Oracle Essbase Metadata Extract to XML

Keeping in-tune with my appreciation for Oracle Hyperion Essbase and all that it can do for analytics, I had to showcase one of the nice new integration points for the latest 11.1.2 release.  Of course, the 11.1.2 release has been out since last year.  I actually wrote this article/tutorial last year.  I had originally submitted this as an article to Oracle Magazine but it was rejected for one or more reasons.  Indeed a bummer I know.  I guess I’ll just have to keep writing some better stuff if I hope to actually get an article published there. So, cross your fingers or put a good word in for me with the editor of Oracle Mag  (Mark, tell them to make some space for me).

Either way this is good news for readers or ArtOfBI.com as you get the exclusive. : )

Below is just a snippet from the full article which can be downloaded via the links at the end of this post.

Extract

Traditionally, the way that developers and end-users alike view the Essbase database metadata has been through the Essbase Administration Services Console’s graphical interface. But best practice for security purposes, seeks to limit access to that interface.  With the 11.1.2 release of Oracle Essbase developers now have the ability to programmatically export all or specific segments of the Essbase database outline to XML.  Options to disseminate and utilize the extrapolated metadata outside of the confines of Essbase are now possible.

In this article, we explain how the new feature works by exploring the MaxL export outline scripting option.  In addition, we utilize some basic Extensible Stylesheet Language (XSL) code to transform the XML metadata output into a legible report ready to be consumed by end-users.