Oracle Analytics Desktop Known Issues

This chapter lists and describes known issues.

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Microsoft Internet Explorer Is No Longer Supported

If you use Internet Explorer 11, then you'll experience significant performance issues.

Oracle no longer supports Internet Explorer and strongly recommends that you use a modern browser. Refer to the Microsoft Support website for information about the latest Microsoft browsers.

General Issues and Workarounds

Some features and functions don’t work as expected.

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Data Flow Preview Queries Run Against Cached Data

Data flow preview queries (that is, the data that you see in the Data Preview pane in the Data Flow designer) run from the data cache.

To work around this issue, refresh your datasets to refresh preview queries. See Reload a Dataset's Data.

Import DVA File from a Recent Update to an Older Update Might Fail

When you import a DVA file from a newer update into an older update of Oracle Analytics, it won't always work with the older version of the product.

There is no workaround for this issue.

Visualization Toolbar and Tooltip Aren't Accessible

If you're using the Freeform canvas layout, and you've overlaid visualizations on top of one another and configured the Visibility Parameter to conditionally show and hide them, the visualization toolbar and tooltip are only accessible for the topmost visualization.

In other words, in Preview mode (and Viewer mode for the end user), when the topmost visualization is hidden and one underneath is displayed instead, no toolbar or tooltip displays when you hover over the visible visualization.

This issue has no workaround but will be fixed in a future update.

Use As Filter Visualization Selections Aren't Always Persisted When You Reopen a Workbook

When you open a workbook in Viewer mode and make selections in a Use as Filter visualization, you may find that the next time you open the workbook, those selections are no longer applied to every visualization on the canvas.

This can happen when you've made selections for dashboard filters or other visualization filters first, and then made selections in the Use as Filter visualization.

To work around this issue and make sure your selections are completely persisted, make your selections in the Use as Filter visualization first, before you make any other filter selections for the workbook.

This issue and workaround are only relevant when the workbook's personalization options are turned on to persist filter selections.

Hidden Columns Are Included in CSV Exports

When you export a visualization that includes hidden columns, the hidden columns are included in export files using the CSV format.

Hidden columns aren't included in any other exported file formats.

If you don't want hidden columns included in an export, use an export file format other than CSV.

List of Values Not Shown When Binding a Parameter to the Visibility Parameter Property

When you create a parameter using either Column or Logical SQL Query as the available values, and then immediately bind it to the Visibility Parameter property for a visualization, the list of values for the parameter is empty in the Visibility Parameter property settings.

To work around this issue, after you create the parameter, add it to the workbook filter bar before you bind it to the Visibility Parameter property. Then you can open the Visibility Parameter property settings and see the list of values for the parameter.

Known Issues with Selection Steps in Workbooks

There are some known issues when using selection steps in workbooks.

Unexpected Results for Selection Steps Based on Parent-Child Hierarchies

When you apply a selection step to a visualization using a parent-child hierarchy, the specified members are displayed in the visualization in alphabetical order rather than hierarchical order. This means that the lower members aren't indented and it might be difficult to understand the resulting visualization.

For example, suppose you have a table visualization using a parent-child hierarchy called Sales Rep Hierarchy to show revenue by sales representative. Suppose you add a selection step using the action Keep Only and the operator + Children. The table visualization, Revenue by Sales Rep, displays the member and its children in alphabetical order, without indentation. In this example, this means that the member is at the end of the table, underneath the children, instead of above as might be expected.

Description of selection_steps_pchierarchy_ex_members_children.png follows
Description of the illustration selection_steps_pchierarchy_ex_members_children.png

To properly see the hierarchical relationship between members, you can expand the member drop-down list in the Selection Steps dialog or expand the selected member in the visualization.

Using Drill to Action Can Affect Outcome of Selection Step

If you use selection steps and perform a Drill to action on a visualization, the Drill to action can affect the outcome of a selection step in unexpected ways.

For example, suppose you have a table visualization using a level hierarchy called Time Hierarchy to show revenue by year. Suppose you have a selection step to start with the year 2010 and remove the first quarter, 2010 Q1.

Description of selection_steps_ki_drillto_before.png follows
Description of the illustration selection_steps_ki_drillto_before.png

If you then perform a Drill to action on the year, the first quarter, 2010 Q1, is displayed again in the visualization, despite the selection step having removed it prior. This is because the Drill to action replaces the hierarchy with a single level from the hierarchy, and the selection step can only act on the hierarchy as a whole, not a single level.

Description of selection_steps_ki_drillto_after.png follows
Description of the illustration selection_steps_ki_drillto_after.png

Explain Not Returning Segments and Anomalies Insights

When you use Explain on MacOS to get insights on a column, Oracle Analytics fails to get segments and anomalies insights and presents this error message: "Error occurred when requesting data, More Details".

Oracle Analytics provides no further information about this error. This issue has no workaround.

Hidden Workbook Header Causes Navigation Issue in Preview

If you're working in Present, set the Header property to Off in the Workbook tab, and then preview the workbook, there is no way to navigate back to the workbook in Present.

