Differences Between Essbase 11g and Essbase 21c
To understand the latest Essbase platform, review these differences in features and functionality from Essbase 11g On-Premise to Essbase 21c.
For differences in Essbase deployment types, see Differences Between Essbase Deployment Options.
Architecture/Core Engine
| Feature or Component | Essbase 11g | Essbase 21c | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Application Architecture | EPM System, Foundation Services | Essbase runs on a middle-tier WebLogic platform, either in Fusion Middleware or Oracle Cloud Infrastructure. |
In independent deployments, Fusion Middleware enables fast performance, optimized memory usage, high concurrency, flexible deployment, and failover. In deployments on Oracle Cloud Infrastructure, you do not have to run Essbase install/configuration tools. OCI enables fast performance, optimized memory usage, and flexible deployment. |
| Relational Database for Essbase metadata | No | Yes | Repository Creation Utility (RCU) schemas hold information about Essbase platform artifacts and components. This metadata is stored in a supported relational database (RDBMS) of your choosing. Note that your Essbase applications and cubes aren't stored in these schemas. For independent deployments, applications are in your selected <Application Directory> location on the server where you install Essbase. For deployments on Oracle Cloud Infrastructure, applications are in the data block volume on your Essbase compute instance. |
| Query Engine Options (aggregate storage, block storage, hybrid mode) | Block storage default | Hybrid mode default | Hybrid mode is the default for block storage cubes, providing robust dependency analysis, fast aggregation, ability to process more calculations, and several tuning options. See Adopt Hybrid Mode for Fast Analytic Processing. |
| Failover | Yes | Yes (independent deployment on Linux only) | Failover is integrated with WebLogic to support a central request leasing system that determines which node is active and which nodes are waiting on standby. |
| Unicode | Yes | Yes | Essbase 21c uses UTF-8 encoding. Convert all native-encoded Essbase 11g On-Premise applications to Unicode before running the LCM export operation. |
Interfaces/Tools
| Feature or Component | Essbase 11g | Essbase 21c | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Administrative Essbase Web Interface | No | Yes | The Essbase web interface enables you to manage applications, users/groups, and Essbase artifacts. It includes a rich outline editor, scripting editors, a data analysis interface where you can save grid layouts, and a load rules editor with built-in data previews. A centralized Jobs interface lets you initiate requests, and monitor active and recent requests. Cube Designer and Smart View, as well as utilities for migration, automation, and administration, are available to download from the Console. |
| Cube Designer, Application Workbooks | No | Yes | The Cube Designer extension for Microsoft Excel is a client interface for designing and building Essbase cubes from application workbooks. This interface offers a flexible and portable cube design and administration system. Structured workbooks simplify everyday cube design, optimization, and portability. Cube Designer infers patterns found in unstructured workbooks, to help you shape raw data into hierarchically organized cubes. Cube Designer and application workbooks also offer the benefit of offline cube development and the ease of iterative builds. See Work with Cubes in Cube Designer. |
| Migration, Backup/Restore | Yes | Yes | Essbase makes it convenient to migrate applications across Essbase releases and host servers, using a choice of utilities via the Console, depending on the migration path; see About Migration Tools and Uses Cases. You must also maintain regular backups of the Essbase RCU schemas stored in a relational database, as well as user roles. Consult the back up and restore instructions for your deployment type. |
| Catalog | No | Yes | The Catalog is a central place to store files and artifacts associated with Essbase applications and users. It includes user and shared directories, and an instructive Gallery of sample cubes. |
| Gallery | No | Yes | Included in the Catalog is a Gallery of cube templates, in the form of Excel application workbooks. Import these workbooks to build a diverse variety of sample cubes. The samples are instructional for learning about different use cases for Essbase applications and features, as well as learning how to build and design cubes from structured and unstructured workbooks. |
| Smart View | Yes | Yes | See Working With Oracle Smart View for Office. |
| Provider Services | Yes | Yes | Provider Services is built in to Essbase 21c. Provider Services requests time out by default after 10 minutes. Configuration options are available in the Console. You must update client service URLs to the new format, as described in migration instructions. |
| Essbase Administration Services | Yes | Yes (Independent deployment only) | EAS Lite is an option (with independent deployment) for continued management of your applications, in case your company is not ready to adopt the web interface. The features and functionality of EAS are limited to what was available in Release 11g and do not encompass the modern platform features. |
| Essbase Studio | Yes | No | Use connections and Datasources to connect to your outside sources of data, use the improved Rules editor to preview and shape imports to your cube, and use Drill Through reports to access data you won't import. |
Security/Authentication
| Feature or Component | Essbase 11g | Essbase 21c | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Communication/Network Security | Security file | TLS, load balancer | All data is encrypted in transit layer using Transport Layer Security (TLS). You can optionally implement a load balancer. On independent deployments, this could be Oracle HTTP Server or another load balancer you choose. On Oracle Cloud Infrastructure deployments, you can select to configure a load balancer through OCI. |
| Authentication Method | EPM Shared Services or native |
Oracle Identity Cloud Service (OCI deployment only) EPM Shared Services (independent deployment only) WebLogic Embedded LDAP |
On independent deployments, for user and group authentication, choose WebLogic Embedded LDAP, or if you already use EPM Shared Services, you can continue to use it with Essbase 21c (independent deployment). If you select WebLogic, it is strongly recommended to federate users to an external authentication provider, such as Microsoft Active Directory, which is suitable for production environments.
