SAP BO Analysis, Edition for OLAP and SAP NetWeaver BW

In this post we will first review the data connectivity options for SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP and then look into the details how SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is able to leverage the existing meta-data from your SAP NetWeaver BW system and how SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP compares to SAP Business Explorer (BEx) Analyzer, SAP BEx Web Analyzer, and SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for Microsoft Office.

 

SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is able – in addition to SAP NetWeaver BW and SAP HANA – to connect to other 3rd party OLAP data sources, but the focus of this book is the integration of SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP with SAP NetWeaver BW. As shown in the figure below, SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is able to connect to BEx Queries, BEx Query Views, and InfoProvider in SAP NetWeaver BW using the direct connectivity which is based on the BI Consumer Services (BICS) interface.

 

In addition SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is able to connect to BEx queries based on so called Transient Providers. The Transient Provider is a capability which becomes available with SAP ECC 6 Enhancement Pack 05 and allows you to expose a classic InfoSet (Transaction SQ01) via the activated BI client of your SAP ECC system to a BEx Query.

In the next section, we will review the detailed support of BEx queries in SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP.

 

In this section we will review how SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is able to leverage your existing investment into BEx queries and leverage the existing meta-data from your SAP NetWeaver BW system. We will review the support of BEx Query elements in different sections and discuss any known limitations and possible workarounds. All of the statements made in this section are based on SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP release 4 with Service Pack 04 applied.

 

BEx Query Element	SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP
InfoProvider Dimension	Not supported
Characteristics	All characteristics from the BEx query are available and the user can decide between the different display options (key, text, key & text, text & key)
Key Figures	All key figures are available in SAP BusinessObjects Analysis edition for OLAP and the user is able to display settings such as the scaling factor and the currency / unit.
Free Characteristics	All characteristics placed in the Free Characteristics area of the BEx Query are available in SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP and are treated like any other characteristic.
Restricted Key Figures	Restricted Key figures are fully supported and are treated like any other key figure in SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP. The details of the Restricted Key Figure are not available in SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP and can only be viewed in the BEx Query Designer.
Calculated Key Figures	Calculated Key figures are fully supported and are treated like any other key figure in SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP. details of the Calculated Key Figure are not available in SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP and can only be viewed in the BEx Query Designer.
Display Attributes	Starting with SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP release 4 with Service Pack 04, the product does support the Display Attributes from SAP NetWeaver BW and the user is able to include those into the workbooks.
Navigational Attributes	All Navigational Attributes are available in SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP and are treated like any other characteristic
BEx Query Filter	Fixed filters defined in the BEx Query layer are fully supported by SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP but the information about the configured filter values is not available in SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP.
Defaults	Values or variables placed in the Defaults area of the BEx query are being used by SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP for the initial view in the workspace and the consumer of the workspace can then use standard navigation steps to change the values.
Custom Key Figure Structure	Custom structures defined in the BEx Query with key figures integrated as part of those custom structures are fully supported by SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP and the consumer is able to select specific elements of the structure for the workspace.
Custom Characteristic Structure	Custom structures defined in the BEx Query with characteristics integrated as part of those custom structures are fully supported by SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP and the consumer is able to select specific elements of the structure for the workspace.
Hierarchical Custom KeyFigure Structure	Custom structures defined in the BEx Query with key figures integrated as part of those custom structures and defined as a hierarchical structure are fully supported by SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP and the consumer is able to select specific elements and also leverage the hierarchical definition of the structure for the workspace.
Hierarchical CustomCharacteristic Structure	Custom structures defined in the BEx Query with characteristics integrated as part of those custom structures and defined as a hierarchical structure are fully supported by SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP and the consumer is able to select specific elements and also leverage the hierarchical definition of the structure for the workspace.
Selection of elements ofa custom structure in thereport	In SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP the user is able to select from the list of structure elements and decide which structure elements will be part of the workspace.
Support for 2 structuresfrom BEx Query	BEx Queries with two structures are fully supported.
Compounded Characteristics	Starting with release 4 Service Pack 04, compounded characteristics are fully supported, including BEx variables with cascading list of values.
Characteristic Data Type NUMC	Fully supported
Characteristic Data Type CHAR	Fully supported
Characteristic Data Type DATS	Fully supported
Characteristic Data Type TIMS	Fully supported
Key Figures Data Type Amount / Quantity	Fully supported
Key Figures Data Type DATS	Fully supported
Key Figures Data Type TIMS	Fully supported
Information about configuredFilters in the BEx Query	Fixed filters defined in the BEx Query layer      are fully supported by SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP but the information about the configured filter values is not available in SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP
BEx Text Elements	SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is not supporting information that is known as BEx Text Elements, such as the date from the last data update.

