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Data Warehousing SOP

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Umer Sheikh
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135 views5 pages

Data Warehousing SOP

Uploaded by

Umer Sheikh
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Data Warehousing SOP: Loading, Maintenance, Monitoring, Optimization,

and Security

1. Introduction
1.1 Purpose
The purpose of this SOP is to define procedures and best practices for the effective
management of the data warehouse. This includes loading data, maintaining data
integrity, monitoring performance, optimizing queries, and ensuring security
compliance.
1.2 Scope
This SOP applies to all data warehouses managed by the organization and covers
ETL (Extract, Transform, Load) processes, performance monitoring, and database
optimization practices.
1.3 Responsibilities
 Data Warehouse Administrators (DWAs): Responsible for managing data
warehouse infrastructure, loading processes, and ensuring data integrity.
 ETL Developers: Manage the data extraction, transformation, and loading
(ETL) process.
 Operations Team: Handles real-time monitoring and alerts related to the
warehouse's performance and availability.

2. Data Loading Procedures


2.1 ETL Process Overview
 Extraction: Data is extracted from multiple sources such as relational
databases, NoSQL stores, flat files, APIs, and real-time streams.
 Transformation: Data is cleaned, validated, and transformed into a format
that aligns with the data warehouse schema.
 Loading: The transformed data is loaded into the staging area before
moving into the data warehouse.
2.2 ETL Schedule
 Batch Processing: Load data in batches during off-peak hours (e.g.,
nightly).
 Real-Time Loads: Set up continuous real-time loading for critical data
streams using tools like Apache Kafka, AWS Kinesis, or similar.
 Frequency: Define daily, weekly, and monthly schedules for different data
types based on business needs.
2.3 ETL Error Handling
 Error Logging: Ensure detailed logging of any ETL process errors, including
data validation failures, extraction issues, and transformation errors.
 Error Notification: Implement automated alerting (via email, SMS, etc.) for
critical errors.
 Retry Mechanism: Set up automatic retry for failed jobs and manual review
for unresolved errors.

3. Data Warehouse Maintenance


3.1 Data Integrity Checks
 Verification of Data Loads: Compare record counts and check for
consistency between source systems and the data warehouse.
 Data Validation Rules: Implement automated validation scripts to ensure
data accuracy after loading.
 Failed Data Loads: Establish procedures for reprocessing failed data loads
without data duplication.
3.2 Data Archiving
 Archival Strategy: Define a strategy for archiving historical data that is no
longer frequently accessed, based on business requirements.
 Archival Storage: Move archived data to slower, cost-effective storage
solutions such as AWS Glacier or cold storage.
3.3 Schema Management
 Version Control: Maintain versioning of schema changes in a version control
system (e.g., Git).
 Schema Updates: Test schema changes in a staging environment and apply
them in a controlled manner.

4. Monitoring and Performance Optimization


4.1 Performance Monitoring Tools
 Monitoring Tools: Utilize performance monitoring tools such as AWS
CloudWatch, Azure Monitor, or Snowflake Monitoring for real-time visibility.
 Key Metrics: Monitor:
o Query performance (average query time, slow queries)

o Disk space utilization

o ETL process times

o Database CPU and memory usage

o Table growth rates

o Data loading errors

4.2 Query Optimization


 Indexing: Regularly review and optimize indexes to improve query
performance.
 Materialized Views: Use materialized views or summary tables to reduce
the need for complex joins in frequently run queries.
 Partitioning: Implement partitioning for large tables to improve
performance for read and write operations.
4.3 Load Balancing and Scalability
 Data Distribution: Use appropriate distribution and partitioning strategies
to balance the workload across nodes (in a distributed data warehouse).
 Auto-Scaling: Enable auto-scaling in cloud-based data warehouses to
manage variable workloads efficiently.

5. Data Warehouse Security


5.1 User Access Control
 Role-Based Access Control (RBAC): Implement RBAC to restrict access to
data based on roles and responsibilities.
 Least Privilege Principle: Ensure users have only the necessary access to
perform their job functions.
5.2 Data Encryption
 Encryption in Transit: Ensure all data transferred between clients and the
data warehouse is encrypted using TLS/SSL.
 Encryption at Rest: Store sensitive data encrypted at rest using appropriate
encryption algorithms.
5.3 Audit Logging
 Access Audits: Maintain logs for all access to the data warehouse, including
read/write operations, schema changes, and user logins.
 Data Modification Logs: Keep track of all modifications to data, especially
sensitive data.
5.4 Data Anonymization
 Sensitive Data Masking: Mask or anonymize sensitive data, such as
Personally Identifiable Information (PII), in non-production environments.

6. Health Checks and Troubleshooting


6.1 Routine Health Checks
 Daily: Check ETL processes for failures, disk space utilization, and query
performance.
 Weekly: Review resource utilization, partitioning strategy, and performance
of materialized views.
 Monthly: Perform a comprehensive audit of data accuracy, validate archive
data, and review security logs.
6.2 Incident Response
 Monitoring Alerts: Set up alerts for critical issues such as ETL failures, disk
full warnings, or slow-running queries.
 Incident Escalation: Establish an escalation process for critical failures,
such as data corruption or significant performance degradation.
6.3 Root Cause Analysis (RCA)
 Incident Review: After major incidents, conduct a root cause analysis to
identify the issue and provide preventive measures.
 Documentation: Maintain records of all incidents, including resolutions and
actions for future prevention.

7. Reporting and Documentation


7.1 Performance Reports
 Monthly Reports: Generate reports on query performance, ETL times, data
warehouse utilization, and availability.
 Historical Data Access: Track and report on frequently accessed datasets
and optimize data storage accordingly.
7.2 ETL and Data Warehouse Documentation
 ETL Process Documentation: Maintain detailed documentation for all ETL
processes, data sources, transformation logic, and loading schedules.
 Schema Documentation: Keep an updated schema diagram and data
dictionary for the data warehouse.

8. Appendix
 A. Data Loading Schedules
 B. ETL Error Handling Flowchart
 C. Example Query Optimization Scripts
 D. Security Checklist for Data Warehousing

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