Understanding SSAS in SSMS and SQL Server Profiler

Summary

In this chapter, we took a close look at the installation of SSAS. We then discussed some tools you’ll be using to work with SSAS objects. We took a particularly detailed look at SSMS because we’ve found ourselves using it time and time again on BI projects where we were tasked with being developers. Our real-world experience has been that SSAS developers must often also perform administrative tasks. So knowledge of SSMS can be a real time-saver. We included an introduction to SQL Server Profiler because we’ve found that many clients don’t use this powerful tool correctly or at all because of a lack of understanding of it.

By now, we’re sure you’re more than ready to get started developing your first OLAP cube using BIDS. That’s exactly what we’ll be doing starting in the next chapter and then continuing on through several additional chapters—being sure to hit all the important nooks and crannies along the way.