Much has already been said and written about SAP BusinessObjects 4.3, and we’ve now helped quite a few customers migrate to SAP BusinessObjects 4.3. In this blog post, we’ll take a look at the most important new features and share some tips on the migration. We’ll also explore how SAP BO 4.3 can be used in conjunction with Power BI.
The Future of SAP BO
There was a time when the future of SAP BusinessObjects was unclear, but it was announced some time ago that, following SAP BusinessObjects 4.3, a new version will be released in 2025, which will then be supported for at least 7 years. The latest information on this can be found in the SAP Analytics Business Intelligence Statement of Direction.
Reasons to Switch to SAP BO 4.3
There may be several reasons to upgrade to SAP BI 4.3. In addition to the new features—some of which are discussed in more detail in the following section—the following reasons are often cited as motivations for deciding to upgrade:
- End of Support for SAP BO 4.2 (Priority 1 support patches available through the end of 2023; the last service pack was released in 2022).
- End of (mainstream) support for the operating system, such as Windows 2012 and 2016.
- End of Support for databases in use. When performing a (scheduled) database upgrade, it’s possible that an outdated version of BusinessObjects will not support it.
- Security reasons. In most setups, SAP BusinessObjects uses Tomcat as its web server, which is included with the installation files. Tomcat may contain vulnerabilities, so it is recommended to regularly this Check the Tomcat site and assess the impact. Not all Tomcat security issues affect the BusinessObjects environment. Therefore, always check the SAP note 2498770.
New Features in SAP BI 4.3
The most notable new feature of SAP BI 4.3 is the Fiori Launchpad. This new interface for viewing reports was already available in the latest versions of BO 4.2, but in version 4.3 it has been further refined, and this new interface is now also used in report development. Other new features worth mentioning include:
Data Mode (Data Preview)
This is similar to the Rich Client in version 4.2, where you could view query results in their raw form. This makes it easier to check whether your query is returning the desired results, so you don’t have to start building right away without being sure your query is correct. This “Data Mode” also includes new features (starting with 4.3 SP3), such as a graphical representation of the data sources showing their origin and the number of records, which is useful for getting an overview when using multiple data sources in your report. The “Facet View,” as shown below, also provides additional analysis options for query results. In version 4.3 SP4, you can even create virtual cubes in “Data Mode.” This allows you to combine data sources from different universes (or other sources) by joining them based on the dimensions you specify. The ability to specify the join type (Full, Inner, Right, Left) makes this feature highly flexible. You can also combine new virtual cubes with each other in this way. This ultimately allows you to create a dataset that you can use to generate your reports, or you can make this dataset (as OData) available to others so they can build reports based on it. The old method of linking data sources in your report via “Merge Dimensions” is still available, but in more complex situations, this can be a great way to create a superset.
OData APIs
With OData APIs (OData Web Service), you can build a WebI report on top of another WebI report. That other WebI report can be a virtual cube, as described above, or it can be a data provider from another WebI report; however, it’s also possible to use a table from a WebI report as input for a new WebI report. This can be useful if the table contains variables that you want to reuse. Making OData APIs available can be helpful for users who want to build reports but find the process of creating a good dataset challenging.
Microsoft Drive
Starting with 4.3 SP3, scheduling to Microsoft OneDrive or SharePoint is possible. More and more companies are using OneDrive and SharePoint, and some are even phasing out their file servers entirely. A one-time configuration in the Central Management Console is required to get this working. For more details on new features, you can also check out SAP’s blog series. Details on the new features in 4.3 SP3 can be found here and 4.3 SP4 can be found here.
Tips & Tricks for Upgrading to SAP BO 4.3
Upgrading to SAP BO 4.3 can be quite complex, especially if new servers are being deployed and everything needs to be reconfigured. A good place to start is the Product Availability Matrix (PAM) This document lists, for each SAP BO service pack, all the product versions that are compatible with it. These include operating systems, cloud platforms (e.g., Azure), and database types and versions. Another important document to review in preparation is the Sizing Guide. This allows you to better determine the “sizing” requirements for the BO server or whether clustering might be necessary. In general, if the performance of the current BO 4.2 environment is good, this “sizing” can also be carried over to version 4.3. Finally, check whether all BO components you’re using in the current version are still available in version 4.3 (SAP Note 2801797). Below are a few more specific tips for upgrading to SAP BI 4.3
- SAP BI 4.3 requires new license keys. Try to download them from the SAP website well in advance of the launch. It does happen that the correct credentials are no longer available and must be requested again from SAP.
