Verification: Execute the DTS Package Containing the New Analysis Services Processing Task
Let's test drive our new DTS package from Enterprise Manager, and ensure that the task we have assembled performs as expected.
1. Expand the Data Transformation Services folder within the appropriate server, within Enterprise Manager.
2. Click Local Packages, to display the existing local packages (including our recently created one) in the right pane, as depicted in Illustration 13.
3. Right-click the package marked ANSYS035_FullyProcessWarehouseCube.
4. Select Execute Package from the context menu that appears, as shown in Illustration 14.
Illustration 14: Select Execute Package from the Context Menu
The DTS package begins executing, with the Executing Package viewer displaying the execution progress "meter," and listing the ANSYS035_Analysis Services Processing Task that we have placed inside the DTS package as the sole step of the package, as depicted in Illustration 15.
Illustration 15: Execution Progress is Displayed ...
Processing of the task and package completes. The Package Execution Results message box appears, confirming successful package execution, as shown in Illustration 16.
Illustration 16: Successful Completion is Indicated ...
NOTE: Upon notification of a failure here, or within any step of a DTS package, we can display error information about the task involved, by simply double-clicking any task(s) listed in the viewer as having not executed correctly.
5. Click OK to close the message box.
6. Click Done to close the Executing Package viewer.
We can, as we noted earlier, string multiple tasks together, as well as provide for notification of completions / failures via e-mail and other ways, from an appropriately assembled DTS package. Moreover, DTS packages can be called from other processes, scheduled and so forth, to allow for automation of much of the essential cube refreshment processes.
7. Exit Enterprise Manager, when ready.
Conclusion
In this article, we examined the processing of an Analysis Services cube via the Analysis Services Processing task in Data Transformation Services, one of two that accompany the installation of Analysis Services. After introducing this custom DTS task, we discussed multiple processing operations that we can use it to perform, at multiple levels of an Analysis Services database structure.
We then performed a practice exercise, discussing various processing options as we prepared to specify full processing of a sample cube within the Analysis Services Processing task. Along the way, we discussed other considerations in taking advantage of the options that the task makes available to us. We saved the task within a DTS package, which we then executed to verify operation of the task. Finally, we mentioned some of the options for using the Services Processing task, in conjunction with other tasks, and particularly in combination with scheduling.
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