Table: Support for BEx Query Elements

In the next set of tables we will review the support for BEx Variables in details.

Variables in BEx Query	SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP
Optional Variables	Fully supported
Characteristic Value Variables	Fully supported
Formula Variables	Fully supported
Hierarchy Variables	Fully supported
Hierarchy Node Variables	Fully supported
Hierarchy Version Variable	Fully supported
Key Date Variable	Fully supported
Text Variables	Fully supported

Table: Support for BEx Variables

As shown in Table, SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP fully supports the different variable types from the underlying BEx queries.

Variable Processing Type in BEx Query	SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition  for OLAP
User Entry / Default Value	Fully supported
Replacement Path	Fully supported
Customer / SAP Exits	Fully supported
Authorization	Fully supported

Table: Support for Variable Processing Type

As shown in Table, SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP also fully supports the different variable processing types.

Variable Presentation Options	SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP
Sinle Value	Fully Supported
Multiple Single Value	Fully supported
Interval / Range Value	Fully supported
Selection Option	Fully supported
Selection Option Operator	Fully supported
Functionality (except Contains Pattern)Selection Option Operator	Not supported
Functionality – Contains PatternSelection Option Include / Exclude	Fully supported
FunctionalityPreCalculated Value Set	Fully supported

Table: Variable Representation

As shown in Table, SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is able to support all the different presentation options for BEx variables with one exception, the support for the operator Contains Pattern. SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is able to support the variable presentation option Selection Option but SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP does not provide the operator Contains Pattern as part of this variable type.

BEx Query Functionality	SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP
Support for manual entryof values	Starting with SAP BusinessObjects Analysis,        edition for OLAP release 4 with Server Pack 04, the product does support the option to manually enter values for BEx variables.
Support for Variables inDefaults Area of BEx Query	Fully supported
Support for single Key DateVariable	Fully supported
Support for multiple Key DateVariables in single BEx Query	Fully supported
Support for Hierarchy / HierarchyNode Variable dependency	SAP BusinessObjects Analysis,  edition for OLAP fully recognizes and supports the dependency between a hierarchy and a hierarchy node variable.
Support for cascading variablesfor Compounded Characteristics	Starting with SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP release 4 with Pack 04, the product fully supports compounded characteristics including the cascading nature of BEx variables based on compounded characteristics.
Support for Variable Default Values	Fully supported
Support for Variable Variants	The support for variable variants in SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is planned for the release 4.1, which is planned to go into RampUp in Q2 2013.
Support for Variable Personalization	Not supported
Merge / Unmerge Variables	The support for merging variables in SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is planned for the release 4.1, which is planned to go into RampUp in Q2 2013.

Table: Support for BEx Query Functionality

As you can see in Table, SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is able to support most of the variable functionality which you know from the SAP BEx Web Analyzer. In SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP 4.0 Service Pack 04 there are two major limitations in the area of variables, which is the missing support for Variable Variants and the missing support for Variable Personalization. Support for Variable Variants is planned for the upcoming release 4.1 for SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP. Variable Personalization is not part of the 4.1 release and is being looked at for a future release.

