Can Oracle BI Publisher Be Licensed Standalone, and How Does It Differ from OBIEE Licensing?

Can Oracle BI Publisher Be Licensed Standalone, and How Does It Differ from OBIEE Licensing

Oracle BI Publisher (officially known as Oracle Analytics Publisher) can be licensed as a standalone product, separate from Oracle Business Intelligence Enterprise Edition (OBIEE). Organizations often choose BI Publisher standalone for simpler reporting scenarios, document generation, or where full OBIEE functionality isn’t required.

Here’s a detailed look at how Oracle BI Publisher standalone licensing works and how it differs from OBIEE licensing:

Read Oracle middleware FAQs.

Licensing Models for BI Publisher Standalone

Oracle Analytics Publisher (BI Publisher standalone) follows the common Oracle licensing models:

• Processor licensing
• Named User Plus (NUP) licensing

These models align closely with other Oracle technology products, offering flexibility depending on your needs.

Unique Feature: No Minimum Named User Plus Requirement

A key distinction of standalone Oracle BI Publisher licensing compared to OBIEE or other Oracle middleware is:

• No minimum Named User Plus licensing requirement.

This unique aspect makes standalone BI Publisher suitable for small-scale or departmental deployments.

Example:

• Suppose you have a BI Publisher standalone deployment for generating invoices used by only five distinct users.
• Unlike OBIEE, WebLogic, or most middleware products (which typically have a minimum of 10 NUPs per processor), you can license the exact number of users: in this case, 5 NUP licenses.

This licensing flexibility significantly reduces costs for small deployments where OBIEE’s mandatory user minimum might be excessive.

Processor Licensing for BI Publisher Standalone

When licensing Oracle BI Publisher standalone by Processor, the standard Oracle rules apply:

• Count all CPU cores of the servers running BI Publisher.
• Apply Oracle’s Core Factor Table to calculate processor licenses.

Processor Licensing Example:

• If BI Publisher is running on a server with 8 Intel cores (core factor 0.5):
  • Required licenses: 8 cores × 0.5 factor = 4 Processor licenses.
• Processor licenses allow unlimited users to access BI Publisher on the licensed server(s).

Processor licensing is beneficial if BI Publisher is used enterprise-wide or for public/external reporting scenarios with unpredictable or large user bases.

Read How is Oracle Business Intelligence Enterprise Edition (OBIEE) Licensed.

Included WebLogic Server with Standalone BI Publisher

When licensed standalone, Oracle BI Publisher typically includes a restricted-use WebLogic Server license. This means:

• You do not need to purchase WebLogic Server separately if you use it exclusively to run Oracle BI Publisher.
• You can deploy BI Publisher on this restricted-use WebLogic Server without additional licensing costs.
• You cannot deploy unrelated applications or additional middleware on this WebLogic instance—it’s licensed strictly for BI Publisher use.

Note: While many organizations deploy BI Publisher standalone on simpler containers like Apache Tomcat, Oracle’s standard licensing approach includes rights to a WebLogic Server Basic instance specifically for this product.

BI Publisher within OBIEE vs. Standalone BI Publisher

If your organization already has licenses for Oracle Business Intelligence Enterprise Edition (OBIEE):

• You automatically have usage rights for BI Publisher as part of OBIEE’s licensing.
• No separate purchase of BI Publisher is required if you’re fully licensed for OBIEE.

Standalone BI Publisher is specifically targeted toward customers who:

• We only need the reporting/document generation functionality provided by BI Publisher.
• Don’t require broader OBIEE capabilities like advanced dashboards, analyses, or analytics.

Read How Are Oracle Identity Management Products (OID, OAM, OIM, etc.) Licensed

Practical Use Case Examples

• Small-Scale Reporting:
  A small accounting department generating financial statements, invoices, or purchase orders might prefer a standalone BI Publisher licensed by NUP (exact user count, no minimum). This keeps costs manageable and licensing straightforward.
• Large-Scale Document Generation:
  An organization providing external reports or external documents (e.g., customer statements, regulatory reports) to many recipients might license a standalone BI Publisher using the Processor model to cover unlimited usage.
• Integration with Other Applications:
  Customers integrating BI Publisher tightly with existing ERP systems (like Oracle E-Business Suite or custom applications) may license BI Publisher standalone, avoiding unnecessary OBIEE costs.

Upgrading from Standalone BI Publisher to OBIEE

If standalone BI Publisher deployments grow in scope and users require richer analytical capabilities, organizations may later upgrade to the full OBIEE suite. In such cases:

• Oracle might offer credit or a transition pathway from existing BI Publisher licenses to OBIEE licenses.
• Alternatively, standalone BI Publisher licenses could remain as-is, with new OBIEE licenses added separately, depending on contractual negotiations.

Licensing Comparison: Standalone BI Publisher vs. OBIEE

Recommendations

• For small or targeted report generation use cases, standalone BI Publisher licensing provides flexibility, simplicity, and cost-effectiveness because there is no minimum Named User Plus requirement.
• Consider licensing the full OBIEE suite, which includes BI Publisher plus additional capabilities for large or comprehensive analytics scenarios.

Conclusion

Oracle Analytics Publisher (BI Publisher standalone) offers organizations a flexible licensing model, specifically beneficial for scenarios with smaller user bases due to the absence of a Named User Plus minimum requirement. Its standalone license also conveniently includes a restricted-use WebLogic Server, simplifying deployment.

Organizations with broader analytics needs may prefer OBIEE, while those needing just powerful reporting and document generation functionality find standalone BI Publisher licensing an optimal and cost-effective solution.

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