The most popular way of classifying databases today, however, is based on how they will be used and on the time
sensitivity of the information gathered from them. For example, transactions such as product or service sales, payments,
and supply purchases reflect critical day-to-day operations. Such transactions must be recorded accurately and
immediately. A database that is designed primarily to support a company’s day-to-day operations is classified as an
operational database, also known as an online transaction processing (OLTP), transactional, or production
database. In contrast, analytical databases focus primarily on storing historical data and business metrics used
exclusively for tactical or strategic decision making. Such analysis typically requires extensive “data massaging” (data-manipulation) to produce information on which to base pricing decisions, sales forecasts, market strategies, and so on.
Analytical databases allow the end user to perform advanced data analysis of business data using sophisticated tools.