1. Revision History
  2. Overview
  3. Feature Summary
  4. CPQ Cloud Overview
    1. Modern Selling Experience
        1. Line Item Grid Enhancements
        2. Accessibility Enhancements
    2. Enterprise Platform
        1. Subscription Ordering Enhancements
        2. Administrator Access Control
        3. Foreign Key Support for Data Tables
        4. Single Select Pick List Enhancements
        5. BOM Mapping Enhancements
        6. Commerce Cloud Integration Enhancements
        7. Product Eligibility REST APIs
        8. Transaction REST API Enhancements
        9. Additional CPQ Cloud Enhancements
    3. Differentiate
        1. Rating/Pricing Engine
        2. Deal Management Enhancements
        3. System Configuration Enhancements
  6. Pre-Upgrade Considerations
  7. Post-Upgrade Considerations

Revision History

This document will continue to evolve as existing sections change and new information is added. All updates appear in the following table:

Date Feature Notes
08 AUG 2018 System Configuration Enhancements Updated document. Revised feature information.
11 MAY 2018 Administrator Access Control Updated document. Revised feature information.
11 MAY 2018 Transaction Rest API Enhancements Updated document. Revised feature information.
11 MAY 2018 Rating/Pricing Engine Updated document. Revised feature information.
04 MAY 2018   Created initial document.

Overview

This guide outlines the information you need to know about new or improved functionality in Oracle CPQ Cloud Release 18B and describes any tasks you might need to perform for the update. Each section includes a brief description of the feature, the steps you need to take to enable or begin using the feature, any tips or considerations that you should keep in mind, and the resources available to help you.

Security & New Features

We would like to remind you if your system has modified security structures you may need to advise your security administrator of the new features you would like to implement.

Give Us Feedback

We welcome your comments and suggestions to improve the content. Please send us your feedback at cpqcloud_documentation_us_grp@oracle.com.

Feature Summary

Action Required to Enable Feature

Feature

Automatically Available

End User Action Required

Administrator Action Required

Oracle Service Request Required

CPQ Cloud Overview

Modern Selling Experience

Line Item Grid Enhancements

Accessibility Enhancements

Enterprise Platform

Subscription Ordering Enhancements

Administrator Access Control

Foreign Key Support for Data Tables

Single Select Pick List Enhancements

BOM Mapping Enhancements

Commerce Cloud Integration Enhancements

Product Eligibility REST APIs

Transaction REST API Enhancements

Additional CPQ Cloud Enhancements

Differentiate

Rating/Pricing Engine

Deal Management Enhancements

System Configuration Enhancements

Pre-Upgrade Considerations

Post-Upgrade Considerations

CPQ Cloud Overview

Oracle Configure, Price, and Quote (CPQ) Cloud enables companies to streamline the entire opportunity-to-quote-to-order process, including product selection, configuration, pricing, quoting, ordering, and approval workflows. CPQ Cloud provides a flexible, scalable, enterprise-ready solution ideal for companies of all sizes that sell products and services across direct, indirect, and e-commerce sales channels.

Modern Selling Experience

Leverage the rich interface and interactive capabilities available in CPQ Cloud to provide an intuitive selling experience using the line item grid enhancements available in the 18B release. Access CPQ with assistive technologies to enable users of all abilities.

Line Item Grid Enhancements

The CPQ Cloud Release 18B release introduces the following enhancements to improve usability when large numbers of columns or rows are displayed in a line item grid:

Line Item Grid Sticky Headers Option

Line Item Grid Column Freeze Option

The following example shows a line item grid with the first two data columns frozen and sticky headers turned on while data is able to be scrolled.

Line Item Grid Freeze Column and Sticky Header Example

Steps to Enable

Line Item Grid enhancements are automatically available on CPQ Cloud 18B sites.

Key Resources

Accessibility Enhancements

CPQ Cloud is committed making our product accessible, which includes supporting the use of assistive technology such as screen readers and screen magnifiers. CPQ Cloud Release 18B improves keyboard navigation, button highlight focus, and screen reader support for the following screens:

Steps to Enable

Accessibility enhancements are automatically available on CPQ Cloud 18B sites.

