Data Warehouse Architecture
By: Harrison Reid
Outline
What is a Data Warehouse Architecture
Five Main Data Warehouse Architectures
Factors That Affect Choosing A Data Warehouse
Architecture
Summary
Bibliography
What is a Data Warehouse Architecture
Primarily based on the business processes of a
business enterprise
Conceptualization of how the data warehouse is
built
Five Main Data Warehouse Architectures
Independent Data Marts
Data Mart Bus Architecture
Hub-and-Spoke
Centralized Data Warehouse
Federated Architecture
Independent Data Marts
Data marts that are independent of each other
Often created by organization units
Inconsistent data definitions and different
dimensions and measures
Independent Data Marts Diagram
Independent data
End-user access
Source Staging marts
and
systems area (atomic/summariz
applications
ed data)
Data Mart Bus Architecture
Creation starts with a business requirements
analysis for a specific process such as orders,
deliveries, customer calls, or billing.
One mart is created for a single business process
Additional marts are developed using the
conformed dimensions of the first mart
Data Mart Bus Architecture Diagram
Dimensionalized
data marts linked
End-user access
Source Staging by conformed
and
systems area dimensions
applications
(atomic/summariz
ed data)
Hub-and-Spoke
Developed after an enterprise-level analysis of data
requirements
Focused on building a scalable and maintainable
infrastructure
Developed in an iterative manner
Dependent data marts obtain the data from the
warehouse
Consist of a centralized hub that accepts requests from
multiple applications that are connected through spokes
Hub-and-Spoke Diagram
Normalized
End-user access
Source Staging relational
and
systems area warehouse
applications
(atomic data)
Dependent data marts
(summarized/some atomic data)
Centralized Data Warehouse
Similar to the hub-and-spoke architecture except
there are no dependent data marts
Contains atomic-level data, some summarized data,
and logical dimensional view of the data
Queries and applications access data
Centralized Data Warehouse Diagram
Normalized
relational End-user access
Source Staging
warehouse and
systems area
(atomic/some applications
summarized data)
Federated Architecture
Leaves existing decision-support structures in place
Shares information among a number of different
systems
Data is either logically or physically integrated
Shared keys
Global metadata
Distributed queries
Federated Architecture Diagram
Existing data Logical/physical
End user access and
warehouses, data marts, integration of common
applications
and legacy systems data elements
Factors That Affect Choosing A Data
Warehouse Architecture
Information Interdependence between
Organizational Units
Upper Management’s Information Needs
Urgency of Need for a Data Warehouse
Nature of End-User Tasks
Constraints on Resources
Factors That Affect Choosing A Data
Warehouse Architecture
Strategic View of the Data Warehouse Prior to
Implementation
Compatibility with Existing Systems
Perceived Ability of the In-House IT Staff
Technical Issues
Social/Political Factors
Summary
The Data Mart Bus, Hub-and-Spoke, and Centralized
Architectures are the most used
Many factors affect the choice of a Data Warehouse
Architecture
Some Data Warehouse Architectures can be
implemented on existing systems
Bibliography
