service view and SQL view are defined and managed using the Avaki Studio development tool based on eclips.

· The Avaki EII Integration Framework allows service views to interact with external applications such as data quality and ETL tools, custom code, and so on.

· An integrated buffer tool allows results to be stored in advance (based on administrator-defined parameters) to improve query performance

· Sybase Avaki EII provides a valuable EII feature that can be used directly by BI reporting and analytical applications, or with Sybase IQ when used in conjunction with the Sybase I.Q. database.