You can do either of the following to workaround this issue:

  • Close and reopen Oracle Analytics Desktop.

    Any unsaved changes are lost when you close and reopen Oracle Analytics Desktop.

  • Go to the Oracle Analytics Desktop header, click Page Menu and then select Customize Home Page. In Customize, click Open Editors in New Tabs in and then click Save.

    Setting this option ensures that the workbook opens in a new window that you can close if there is no header bar in preview mode.

Known Issues with Oracle Essbase Database Connections and Data Sources

The Oracle Essbase database connection type and Oracle Essbase data sources have a number of known issues.

  • Searching for a specific column within an Oracle Essbase data source displays a "No Matches Found" message.

  • The Advanced Analytics functions don't work for Oracle Essbase data sources.

  • If you create an Oracle Essbase connection and provide invalid login information, you'll see this incorrect error message: "Failed to save the connection. JDS - Invalid syntax." The error message should state "Failed to save the connection due to an invalid user name and password.”

  • When creating an Oracle Essbase connection, you can choose the Require users to enter their own username and password authentication option, but Oracle Analytics Desktop doesn’t activate this behavior and instead authenticates all users with the user name and password that you specified.

  • Time-based columns are sometimes not imported correctly. A column displaying a date in text can’t be converted to a column of date data type because of format mismatch.

  • Oracle Essbase data sources don’t work in data flows.

  • When working in a workbook, you can’t use match columns to join an Oracle Essbase data source to any other data source included in the workbook.

  • When you import an Oracle Essbase data source, you can’t prepare the data, and you can’t edit the data after import. For example, you can't change a column’s data type or aggregation.

Null Values in XLSX File Set to String

If you're adding an XLSX file as a data source and if the spreadsheet’s null values are expressed as hyphens, then Oracle Analytics treats the null values as strings irrespective of the other values in the column.

To work around this issue, remove the hyphens from the column and try to import the XLSX file again.

Query Results for Columns of String Values Might Differ

You might notice that queries for columns of type String return differing results. This situation can occur if String columns are matched with columns in the subject areas of the semantic model that have CHAR data types. Trailing spaces are treated differently between VARCHAR and CHAR data types in many SQL functions. This issue has no workaround.

Custom Formats in Analyses Not Available

In Oracle Analytics Desktop, if you open an analysis that contains a custom format that was created in the Analysis Editor, you see an error message. You might've applied a custom format in the Analysis Editor using the Custom Numeric Format option on the Data Format tab in the Column Properties dialog.

To work around this issue, edit the analysis in the Analysis Editor and remove the custom formatting, or remove the item in the analysis that contains the custom format. Then open the analysis again.

Error Adding Table With Mixed-Case Name or Column Names to a Dataset

Oracle Analytics displays the "Create Dataset Table Failed" error message when you add a database table with a name that uses mixed-case or a table that contains column names with mixed-case to a dataset.

Examples of mixed-case names include Sales, Products, Cust_ID, or Quantity_Sold.

To work around this issue, see Connect to Data With Upper, Lower, or Mixed-case Characters.

An alternative method to work around this issue is to create a dataset and in the Dataset editor, go to the Connections pane in the Data Panel, and drag and drop the Manual Query option to the Join Diagram. Write the SQL statement, making sure to:
  • Double quote all table and column name identifiers that use mixed case.
  • Alias the mixed case table column name identifiers with uppercase.

For example: select "EfG_Field" as EFG_FIELD, "HiJ_Field" as HIJ_FIELD from "AbCd"

See Add a Table to a Dataset Using a SQL Statement.

Connectivity to Oracle Autonomous Database Using Wallet-Less (TLS) Connections Not Supported

If you connect to an Oracle Autonomous Database instance using TLS wallet-less connectivity, you can't connect to the data source using Oracle Analytics Desktop.

The "invalid connection credentials" error message is displayed if the connection string is invalid.

To work around this issue, use Oracle Analytics Cloud to connect to your database.

Installation and Configuration Issues and Workarounds

Sometimes there are issues with the installation and configuration. This section contains information about known installation and configuration issues and how you can resolve them.

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Collect Diagnostics Dialog Displayed During Upgrade

When you upgrade Oracle Analytics Desktop and depending on the resources of your computer, you might find that the upgrade takes several minutes. If you see the Collect Diagnostics dialog, click Dismiss, to allow the upgrade process to complete.

Reinstallation of Machine Learning After Upgrade

When you upgrade, you must reinstall Machine Learning to use Oracle Advanced Analytics functions in your workbooks.

You must install Machine Learning using the installer provided with Oracle Analytics Desktop. This installation enables Machine Learning for the corresponding Oracle Analytics Desktop installation, only. No other installation of Machine Learning will work. See Oracle Analytics Desktop Installation FAQs.

Connection to Oracle Business Intelligence Server Fails Without Trusted Certificate Authority

If you're trying to create a connection to an Oracle Business Intelligence Server which is SSL-enabled but doesn't have a certificate signed by a trusted certificate authority, then your connection fails.

To resolve this issue, your system administrator must add or renew a certificate that is signed by a trusted certificate authority on the server.