Release Announcement: TimeXtender Version 6926.1

We’ve just released a fresh update to the TimeXtender Holistic Data Suite!

The 6926.1 release introduces powerful enhancements to help your data teams streamline workflows, accelerate project deployment, and scale with greater flexibility.

This update includes Meta Collection, Instance Blueprints, a more robust Migration Tool, and expanded TimeXtender Enhanced Data Source Providers. Each of these improvements is designed to make your data integration and orchestration more efficient, adaptable, and scalable.

Let’s take a closer look at how these features can help you optimize your data workflows.

Meta Collection: Turn Metadata into Actionable Insights

Your data workflows generate a wealth of metadata. Now you can analyze this metadata for deeper insights.

With Meta Collection, TimeXtender automatically exports logs and execution statistics from selected instances to a centralized data lake, enabling advanced analytics, performance tuning, and troubleshooting, all within TimeXtender.

What’s in it for you?

• Comprehensive Performance Analysis: By collecting detailed execution statistics, Meta Collection allows you to identify inefficiencies and optimize data processing workflows, ensuring optimal system performance.​

  Centralized Metadata Access: Aggregating logs and metadata from multiple instances into a single data lake provides a unified view, simplifying monitoring and enhancing troubleshooting efficiency.​

  Seamless Integration with Existing Tools: The ability to import collected metadata back into TimeXtender ensures compatibility with your current analytics and reporting tools, facilitating a smoother workflow.

​TimeXtender's Unified Metadata Framework offers a holistic, metadata-driven approach that surpasses manual methods and traditional tools, allowing for seamless integration, automation, and a more efficient data integration process. The newly introduced Meta Collection feature enhances this framework by exporting logs and execution statistics from selected instances to a centralized data lake, enabling advanced analytics, performance tuning, and troubleshooting within the TimeXtender platform.

Implementation Details:

Once enabled, Meta Collection exports 24 hours' worth of metadata and logs from the instances you select to a data lake hosted by TimeXtender. This export occurs once a day. Using a regular TimeXtender data source, configured with a single click, you can import this data back into TimeXtender for analysis, just like any other data source.

Read more about Meta Collection in our new Knowledge Base article: Access instance metadata with meta collection

Note: These capabilities are currently in Public Preview as we continue to refine and expand the feature set based on user feedback.

Instance Blueprints: Accelerate Deployment with Reusable Templates

Eliminate repetitive setup and standardize deployments across your organization with Instance Blueprints.

This feature allows teams to create, share, and deploy pre-configured TimeXtender instances, whether you’re working within an enterprise or delivering customer projects.

What this means for you:

• Accelerated Deployment: By utilizing reusable templates, teams can significantly reduce project timelines, deploying proven configurations without starting from scratch.​

  Standardization: Instance Blueprints ensure that standardized architectures are maintained across teams, clients, and departments, promoting uniformity and reducing errors.​

  Empowerment of Team Members: Even less experienced team members can confidently implement complex setups using tested blueprints, allowing senior staff to focus on more strategic tasks.

Read more about Instance Blueprints in our new Knowledge Base article: Instance blueprints - sharing instances between partners and customers

Note: These capabilities are currently in Public Preview as we continue to refine and expand the feature set based on user feedback.

Additional Power-Ups for Your Data Toolkit

Beyond the headline features, this release introduces a range of enhancements designed to increase automation, improve efficiency, and streamline data management. These updates provide more flexibility, better tracking, and expanded integration options to help organizations optimize their data workflows.

Enhanced Flexibility

We've expanded several existing features to give you more control over your data operations:

• Data Selection in Deliver Instances: Deliver instances now support instance variables and usage conditions, allowing users to apply data selection rules more dynamically. This makes it possible to use the same Deliver instance with different datasets across multiple departments or business units, eliminating the need for duplicate configurations (this functionality was already available in the Prepare instance but is now extended to Deliver instances).

• Timestamp Tracking in Ingest: A DW_Timestamp column can now be added to tables in the Ingest instance, allowing teams to track exactly when data was copied from its source. This feature is supported when using Azure Data Lake Storage (ADLS), Fabric, or SQL as storage for Ingest instances. This enhancement strengthens data governance, auditing, and lineage tracking.

• Azure Databricks Package Integration: Databricks jobs can now be executed directly from TimeXtender Orchestration, enabling seamless integration with Azure Databricks for advanced data processing and analytics.