Enterprise Platform

Cater to the need by large, complex enterprises for a robust, integrated, and performant platform using the following CPQ Cloud 18B features:

Subscription Ordering Enhancements

Companies use Subscription Ordering, sometimes referred to as Asset Based Ordering (ABO), to sell tangible assets or subscriptions for services delivered over a period of time. Sales users can create, modify, suspend, resume, renew, and terminate asset-based products using orders stored in CPQ Cloud. They can also reconfigure an order or create a follow-on order to make changes to an existing order stored in CPQ Cloud.

As part of continuing improvements to Subscription Ordering, CPQ Cloud and external applications such as Oracle Commerce Cloud can now directly launch the Model Configuration page using URL parameters for ABO operations. This simplifies the Modify and Follow-On order integration scenarios. When users modify an asset or make changes to an existing order not yet fulfilled, the ABO operation now only makes one REST API call as opposed to the two REST calls required in prior releases.

The following enhancements are available in CPQ Cloud Release 18B:

IMPORTANT: The above enhancements require that the ABO Implementation Package is implemented.

ADD PARAMETERS TO AN EXTERNAL URL TO LAUNCH THE MODEL CONFIGURATION PAGE

Add parameters to an external URL to allow external applications, such as Oracle Commerce Cloud, to directly launch the Model Configuration page from the external application. Provided below are descriptions of the parameters included in the example.

When parameters are added to an external URL, the Model Configuration page opens in the external application. Users can then modify the Configuration selections. For information about opening the Model Configuration page within an iFrame in the external application (as simulated below), refer to the Subscription Ordering Integration Enhancements in the CPQ Cloud 2017 R1 What’s New document.

Model Configuration Page Opened from External URL

ADD PARAMETERS TO AN INTERNAL URL TO LAUNCH THE MODEL CONFIGURATION PAGE

Add parameters to an internal URL to allow users to directly access the Model Configuration page from CPQ Cloud to modify an asset. Provided below are descriptions of the parameters included in the example.

When parameters are added to an internal URL, the Model Configuration page opens in CPQ Cloud, allowing users to modify the asset’s Configuration settings. Users can then click any of the action buttons displayed across the top of the page.

Model Configuration Page

By clicking Add to Transaction, the modified asset is added to a Transaction as a line item.

Transaction with Modified Asset as Line Item

Steps to Enable

Refer to the following:

Tips And Considerations

Consider the following tips when using the Subscription Ordering enhancements:

Key Resources

Administrator Access Control

CPQ Cloud is commonly administered by teams of individuals who are responsible for administering different subsets of CPQ Cloud features. Using the Administrator Access Control feature available in CPQ Cloud Release 18B, companies can delegate and restrict access to certain areas of CPQ Cloud’s setup and administration. This prevents unauthorized users from introducing unintentional errors, clarifies areas of responsibility, and protects sensitive or proprietary information.

CPQ Cloud Release 18B allows administrators to:

IMPORTANT:  In previous releases, the Users list showed only the logged in user when accessed by a FullAccess user without User Administrator privileges. After upgrading to 18B, the User List now shows all users. If the logged in user is not a User Administrator they will be able to see other user's detail pages in read-only mode. They can edit their own details by clicking their login in this list or by opening their My Profile page from the navigation bar or header. To the Users list, create an Admin Group that excludes access to that feature.

ENABLE ADMINISTRATOR GROUPS FOR YOUR SITE

An Enable Administrator Groups setting is now available on the General Site Options page. When set to Yes, the Administrator Access Control feature is enabled for the entire CPQ Cloud site. Only a SuperUser can modify the setting. When Administrator Groups are enabled, the access permission features available in prior releases are no longer available and will no longer apply. If you were using these features, you must configure access control using the new Administrator Access Control functionality.

Enable Administrator Groups Option

IMPORTANT: The Enable Administrator Groups option is by default set to Yes for customers new to CPQ Cloud in Release 18B or later. The option is by default set to No for existing CPQ Cloud sites upgrading to Release 18B.

IMPORTANT: The current Enable Administrator Groups selection (i.e. Yes or No) is retained on CPQ Cloud sites upgraded from Release 18B to a later version.

ASSIGN ACCESS ADMINISTRATOR PRIVILEGES TO FULL ACCESS USERS

When the Enable Administrator Groups setting on the General Site Options page is set to Yes, an Access Administrator checkbox displays as a Permissions property on the User Administration page. Only Access Administrators can create and edit Administrator groups. While the checkbox is read-only for Full Access Host Company users, SuperUsers and Access Administrators can delegate Access Administrator permissions to other Host Company users of type Full Access.

