Download Overview on new SSAS 2012 Tabular Model

Overview on new SSAS 2012 Tabular
Model
Kevin S. Goff
Kevin S. Goff: 30 seconds of Shameless Promotion
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Developer/architect since 1987 / Microsoft SQL Server MVP 2011
Columnist for CoDe Magazine since 2004
Wrote a book, collaborated on a 2nd book
Currently writing a 3rd book on BI with SQL Server
Frequent speaker for SQL/SharePoint/.NET community events
SQL Server/Business Intelligence Practice Manager for SetFocus, LLC
SetFocus Free Training site: http://freetraining.setfocus.com
[email protected] [email protected]
www.KevinSGoff.Net (Go to downloads area)
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My daughter Katy (3 years old)
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New Tabular Model
• This is a demo of what we can do with the Tabular Model and
how it differs from the standard Multidimensional OLAP
approach in SSAS
• Not intended to show how to create a project from scratch
• Let’s look at a “final result” and walk backwards to see a few
steps on how it was put together
• This presentation is based on the TechNet webinar I did earlier in
2012 (see the last slide for the link)
• Presentation is also based on a CoDe Magazine article that will
appear in CoDe Magazine at the very end of the year – if you
want an early draft of the article, email me at
[email protected] and I’ll send you a copy of the article
• This slide deck is available on http://kevinsgoff.net
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New Tabular Model
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Major new feature in SQL Server 2012
Need to take a step back to look at the history of SQL Server Analysis Services and OLAP
1998: Microsoft released OLAP Services with SQL Server 7
2000: Microsoft released Analysis Services with SQL Server 2000
– Better support for business dimensions
– Limitations by today’s standards (only 1 fact table per cube), but an important release
2005: Enhanced version of Analysis Services with SQL Server 2005
– UDM (Unified Dimension Model): an “API”, a “bridge” between users/developers and
multidimensional sources
– Support for more dimension types
– Significant Data Mining functionality
– To many, the first truly powerful version for creating OLAP solutions
2008: Enhanced version of Analysis Services w/SQL Server 2008
– More data mining enhancements
– Some MDX enhancements
By 2008, OLAP developers had great tools with SSAS to build multidimensional OLAP cubes
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New Tabular Model
• To many, Microsoft OLAP with Analysis Services is great
• To others, some criticisms:
– Some perceive a steep learning curve
– The query language (MDX) can be difficult to learn
– Different paradigm than relational databases
• The market started to see competing tools that allowed
developers/power users to create analytic databases with
less perceived complexity (QlikView)
• In the spring of 2010, Microsoft responded…
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New Tabular Model
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In spring of 2010, Microsoft introduced a very important tool with Excel 2010 / SQL
Server 2008R2: PowerPivot
– Free add-on for Excel: allowed users to take a relational database (or other data
sources) and create the equivalent of a compressed star-schema cube (as a
database inside of Excel), so that users could “slice and dice” the data in the same
way they previously could with OLAP data
– Integration with Analysis Services 2008R2 and SharePoint 2010, so that users could
publish the combination pivot table/chart and underlying database to SharePoint,
so that others could interface with it
Introduced the Vertipaq engine (now called xVelocity - same technology used for the
columnstore index in SQL Server 2012)
Introduced DAX (Data Analysis Expressions) for creating calculations and expressions
A 1.0 product: some quirks, interface missing some features, some issues with
SharePoint integration, but most felt would eventually become a game-changer
Not as powerful as a full-blown OLAP SSAS database solution, but provided a certain
level of autonomy for power users to create certain analytic solutions using nothing
more than Excel
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New Tabular Model
• So as of mid-2010, there were 2 ways to create analytic
databases:
– Microsoft Analysis Services (multidimensional OLAP) for larger,
corporate and enterprise BI solutions
• Very powerful
• Still required steep learning curve to master
• Usually requires strong knowledge of XMLA and MDX
– PowerPivot (either with or without SharePoint 2010 integration) for
personal or departmental BI solutions
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Easy to use
Needed more functionality
DAX language could be as difficult as MDX
Needed access to this data from other reporting / client tools
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New Tabular Model
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SQL Server Analysis Services 2012 and the new Business Intelligence Semantic Model (BISM)
Three ways to create Business Intelligence database applications:
– 1) Analysis Services multidimensional OLAP Model, created using SQL
Server Data Tools (formerly BIDS).
