Features and benefits
PERFORMANCE:
Massively Parallel Processing (MPP) – MPP is recognized as the only real scalable architecture for data warehousing. MPP allows the system to use multiple servers and CPUs to process data in parallel, resulting in a performance improvement through a “divide and conquer” approach. With reduced I/O requirements, both hardware and infrastructure support costs are reduced.
Partitioning – Database partitioning enables massively parallel processing. InfoSphere Warehouse transparently splits the database across multiple partitions and uses the horse power of multiple servers to satisfy requests for large amounts of information.
Table partitioning enables easy roll-in and roll-out of table data, flexible index placement and better query processing. Table level administration is more flexible, allowing administrative tasks such as backing up and restoring individual data partitions, to be performed on individual data partitions.
Deep Compression – The DB2 Storage Optimization feature transparently compresses data on disk in order to decrease disk space and storage infrastructure requirements, and improve query performance. DB2's row compression feature allows up to 83% storage savings, and is complemented by value, XML, index and backup compression.
Multidimensional Clustering (MDC) – MDC provides a flexible method to continuously and automatically cluster table data in multiple dimensions. This improves query performance by reducing I/O requirements.
Aggregates – It is not unusual for a business user to make the same query time and time again. Materialized query tables (MQTs) improve the performance of such queries by caching the results of these types of queries. When you submit the query again, the database engine can return the data from the MQT.
Performance Management – InfoSphere Warehouse includes IBM Optim Performance Manager which enables IT staff to identify, diagnose, solve and prevent performance problems in DB2 and in associated applications.
Mixed Workload Management – InfoSphere Warehouse is optimized for mixed workloads, or random I/O which is common in an enterprise data warehouse. DB2 Workload Manager allows administrators to prioritize queries coming from different users and applications, and control the number of underlying resources dedicated to those processes.
SOPHISTICATED ANALYTICS:
Online Analytic Processing (OLAP) – OLAP is the style of analytics that uses ‘cubes’ of data to ‘slice and dice’ data for analysis. The Cubing Services feature of InfoSphere Warehouse provides this multidimensional access to your relational data. It allows queries to be issued directly against the data warehouse.
Data Mining – The data mining capability in InfoSphere Warehouse supports standard data mining models (clustering, associations, classification, and prediction) and can be developed via drag and drop in the Design Studio tool.
Cognos Business Intelligence - Evaluate the rich set of reporting and analysis capabilities offered by Cognos 10 Business Intelligence without incurring any upfront costs. Users can experiment with how to deliver relevant information how, when and where it is needed in a non-production environment.
Mashup Center - IBM Mashup Center is an easy-to-use enterprise mashup platform, that supports the rapid integration of diverse information sources. This integration can be leveraged through dynamically assembled, reusable web applications.
GeoSpatial – GeoSpatial support provides the ability to store, access, manage, or analyze location-based information for weather, defense, intelligence, or natural resource applications for commercial or government use. This feature supports treatment of the Earth like a globe rather than a flat map.
FLEXIBILITY:
Terabyte Pricing – A simple and transparent terabyte pricing structure enables organizations to pay only for the volume of compressed user data they manage in their database, allowing them to exploit new hardware innovations and processor technologies without impacting software costs.
Virtual Image for Simplified Deployment - To speed up and simplify deployment, a virtual image is now available for the Departmental Edition to deploy on any Intel/AMD based platform. Customers can bypass tedious install and set-up activities, reduce time-to-value, and free up resources.
Security – The security features in DB2 help you protect your data and comply with regulatory requirements. Users can be granted privileges limited to a particular data resource or be given pre-defined roles. Label Based Access Control (LBAC) gives you the granularity to manage access to your tables at the row-level, column-level or both.
Autonomics – The autonomics features in DB2 helps lower the cost of managing data in your warehouse by automating administration, increasing storage efficiency, improving performance and simplifying the deployment of virtual appliances.
High Availability - InfoSphere Replication Server technology is included in all editions of InfoSphere Warehouse. This feature enables queue replication between a single DB2 source and target, for high availability, high throughput, and business continuity solutions.
Federation – Using InfoSphere Federation Server technology, access and integrate diverse data and content sources (ex: DB2, Oracle and SQL Server) as if they were a single resource - regardless of where the information resides.
Native XML Support –The DB2 pureXML feature in InfoSphere Warehouse offers sophisticated capabilities to store, process and manage XML data in its native hierarchical format.
SQL Compatibility – Native support for Oracle features reduces the cost and risk of migrating legacy applications to DB2. The SQL Skin for Sybase option provide the same function users seeking to migrate from Sybase.
Modeling & Design - InfoSphere Warehouse Design Studio provides a graphical user interface that enables you to design, model, reverse engineer and validate physical database schemas.
Database Administration – Optim™ Database Administrator is included in all editions of InfoSphere Warehouse, and helps save time and reduces errors associated with complex database changes.
Development – Optim Development Studio software is included in all editions of InfoSphere Warehouse, and can help increase development efficiency for Java data access and facilitates cross-system development and migration
Data Movement & Transformation – The SQL Warehousing Tool (SQW), part of Design Studio, is a graphical tool that generates SQL for warehouse maintenance and administration, replacing hand coded SQL. SQW complements and works with InfoSphere Information Server and third party ETL products.
Industry & Process Business Models – InfoSphere Warehouse customers can also benefits from IBM Industry Models that combine deep expertise and industry best practices in a form usable by both business and IT communities to accelerate industry solutions.
InfoSphere Warehouse Packs – These optional offerings contain physical data models and sample reports based on specific business issues (Customer Insight, Supply Chain Insight, and Market & Campaign Insight) that help customers compress project time, cost and risk, compared with custom data warehouse projects.
