Course Syllabus

Microsoft Business Intelligence Course Syllabus

1. Core concept – BI

Introduction to SQL Server Integration Services

1. Product History
2. SSIS Package Architecture Overview
3. Development and Management Tools
4. Source Control for SSIS Packages

SSIS for DBAs: Using SQL Server Management Studio

1. The Import and Export Wizard
2. Importing and Exporting Data
3. Working with Packages

Business Intelligence Development Studio

1. Launching BIDS
2. Project templates
3. The package designer
4. The Toolbox
5. Solution Explorer
6. The Properties window
7. The Variables window
8. The SSIS menu

Introduction to Control Flow

1. Control Flow Overview
2. Precedence Constraints
3. The Execute SQL Task
4. The Bulk Insert Task
5. The File System Task
6. The Send Mail Task

Advanced Control Flow

1. Containers – grouping and looping
2. The Execute Process Task
3. The Execute Package Task
4. Other Container Tasks

Introduction to Data Flow

1. Data Flow Overview
2. Data Sources
3. Data Destinations
4. Data Transformations
5. The Copy Column Transformation
6. The Derived Column Transformation
7. The Data Conversion Transformation
8. The Conditional Split Transformation
9. The Aggregate Transformation
10. The Sort Transformation
11. Data Viewers

Variables and Configurations

1. Variables Overview
2. Variable scope
3. SSIS system variables
4. Using variables in control flow
5. Using variables in data flow
6. Configuration Overview
7. Configuration options

Debugging, Error Handling and Logging

1. SSIS debugging overview
2. Breakpoints in SSIS
3. SSIS debugging windows
4. Control Flow: The On Error event handler
5. Data Flow: Error data flow
6. Configuring Package Logging
7. Built-in log providers

Advanced Data Flow

1. Revisiting data sources and destinations
2. The Lookup Transformation
3. Getting Fuzzy: The Fuzzy Lookup and Fuzzy Grouping Transformations
4. The Multicast Transformation
5. The Merge and Merge Join Transformations
6. The Slowly Changing Dimension Transformation

Extending SSIS through Custom Code

1. Introduction to SSIS scripting
2. Script in Control flow: The Script Task
3. Script in Data flow: The Script Component

SSIS Package Deployment

1. Configurations and deployment
2. The deployment utility
3. Deployment options

SQL Server Analysis Services

OLAP Modeling

1. Modeling source schemas—stars and snowflakes
2. Understanding fact (measures) and cube modeling

Using SSAS in BIDS

1. Understanding the development environment
2. Creating Data Sources and Data Source Views
3. Creating cubes – using Cube Build Wizard
4. Refining Dimensions and Measures in BIDS

Intermediate SSAS

1. KPIs
2. Perspectives
3. Translations – cube metadata and currency localization
4. Actions – regular, drill-through and reporting

Advanced SSAS

1. Using multiple fact tables
2. Modeling intermediate fact tables
3. Modeling M:M dimensions, Fact (degenerate) dimensions, Role-playing dimensions, write back dimensions

Cube Storage and Aggregation

1. Storage topics – basic aggregations, MOLAP
2. Advanced Storage Design – MOLAP, ROLAP, HOLAP
3. Partitions – relational and Analysis Services partitions
4. Customizing Aggregation Design - Processing Design
5. Rapidly changing dimensions / ROLAP dimensions
6. Cube processing options

SQL Server Reporting Services

1. Tour of Features
2. Reporting Services Architecture
3. Reporting Services Terminology
4. Reporting Services Editions

Creating Reports

1. Deconstructing Reporting Services
2. Shared Data Sources
3. Creating Reports from Scratch

Calculations and Formatting

1. Creating Expressions
2. Using the Global Collections
3. Formatting Items
4. Conditional Formatting

Grouping and Sorting

1. Creating Groups
2. Calculating Totals and Percentages
3. Interactive Sorting
4. Creating Drill-Down Reports

Report Parameters

1. Creating Report Parameters
2. Creating Drop-Down Parameters
3. Multi-Valued Parameters
4. Debugging Parameter Issues

Creating Matrix Reports and Charts

1. Creating a Basic Matrix Report
2. Matrix Subtotals
3. Creating a Basic Chart
4. Exploring the Charting Possibilities

Managing Reporting Services

1. Deploying Reports and Data Sources
2. Exporting Reports and Printing
3. Using the Web-Based Report Manager

Reporting Services Security

1. Two Parts to Reporting Services Security
2. Securing Access to Reports
3. Data Source Security

Ad-Hoc Reporting with Report Builder

1. The Report Builder Architecture
2. Creating Report Model Projects
3. Running Report Builder