• Tool of choice for those who have already gone through the SSAS/OLAP learning curve,
and are looking for the most advanced functionality
• A few additions/changes, but largely unchanged from SQL Server 2008
– 2) New Analysis Services Tabular Model (also created using SQL Server
Data Tools)
• Not nearly as powerful as multidimensional OLAP, but might be sufficient for some
corporate BI solutions
• Can create an SSAS database using SSDT and then access in tools like SSRS or
PerformancePoint services , just like you would with an OLAP database
• Very fast for many databases
• Good for prototyping of what will eventually become OLAP multidimensional databases
– 3) New updated version of PowerPivot 2.0
• Greatly enhanced over PowerPivot 1.0
• Better data designer, KPIs
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New Tabular Model
SSAS
Multidimensional
OLAP
SSAS Tabular Model
PowerPivot (with SharePoint)
# users
Large
Large
Small to medium
Tool
SSDT
SSDT
Excel
Query language
MDX
DAX (if MDX is passed, is
converted to DAX, so long
as DirectQuery is not used)
DAX (if MDX is passed, is converted to
DAX)
Reporting tool access
Excel, SSRS, PPS, or any
tool capable of reading MS
OLAP cubes (Power View
cannot be used directly)
Excel, SSRS, PPS, Power
View, or outside tools that
can read tabular model
Excel, SSRS, PPS, Power View, or
outside tools that can read tabular
model
Pass through query to
underlying source
Yes (ROLAP)
Yes (DirectQuery)
No
Row level security
w/Windows authentication
Yes
Yes
Only in data refresh if windows
authentication implemented on
underlying data source
Many to many (bridge)
and role-playing
relationships
Yes
Only via DAX
Only via DAX
Size restrictions /
management
Very large cubes, can use
either MOLAP or ROLAP,
can build partitions
Very Large models, can use
DirectQuery, can build
partitions
Limit of 2 GB after compression
Database engine
OLAP
xVelocity (formerly Vertipaq)
xVelocity (formerly Vertipaq)
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Tabular Core Features: DAX (Data Analysis Expressions)
• First, define source data and “shape” in star-schema format
• Creating Tabular Projects in SSDT (formerly BIDS)
• Defining table relationships (best to shape data in star-schema, FactDimension relationships)
• Creating necessary hierarchies for parent/child traversal of data
• Customizing tables (sort order)
• DAX Language - Data Analysis Expressions
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Good for equivalent of Fact/Dimension relationships that are found natively in MultiDimensional OLAP,
such as Many-to-Many and Role-Playing Relationships
Good for custom calculations and KPIs
• Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) – not as powerful as MultiDimensional
OLAP, but with additional DAX calculations, can usually get the job done
• One-click Incremental testing in Excel (really cool feature)
• Deploying
• Roles
• Partitions
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How can we access tabular Data
• Once deployed, a Tabular Model database is available in an SSAS 2012
Tabular instance, just like an OLAP database is available in a regular SSAS
Multidimensional instance
• Can access data in SSRS, using the regular OLAP-style interface (the engine
translates the MDX code from SSRS into DAX code)
• Can access in PerformancePoint Services (must use a connection string: Data
Source=WIN-1016SLN6NLI\SQL2012TABULAR;Initial
Catalog=ADW2012Tabular)
• Can access in Excel 2010
• Can create new reports in SharePoint Enterprise using new SQL 2012 Data
Visualization tool called Power View – good for summary reporting and
“storyboarding” using Silverlight plug-in
– Can actually export to PowerPoint and use PowerPoint to interact with
report
– Excel 2013 has native Power View capabilities
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Recommended reading
• I’ve written some articles in CoDe Magazine on SQL 2012
• http://code-magazine.com/articleprint.aspx?quickid=1203051&printmode=true
• http://code-magazine.com/articleprint.aspx?quickid=1206021&printmode=true
– Look for more articles on SQL 2012 later in the year
• I ran a 13 part webinar series on Microsoft TechNet, new features in SQL 2012
– Link to the recordings
• Recommended Reading
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Upcoming speaking engagements
• New York City SQL Server BI User Group
(http://msbigdatanyc.com/) on November 12, on the new
Columnstore Index in SQL Server 2012
• “Probably” speaking at SQL Saturday in Washington DC on
December 8, 2012
(http://sqlsaturday.com/173/schedule.aspx?sat=173)
• Speaking at SQL Live! Conference in Orlando in December 10-14,
2012:
– http://sqllive360.com/events/2012/sessions/sessionlist.aspx
– http://download.1105media.com/vslive/sqllive/2012/SQL_S
erver_Live_Agenda.pdf
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