MicroStrategy architecture

MicroStrategy is a platform suite which satisfies both Business intelligence (BI) and Business Analytics (BA) needs within an organization. It features powerful application software capable of resolving any question related to the past, present, or future of a given company, making MicroStrategy one of the best platforms for BI and BA in the market. MicroStrategy is capable of covering all BI/BA styles from basic reporting, OLAP business analysis, scorecards and dashboards, to more sophisticated predictive analytics and data mining.

MicroStrategy is a hybrid online analytical processing platform, also known as HOLAP. It is capable of generating queries or a SQL (Structured Query Language) from virtually any major relational database, such as Oracle, Teradata, Redshift, SQL Server, and so on. This is what gives MicroStrategy its ROLAP (relational online analytical processing) capabilities. However, it could also work as a MOLAP (multidimensional online analytical processing) with the use of cube structures.

As a developer, it is important to understand MicroStrategy's architecture. The following diagram depicts how MicroStrategy's components commonly fit into the big picture of BI/BA within an organization:

At MicroStrategy's platform core resides the Intelligence Server, which connects to a data layer. This data layer acts as a data source, and it could be a relational database with enterprise data, such as a data warehouse or a specialized data mart. However, the Intelligence Server can also connect to a nonrelational data source such as transactional applications (OLTP), flat files, cube data structures, and website content, to name a few. There is also a metadata database or repository that the Intelligence Server uses to store the definitions of all MicroStrategy objects.

There are three main groups of client applications, or tools, within the MicroStrategy suite. First, there are client applications, which allow developers to create reporting and analytics solutions. These applications are MicroStrategy Developer, MicroStrategy Architect and MicroStrategy Web. Next, the information is delivered to the final user or analyst via MicroStrategy Mobile, MicroStrategy Web, Email, Printer, or File (using MicroStrategy Distribution Services, Narrowcast Server, or MicroStrategy Office). Finally, there are some applications with the purpose of managing and monitoring the business intelligence projects. Some examples are MicroStrategy Object Manager, MicroStrategy Command Manager, MicroStrategy Enterprise Manager, and MicroStrategy Integrity Manager.

In the following sections, you will learn in detail how each component fits into the whole architecture, resulting in a robust business intelligence and analytics platform.