Adattárházak

Adattárházak, often translated as data warehouses, are specialized systems designed for the storage, management, and retrieval of large volumes of historical data. They are primarily used for reporting and data analysis, serving as a central repository for integrated data from various operational systems within an organization. The core purpose of a data warehouse is to support business intelligence activities, enabling decision-makers to gain insights into trends, patterns, and performance over time.

Unlike transactional databases that are optimized for real-time data entry and processing, data warehouses are built for analytical queries. This means they are structured and organized in a way that facilitates fast and efficient retrieval of aggregated information. Data is typically extracted from source systems, transformed to ensure consistency and quality, and then loaded into the data warehouse. This Extract, Transform, Load (ETL) process is a fundamental aspect of data warehousing.

The design of a data warehouse often involves dimensional modeling, employing star schemas or snowflake schemas. These structures organize data into fact tables (containing quantitative measures) and dimension tables (containing descriptive attributes). This approach simplifies the creation of reports and multidimensional analysis. Data warehouses are crucial for strategic decision-making, allowing businesses to understand their past performance, predict future outcomes, and identify areas for improvement. They are a cornerstone of modern business intelligence and analytics.