Data Warehousing

System used for reporting and data analysis.

Data warehousing is the process of constructing and using a data warehouse. A data warehouse is constructed by integrating data from multiple heterogeneous sources that support analytical reporting, structured and/or ad hoc queries, and decision making. Data warehousing involves data cleaning, data integration, and data consolidations. It is a technology that aggregates structured data from one or more sources so that it can be compared and analyzed for greater business intelligence. Data warehouses use a different design from standard operational databases. The latter are optimized to maintain strict accuracy of data in the moment by rapidly updating real-time data. Data warehouses, by contrast, are designed to give a long-range view of data over time. They trade off transaction volume and instead specialize in data aggregation. There are decision support technologies that help utilize the data available in a data warehouse. These technologies help executives to use the warehouse quickly and effectively. They can gather data, analyze it, and take decisions based on the information present in the warehouse.