- Client tools such as the Information Design Tool are now 64-bit, so 64-bit database drivers are now required as well.
- The service account under which BO runs in the old version can be reused. This prevents any potential issues with the various permissions associated with that account.
- To configure Windows Active Directory (AD) and Single Sign-On (SSO), follow the SAP note 2629070 And these days, it’s no longer necessary to include the domain server(s) in the krb5.ini file, which in turn reduces future maintenance. See also the last paragraph of the SAP note 1245178.
- It is increasingly becoming best practice to configure firewalls between servers. Define these ports in the CMC under “Servers” and reserve ports 6400 through 6430 for this purpose. Please note that ports 6400, 6405, and 6410 are already in use by default by BO. Ports 80 (HTTP) and 443 (HTTPS) can be used for the web server.
- Configuring SSL (HTTPS) for Tomcat is also a request that is becoming increasingly common. To do this, you will need new certificates generated based on the intranet domain and server name (or DNS). See also the SAP note 1648573 And for redirecting HTTP traffic to HTTPS, see the SAP note 1730321.
- There are several ways to migrate content (users, permissions, reports, universes, etc.). You can use the promotion management wizard that is installed on the BO server (pay special attention to memory settings and disk space), use the LCM command-line tool, or use promotion management in the CMC. My personal preference is the latter, because it allows me to do it more easily in steps and gives me more control. Be sure to temporarily disable auditing in both the old and new versions via the CMC—this makes a significant difference in performance.
- When transferring schedules and publications, it is helpful to stop the job server and create a temporary one that contains only the (sub)services for promotion management. This prevents schedules from starting to run immediately after they have been transferred.
- Starting with version 4.3 (and 4.2 SP9), a whitelist is required when scheduling reports to a file share; if this whitelist does not exist or the location in question is not included in the whitelist, the schedule will return an error message. See also the SAP note 3249645.
- In version 4.3, a few permissions differ from those in version 4.2, which may cause issues for you, especially if you’re using Custom Access Levels. For example, “Export report data to Excel, PDF, TXT” has been combined into a new permission called “Export the report’s data” and must be assigned to the relevant Custom Access Level; otherwise, these permissions will no longer function. The same applies to the permission “Log on to the new Fiorified BI Launchpad”—if this permission is not included in the Custom Access Level, users will no longer be able to log in to version 4.3. See also SAP notes 3028997 and 2627502.
Combi with Power BI
Power BI is a tool that’s being used more and more often, and we also help many customers set up their Power BI architecture. The best practice for a Power BI architecture is to work with Power BI datasets (semantic model) in combination with a Power BI Premium (per-user) license. However, if you’re looking for a “lightweight” solution to integrate Power BI with data from SAP BusinessObjects, the new features in BO 4.3 offer a solution. The goal is to automatically update the most current data from BusinessObjects in the Power BI service (powerbi.com). This can be done by using the OData feature in version 4.3, as described above. The traditional method of scheduling updates to a file server in Excel format is also possible, as long as it produces a readable, tabular format. For both methods, however, the OData URL and/or the file server location must be defined in the on-premises data gateway. The new option to schedule a job to Microsoft Drive has the advantage of not requiring a gateway, since Power BI handles this using cloud credentials. However, at a minimum, Power BI Pro is always required, though it’s often already available as part of Microsoft 365 E5. See the image below for the options to reuse BO data in a Power BI solution.
Conclusion
By upgrading to SAP BI 4.3, you’ll benefit from the latest features and connectivity, and you’ll once again be assured of support. After 4.3, you can also look forward to a new version with on-premises deployment options. If you’re considering a full transition to Power BI, we can assist you with that as well.
