Understanding LROs

You can link various kinds of data with any cell in an Essbase database, using a linked reporting object (LRO). This ability is similar to attaching a file to e-mail. An LRO provides improved support for planning and reporting applications and can enhance your data analysis capabilities.

LROs are objects (alternatively called artifacts) that you associate with specific data cells in an Essbase database. Users create linked objects through Spreadsheet Add-in by selecting a data cell and choosing a menu item. You can link an unlimited number of objects to a cell. The objects are stored on the Essbase Server, where they are available to any user with the appropriate access permissions. Users retrieve and edit the objects through the Spreadsheet Add-in Linked Objects Browser feature, which enables them to view objects linked to the selected cell. For the maximum sizes of the types of linked objects described in Table 28, see Limits.

Table 28. Types of Linked Objects

Object Type

Description

Cell note

A text annotation

File

An external file, such as a Microsoft Word document, an Excel spreadsheet, a scanned image, an audio clip, or an HTML file (for example, mypage.htm).

URL

For example:

http://www.oracle.com
ftp://ftp.oracle.com

Linked partition

A set of data cells that you can link to in another Essbase database.

For example, a sales manager may attach cell notes to recently updated budget items. A finance manager may link a spreadsheet containing supporting data for this quarter’s results. A product manager may link bitmap images of new products. A sales manager may link the URL of a company’s Web site to quickly access the information on the Web site.