If you have ever had manage a data warehouse you know how much time involves unloading, transporting and reloading data into a central database. If you are working with data sets in the MB or GB range you have an alternative. Using Db2 Version 11.1.2.2 and Data Server Manager 2.1.4 you can easily access tables in remote databases from a wide variety of vendors just like local tables.

And you can use Materialize Query Tables or MQTs to store a local copy of the data, or the results of a query, against the remote data. A simple REFRESH command can update your local result set.

If you are a DBA or a Data Engineer you can use DSM to turn Db2 into a virtual warehouse combining locally stored data with data from numerous other sources. This means your Data Analysts, Developers or even Data Scientists can access key data from across your enterprise like simple tables, but you get to stay in control of managing the central resource. 

This video that walks you through federating data from multiple sources, using MQTs to accelerate performance, and visual explain to see exactly what is happening.