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meganhoy
Product and Topic Expert
Product and Topic Expert
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SAP Analytics Cloud brings together analytics and planning with unique integration to SAP applications and seamless access to heterogenous data sources. It helps everyone in your organization make decisions without doubt with trusted insights and integrated plans.

This blog post introduces the features of the SAP Analytics Cloud 2024.14 release available for SAP Analytics Cloud FastTrack customers. For SAP Analytics Cloud Quarterly Release Cycle (QRC) customers, this release and its features will be available as part of the QRC Q3 2024 release. View the QRC release schedule here.

 

System Administration and Technical Requirements

 

Although not required, you may upgrade to the latest SAP Analytics Cloud agent version 1.0.409 to take advantage of all data acquisition types.

The agent’s minimum version remains at 1.0.75, with the following exceptions:

  • Version 1.0.99 for SAP ERP/SQL Database
  • Version 1.0.365 for SAP universe (UNX). The SAP Analytics Cloud agent requires additional setup steps, for more details see SAP Note 3262098
  • Version 1.0.353 for SAP Business Warehouse (BW)
  • Version 1.0.235 for SAP HANA View
  • Version 1.0.248 for File Server

For more information, see System Requirements and Technical Prerequisites.

Regarding supported features and required updates for the integration of SAP BW with SAP Analytics Cloud, refer to SAP Note 2541557 for further details.

Regarding supported features and required updates for live universe access through SAP BusinessObjects Live Data Connect with SAP Analytics Cloud, refer to SAP Note 2771921 for further details.

Please download the latest version of the Simple Deployment Kit from Software Center.

Note: To avoid downloading older versions and potentially exposing users to a vulnerable bundling of the Cloud Connector with SAPJVM, or Apache Tomcat, only the three latest versions of the kits are available to download.

For Cloud agent version change management details, refer to SAP Note 3264839.

 

Release Highlights

 

Data Exploration

 

Live SAP BW - Report-Report Interface (RRI)

As a user of data analyzer you can now work with the report-to-report interface (RRI) in SAP BW live connections to jump from the executed query (sender) to another report (receiver) as maintained in the RRI back-end transaction (RSBBS). The following report types are supported: SAP BW Query, Transaction, Web Address, ABABP Report. The report-to-report interface opens the receiver report of type SAP BW Query in data analyzer. (SAP Road Map Explorer)

Note: Please consider the SAP BW version dependencies of SAP Analytics Cloud features when using the live connection. For more details on feature support, see SAP Note 2715030.

RRI.jpg

 

Unit positions for SAP HANA based models       

When working with SAP HANA based models in data analyzer, you can display the unit, currency, and scale for measures/accounts in the row, header, or value cell. As a data analyzer user, you can use this selection and store this setting in an insight.

Note: Please consider the SAP HANA EPM MDS version dependency using the live connection, as outlined in SAP Note 2444261.

 

Data Analyzer Chart Enhancements

For charts in data analyzer several user experience enhancements have been made and a few known issues have been addressed.

  • Improved responsiveness of charts:
  • moved data labels out of the chart area
  • adjusted scroll bars

 

Support SAP Datasphere folders in Select Model dialog

When opening an SAP Datasphere connection in the Select Model dialog in data analyzer for starting a new analysis, you can now sort the SAP Datasphere spaces by name, description, and owner.

In addition, in the Select Model dialog, you can now see folders within the spaces and navigate them.

 

Calculations Dialog: Conversion Functions

As a user of the calculation editor in data analyzer you can now use the following conversion functions when creating formulas:

  • DECFLOAT
  • DOUBLE
  • FLOAT
  • INT
  • FLOOR
 
Calculation Editor Enhancements

The calculation editor has been enhanced through tokenization, to improve clarity and user-friendliness. Each object  dimensions, dimension properties, dimension hierarchies or measures) can now be removed as a token.

 

Data Modeling

 

Standard Unit Conversion

It is now possible to create a conversion measure of type Unit on models that contain measures. A unit conversion measure can convert source values from the base measure to the specified target units, that belong to the same unit group, using values from the Standard Unit Conversion table.

You can also create additional unit conversion measures, add calculated measures based on the conversion, or work with the converted values in your stories and analytics applications. The Standard Unit Conversion table is available for reference from the Conversions tab of the Modeler. (SAP Road Map Explorer)

To learn more, check out this blog post by @AmandaJMurphy.

UnitConversion.jpg

Enterprise Planning

 

Data actions and multi actions - support for account or measure input control parameters

When setting up starters for data actions or multi actions, you can now use measures and accounts as input controls. (SAP Road Map Explorer)

 

Plan Entry – data file upload (end-user)  

Users can now directly upload data from a local Excel or CSV file. An upload job must be created in the data management workspace and then referenced in a Starter widget within the story. (SAP Road Map Explorer)

User upload.jpg

 

Planning Process Management – administrator option to group calendar notifications

Administrators can now group the calendar notification emails into a summary email and send them daily at a specific time to all users. Note that reminder emails and summary emails from bulk editing are excluded from this grouping and are sent separately. (SAP Road Map Explorer)

 

Value Driver Tree - styling flexibility for cascading style sheets

Uses can now change all colors of values drive tree widgets with story theming and cascading style sheets (CSS). (SAP Road Map Explorer)

 

Support Unit Conversion consumption in Commenting

In tables, you can now add data point comments to data cells sourced from unit conversion measures. In comments, the unit will also be displayed for Original Value of data cells.

