Everything must come to an end

I finally got my new laptop after having a loaner for over a month so I can now resume blogging (at least more easily).  I’ve been excited about all of the new features and functionality of Essbase 11.1.2.4 and there has bee a flurry of blogs that have described that functionality. Today, Tim Tow posted one feature going away the VB API.   There are a number of other features that you might not be aware of as either completely gone or depreciated so they won’t be supported in the future.

So first what is already gone?

1. Essbase Native Security. Shared services should be used to manage and maintain users.
2. Essbase Integration Services. The writing has been on the wall for this for a while with Essbase Studio taking its place, there is little need to duplicate functionality. Of course along with this goes Hybrid analysis.
3. VB API (Time talks about that in his blog)
4. A number of Configuration file (Essbase.cfg) settings. I believe the functionality has been built into the base product so these are no longer needed.

• PRELOADALIASNAMESPACE

• PRELOADMEMBERNAMESPACE

• PRELOADUDANAMESPACE

• MAXACTIVEUPDATETRANSACTIONS

• MAXTOTALACTIVETRANSACTIONS

So what is depreciated (This means not recommend for use and will most likely go away completely in the next release)

1. Direct I/O Can’t say I’m sorry to see this go. I’ve never had an implementation where it was advantageous to use it and it always seemed to be buggy.
2. Outline change log. While not widely used I do have some clients that use this for SOX compliance so the auditors can track who made outline changes and when. I’m hoping a new method for tracking this will be forthcoming.
3. Currency Conversion applications and Currency partitions. I don’t know anyone who used currency applications. Most consultants I know build it themselves within the primary cube. That said, Oracle announced at Open World last September that they are working on incorporating more HFM like financial functionality into Essbase, so I would expect to see a new method for currency conversion to appear at some point.
4. Data compression types ZLIB and None. Don’t know anyone who used them. I guess it means a certification test question will need to be updated. Really since Essbase already figures out what compression a block should use, these are outdated.
5. Linked Partitions. While a great idea, no one uses them (ok I have one client that implemented them, but doesn’t really use them)
6. the EAS API. again a nice idea to customize EAS, who really needed to do so,
7. Network File System (NFS) protocol on Network Attached Storage (NAS) devices. Who really cares. I think this was for Windows NT which is long gone.
8. MaxL statements relating to security. I believe this goes along with all of the other security changes. getting rid of the Essbase.sec file. I will miss this one as I used it as do some clients to automate some security processes. It means I’ll finally have to learn JAVA and use the JAVA Shared Services API to replicate what I did in the past.  These are the commands going away.

• alter user statement—only the add [to group] and remove [from group] grammar is deprecated

• create group statement—the entire statement is deprecated

• create user statement—the entire statement is deprecated

• display group statement—only the all grammar is deprecated

• display user statement—only the all grammar is deprecated

• drop group statement—all grammar is deprecated except for the from security_file grammar

• drop user statement—all grammar is deprecated except for the from security_file grammar

9. XOLAP is being limited to Teradata, Netezza and IBM DB2. Really these are where it was being used on higher powered machines so it makes sense.

With all of the great changes occurring in Essbase, I am sure Oracle is getting rid of code that makes the changes difficult or had to be modified or maintained with the changes. As can be seen from the list, Most will have minimal impact on users. If there are any of the depreciated features that are critical to your organization, let Oracle know, They do listen. (If you like you can communicate through me). While they may not keep a feature, they may have other ways coming out to accomplish what you need to do.

 

In closing I say Rest in peace to those items already removed 

 

and for those processes on life support get ready for the plug to be pulled