Maintaining Data Warehouses and Subjects

Example: Creating a Remote Data Warehouse

This example summarizes how to create a remote Data Warehouse--a Warehouse whose metadata repository is not stored on the SAS/Warehouse Administrator host.

A remote Data Warehouse might be appropriate if you require concurrent read/write access to the Warehouse by multiple SAS/Warehouse Administrator hosts. In that case, you must create a remote Warehouse Environment and put its metadata repository--and the metadata repositories of its Data Warehouses--under the control of a SAS/SHARE server remote to the SAS/Warehouse Administrator hosts. For an example of such a configuration, see Remote Metadata: PC Client to Windows NT Server.

The following sections describe the metadata and methods used to achieve the desired results. In addition to the preparation described in Preparing to Create Local or Remote Data Warehouses, some additional preparation for remote Environments is described next.

SAS/SHARE Server Preparation

On the SAS/SHARE server host

create a physical path for the Data Warehouse
assign a SAS libref to the directory that corresponds to the _DWMD library for the Warehouse; do this in such a way that the library is under the control of the SAS/SHARE server.

For example, suppose that you created the following directory structure on the SAS/SHARE server host:

.\Project-2\_env 
.\Project-2\_wh1

where .\Project-2\_wh1 is the directory that corresponds to the _DWMD metadata repository for the Data Warehouse that you will create. You would then assign a libref to that directory in such a way that the library is under the control of the SAS/SHARE server.

Note: Because this is a SAS/SHARE libref and not a SAS/Warehouse Administrator libref, you are not restricted to _DWMD as the libref. For example, to the SAS/SHARE server, the .\Project-2\_wh1 directory could have a SAS/SHARE libref of WH1. (The SLIBREF option would then have to be used in the Data Warehouse's metadata, as described in Define Data Warehouse Properties. [cautionend]

Note: If you use a relative pathname such as .\Project-2\_wh1 for the Warehouse library, be sure that the SAS/SHARE server can resolve the pathname. [cautionend]

SAS/Warehouse Administrator Client Preparation

Verify that your local SAS session can access the remote library that will ultimately become the metadata repository for the Data Warehouse that you are creating. One way to do that is to submit a LIBNAME statement for that library. Here is an example of such a statement:

libname _DWMD server=host2.dwshare slibref=WH1;

where _DWMD is the local libref for the Data Warehouse metadata repository, host2 is the name of the remote host, dwshare is the name of the SAS/SHARE server, and slibref=WH1 is the remote server's libref for the Data Warehouse's metadata repository.

If you can execute such a statement successfully, then SAS/Warehouse Administrator can generate code successfully for the remote Data Warehouse.

Define Data Warehouse Properties

Open the appropriate Warehouse Environment in the Explorer, as described in Opening a Warehouse Environment in the Explorer. The following display illustrates what a new Warehouse Environment would look like after an ODD Group has been defined (as described in the "Registering Data Sources" chapter), but before any Data Warehouses have been defined:

[untitled graphic]

In the Explorer, position the cursor on the Environment, for example, Toy Store Env, click the right mouse button, select Add Item, and then Data Warehouse. A properties window for the Warehouse displays for you to enter the appropriate information.

General Tab

specifies the Warehouse name, such as Toy Store Whouse, as well as a description, an owner, and an administrator.

[untitled graphic]

To specify an owner or an administrator, click the down arrow to select a name from a list. If you need to add a new Contact record, click the right arrow to display a properties window. For details about that window, click its Help button.

The next task is to specify the location of the metadata library for this Warehouse.

Metadata Location Tab

specifies the metadata library (libref _DWMD) for the Warehouse. Before the metadata library has been defined, the Warehouse Library field is blank, as follows:

On the Metadata Location tab, click the right arrow to define a metadata library for this Warehouse. A properties window for the Warehouse library displays for you to enter the appropriate information.

Name Tab

specifies a display name for the remote metadata library you are creating in this example, such as ToyStore Whouse RemLib.

[untitled graphic]

For a remote metadata library, the next task is to specify the SAS engine and the options required to connect to the SAS/SHARE server.

Details Tab

For a remote metadata library, this tab specifies the SAS engine and the LIBNAME statement options required to connect to the SAS/SHARE server, as follows:

[untitled graphic]

For the current example, the Engine field specifies that the remote SAS engine will be used to access the _DWMD library for the Data Warehouse.

The Options field specifies the SERVER= option required to access the _DWMD library for the Data Warehouse, where host2 is the name of the remote host, dwshare is the name of the SAS/SHARE server, and slibref=WH1 is the remote server's libref for the Data Warehouse's metadata repository.

Do not enter a physical path in the Path field because the _DWMD library will be accessed through the SAS/SHARE server, which uses a libref to access this library.

After specifying the appropriate values, click OK to return to the Metadata Location tab for the Data Warehouse.

Metadata Location Tab

After defining the metadata library, the Metadata Location tab specifies the display name (ToyStore Whouse RemLib) for the libref _DWMD:

[untitled graphic]

After specifying a name and metadata library for the Data Warehouse, click OK. The new Warehouse is added under the Environment in the Explorer, as follows:

[untitled graphic]

You are finished entering properties for this remote Data Warehouse. You are ready to add a Subject to the Warehouse.

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