Microsoft SQL Server 2012 Bible

Building a Database

You would build an Analysis Services database by identifying the data to include in the database, specifying the relationships between those data, defining dimension structures on those data, and finally building one or more cubes to combine the dimensions and measures.

SQL Server Data Tools

The process to build an Analysis Services database begins by opening a new Analysis Services project in the SQL Server Data Tools. Each project corresponds to a database created on the target server when the project deploys.

Best Practice

Along with opening an Analysis Services project, you can also directly open an existing database in Business Intelligence Development Studio. Although this is a useful feature for examining the configuration of a running server, you should make changes in a project, deployed first to a development server, and deployed to production only after testing. Keep the project and related files in source control.

Be sure to set the target server before attempting to deploy your new database, as shown in Figure 53.1. Right-click the project in the Solution Explorer, and choose Properties. Then set the target server in the deployment property page.

Figure 53.1 Project Properties.

Data Sources

You can define a data source on any data for which an OLE DB provider exists, enabling Analysis Services to use many types of data beyond the traditional ...