Executive Sponsor: Dr Michael Barton

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Executive Sponsor Dr Michael Barton

• Introduction to the Datahub(V.1.0 and
  V.2.0)and the Datahaven
• Date March 2004

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What is the Datahub?
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What is the Datahub?

• Oracle 8.1.7 database
• Read only Operational Data Store
• Data extracted from multiple centrally
  administered databases, merged and made available
  in simplified format
• Data available through a Datahub account

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Where does the data come from?
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Where does the data come from?

• Corporate centrally administered databases
• Local data held in centrally administered
  databases
• Local data held in locally managed databases
• Local data held in locally managed applications

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How is the data accessed?
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What kind of data is there?

• People staff and students
• Courses undergraduate, postgraduate, continuing
  education
• Organisations and departments
• Documentation data about the Datahub

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Examples of data held in the database

• List all members of staff in a given department
  with their job titles, telephone numbers and
  e-mail address
• List all first year courses in a particular
  department with a count of the number of students
  taking each course for this academic year
• Create a mailing list (using term time or home
  addresses) of students taking a particular unit
• List short courses on offer next month

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How do I get a Datahub account?

• Contact the Datahub administratorhelp-datahub_at_bri
  stol.ac.uk
• To check you are given access to the data you
  require, you will be asked to answer some simple
  questions about your proposed use of the data
• Once the administrator has received your answers,
  you will be issued with an Oracle username and
  password
• Use this to connect to the Datahub via your
  preferred method

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What is Datahub V.2.0?

• Secure Datahub
• Designed for use with reporting tools and
  enhanced compatibility with other products (egMS
  Access)
• Maintainable by small team
• Available Summer 2004

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Why do we need V.2.0?

• Data must be secured in order to make access by
  large numbers of users possible
• Data should be optimised for use with maximum
  number of external products
• Ongoing management and support must be achievable
  by a small team

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How are the V.2.0 objectives met? (1)

• Security
• Security Model defining security status of all
  data in the database checked and approved by
  source system data guardians.
• Technical options for making the data secure as
  required by the Security Model investigated
• Virtual Private Database (VPD) and Fine Grained
  Access Control (FGAC) selected, based on
  performance and maintainability
• Structure of the data re-organised to
• Separate data of different security
  classifications
• Optimise VPD implementation

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How are the V.2.0 objectives met? (2)

• Enhanced compatibility with other products
• Referential integrity imposed on database so
  external products can automatically understand
  database structure
• Logical Data Model redesigned to Star Schema for
  query optimisation
• Table and column comments utilized throughout for
  self documentation
• Consistent naming used throughout database to
  clarify data use
• Some data fields modified for enhanced
  compatibility with external products
• Method of data load altered

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How are the V.2.0 objectives met? (3)

• Maintainability
• Low maintenance security method selected (VPD)
• Load scripts encapsulated into PL/SQL packages
• Basic documentation of the database automated
  through scripts
• Process issues on how to manage the database
  included in project plan

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Is the data different?

• Where data existed in V.1.0, the same data
  sources have been used so this data remains
  unchanged.
• Although the data itself remains unchanged, its
  organisation might have changed.
• Some new data has been added or existing data has
  been enhanced.
• Proliferation of tables which contain subsets of
  the same data has been reduced.

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What new data is there?

• Undergraduate and postgraduate assessment data
• Unit and assessment marks as stored in Dolphin
• Exam candidate numbers
• Program Diet and Award data
• Mandatory units associated with Routes
• Final award(s) that can be awarded at the end of
  a program (Route) of study
• Unit (course) teachers

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Further technical information

• Star Schemashttp//www.ciobriefings.com/whitepape
  rs/StarSchema.asp
• Oracle Securityhttp//download-west.oracle.com
  /docs/cd/B10501_01/network.920/a96582/toc.htm
• VPD and FGAChttp//download-west.oracle.com
  /docs/cd/B10501_01/network.920/a96582/galsyste.htm
  1011392

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What is the Datahaven?
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What is the Datahaven?

• Centrally administered Oracle database
• Repository to meet departmental data storage
  needs
• Data can be stored, changed and retrieved
• Fits into Common Data Model, so all departments
  storing same data in same format
• Datahaven data will be merged into the Datahub,
  giving a complete picture of University
  Information

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Why do we need a Datahaven?

• Provide complete picture of University
  information
• Central data top level data
• Departmental level detailed operational data
• Create a Common Data Model for University
  Information
• Provide centrally administered database storage
  to university departments and organisations

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Where will the data come from?
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How will the data be accessed?

• Using one of the methods illustrated in the
  previous slide
• Read access via the Datahub
• Read/Write access via a Datahaven account

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What kind of data will there be?

• To be decided by Requirements Analysis
• Data which central systems do not hold
• Format of data only restricted to data that can
  be stored in an Oracle database

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Examples of data that could be included

• Teaching groups
• Staff groups
• Non-mandatory units
• Timetabling data
• Data on one-off students (eg students taking 1
  day courses)

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Further information

• Datahub project documentation http//www.bris.ac.u
  k/ips-projects/datahub
• The Common Data Modelhttp//www.bristol.ac.uk/is/
  services/corporateinformation/datahubv2/datahaven
  _info_request.html
• Datahub online documentationV.1.0http//www.bri
  stol.ac.uk/is/services/corporateinformation/datahu
  bV.2.0http//www.bristol.ac.uk/is/services/corpo
  rateinformation/datahubv2