 

BEx Query Functionality	SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP
Defining Variable Sequencein the report	In SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP the user cannot change the sequence of the BEx variables (see next line item).
Variable Sequence basedon BEx Query Designer	SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is leveraging the defined sequence of variables from the BEx query designer.
Support for validating valuesbefore executing the report	Fully supported
Read Mode for list of values(master data, InfoCube)	SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is leveraging the configuration in SAP NetWeaver BW where the user can configure on the InfoObject level, if the characteristic should display the data from the master data or from the InfoProvider.
List of Values :Search in Key values	Fully supported
List of Values : Search in DescriptionValues	Fully supported
List of Values : Sort values based onKey Values	Not supported
List of Values : Sort values basedon Description Values	Not supported
Currency / Unit Conversion definedin BEx Query	Fully supported
Currency / Unit Conversion(Runtime)	SAP BusinessObjects Analysis,edition for OLAP does not provide the functionality to execute a currency or unit conversation without the usage of BEx query variables.
Condition in Rows (from BEx Query)	Fully supported
Condition in Columns (from BEx Query)	Fully supported
Conditions for fixed set of characteristics(from BEx Query)	Fully supported
Condition for independent characteristics(from BEx Query)	Fully supported
Defining Conditions in theworkspace	In addition to supporting the conditions defined in the underlying BEx query, SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP also allows the user to created conditions –now being called Filter by Measure – in the             workspace without having to change the underlying BEx query.
Exceptions (from BEx Query)	SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is offering the functionality Conditional Formatting, which allows the user to create highlighting in the workspace    without having to change the underlying BEx query. The re-use of already definedExceptions in the BEx Query is planned for the 4.1 release which is planned to go into RampUp in Q2 2013.
Defining Exceptions in the workspace	Fully supported

Table: Support for BEx Query Functionality

SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is able to support most of the functionality offered by the BEx Query design. In addition to being able to re-use conditions defined in the BEx query and the planned re-use of Exceptions in the BEx query, SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is also offering the functionality to create Filter by Measure (= Conditions) and Conditional Formatting (= Exceptions) in the workspace itself without having to change the underlying BEx Query. This new functionality, which is also available in SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for Microsoft Office, allows you to create more generic BEX QUERIES and in that way reduce the overall number of BEx queries as the user can now leverage the functionality in the workspace instead of defining a condition or an exception in one particular BEx query.

BEx Query Functionality	SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP
Constant Selection	Fully supported
Cell Editor Calculation Local calculations  (defined in BEx Query)	Fully supported
Defining Calculations in thereport (at run time)	Fully supporte
Exception Aggregation	Fully supported
Zero Suppression	Fully supported
Read Mode for characteristics(master data, InfoCube)	SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is leveraging the configuration in SAP NetWeaver BW where the user can configure on the InfoObject level if the characteristic should display the data from the master data or from the InfoProvider.
Scaling Factor	Fully supported
Reverse Sign (+/-)	Fully supported
Number of Decimals	Fully supported
Hide / Show the Element	Fully supported
Sort Characteristics	Fully supported
Display Options for characteristics(Key, Key & Text, Text)	SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is honoring the configuration of the characteristic done in the BEx Query Designer. In addition SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is also offering the option to configure the different display      options, such as key, text, key & text, in the workspace itself without having to change the underlying BEx query.
Result Rows (Show, Suppress)	In addition to supporting the configuration from the underlying BEx query the user is     able to switch between the hiding or showing of subtotals and grand totals in the workspace itself without having to change the underlying BEx query.
Placement of subtotal(above / below nodes)	Fully supported

Table: Support for BEx Query Functionality

Table shows how SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is supporting the different display settings from the BEx query. SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP not only is able to support all these configurations, but is also offering similar functionality in the product itself so that the user is able to leverage such functionality in the workspace without having every time to change the underlying BEx query.

