What Is the EQQ-Triangle? Read-Only, Installed, No SQL

The EQQ-Triangle is Ewarenow’s approach to safe, self-serve business queries: a read-only query tool, installed on your own database, that needs no SQL. Business users ask questions in a browser and get answers from live company data, without waiting on a database expert. Its core application is EQQ^® (Ewarenow Quick Query), and it works with PostgreSQL, MySQL, and MS SQL.

Most companies are sitting on years of valuable information inside their business database, but getting a straight answer out of it usually means waiting for someone to write a query. The EQQ-Triangle exists to close that gap.

What the EQQ-Triangle is

The EQQ-Triangle is built for companies that are mostly satisfied with their business application but want more business value from the current and historical information already sitting in its database. You keep the application you have. The EQQ-Triangle sits alongside it and makes the data easier to use.

EQQ is a browser application for knowledge workers and managers. Based on the actions a person takes in its interface, it generates the SQL code for them, so nobody has to write it by hand. The tool is aimed at the questions people ask every week: which orders shipped late, which customers have not reordered, how a product line is trending.

EQQ primarily focuses on data from your company’s mission-critical application. It can extend to include data from other applications, such as financial accounting, customer relationship, marketing, and human resources systems.

What are the three points of the triangle?

The name comes from three defining characteristics – the three points of the triangle. Each one answers a concern that usually stops companies from opening their data to more people.

• Read-only. Every query is read-only by design. No query can change, move, or delete a record in your database, so there is no write path to misuse.
• Installed on your own database. EQQ runs against your own database, on your premises. Your data never leaves.
• No SQL required. Neither Query Users nor Query Creators need to know SQL to build and run simple or complex queries.

The three points work together. Read-only makes it safe to let more people ask questions. Installed means the data stays under your control. No SQL means the people with the questions can get the answers themselves.

Many tools offer one or two of these. A read-only tool that lives in someone else’s cloud raises data-location questions. An installed tool that still requires SQL leaves the bottleneck in place. The EQQ-Triangle is defined by having all three at once, and that combination is what makes it practical for a small or mid-sized company with a database it cannot afford to put at risk.

Ewarenow also offers business applications such as QCS, which sit on the same kind of database that the EQQ-Triangle can query.

Who uses the EQQ-Triangle?

There are two main roles. Query Creators set up the queries a team needs. Query Users run those queries and get answers on demand. Neither role needs to know SQL.

Beyond those two roles, different people look for different things:

• Business leaders want to remove decision-making delays and surface hidden trends.
• Finance teams want to cut the hours spent on manual data search and give regulators and stakeholders what they require, quickly and correctly.
• Operations teams want to remove reporting bottlenecks and connect siloed data.
• Everyday users want a minimal learning curve, with frequent queries saved so answers come in seconds rather than days.

Ewarenow customers include a PCB reseller and an analytical laboratory. You can read how each used it in the PCB electronics case study and the LIMS analytical case study.

How does a question become an answer?

The path from question to answer is short. In practice it follows these steps:

1. Start with the business question. For example, which customers have not reordered this year. The question comes from the person who needs the answer, not from a database specialist.
2. Choose the data in the browser. A Query Creator picks the information needed from the interface, using plain business terms rather than database jargon.
3. EQQ generates the SQL. Based on those choices, EQQ writes the SQL code for you and runs it read-only against your database.
4. Save the query. Queries that will be needed again are saved, so Query Users can run them on demand without starting over.
5. Review and export. Results come straight from your live data and can be exported to Excel, CSV, JSON, or PDF.

Because the data is live and the query is saved, the same question can be asked again next week with no extra effort. For a longer look at this workflow, see how to get answers without writing SQL.

Which databases does it support?

Whether your company’s database system is PostgreSQL, MySQL, or MS SQL, the EQQ-Triangle supports it. EQQ is a Microsoft Windows web application that runs on your own network and connects to your database. It uses HTTPS/TLS, multi-factor authentication, and role-based access.

It is priced for SMB (Small-Medium Business) companies, so a team does not need an enterprise budget to put it to work.

Is it really secure?

Security is a property of how the EQQ-Triangle is built, not a promise. Because EQQ is read-only, installed on your database, and built on the permissions you already control, three things follow:

• Queries can never write to your data.
• Your data never leaves your premises.
• Access follows the database permissions you have already set.

That is why it is reasonable to put querying in the hands of business users instead of limiting it to a small technical group.

How is it different from reporting that needs a database expert?

In many companies, each new report starts with a request to someone who knows the database. That person writes the SQL, tests it, and sends back the result. If the question changes, the cycle starts again. The people with the questions wait, and the specialist becomes a bottleneck for everyday needs.

The EQQ-Triangle changes who does the work. Query Creators build the queries in a browser interface, and Query Users run them whenever they need to. A database specialist is still useful for setup, for example in defining the SQL views your questions need, but is no longer on call for every routine question.

It is also different from adding a full business intelligence stack. EQQ works directly on your existing database, with no new integrations. For a side-by-side look at the options, read SQL query builder vs. no-SQL tool. For a worked example, see how a team can track delivery performance without a BI stack.

What does it cost, and can I try it first?

There are two options. You can try the EQQ-Triangle free for two months, with no credit card and with your own data. After the trial, the Standard Edition is $125 per month with a minimum of 5 licensed users, or $1,500 per year. Compare the editions for the full details.

If you want help getting started, Ewarenow offers EQQ services that cover analyzing your database, installing and configuring EQQ in your environment, defining and creating the SQL views your questions need, and ongoing user support. Ewarenow also builds custom software and applications, described under our services.

Try the EQQ-Triangle

The quickest way to see whether it fits is to run it on your own data. Start your free 2-month trial, or read more about the EQQ-Triangle first.