 

Microsoft Office Integration

 

Add-in for Microsoft PowerPoint

 

Integration with Microsoft PowerPoint

This is the initial release of the SAP Analytics Cloud, add-in for Microsoft PowerPoint. The add-in is a fully web-based offering enabling you to embed SAP Analytics Cloud widgets in your PowerPoint presentations. You can refresh the widget's data at any time to bring accurate and trusted data into your presentations without the need to copy/paste the information from your SAP Analytics Cloud system again. For more information about the add-in, please check the SAP Help Portal at SAP Analytics Cloud, add-in for Microsoft PowerPoint. (SAP Road Map Explorer)

PPT.png

 

Mobile Analytics

 

Biometric support in Android mobile  

Users can now use TouchID to login to the SAP Analytics Cloud Android mobile app. (SAP Road Map Explorer)

 

Story Design

 

New support in lite viewer  

The lite viewer now supports: (SAP Road Map Explorer)

  • Choropleth layer in geo maps
  • Stories in view mode.
  • Stories in presentation mode with:
    • the presentation structure configured
    • a collapsed navigation panel
    • a hidden filter or navigation button in the toolbar

 

Table: support of advanced filter with unbooked mode

In the optimized story experience, you can now hide unbooked members that are not needed when you create table layouts with advanced filters, which is especially important for ad-hoc planning. (SAP Road Map Explorer)

 

Descriptions for story calculations

Calculation descriptions can now contain dynamic text, which will update the name of the calculation displayed in story widgets, based on the selected input values. (SAP Road Map Explorer)

 

Vertical filter panel – reordering of page filters

In the optimized story experience, story designers can now change the order of page filters in the filter panel settings, in the same way that story filters can be ordered. The defined order is applied to the vertical filter panel which only has a page filters section, in view and edit mode, and will be saved with the story. (SAP Road Map Explorer)

Re-arrange page filters in the vertical filter panel.png

 

Story Extensibility

 

Cross-page pop-up widget

As a story developer in the optimized story experience, you can now create a story popup, which can be used by any page in the story. You can also convert an existing page popup to story popup. (SAP Road Map Explorer)

 

Save story with scripts

Story developers can now select Enable designers to edit and save story with scripts in Story Details, so that story designers can edit and save the story with scripts instead of having a read-only view. The scripts remain hidden to them, and they are warned when deleting items that contain or are referenced in scripts. (SAP Road Map Explorer)

 

Section export printing

Section widgets are now supported for PDF or PPTX export in the optimized story experience. As a story developer, you can include sections when configuring the Export to PDF or Export to PPTX technical object so that they can be exported via the script APIs as well.

 

Composite Enhancement: Expose Widget Property as Composite Property Sheet

As a composite creator, you can define an interface property to let story designers customize it based on the story context. You can define either a Boolean property for the view time visibility of specific widgets, or a String property for text in specific widget elements in your composite.

As a story designer in the optimized story experience, you can therefore modify the property defined and exposed by the composite creator, such as a chart title, table’s hyperlink URL, or button’s view time visibility within the composite in your story.

 

User Collaboration

 

Show last comment in comment widget 

In stories, on the comment widget you can now choose to view the last added comment. (SAP Road Map Explorer)

save last comment.png

 

Story comment configuration

A toggle is now available to enable or disable comments within a story. By disabling story comments, users will not be able to add or view comments. However, they can still work on the datapoint and dimension comments. (SAP Road Map Explorer)

disable comment.png

 

Schedule optimized story experience in PowerPoint format  

Story publications can now be scheduled in PowerPoint (.pptx) format. (SAP Road Map Explorer)

powerpoint format schedule.png

 

Schedule and deliver story content within the email body

Using Email Delivery Options, you can now choose among the following options to publish your story:

  • Attachment
  • Preview Inline
  • Attachment and Preview Inline 

If you select Preview Inline the Story content would be delivered in the email body.

Schedule and deliver Story content within the email body.png

 

This blog post only provides a high-level overview of the latest features and enhancements of SAP Analytics Cloud. You can find more details on these features in your In-App Help Guide for FastTrack customers and see this SAP Knowledge Base Article if you’d like to learn more about FastTrack and Quarterly Release Cycle releases. 

If you have any questions regarding the content in this blog post, you can comment below. If you have product specific or technical questions, post a question to our SAP Analytics Cloud Questions & Answers forum. Visit our SAP Analytics Cloud Community pages to find more product information, best practices, and more. And check out our SAP Road Map Explorer to see more upcoming features of SAP Analytics Cloud.

 

 

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