Dbas Devs Analysts Toadfororacle
Dbas Devs Analysts Toadfororacle
Written by
John Pocknell and Daniel Norwood
Quest Software, Inc.
Technical Brief
© Copyright Quest® Software, Inc. 2008. All rights reserved.
WARRANTY
TRADEMARKS
All trademarks and registered trademarks used in this guide are property of their
respective owners.
World Headquarters
5 Polaris Way
Aliso Viejo, CA 92656
www.quest.com
e-mail: [email protected]
Please refer to our Web site for regional and international office information.
i
DBAs, Developers and Analysts – Everyone Can Benefit from Toad for Oracle
INTRODUCTION
Toad® for Oracle is the world’s best known and most popular PL/SQL development
solution. Over the years, though, Toad became popular not only with developers,
but with DBAs, managers, and business people as well. Accordingly, in 2000, Quest
launched the Toad® DBA Module (now known as the Toad DB Admin Module)
specifically to support Oracle DBAs. This product extends the capabilities of Toad
with a range of Oracle database administration features.
More recently, the number of Toad users generally classified as “analysts” began to
increase. Analysts need an easy, graphical way to view and understand data, build
queries, and publish reports, and they frequently found Toad to be an excellent tool
for these tasks. However, these users also needed a way to perform the tasks they
do in Toad for Oracle on data from other sources, such as SQL Server and Sybase
databases, or Microsoft Access and Excel.
To address this need, Quest Software launched Toad® for Data Analysts in
August 2007. Toad for Data Analysts is the first cross-platform tool built for the sole
purpose of understanding, querying, and reporting on data. This highly task-
oriented application enables native connections to the most widely-used RDBMS
platforms as well as popular data stores like Teradata, Netezza, PostgreSQL,
Informix, DB2 AS/400, and even Microsoft Access and Excel. Simply put, Toad for
Data Analysts provides extremely flexible, effective, and easy-to-understand access
to multiple data sources for cross-platform (or heterogeneous) querying.
With Toad for Data Analysts, repetitive tasks can be grouped together graphically,
as a flow chart, to produce a workflow that can be stored, reused, or scheduled,
thus saving hours of time.
This technical brief explores the challenges of accessing and managing Oracle and
non-Oracle data sources, then explains how Toad for Data Analysts provides the
solution. It also offers guidance on using Toad for Data Analysts as a complement
to Toad for Oracle (Toad for Data Analysts is now available at no cost in Toad for
Oracle 9.7 to licensed users). Lastly, this document presents the benefits of Toad
for Data Analysts for developers, analysts and DBAs.
1
Technical Brief
To natively query and understand the “foreign” data, Oracle DBAs and developers
have to learn and use a variety of tools, each with its own visual interface and
workflow. This can be very disruptive to the productivity of these IT professionals.
In addition, many businesses are trying to standardize on reporting, which can be a
difficult challenge when IT staff must use a variety of tools that produce visually
different reports.
2
DBAs, Developers and Analysts – Everyone Can Benefit from Toad for Oracle
Toad for Data Analysts will automatically recognize a valid Toad for Oracle license
key, so there is no need to enter another key. Toad for Data Analysts must only be
used on the desktop (or notebook) on which Toad for Oracle is installed. It is non-
transferrable.
Figure 1. Launch point for Toad for Data Analysts within Toad for Oracle
3
Technical Brief
Upon launch of Toad for Data Analysts, you’ll see the Quick Guide window, which
will help you quickly be productive (Figure 2). If you prefer a look and feel more
consistent with what you’ve become accustomed to in Toad for Oracle, you can
use the Configuration Wizard as described here:
http://www.toadworld.com/Community/Blogs/tabid/67/EntryID/220/Default.aspx:
4
DBAs, Developers and Analysts – Everyone Can Benefit from Toad for Oracle
Developers
Developers no longer have to use a multitude of tools to understand data residing
on different platforms, or physically import data from external sources in Oracle,
unless it’s absolutely necessary. Using Toad for Data Analysts, they can view data
directly in the external data source and even use the familiar Query Builder
interface to build heterogeneous queries directly on multiple data sources. And
when developers do have to import data into Oracle, they can do so with much
more precision because they already understand the source data better.
Additionally, you can write and validate your non-Oracle SQL graphically in the
Query Builder or by hand in the SQL Editor.
Analysts
Like developers, analysts benefit from Toad for Data Analysts. They are free from
having to learn and use a variety of tools to access data in non-Oracle data stores.
And since Toad for Data Analysts has the same look and feel as Toad for Oracle,
accessing data from any data store is effortless.
DBAs
More and more Oracle DBAs are responsible for other databases, such as SQL
Server and DB2. They may have limited knowledge of how to perform even basic
tasks on those platforms, including how to create, view, and modify objects.
Therefore they often have to learn a variety of different tools. Because DBAs are
the gatekeepers for business data, it’s absolutely vital that they, more than anyone
else, understand and protect the integrity of the data for which they are
responsible. There’s no better way to provide that assurance than with a true cross-
platform data querying and reporting tool that provides native connectivity and is
simple to use—Toad for Data Analysts.
5
Technical Brief
DEVELOPMENT FUNCTIONALITY
Integrated debugger X
6
DBAs, Developers and Analysts – Everyone Can Benefit from Toad for Oracle
7
Technical Brief
CONCLUSION
Data is the primary investment of any business; therefore, maintaining its security,
accessibility, and integrity is essential. Many companies rely on both Oracle
databases and a variety of non-Oracle data sources as well, and it’s essential that
data can be accessed, understood and reported on in a timely and accurate way.
But viewing, querying, interpreting, and reporting on heterogeneous data usually
requires multiple tools and extensive training of developers, analysts, and DBAs.
Quest provides an effective alternative: Toad for Oracle now includes Toad for Data
Analysts. This solution combines Toad’s well-respected strengths—ease of use,
deep Oracle roots, and sheer power—with cross-platform capabilities and
automation for all your non-Oracle data needs.
8
DBAs, Developers and Analysts – Everyone Can Benefit from Toad for Oracle
John has worked in IT for more than 20 years, primarily in Oracle-based application
design and development. He is also an aeronautical engineer with more than 10
years of experience as a business development manager delivering IT consultancy
services and implementing quality assurance systems to the ISO 9001 standard.
Daniel Norwood is a product manager for Quest Software and manages Toad for
Data Analysis and SQL Navigator. Daniel brings more than 8 years of experience in
the software industry specializing in RDBMS and related technologies. In addition to
product management, Daniel has worked in support, testing and project
management. He spends much of his time interacting with customers around the
globe, ensuring Quest’s tools exceed their expectations.
9
Technical Brief
Please refer to our Web site for regional and international office information.
View the Global Support Guide for a detailed explanation of support programs,
online services, contact information, and policy and procedures. The guide is
available at: http://support.quest.com/pdfs/Global Support Guide.pdf
10