The OLAP Services feature from SQL Server v7.0 is called Analysis Services in SQL Server 2000. PowerDesigner supports analysis services through an add-in.
For information about analysis services in SQL Server 2005, see Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Analysis Services.
Analysis Services provide the following capabilities:
The Analysis server that manages, stores multidimensional information and serves client application requests for OLAP data. The server stores cube metadata (cube definition specifications) in a repository. Completed cubes can be stored in a variety of storage modes: multidimensional database files (MOLAP), tables in a relational database (ROLAP), or a hybrid of multidimensional database files and relational tables (HOLAP).
A metadata repository that contains definitions of OLAP data objects such as cubes and their elements.
The PivotTable Service, which is an OLE DB for OLAP provider that connects client applications to the Analysis server and manages offline cubes.
An object model called Decision Support Objects (DSO), that provides support for the Analysis Manager user interface and for custom applications that manage OLAP metadata and control the server. DSO uses hierarchically arranged groups of objects to define basic elements of OLAP data. PowerDesigner creates and manipulates DSO objects to manage metadata for OLAP data.
Source data for multidimensional cubes resides in relational databases where the data has been transformed into a star or snowflake schema typically used in OLAP data warehouse systems. Analysis Services can work with many relational databases that support connections using ODBC or OLE DB.
For more information on SQL Server Analysis Services, see your DBMS documentation.