Moving to the Cloud Just Got Easier

Our improved Migration Tool makes upgrading from on-prem TimeXtender 20.10 to TimeXtender Data Integration (TDI) smoother and more efficient:

• Incremental Migration Support: Organizations can now migrate in stages, moving specific data warehouses or semantic models first, allowing for a controlled and phased transition to the cloud.

• Automated Data Source Mapping: The migration process preserves existing connection settings and credentials, reducing the complexity of transitioning between environments and ensuring minimal manual reconfiguration.

• Compatibility Changes for Ingest Service and Data Sources: In this release, TimeXtender has redesigned its data source architecture to enable TDI TimeXtender Providers in both V20 and Classic. Because of this change, the Ingest service and data sources must be upgraded at the same time—you cannot upgrade one without the other (see Compatibility of Data Sources and TDI/TIS Versions for an overview).

Note: For detailed guidance on upgrading and compatibility considerations, please refer to our announcement: Information regarding TimeXtender 20.10 (V20), TimeXtender Data Integration (TDI), and TimeXtender Classic (v25).

Expanded Data Source Providers

This release continues TimeXtender’s focus on first-party data connectivity, reducing reliance on third-party integrations and improving long-term stability.

Newly Added Providers

• Infor SunSystems v5+: Expands compatibility with SunSystems financial data.
• SAP Tables via Azure Data Factory: Enables SAP connectivity through Azure Data Factory.
• XML/JSON Files: Adds XML and JSON as native file-based data sources, alongside CSV, Parquet, and Excel.

TimeXtender Enhanced Providers Replace CData

To address challenges related to compatibility, usability, performance, and support with previous third-party providers, we've developed a comprehensive suite of TimeXtender Enhanced Data Source Providers.

Consequently, support for CData's 'Managed ADO.net' providers has been discontinued; new CData data source setups and downloads are no longer available.

We recommend migrating to the new TimeXtender Enhanced Providers to ensure continued support and optimal performance. These enhancements reflect our commitment to delivering a more flexible and reliable data integration experience.​

For detailed guidance on this transition and compatibility considerations, please refer to our announcement: Important information regarding TimeXtender 20.10 (V20), TimeXtender Data Integration (TDI), and TimeXtender Classic (v25).

What These Enhancements Mean for You

​The recent enhancements in TimeXtender's latest release are designed to streamline workflows, enhance data accuracy, and simplify deployment processes, benefiting various roles within your organization:​

For Data Teams:

• Enhanced Data Selection: The introduction of instance variables and usage conditions in Deliver instances allows data teams to apply dynamic data selection rules. This flexibility enables the use of identical models across different datasets, catering to specific departmental or branch office requirements without duplicating configurations.​

• Timestamp Tracking: The addition of a DW_Timestamp column in the Ingest instance provides precise tracking of data ingestion times. This feature enhances data governance by offering clear data lineage and facilitating accurate auditing processes.​

For IT Administrators:

• Streamlined Migrations: The improved Migration Tool supports incremental migration, allowing IT administrators to transition specific data warehouses or semantic models in stages. This phased approach minimizes disruptions and enables strategic planning during the migration to cloud-based architectures.​

• Compatibility Enhancements: With the redesigned data source architecture, it's essential to upgrade the Ingest service and data sources simultaneously to maintain compatibility. This change ensures a smoother and more efficient migration process, aligning with the latest system architecture.​

For Developers:

• Enhanced Data Connectivity: Transitioning from third-party providers like CData to TimeXtender Enhanced Data Source Providers reduces reliance on external dependencies. This shift offers a more flexible and reliable alternative, addressing previous challenges related to compatibility, usability, performance, and support.​

• Expanded Data Source Support: The introduction of new native data source providers, including Infor SunSystems v5+, SAP Tables via Azure Data Factory, and XML/JSON files, broadens the scope for data integration. These additions eliminate the need for third-party providers like CData, offering more streamlined and efficient data integration options.​

Collectively, these updates empower your organization to harness the full potential of its data assets, fostering a more flexible, efficient, and comprehensive data management experience.

Next Steps:

• Ready to explore these new features? Head over to the TimeXtender product updates page for detailed documentation and knowledge base for how-to guides.
• If you’re new to TimeXtender, request a demo to see these enhancements in action.
• We’d love to hear your thoughts on the new release. Join the conversation in the TimeXtender Community to share feedback, ask questions, or connect with other users.

Thank you for being part of the TimeXtender journey. We’re excited to see what you’ll achieve with these new tools and capabilities!