BAM! Deployment Problem Solved!

I’ve been trying to deploy a new BAM Business Activity, one which I created as part of Lab 12 (from the Training Labs). I was using the bm.exe tool, and this command:

bm deploy-all -DefinitionFile:"StockMovement.xlsx" -Server:"myServerName"

And each time, this would happen:

Deploying Activity... Done.Deploying View...
ERROR: The BAM deployment failed.SQL Analysis Services 2008 Enterprise Edition is not configured.  
Can not create OLAP cubes for RTAs.

At first I thought this was permissions-related, so I kept on jacking up the user permissions on the server, in SQL, across the network until everything was maxed-out and it still wasn’t working.

Then I started to get worried… did the client need to have SQL Server 2008 Enterprise installed. I was sure it wasn’t required for BAM. I double-checked, here on the Microsoft System Requirements page, and no, you can use Standard Edition.

So what was it? Whilst researching the problem trawling through Google I came across something about real-time vs. non-real time aggregations and SQL Server versions. Specifically, if you want to use real-time aggregations then you need Enterprise Edition. If you’re happy doing cube-based, non-real time aggregation, then you can get away with the Standard Edition.

So, how do you configure BAM for non-real-time aggregations only. Well, you don’t. It’s set in each Business Activity Definition you upload. Hidden away in Exercise 2 of Lab 12, point 10 is:

On the Excel menu ribbon, click the Add-Ins tab, and in the Toolbar Commands section, click the Real Time Aggregation (RTA) button.

Maybe this is why it’s called BAM. BAM being the sound my head made as it hit the desk, repeatedly.

BAM!

I understand why they’ve done this: a RTA Activity will give instant gratification in the lab session. However, it causes problems for people who are taking what they learnt in the labs and are trying to make it work in the real world. I re-opened the Excel file, unchecked the RTA button, and deployment worked. Well, it didn’t, but it moved on to the next error. One error, one blog post 🙂

Written by Tom Morgan

Tom is a Microsoft Teams Platform developer and Microsoft MVP who has been blogging for over a decade. Find out more.

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