The source of this data is the organization's various operational systems. The population of a data warehouse is shown in Figure 1. The standardized data is then loaded into the data warehouse. In addition to the detailed operational data, summarized data is often produced to allow for easier querying and analysis. Once data is assembled in the data warehouse, it is available for users to access and analyze.
Various tools help the user access the data.
With easy access to consolidated current and historical company data, ad hoc queries can be created, trends can be analyzed, data can be correlated and anomalies can be identified. The results of this data analysis should help knowledge workers improve the quality of their decision-making. Contrasting an Operational System with a Data Warehouse A Data Warehouse differs from an Operational System in many ways. Table 1 contrasts the nature of data in an operational system compared to data in a warehouse. Data is long lived.