This section describes the components of Analysis Center.
Data Mart is a SQL Server database that Analysis Center creates for each AppManager Data Source. A Data Mart collects and processes data from Data Sources, and then stores it in fact and dimension tables to be used by the Data Warehouse. A Data Mart serves the following purposes:
Stores the data copied from the source databases for processing.
Stored procedures process the copied data.
Fact and dimension tables store the processed data.
The fact tables function as a component of the Data Warehouse
The SQL Server agent uses SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS) packages to copy the data from the Data Source to the Data Mart, and then to the Data Warehouse.
The Data Warehouse consists of two relational databases and a multidimensional database. The AC_Warehouse and AC_OLAP databases are used for AppManager reporting.
The AC_Configuration relational database includes:
The status of the SSIS packages that are responsible for copying data from one database to another.
Custom schedule configuration.
The relational database AC_Warehouse serves as the immediate source of data for the multidimensional database and is managed by Microsoft SQL Server. It contains the dimensional data copied from the Data Marts and views linked to the fact tables in the Data Marts.
The multidimensional database AC_OLAP is managed by Microsoft SQL Server Analysis Services. It contains aggregations (for example, maximum, minimum, average) of the data copied from the source databases. These aggregated values are stored in cubes designed to facilitate the rapid query of large amounts of data.
Each Data Mart contains the following cubes:
Data organized by the local time on the AppManager computer.
Data organized by the UTC time (Greenwich Mean Time).
A cube is a structure for data that uses hierarchical dimensions as an organizing principle.
Dimensions describe data from a particular point of view. For example, the computer and application from which it was generated, or the date and time during which it was generated. The hierarchical structure of dimensions allows you to select data from any point in the hierarchy. For example, all data generated during 2005; all data generated during December 2005; or all data generated December 1, 2005. Given this structure and organization of aggregate values you can create reports such as the following:
The average, minimum, and maximum use of memory resources by all Exchange Servers for the year 2005.
The average growth rate for all SQL Server databases for the month of December 2005.
The average daily use of CPU for all Domino servers for 2004 and 2005.
The NQRConfig relational database includes:
Analysis Center security information, such as the level of privileges for each Analysis Center role and which users are assigned to which roles.
Connection information such as the SQL server and database names used during the generation of AppManager reports.
The status of scheduled reports.
The Web Service runs on a Microsoft Internet Information Services (IIS) Web server and is the centralized point of access to all your databases. It serves as the layer between the Reporting Console and the source databases, running the SQL queries that gather report data, and then returning the data to the Console. In addition to authenticating source database connections, it also authenticates connections to the Reporting Services Data Extension, which in turn publishes your reports to SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS).
Reporting Center allows you to deploy reports to SSRS that lets you create and manage reports, and deliver them on a schedule. When you deploy a report from Reporting Center, the Reporting Services Data Extension communicates with SSRS through the Reporting Center Web Service to deliver the information. SSRS publishes the report that you can view in a Web browser.
Admin Console lets you perform the following administrative tasks:
Managing Data: Lets you clean up data, rename or delete metrics, and delete machines.
Managing Data Sources: Lets you add, delete, enable, or disable Data Sources.
Managing ETL Filters: Lets you view or modify existing ETL filters, define new filters, or disable filters. ETL filters let you control the amount of data that Analysis Center collects from AppManager.
Managing Jobs: Lets you view jobs. You can also start, stop, enable, or disable jobs.
Data Processing: Lets you to reprocess the OLAP partitions when you want to optimize Analysis Center performance.
Migrating Reports: Lets you migrate the Analysis Center 2.9 or later reports to Reporting Center.
Reporting Console lets you run and generate reports. Use the Console to perform the following tasks:
Customize the look and feel of a report
Determine the amount of data displayed in a report
Create dashboard reports that contain multiple related reports
Configure deployment settings
Configure subscriptions for SSRS
Set the report context such as setting a time frame and selecting data series
The Dashboard is a web application, which also functions as a client to the Operation Center Server. The Operations Center Server, the Dashboard Application, and the Dashboard Client are the components of the Operations Center solution. The Operations Center Server connects to the Web Service, which collects the data and displays the reports in the Dashboard client.
For more information on Operations Center Dashboard, see the Operations Center Dashboard Guide.