This guide explains aACE Data Services and its benefits. It is intended for system administrators.
ERP solutions such as aACE generally address operations (e.g. fulfilling orders and managing inventory) and focus on transactions (e.g. orders, invoices, inventory adjustments). The reports that are embedded in aACE support those efforts: receivables and payables aging, income statements and balance sheets, inventory balances, and more.
When it comes to advanced analytics or custom reporting, there is a whole industry dedicated to data analytics, reporting, and dashboards, with products such as Crystal Reports, Power BI, and Tableau. To support leveraging such a solution, the aACE Data Service (ADS) functions as middleware between your aACE solution and your analytics solution: ADS pulls data from aACE and stores it in the cloud in a secure SQL database. Most analytics solutions can access SQL tables, so this "data warehouse" can then be used as a data source for reports and dashboards.
Utilizing a third-party solution allows you to generate custom reports and dashboards that are unique to your business. This infrastructure also allows you to pull data from other sources you may use alongside aACE. Organization-wide data analytics, reporting, and dashboards will draw from your ERP solution, but it will also pull data from other sources so your decision-makers have a fuller view of the organization.
The ADS infrastructure is included with your aACE license, but the hosting associated with the SQL database and any service required will have an additional fee. (Note: You have the option to host the SQL database yourself.)