Facebook is the next MySpace: The curse of online success.

I know this post deviates from the content of this blog, but I will get back on track in my next post

Almost everyone today knows what Facebook is, and that can actually be a bad thing.

Building a Raw Data Warehouse in SQL Server 2005 - Part 2

This is part 2 of 5 of the series”Building a Raw Data Warehouse in SQL Server 2005.” If you would like to start at Part 1, you can view it here:
2. Hardware

The hardware you chose to power a Data Warehouse (or any database for that mater) is another crucial building block in how effective your database (and project) will be. Let’s take a look into the hardware of the example, real world, project. I promise to be less wordy in this post while trying to deliver more content.

Data Warehouse Performance - Indexes

We are now dealing with index fragmentation on our data warehouse. After loading, updating, deleting, inserting, etc. hundreds of MB worth of data over the past month, the indexes that we initially created for the DW have become severely fragmented. This is one of the causes of the performance issues in the Data Warehouse.

Raw Data Warehouse Performance Issues

I am going to take a small break from the first series of this blog to discuss performance issues and considerations. This will only apply to data warehouses with raw data only (relational, not OLAP cubes).

Building a Raw Data Warehouse in SQL Server 2005 - Part 1

1. Project scope, deliverables & documentation

One of the most important things in life is having a solid foundation and goal before you do anything. If you build a house without a concrete foundation, or begin programming without an understanding of syntax, or taking a shower without soap your end result will be less than desirable. The same goes for any data warehouse project.