EPBCS ASO Level 0 Export

May 8, 2018

I was so excited the other day when I read this small yet so inviting tidbit in the EPBCS release notes for May:

You can now use Calculation Manager to export and import Level 0 data from an ASO cube.

I have been struggling with getting data out of ASO cubes in a usable format for the longest time so I had to try it this weekend.

I dreamed that it was going to be a new type of data export script that would make extraction from the cubes both quick and filterable. What we got was in my mind is a bit of a disappointment.

The URL to access the documentation for this feature in the release notes is not currently active so this is based on my digging.

The feature can be accessed within the Calc Manager Essbase screen of EPBCS. Once you are in Calc Manager select the database properties icon. Then navigate to your ASO application and database.

essaides-10232018-figure-1

 

Select the Export Level Zero Data and the system will generate a zip file for you in the inbox that can be downloaded. It was very quick to generate the zip! When I downloaded the file and opened the zip I found that my data was in native Essbase format, not column format and therefore it could not be easily used effectively in any on-prem, non-Essbase downstream applications. This also cannot be scheduled through REST yet to provide lights out extracts if needed.

Basically, the functionality of on-prem ASO extracts has been replicated in the cloud.

I am hoping that this is just a start because with the power of data maps our BSO plan types can be smaller and quicker but the data physically only exists in the ASO plan types. Clients that need to share data with other applications require a more eloquent solution for extracting data out of ASO plan types. I was hoping for a change in the way that I implement but unfortunately, my designs will still rely on BSO for my client’s extract needs. I am optimistic this is just the start of really opening up the power of ASO to extract data!!