On OCI deployments, (including when using MSAD) integrate with Oracle Identity Cloud Service (IDCS). |
| User/Group Roles and Application Permissions | Essbase roles, Shared Services roles, and application roles | Simplified: 3 roles, 4 permissions | Essbase user roles are User, Power User, and Service Administrator. Application permissions, granted separately, are Application Manager, Database Manager, Database Update, and Database Access. All roles from EPM Shared Services can be mapped to the new roles and permissions, or, you can continue to use EPM Shared Services (independent deployment only). |
| Filters | Yes | Yes | Filters help you implement fine-tuned, cell-level access controls to your cubes. Using dynamic filters with built in functions/variables, you can make filters extensible and adaptable to a changing user base and real-time source data. You can use LoginAs to test the filters in the Essbase web interface.
In Essbase 11g On-Premise, only one filter can be granted per user per cube. In Essbase 21c, new filter assignments are combined with existing filter assignments. |
| Security file | Yes | No | There is no need for essbase.sec in Essbase 21c. |
Data Connectivity/Interoperability
| Feature or Component | Essbase 11g | Essbase 21c | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Connections and Datasources | No | Yes | Essbase administration tasks often require connectivity to remote source data or hosts. With reusable connections and Datasources, you no longer have to code the connection details into artifacts like rule files or filters, or enter them each time you perform other connection-dependent tasks. |
| Network Connectivity | Yes | Yes | Essbase APIs use TLS/SSL for secure connectivity both internally between components and externally with other applications. You can connect from any software using Essbase Runtime Client (RTC) over secure HTTP without needing to open additional TCP/IP ports to enable client connectivity. |
| Partitions | Yes | Yes | Linked partitions aren't supported in Essbase 21c. Use @XREF and @XWRITE to analyze data across cubes. See Link Cubes Using Partitions and XREF/XWRITE.
The administrator must set up user security for the source and target cubes. See Security for Partitioned Databases. For OCI deployments, federated partitions are available with Autonomous Data Warehouse, enabling transparent integration of relational data and the Essbase cube. |
| Drill Through | Yes | Yes | When you need more data than what is in the cube, use Drill Through reports to access external data sources. Performance is improved for drill through connections to Oracle Database. The flexibility of Drill Through report design is improved, allowing diversified selection of multiple cells or ranges of cells. Selections can be recursive, non-recursive, level 0, contiguous, or non-contiguous. |
Calculation/Data Flow
| Feature or Component | Essbase 11g | Essbase 21c | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Calculation Scripts (block storage and hybrid mode) | Yes | Yes | Full library of calculation functions and commands suits most analytical applications. Build your own custom defined functions and macros. Calculation tracing helps analyze and debug calc script performance and member formula processing. Tuple-based calculation helps optimize and refine calculation scope, limiting it to focus on the active Smart View grid. Hybrid calculation can be used, and offers tuning options. |
| Aggregate Storage Calculation | Yes | Yes | MDX Insert helps you perform custom calculations and allocations. You can automate the creation and maintenance of default aggregate views. |
| Hybrid query processor enabled by default for block storage cubes | No | Yes |
Essbase 21c processes dynamic dependencies in queries using hybrid mode. In hybrid mode, Essbase evaluates formula dependencies prior to resolving queries, ensuring minimal processing time and accurate results. Hybrid mode is not the default mode for calculation scripts, but you can enable it using the HYBRIDBSOINCALCSCRIPT configuration setting. In Essbase 11g, the default query engine is not hybrid mode, but you can enable it using ASODYNAMICAGGINBSO. |
| Parallel Calculation | Yes | Yes | See Using Parallel Calculation. |
| Data Load/Dimension Build Rules | Yes | Yes | Load rules editor has built-in data previews. You can import from the Catalog or from outside sources. Rule file columns can employ functions like Sum, Min, Max, Count, and Avg, to help you shape your import. Performance is improved for SQL-based loading. Batch Outline Editing is available from Java or REST API. Command-line interface (CLI) supports streaming data load from a variety of sources. Aggregate storage data load optimizations include buffer, merge, and cache tuning options. You can migrate rule files from Essbase Studio and edit them in the Essbase web interface. |
| Custom-Defined Calculation Functions and Macros | Yes | Yes | Build your own custom-defined functions and macros in Java. |