To assign Access Administrator privileges to Full Access users, perform the following steps:

  1. Open the Admin Home page.

  2. Under Users, select Internal Users. The User Administration List page opens.

  3. Click the user login link for the Full Access user you want to make an Access Administrator. The User Administration page opens.

  4. Select the Access Administrator checkbox. To be an Access Administrator, you must also be a User Administrator.

User Administrator and Access Administrator Checkboxes

  1. Click Apply.

IMPORTANT:  Only users with Access Administrator privileges can grant Access Administrator privileges to other Full Access users.

IMPORTANT: In prior releases, the User Administrator checkbox was labeled Create/Modify Users.

VIEW GROUPS BASED ON GROUP TYPE

As in previous releases, administrators can add or edit user groups from the Group Administration List page. In CPQ Cloud Release 18B, the Group Administration List page contains a Group Type column, which displays the group type (Sales or Administrator) associated with each group. By clicking the Group Type column header, users can sort the groups on the page based on group type.

IMPORTANT: When the Administrator Groups feature is first enabled, all existing groups are automatically categorized as Sales groups.

Group Administration List Page with Group Type Column

When the Administrator Groups feature is first enabled, a new “All Access” Administrator Group is automatically created. This is a special system group that cannot be edited. When first enabled, all existing Full Access users are members of this group. The “All Access” group has access to all administrative features. To restrict access for a user, first remove them from the “All Access” group.

Groups Sorted Based on Group Type

EXPERIENCE A MODERN UI FOR CREATING AND EDITING GROUPS

Users can now interact with a cleaner and easier to use Group Administration page updated with a modern UI for both Sales groups and Administrator groups. In CPQ Cloud Release 18B, the page contains a Description field to provide a group description for new and existing groups and a User Selector that supports filtering users and selecting multiple users.

Group Administration Page with Description Field and User Selector

CREATE AND EDIT ADMINISTRATOR GROUPS

CPQ Cloud Release 18B adds the ability to create a new Group Type called Administrator groups. Administrator groups are used to create groups of Full Access users who have access to a subset of all CPQ administrator features. Only Access Administrators can create and edit Administrator groups.

The Group Administration page contains the following enhancements:

IMPORTANT: Customers with a large number of users may experience issues with the Group Administration page when using Internet Explorer. Chrome or Firefox is recommended.

To create and edit Administrator groups, perform the following steps:

  1. Open the Admin Home page.

  2. Under Users, select Groups. The Group Administration List page opens.

  3. To edit an existing Administrator group, click its Group Name to open the Group Administration page.

  4. To create a new Administrator group, click Add to open the Group Administration page.

  1. Populate the fields, as desired.

  2. From the Type drop-down, select Administrator.

Group Administration Page

  1. Define the users who are members of the Administrator group.

  1. Use the Access Selector to define the administrative features to which member users have access. The Access Selector supports the following functionality:

Access Selector

  1. Click Save.

IMPORTANT:Only Access Administrators can create Administrator groups. All other users can only choose the Sales group type.

IMPORTANT:Access Administrators and Full Access users can use the Group Administration page to create and edit Sales groups. When the Enable Administrator Groups option is turned off, only Sales groups can be created.

IMPORTANT: The Access Selector allows for the granular selection of Data Table folders and Product Families. Granular selection of BML Library folders is not supported. Administrator groups can have access to either all BML Libraries or no BML Libraries.

ADD USERS TO ADMINISTRATOR GROUPS FROM THE USER ADMINISTRATION PAGE

In addition to adding a user to an Administrator group from the Group Administration page, Access Administrators can also add a user to an Administrator group from the Groups tab on the User Administration page.

To add users to Administrator groups, perform the following steps:

  1. Open the Admin Home page.

  2. Under Users, select Internal Users. The User Administration List page opens.

  3. Select the user login link for an Access Administrator. The User Administration page opens.

  4. Select the Groups tab.

  5. Use the Administrator Groups shuttle to specify the Administrator groups to which the user has access:

User Administration Page - Groups Tab

IMPORTANT: The Administrator Group List under the Groups tab is only shown for Full Access user profiles. Other user types will only see a Sales Group List. Only Access Administrators can edit this list.

