Database and ERP
I am trying to master a new ERP application. I have good functional knowledge and was advised to learn SQL. I don't know where to start. I have two books: SQL for Dummies and Database Development for Dummies. Which book should I read first? The idea is to get a good understanding of the relationship between ERP and the database and understand the concepts of the database in the context of an ERP application.
Hi HLGEM and others, I will be working as a production support consultant and participating in the upgrade project.
Prod Support: We get problems from the client site and we use SQL to find the information we need. Update project: We will update to the latest version. I think we'll have to transfer data and do some customization. Can you help me plan my training? My colleagues suggested that I understand tables, schemas, ERDs. Is this what I should be focusing on?
Do you have a database administrator for your ERP? I would start talking to them. You will need to learn two things; SQL and your ERP data structures.
1) SQL - If you're just starting out, take a look at O'Reilly's books. I haven't read it yet, but Learning SQL and Headfirst SQL would be a good start. "Headfirst" is a very good practical way to learn a new topic.
2) ERP data structure. You will need a data dictionary and any documentation you can get. You have to remember that there is usually a ton of business logic between you and the database that you will need to recreate with your SQL when trying to access the data. I would start in an area that you are familiar with and build your SQL around that to learn some of the conventions. Remember, your ERP has probably been built for decades and employs 100 people, so there will be a lot of oddities and inconsistencies in there.
Sometimes SQL is the fastest way to get data from your ERP .. but have you researched if your ERP provides business objects for .Net or COM or even Java? Typically, you need to go if you want to put data into your ERP, or be sure that the data you pull from your ERP is correct.
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what happens in the database when the transaction is done by the end user for ex: how is the inventory updated when you receive the item?
I don't know about the Oracle equivalent, but in SQL Server databases, we can run Profiler to see exactly what was sent to the databases when a certain part of the application is running. It is invaluable in trying to identify some of the types of questions you have. I'm sure Oracle has an equivalent way to do the same, or there are other products on the market that do this, but I don't know what it is. I'm just throwing the idea away to give you the tool to look for.
You need to understand SQL because all ERPS are data intensive and you cannot understand what's going on in the database without understanding SQL. Remember, Oracle has its own flavor of SQL, which is very different from other databases. Therefore, be sure to learn PL / SQL while learning. If the ERP was designed for multiple database backends, it may have used ANSII standard SQL instead of the more robust PL / SQL. If you don't understand both SQL and relational database theory, you really don't understand ERP at all, since the database is the most important part of an ERP system. ERP database queries are generally quite complex. To a minimum, you need to thoroughly understand relational design, all types of joins, and much more than basic CRUD operations.
What types of tasks are you going to support in your ERP? This can lead to bigger and better suggestions for what to learn. For example, if you need to create custom reporting or data warehouse applications from ERP data, this is very different from just keeping the system running as an administrator. If you're going to do performance tuning, you need to move quickly beyond the basics. This is an advanced material that requires years of experience to be successful. There are also entire books on performance tuning, but if you are looking at the For Dummies books, you are not ready to understand them yet.
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