Hierarchical Functionality	SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP
Hierarchies with Linked Nodes	Fully supported
Time-dependent Hierarchies	Fully supported
Time-dependent Hierarchy Structures	Fully supported
Hierarchies with Temp Join	Fully supported
Hierarchy Versions (without usage of Variables)	Fully supported
Hierarchical Member selection (nodes and leafs)	Fully supported
Member Selection based on hierarchy levels	Fully supported
Show specific Hierarchy Levels	Fully supported
Skip levels of a hierarchy	Fully supported
Show Leaf Members only	Fully supported
Ranking Data along a hierarchy	Fully supported
Exchange of hierarchies in the BI client tool	Fully supported
Expand to Level Functionality BEx Query Designer)	Fully supported
Expand to Level Functionality (Run Time)	SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is able to leverage the configuration “Expand to level” from the underlying BEx query but does not have such functionality in the product itself yet. The functionality in the product is planned for the release 4.1 (RampUp Q2 2013).
Compact Axis in the Rows (Display as hierarchy)	Fully supported
Compact Axis in the Columns (Display as hierarchy)	Fully supported
Hierarchical Report Design	Fully supported
Hierarchical charting	Fully supported

Table: Support for Hierarchy Functionality

Table shows the support for SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP when it comes to the hierarchical functionality. SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP fully supports all the different hierarchies, such as a time-dependent hierarchy, and is able to fully leverage the hierarchical nature of the data in charts and also in calculations and when ranking the data in the workspace. The only functionality missing at this point in time (SAP BusinessObjects BI 4 Service Pack 05) is the “Expand to Level” feature. SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is able to leverage the configuration from the underlying BEx query for the “Expand to Level” setting, but is not providing such feature in the product so that the user could expand several hierarchy levels in one step without having to change the underlying BEx query. The “Expand to Level” functionality is planned for the next release of SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP, which is release 4.1 and it is planned to go into RampUp in Q2 2013.

BI Platform Capabilities	SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP
Scheduling a document	Not supported
Create a Publication ( = Broadcasting)	Not supported
Support for Variable Variants	The support for Variable Variants is planned as part of the 4.1 release, which is planned to go into RampUp in Q2 2013.
Support for Variable Personalization	Not supported
Support for Report Report Interface as Sender	The support for the Report Report Interface as a valid sender is planned as part of the 4.1 release, which is planned to go into RampUp in Q2 2013.
Support for Report Report Interface as Receiver	Not supported

Table: BI Platform Capabilities

As you can see in Table, SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP does not provide a scheduling or broadcasting type of capability right now, which is compared to the BEx Web Analyzer one of the feature gaps right now.

With the release 4.1 (planned for Q2 2013), SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is also starting to support the Report Report Interface as a valid sender and will add the support for the variable variants as well.

In the last set of tables you received a detailed overview which elements of a BEx Query are supported with SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP and which elements are not supported yet.  In the next sections we will compare SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP with SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for Microsoft Office, BEx Analyzer, and BEx Web Analyzer.

 

 

After we reviewed all the details on how SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is able to support SAP NetWeaver BW as a data source by leveraging your investment into BEx Queries, we will now compare SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP with BEx Web Analyzer and SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for Microsoft Office.

SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP vs. BEx Web Analyzer

Based on the information in the previous sections and tables, we provided you with the details on which functionality is already supported in SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP and which functionality is still a gap when compared with BEx Web Analyzer.

 

1. SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP does not provide the typical BEx Text elements as information in the workspace. BEx Text elements provide information such as the date of the last update to the query or the InfoProvider.

2. SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP does not provide the functionality to perform a currency or unit conversion in the workbook without the usage of BEx variables, which is something the BEx Web Analyzer is offering.

3. SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP does not support the contains pattern operator for the selection option variable, which is something the BEx Web Analyzer supports and is often used by customers in combination with EXIT variables.

4. Support for Variable Variants is planned for the release SAP BusinessObjects BI 4.1 but the support for variable personalization is still outstanding.

5. Support for the Report Report Interface is limited to the sender functionality only and is planned for the 4.1 release (RampUp Q2 2013).

6. SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is not offering an ability to schedule or to broadcast a workbook to your users, which is a core functionality of the BEx broadcasting leveraged by the BEx Web Analyzer.

As you can see on the known limitations shown above, SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP does support already all the meta-data and functionality available using the BEx query as a data source for the workspaces. On the other hand some important features, such as the ability to broadcast a workbook, are not part of SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP yet.

Compared to BEx Web Analyzer clearly SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is offering most of the needed functionality already and clearly SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is your premium alternative for BEx Web Analyzer.

