Microsoft has announced details of the next release of SQL
Server. Codenamed Kilimanjaro, the database server will not be
available until 2010.
Ovum analyst Helena Schwenk said, "Kilimanjaro is an ambitious
release for the company for two reasons. Firstly, it represents a
more assertive move towards enterprise deployments, to put it on a
more competitive footing with IBM, Oracle and SAP.
"But secondly, and perhaps more interestingly, it signifies a
greater emphasis towards supporting the needs of end users by
leveraging the capabilities of SQL Server and the ubiquity of
Excel."
She said these were "uncharted waters for Microsoft". Although
Excel is a pervasive BI tool, it has certain technical limitations
that prevent it from being used as a full-blown reporting and
analysis tool, she said. "The next version of SQL Server addresses
this," Schwenk added.
Kilimanjaro is in fact part of a three-pronged effort by
Microsoft in the business intelligence market.
Firstly, the company has introduced self-service reporting
capabilities within Kilimanjaro. Secondly, it has announced new
managed self-service analysis capabilities, codenamed Project
Gemini. And finally, the company aims to deliver advanced
datawarehousing functionality within SQL Server under a project
codenamed "Madison".
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