Category: SAP BusinessObjects

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Death Of The Cube – Long Live The Cube!

OLAP Cubes

OLAP Cubes

The acquisition of BusinessObjects by SAP paved the way for a very welcome tighter integration between the two softwares. One of the challenges coming out of that tighter integration was the performance of Web Intelligence against an OLAP universe generated on SAP cubes and BEx Queries. The reality of SAP project implementations was that SAP Netweaver experts designed large cubes and large queries. And why not; after all this was the OLAP world?! Large SAP cubes and large BEx Queries make sense for OLAP.

However, Web Intelligence is not an OLAP tool, it builds a cache of data referred to as a ‘microcube’. Note the word ‘microcube’. Attempting to pass large volumes of data from an OLAP query to the microcube could cause the Web Intelligence engine to perform poorly or crash. BISB have observed this on numerous occasions when undergoing performance testing at client site. Problems with the version of Explorer dependent up on the Web Intelligence engine have also been observed for the same reason.

But failing to process large volumes of data was not a weakness of Web Intelligence. On the contrary, Web Intelligence was designed for smaller, fast, ad hoc queries. Users experiencing problems with large volumes of data and Web Intelligence could consider the use of Crystal Reports. Crystal Reports uses a different cache infrastructure to Web Intelligence.

The above mentioned data volume issues have made the SAP BI 4.0 road map very welcome. Using the new Data Federator connectivity through the SAP BusinessObjects BI 4.0 universe means that the SAP MDX engine (OLAP) is bypassed. This removes one of the big issues of the SAP OLAP data volumes, namely MDX crossjoins. Other development means that the BI 4.0 universe now has connectivity to SAP HANA. If you have the budget available this makes SAP HANA highly desirable for Big Data and Analytics.

Finally, ardent OLAP users that cannot live without a cube have not been left out in the cold. BI 4.0 ushered in the end of the Voyager OLAP tool, replacing it with the new Advanced Analysis for OLAP tool.

The view expressed in this article is from BISB and not necessarily SAP. Russell Beech was Senior Analyst in the BusinessObjects Analytic Applications Division for almost six years. Check out Web Intelligence In Under Three Minutes here.

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Performance Tuning SAP BusinessObjects Web Intelligence

It is both frustrating and unnecessary to endure an under-performing BI system. If you are on the BI DIY road you will find several articles and whitepapers on this website that may help you by pointing you in the right direction.Max Power

Performance optimised code for Web Intelligence is intrinsically tied into a relationship with the SAP BusinessObjects universe. There is a short article on this entitled: Increased Performance Through Optimised Universe Design. There are also various techniques that can be employed such as Improving Web Intelligence Deep Drilling Capabilities with Vertical Hierarchies.

However, for optimised performance the data warehouse design must be given serious thought, consider The Aggregate Advantage. Similar principles hold true if you are using the SAP Business Information Warehouse with Web Intelligence and need Cube and Query Design for Performance Boost.

It is always advisable to give consideration to Sizing, Hardware & Licensing Models before implementing your BI system, especially where the full SAP BusinessObjects Enterprise is to be deployed.

We will be adding many more whitepapers and helpful information as time progresses and you may also find our videos on this website and YouTube of some help. But, if you are experiencing issues that you cannot seem to rectify you can engage us via our Contact Page.

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SAP Business Objects Live Office

SAP BusinessObjects

The SAP BusinessObjects Live Office application integrates with Microsoft Office using Microsoft’s Open Bridge Framework. We’ve created a live demo video entitled PowerPoints with SAP BusinessObjects Live Office which you can watch below. Live Office enables business users to embed corporate data from the data warehouse into Microsoft Office tools. This ability helps business users to become more self-sufficient, releasing them from their dependency on IT and providing them with ‘Self-Service BI’ access toTrusted BI data within the Microsoft Office tools they are familiar with. Once installed SAP BusinessObjects Live Office uses an intuitive wizard and integrated Microsoft Office tool bar to enable business users to select data easily from existing Crystal Reports and Web Intelligence Documents. Live Office users can also make ad hoc data selections based on a user friendly query panel that interfaces with the SAP Business Objects universe. Accessing the Single Version of the Truth quality assured data in this way increases user confidence in the accuracy of the data that is being analysed, consumed and shared. Live Office includes the functionality to instantly refresh data and change prompt parameter values. Live Office can also be used to feed Xcelsius Dashboards. Live Office documents can be published to SAP BusinessObjects business intelligence platform securely and then shared with colleagues as required. Live Office works with Microsoft Excel, Microsoft PowerPoint, Microsoft Word and Microsoft Outlook meaning that BI data can be directly embedded into your slide presentations and email messages. A practical example of beneficial use is to create a PowerPoint based management reporting slide deck pack. Many business users make the same presentations using the same slides over again but must continually capture numerous screen prints to remake the slide deck because the data values have changed. When Live Office is used the management reporting slide deck pack only needs to be created once. When next presenting just open the slide deck pack and then click ‘Refresh’ for the latest data! You can watch our video demo on the BI System Builders YouTube channel.