Digital Samurai

Database administration and data work on the Microsoft stack

A UK data consultancy, Digital Samurai presents itself as a partner for data-focused businesses, with database administration at its core. Its main focus is the Microsoft data stack, and its stated aim is to take a client from its current position to a data-driven business. The work starts by finding out where the client's data sits and building a catalogue of it, then charts a route to where the client wants to be.

Database administration as a service

The core offer is database administration on a managed basis, sometimes described as DBA as a service. The firm says it supplies the database skills that a business may not have in-house, and where a client needs more dedicated attention it can provide a full-time SQL Server resource to fill the gap. The firm also manages, analyses, migrates and protects client data, and it works with Azure SQL Database, Azure Managed Instances and other Azure data services.

Pipelines, reports and dashboards

Data pipelines are built so that information can flow through a business, moving between applications and formats, including the extract, transform and load work needed to move data to and from different systems. Reporting covers paginated reports and interactive dashboards, which the firm presents as a way to show what the data is saying in a form people can use.

Consolidating a sprawl of SQL Server versions

One case the firm describes involves a business that had grown organically and through the acquisition of smaller companies. Its estate had become large and scattered, with SQL Server versions running from version 7 up to 2012. Many of these were old and several were out of support from Microsoft, which left the business exposed to unpatched software vulnerabilities. The sprawl also drove up SQL Server licence costs, which is the problem the firm set out to address.

Moving financial data between accounting systems

Another case concerns migrating a company's financial records into a larger group's accounting system after an acquisition. The firm describes moving data from Sage 200 into OpenAccounts, and says the migration had to be accurate to the penny and finished in time to coincide with group reporting dates. It cites a solid data migration methodology as the basis for doing that kind of work.

Speeding up SQL jobs that overrun

When processing times began to climb with growing data loads, spreading out job start times no longer worked. The choices were to pay for a bigger server or to optimise and rewrite the code. The firm says it worked with the client to optimise the code, which saved the client both time and money.

Patching and upgrading SQL Server

The firm points out that staying on an old SQL Server version exposes a business to security vulnerabilities, and that the upgrade gets harder the longer it is put off. Patching can be stressful without a rollback plan and the skills to carry it out, so updates are pushed back until the backlog feels impossible to face. The firm's service covers running the updates, migrating data to newer versions and checking that the server then runs as it should.

Connecting applications and breaking down silos

Each new application can create a fresh data silo in which information stops moving. For one project the firm integrated several applications through their available APIs so that data could flow between them. It says this greatly reduced the manual work the business had been doing and cut translation errors. Beyond data, it offers security services such as endpoint protection and vulnerability management, as well as website design and hosting. For clients who need more capacity, it can supply a complete data team to extend or augment their own skills.