Microsoft Serves up OLAP Plateful With Plato

ENT, March 4, 1998 by Thomas Sullivan

One of the unique features of Microsoft Corp.'s SQL Server 7.0 beta is a hybrid online analytical processing (HOLAP) database server, code-named Plato. Currently in the second phase of beta testing with 1,200 ISVs and customers, Plato will be integrated with the final release of SQL Server 7.0, though Microsoft says it is unsure about the specifics of this integration as of yet.

As a HOLAP server, Plato can store data in its own multidimensional databases or can access data from a relational database, including SQL Server 7.0 and others. To reach and access other databases, Plato uses OLE DB. "Plato supports all the types of OLAP. Which one is used is the customer's choice," says Steve Murchie, Plato product manager, Microsoft.

Plato's storage architecture supports multidimensional OLAP, relational OLAP and HOLAP equally. Storage is determined by each application's requirements, not by OLAP religious debates.

In addition to equipping Plato with the ability to access different types of OLAP databases, Microsoft has employed the philosophy that made the company successful by aiming to make Plato easier to use. "OLAP databases are traditionally complex and arcane, so we've tried to make Plato simpler and easier to use," says Murchie. To this end, Microsoft added wizards, intuitive dialogs and graphics that simplify complex tasks without code. "Plato is basically an easy-to-use, fully integrated server with OLAP tools to work with," says Carl Olofson, research director for database management systems, International Data Corp. (IDC, Framingham, Mass.).

New tools provide a graphical interface for building and managing schema and other database objects, and OLAP database development and management is integrated with the Microsoft Management Console (MMC). Also, the aggregations design wizard helps users optimize query performance and storage space. "You don't get a sense that you have a database and then a separate set of tools. Instead, it's an integrated solution," adds Olofson.

In addition to integrating with SQL Server 7.0, Plato integrates with most BackOffice applications. "Plato integrates through MMC. It snaps in the same way Exchange does," says Microsoft's Murchie.

SQL Server 7.0 is being touted as revolutionary, and Plato is one of the reasons. "All database vendors are working to promote end-to-end solutions. It's a very competitive market, and the data mart is the fastest growing area of the market, but Plato can compete with the best," says IDC's Olofson.

The Plato OLAP server is currently supported only on Intel platforms on Windows NT Server and Windows NT Workstation, but will be supported in the next beta on systems using Digital's Alpha processor.