What is Essbase?

What is Multi-Dimensional?

• Uses a cube metaphor to describe data storage.
• An Essbase database is considered a “cube”, with each cube axis representing a different dimension, or slice of the data (accounts, time, products, etc.)‏
• All possible data intersections are available to the user at a click of the mouse.
Multi-Dimensional vs. Relational
• Multi-dimensional database are usually queried top-down – the user starts at the top and drills into dimensions of interest.
– Can perform poorly for transactional queries
• Relational databases are usually queried bottom-up – the user selects the desired low level data and aggregates.
– Harder to visualize data; can perform poorly for high-level queries.


What is Essbase?


Essbase is a multidimensional database management system. The name Essbase stands for Extended Spread Sheet dataBASE. Using the custom add-in provides the end-user with near seamless compatibility in the Microsoft Excel spreadsheet program.

1. The leading enterprise multi-dimensional database engine
2. Provides real-time analytic infrastructure for business intelligence and enterprise performance management (EPM) applications.
3. Engineered for scalability, security, and rapid-response.
4. Through an intuitive interface, business users can manipulate large data sets to model complex scenarios, forecast outcomes, and perform “what-if” analyses to identify trends and optimize business results.


Why Use Essbase?

1. Rich User Experience – users “converse” with the data
2. Business and Finance can manage their own metadata and reports
3. Highly advanced calculation engine
4. Easy integration of data sources, including manual input
5. Large scalability
6. Robust, cell-level security
7. Many sophisticated reporting tools

8. Powerful Calculation Engine.

• Over 350 built-in functions, including:
– Financial functions, such as net present value, rate of return, and compound growth
– Custom multi-dimensional functions such as @ALLOCATE to drive data to multiple business intersections
– Complete time-series support
– Support for summary-level input
• Both run-time and batch calculations
• MDX support

9. Integration of Data Sources

• Unique multi-user read/write technology
• Information from many data sources can be easily integrated into one database, and thus one set of user queries
• In particular, allows budgets and forecasts to be fully integrated with actual