title: Sql Server Services - Overview anyone?
body: <h2><strong>In Short</strong></h2>
  
  <p>I am thoroughly confused by the array of SQL Server services available, and am having a hard time finding a brief primer.</p>
  
  <h2><strong>The Scoop</strong></h2>
  
  <p>I am a long time ASP.Net developer who has happily been churning out ASP.Net applications for years.  These have usually been based on SQL server and a range of custom tables and views. </p>
  
  <p>Just recently I have had the need to do some reporting that goes a little beyond the straight forward, and so I have started to look into SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS).  In doing so I feel like i have opened up Pandora's Box.  </p>
  
  <p>There is reporting services, integration services, Analysis services, Business intelligence, etc etc.  This has got me wondering what they all do, and if I could (or should have been) leveraging these tools to do some of the heavy lifting for .net applications.  </p>
  
  <p>My immediate research efforts on Microsoft have stifled me with impenetrable marketing and business speak.  My Google searched have turned up no comprehensive overview of what these tools are, or they fit together, or even which tool should be used when.  One of the biggest problems i am having comprehending the options is that they all seem kind of the same to me!</p>
  
  <p>So, all of this to say, if some kind sole could set me straight and point me in the right direction, I would be very grateful :)</p>