On the other hand SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is offering functionality that BEx Web Analyzer never offered you.

7. SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is supporting several OLAP data sources beyond SAP NetWeaver BW and SAP HANA. You can see the most updated list of supported data source on Service Marketplace: HTTP://SERVICE.SAP.COM/BOSAP-SUPPORT.

8. SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is able to create Analysis Views and in that way share workbooks with SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for Microsoft Office, Crystal Reports for Enterprise, and Web Intelligence.

9. SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP offers a strong PDF export without the need to deploy any extra software components.

10. SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP allows the user to re-order the characteristics by a simple drag and drop navigation.

11. SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is offering the ability to configure a Focused Navigation, which allows the user to select rows, columns, or cells in a crosstab and the selection will be reflected in the bound chart.

12. SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is offering advanced charting capabilities.

In summary, SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP does provide you with an analytical environment that allows your business user to create their own workspaces with close to parity when compared to BEx Web Analyzer.

SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP vs. SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for Microsoft Office.

Comparing now SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP with SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for Microsoft Office is slightly different than comparing it to BEx Web Analyzer. SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for Microsoft Office not only targets the business analyst as consumer, but also is trying to reach the individual contributor, and by ensuring the high usability of the product itself, SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for Microsoft Office fits this user audience very well. SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP on the other hand is more focused on the business analyst and not necessarily targeting the individual contributor. Below you can find some differences between SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP and SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for Microsoft Office.

 

13. SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP does require the SAP BusinessObjects BI platform whereas SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for Microsoft Office can be deployed in a “lean” deployment directly on top of SAP NetWeaver BW without the usage of the SAP BusinessObjects BI platform.

14. SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP does support several other 3rd party OLAP source beyond SAP NetWeaver BW and SAP HANA, whereas SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for Microsoft Office is focusing for now on SAP NetWeaver BW and SAP HANA.

15. SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for Microsoft Office is also offering integration with SAP NetWeaver BW Integrated Planning (BW-IP) and the SAP NetWeaver BW workspaces; both of these functionalities are not available in SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP.

As you can see, SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is a valid premium alternative for your existing BEx Web Analyzer workbooks. Compared to the BEx Web Analyzer and compared to SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP you learned that only a small set of features is still outstanding and based on the detailed overview you should now be able to plan upgrade to SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP as part of your overall SAP landscape.

In the next section we will focus on the hierarchical reporting capabilities of SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP.

 

 

SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is a multi-dimensional client and therefore it should not come as a surprise that the product has strong capabilities when it comes to hierarchical reporting capabilities. The following is a list of functionalities that SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is offering as part of the overall hierarchical reporting capabilities:

SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP:

1. Is able to switch between multiple hierarchies for a single characteristic without the need for using variables in the underlying BEx query.

2. Is able to select members from a hierarchy either based on a fixed set of hierarchical members or based on a level based selection.

4. Is able to quickly filter the data of hierarchies by using hierarchical levels, which can be shown or hidden from the result-set.

5. Is able to support all the different hierarchy types (time dependent hierarchies, hierarchy versions, time dependent hierarchy structures, Hierarchies with temporary joins) in SAP NetWeaver BW.

6. Is able to rank key figures along hierarchies and the ranking is done following the hierarchical structures by ranking values on each level against each other.

7. Is able to skip levels in a hierarchy by using the level based filtering.

8. Is fully supporting hierarchy and hierarchy node variables, including the combination of both.

9. Is able to leverage hierarchies as part of the crosstab and as part of the charting.

Based on the list shown above you can see that SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is offering far more hierarchical capabilities compared to Web Intelligence, Crystal Reports for Enterprise, SAP BusinessObjects Dashboards, or SAP BusinessObjects Explorer. SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP is designed for hierarchical workflows as a multi-dimensional client and therefore is able to offer such functionality to your business user.

After we uncovered so far all the capabilities of SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP in a more theoretical way, we will start creating our very first workspace in the next chapter and learn more about the basic functionality of SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, edition for OLAP in combination with SAP NetWeaver BW.