Common warehouse metamodel

The Common Warehouse Metamodel (CWM) is a standard developed by the Object Management Group (OMG) designed to facilitate data warehousing and business intelligence by promoting interoperability between different data warehousing systems. CWM uses metadata to describe and access information in a data warehouse, enabling various tools and platforms to understand and manipulate this data effectively. This article provides an overview of the Common Warehouse Metamodel, including its architecture, components, and applications.

Overview

The Common Warehouse Metamodel is an open standard that defines a comprehensive model for the representation of metadata within a data warehouse. It is designed to enable the integration, interchange, and management of metadata across different data warehousing and business analysis tools. By providing a common language for describing data, CWM allows for the seamless exchange and transformation of data between disparate systems.

Architecture

CWM's architecture is based on four key layers:

• Model - At the core of CWM is the model layer, which defines the metadata required for data warehousing operations. This includes descriptions of data structures, transformations, mappings, and constraints.
• Management - This layer provides mechanisms for managing and accessing the metadata defined in the model layer. It includes services for metadata repository management, query and transaction management, and version control.
• Integration - The integration layer focuses on the interoperability of CWM with other standards and systems. It defines interfaces and mechanisms for importing and exporting metadata, ensuring that CWM can work seamlessly with other models and tools.
• Extensions - CWM can be extended to support specific domains or technologies. These extensions can add new types of metadata or modify existing structures to better support particular use cases.

Components

CWM is composed of several key components, including:

• Data Resources - Descriptions of the physical data sources and targets within a data warehouse environment.
• Business Information - Metadata that describes the business context of the data, including business terms, rules, and processes.
• Analysis - Metadata related to the analysis of data, including multidimensional cubes, measures, and dimensions.
• Transformations - Descriptions of the data transformation processes, including mappings, transformation rules, and execution environments.

Applications

The Common Warehouse Metamodel finds application in various areas of data warehousing and business intelligence, including:

• Metadata Interchange - CWM enables the exchange of metadata between different tools and platforms, facilitating a more integrated and cohesive data warehousing environment.
• Data Warehouse Design - By providing a standardized model for metadata, CWM supports the design and development of data warehouses and business intelligence systems.
• Data Integration - CWM can be used to define and manage the processes involved in integrating data from multiple sources into a unified data warehouse.
• Business Analysis - With its support for describing business information and analysis metadata, CWM aids in the development of business analysis tools and applications.

Conclusion

The Common Warehouse Metamodel represents a significant step forward in the standardization and interoperability of data warehousing and business intelligence systems. By providing a common framework for describing and managing metadata, CWM enables more efficient and effective data integration, analysis, and management.

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