Microsoft SQL Server 2008 Master Data Services
by Nadeem Ahmed
Master Data Services (MDS) is another key feature of SQL Server 2008 R2. It is included with Developer, Enterprise and Data centre editions of SQL Server 2008 R2. Why is it important and who would use it? Well, any growing organisation that has multiple line-of-business applications with each application storing essentially the same information albeit in different granularity and detail should consider using MDS as a mechanism to centralise the information about key entities that it deals with. Essentially it means that all the reference data that gets stored as dimensions in data warehouses can find a home in MDS.
For example if an organisation is dealing with customers and suppliers, its internal departments may be storing the information about these two entities pertaining to their own needs. Accounts department may be concerned with some pieces of information while Sales may be interested in the other and they may store this in their own line-of-business applications. This organisation of data only serves the particular needs of the departments but what about the organisation as a whole? What if you only want one version of truth about a particular customer and the two line-of-business applications do not agree to each other? This is essentially where MDS becomes important. While many organisations may have devised their own solutions to handle Master Data as part of the Master Data Management exercise, having such feature included in a database server is a big plus point.
MDS is included with the SQL Server media however its installation is a separate process from the SQL Server database installation. MDS consists of Master Data Services Configuration Manager, Master Data Services Database, Master Data Services Web Application and Master Data Services Web service. Following are the typical steps that you need to take to Install and configure the MDS:
1. Install the MDS services from SQL Server media.
2. Creation of a Master Data Services Database that is going to be used for storing the Master Data.
3. Configure the settings for the web services that are to be associated with the MDS.
4. Configure the applications that are to be associated with MDS.
MDS Database as you rightly figured is the central repository for the data. Users access the data in MDS via Master Data Manager Application which is a portal for users and administrators.
Managing the data owned by an organisation is the job of business users and not the IT departments so the critical success factors for MDS are assigning “owners” of data that are going to be managing the data and determine the piece of data to be correct or incorrect along with versioning and managing the slowly changing dimensions. MDS allows assigning the ownership and users that are owners of areas of data use Master Data Manager Portal to do this job.
Finally, the important question, should you get MDS up and running if you already have the right versions of SQL Server or go all the way to upgrade to the correct versions? The answer depends on the kind of problems that are faced by your organisation to manage data and find an official home for it and you will have to weigh the benefits that it is going to provide. If you already have the correct versions of SQL Servers you might want to experiment with it and get support from key stakeholders in the business and start with something simple. Otherwise if you don’t have the correct versions of SQL server you might want to develop a business case highlighting the benefits that MDS is going to provide and get it approved from business.
