Upgrading to EPM 11.2 or Migrating to EPM Cloud?

With the latest release of Oracle Hyperion 11.2 and the end of Premier Support for Hyperion 11.1.2.4 in December 2021, companies need to make the decision between upgrading to EPM 11.2 or migrating to EPM Cloud.

This blog will provide some key factors to consider in your decision between Oracle EPM Cloud vs Hyperion On-Premise upgrade.

The EPM 11.2 Release Announcement

Last year at Oracle OpenWorld 2019, Al Marciante, Sr. Director, Product Management at Oracle, presented the plans for Hyperion Enterprise Performance Management(EPM) On-Premises Applications.

As announced for other applications, like Oracle EBS, Oracle introduced the “Continuous Innovation” release model for Hyperion EPM 11.2, making Hyperion part of Oracle’s Applications Unlimited. Applications Unlimited is Oracle’s commitment to continuous innovation while also providing a commitment to offering Oracle Premier Support through at least 2030.

Main Considerations about Upgrading to EPM 11.2 vs Migrating to EPM Cloud

Considering that Oracle will continue to invest in Hyperion on-premise, companies should really ponder based on their current environment and business goals, the following aspects:

• Data Security
  • Customers cannot manage/control data stored with Oracle for Cloud applications
  • If your company’s policies do not allow having your financial data stored on vendor’s servers, you need to stay on-premise
  • Cost/Benefit Ratio in a Long-term Perspective
    • On-premise involves a higher initial investment to purchase software licenses, hardware, installation, and maintenance
    • Cloud applications represent a lower initial investment. However, the fee with Oracle cloud products is per month per user. For smaller organizations with few users, this could represent some savings. But large organizations with many users will need to crunch the numbers to see if they’re saving money
      • User Adoption
        • If many users are currently using on-premise applications with complex user-based reports like Smart view, 3^rd party applications to generate customized reports, etc., it may be a big change for users to get all their requests done using cloud applications. Decision-makers must think if it is a challenge for users to adopt a new interface and way of working if choosing cloud. Cloud may not be similar in functionalities for the end-user compared to on-premise but there are very useful options for end-users to make their functions flexible using cloud
      • Frequent Updates
        • Oracle performs monthly product updates to cloud applications to add new features and fix any defects automatically. In many ways, this is a major benefit.  However, for some companies, this can be a negative, as the updates happen on short notice and it could change
          features and functions just when you’re getting used to them

      Advantages of Upgrading to EPM 11.2

      • Premier support at least till 2031, may extend
      • Uplift to FMW 12g release
      • Streamlines and simplifies infrastructure and architecture for the future
      • Replace Foundation services with a simpler RDBMS repository
      • Content migration for FR/Workspace to RDBMS repository
      • 3rd party certifications
        • Server OS: Windows 2019, Windows Server 2016 (For 11.2.1)
        • Client OS: Windows 10, Windows Server 2019, Windows Server 2016
        • RDBMS: Oracle 11.2.0.4+, Oracle 12.1.0.1+, Oracle 12.2.0.1, +Oracle 12.2, SQL Server 2016
        • JDK 1.8
        • Browser:
          • 11.2: Internet Explorer 11.x, Firefox ESR
        • 11.2.1: Internet Explorer 11.x, Firefox ESR, Google Chrome 80+, Microsoft Edge 80+
        • Edge, Chrome, Firefox
      • Performance improvements: SV, DB batch processing, etc.
      • Flash Player: Calculation Manager no longer requires Adobe Flash
      • Enhancements delivered through a series of feature bearing PSUs with a simple update process

      Should you be Upgrading to EPM 11.2?

      As always, the decision to choose one instead of another comes down to your specific situation. ITC can help you sort this out. We provide unbiased advice to define the best roadmap for you, taking into account your current business processes, IT footprint, and areas of opportunity for innovation.

      Request our assessment below and take your technology roadmap at your own pace.

      FAQ Around Upgrading to EPM 11.2?

      Q: What’s new with EPM 11.2: updates to Oracle EPM solution?

      Oracle introduced several new features to the EPM 11.2 release, with many more to come in the future but at the same time discontinued some of the features available in previous versions. For a rundown on the main updates, check our infographic here.

      Q: How’s the upgrading EPM 11.2 process?

      • “Out of Place” Migration
      • High-Level Flow
        • Install 11.2 on new hardware with the supported OS, prereqs
        • Use LCM from 11.1.2.4 to migrate application(s), artifact(s), etc to 11.2
        • A similar process to previous releases
      • Please note, LCMs from 11.1.2.4 only are supported

      Q: When was the Oracle EPM 11.2 Release announced?

      Oracle announced that the release of EPM 11.2 would come, back in Oracle OOW19. You can access the presentation here.