| MDX | Yes | Yes | In addition to MDX’s well-known utility as a multidimensional query language, you can use its Insert and Export directives to shape, copy, move, and update any custom slice of multidimensional data. Sub Select lets you filter the volume of queried data. |
| Scenario Management | No | Yes | Scenario management offers the ability to build private work areas or “sandboxes” in which users can model different assumptions within the data to see the effect on aggregated results, without affecting the cube. |
Development, Automation, and Audit
| Feature or Component | Essbase 11g | Essbase 21c | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Automation and Developer Tools | Yes | Yes | REST API helps you automate management of Essbase resources over secured HTTP. Java API, Command Line Interface (CLI), MaxL administrative language, and Report Writer are also available. |
| Accelerated Development and Audit Capabilities | No | Yes | Calculation tracing lets you monitor and debug calculation scripts. Query tracing can be used to monitor and debug query performance. Audit trail enables you to track changes made to data. Solve order can be adjusted while you're working in Smart View. |
| Shadow Applications | No | Yes | To perform cube modifications and restructures with limited down time, you can create a shadow application that is a copy of the primary application. The primary application continues to serve read-only operations, such as queries, while you perform modifications on the shadow application. You can make the shadow application visible or hidden. Available in REST API – see the Create Shadow Application endpoint. |
Configuration
| Feature or Component | Essbase 11g | Essbase 21c | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Configuration Tool | No | Yes (independent deployment only) | For independent deployments, you can configure your Essbase environment any time using the integrated configuration tool, either at the end of your Essbase installation, or by launching the Configuration Tool later, after installation. Silent mode is available if you're configuring frequently (for example, in a development environment). |
| Configuration Settings | Yes | Yes | Most configuration parameters you need for application tuning should be set per application, using the Essbase web interface. Server-level configuration is handled by the configuration tool (for independent deployments), but you can also change server configuration defaults using essbase.cfg, if needed. Provider Services configuration options for network-related preferences are available in the Console. |
Other Notable and Legacy Features
| Feature or Component | Essbase 11g | Essbase 21c | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Expanded Analysis Methods | No | Yes | You can perform ad hoc data queries/grid analyses on cube data from the administrative Essbase web interface, as a built-in alternative to connecting via Smart View. You can save your grid layouts, run report scripts, and run and save named MDX queries. See Analyze Data in the Web Interface. |
| Member ID | No | Yes | A unique Member ID is automatically assigned to every member in the cube outline. |
| Logging | Yes | Yes | Application logs are in Oracle Diagnostic Logging (ODL) format. You can download them from the Essbase web interface. You can use Performance Analyzer to analyze Essbase logs to generate usage and performance statistics. |
| Implied Sharing | True by default | You choose | In Essbase 11g On-Premise, the implied share setting could be changed for an application using the IMPLIED_SHARE setting. When you migrate an Essbase 11g On-Premise application to Essbase 21c, your IMPLIED_SHARE setting is preserved. For each application, you set implied share behavior only once, at application creation time (it's not meant to be changed). See IMPLIED_SHARE_ON_CREATE configuration property, which is FALSE by default (unless you migrate an application that has IMPLIED_SHARE set to TRUE). |
| Report Scripts | Yes | Yes | See Report on Data. |
| Currency Conversion | Yes | Yes | See Designing and Building Currency Conversion Applications. |
| ESSCMD | Yes | Yes | ESSCMD is still supported, but is not updated with the latest features. Try CLI and MaxL. |
| Varying Attributes | Yes | Only in EAS Lite (for independent deployments) | - |
| Hybrid Analysis | Yes | No | Not applicable in Essbase 21c. Use connections and Datasources to connect to your outside sources of data, use the improved Rules editor to preview and shape imports to your cube, and use Drill Through reports to access data you won't import. |
| Incremental Restructuring | Yes | No | Restructuring is not as time-consuming in Essbase 21c. If needed, you can work in a shadow application to limit down-time. |
| Dynamic Calc and Store | Yes | No | Dynamic Calc and Store members are treated as Dynamic Calc. |
| Direct I/O, cache memory locking | Yes | No | Not applicable |
| Disk volumes | Yes | Yes | Set up disk volumes using standard operating system mounts, instead of DISKVOLUMES configuration property. |
| Repair Invalid Block Headers | Yes | No | Not applicable |
| Data Compression Types: Zlib, None | Yes | No | Not applicable |