Analysis and processing of hierarchical data

Abstract

Online analytical processing, or OLAP, is an approach to answering multi-dimensional analytical (MDA) queries swiftly in computing. One of the uses of OLAP engines is to process large volumes of hierarchical data and allow business users to analyze large and complex amounts of data in real-time. Such is Mondrian, which is an open source OLAP engine developed by Julian Hyde and adopted by Pentaho business intelligence software of Hitachi Vantara. Modrian uses HSQL Database to store the hierarchical data which are structured in Data Cubes using Hierarchies and Dimensions. The goal of the analysis is to gain a better understanding of Mondrian Engine and identify cases where it could be applied. In order to use Mondrian engine as standalone, Xmondrian was created. It is the .WAR file that was used to deploy the engine which contained the Mondrian engine along with the Foodmart and Steelwheels embedded Data Cubes and datasets that had been used. In addition, a new HSQL database was created describing the relationship of the students with the Classes through the grades. The same database was used to create the schema file of the Xmondrian OLAP Engine that was used as the blueprint of the web application. The results of the analysis indicate that even though OLAP Engines are mainly used in BI analysis, Xmondrian is a good option for any kind of users that desire to perform adhoc, real-time OLAP Analysis since it's open-source, it's easy to deploy, it's free and it can be used as a standalone application.