SECURITY FEATURES PREVENT UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS TO ADMIN PAGES, LINKS, AND SERVICES

When Administrator Groups are enabled and setup, Full Access users only have access to the administration pages and data to which they are entitled. To ensure this data is properly secured and the logged in user only sees links to the content they can access, Oracle has added a number of security features.

Secure Pages

The Admin Home page only displays the pages to which the logged in user has access. Members of the “All Access” group can access all pages and navigation menus. In the following example, the user has access to only a few of the administrative segments of the Admin Home page. The links are secured from unauthorized access.

Sample Admin Home Page

Secure Admin Drawer

When the Alta Navigation menu is enabled, Full Access users see an Admin Drawer in the upper left-hand corner of the screen under a "hamburger menu”. When the Administrator Access Control feature is turned on, the Admin Drawer only shows the pages to which the logged in user has access.

Admin Navigation Drawer

Secure Navigation Menus

Administrators can customize the Navigation Menus for their users by providing links to internal and customized content. When these links point to administration features, they are removed when the user does not have access to the features. This security applies to headers, sub-headers, and sub-footers when using Top Navigation, Side Navigation, or Alta Navigation.

Sample User Navigation Menu

Sample Navigation Menu

IMPORTANT: If a custom link points to a restricted administrator page, it is not automatically hidden. An access denied message will display.

Sample Custom Link

Access Denied Message

Secure SOAP Web Services

All SOAP APIs for administrative features that are public to Full Access users are secured, blocking unauthorized users from accessing data.

When using web services version 1.0 or version 2.0:

The following error displays in the response when a SOAP API to access data tables is called by an unauthorized user.

SECURE REST WEB SERVICES

All REST APIs for administrative features that are public to Full Access users are secured, blocking unauthorized users from accessing data.

Steps to Enable

Administrators must enable the Administrator Access Control feature from the General Site Options page.

Tips And Considerations

Consider the following tips when using the Administrator Access Control feature:

Key Resources

Foreign Key Support for Data Tables

CPQ Cloud Release 18B supports Foreign Key column relationships between Data Tables within a site. Foreign Keys define a relationship between multiple Data Tables ensuring data integrity and consistency, and reducing the cost of data management and complexity when querying. This enhancement establishes a relationship between a defined Natural Key column within a parent Data Table to a defined Foreign Key column within a child Data Table. Administrators can define a maximum of five Foreign Keys per child table, as there is a limitation of five indexed columns per data table.

Foreign Key (FK) support for Data Tables allows administrators to do the following:

ADD A FOREIGN KEY

CPQ Cloud Release 18B allows administrators to add a new Foreign Key column to a Data Table. The procedure below assumes another Data Table has already been created with a single Natural Key column defined to establish a parent/child relationship.

To add a new Foreign Key record to a Data Table, perform the following steps:

  1. Open the Admin Home page.

  2. Under Developer Tools, select Data Tables. The Data Tables page displays with the defined Data Tables folder navigation in one panel and the details Data and Schema tabs in another panel.

  3. Double-click to open an existing Data Table or create a new Data Table for establishing a Foreign Key relationship. This table is considered the child Data Table.

  4. Click the Schema tab. The Data Table schema displays.

  5. Click Add Foreign Key. The Foreign Key screen displays.

Add Foreign Key

  1. In the Column Name field, type the name of the column to establish a Foreign Key relationship.

  2. (Optional) In the Description field, type the desired description of the Foreign Key.

  3. From the Target Table drop-down, select the parent table to which the Foreign Key relationship is established.

  4. From the Delete Behavior drop-down, select one of the following three options:

  1. Click Add Foreign Key. The foreign key row displays in the Schema tab with the Relationship Name, Target Table, Delete Behavior, and Target Column fields populated.

Data Table Schema Tab with Foreign Key Columns

IMPORTANT:  The index column defaults to selected and Key column is disabled by default. Administrators cannot change these default selections.

CONVERTING AN EXISTING COLUMN TO A FOREIGN KEY COLUMN

Administrators can modify an existing column in a Data Table to support a Foreign Key relationship.

To modify an existing column, perform the following steps:

  1. Open the Admin Home page.

  2. Under Developer Tools, select Data Tables. The Data Tables page displays with the defined Data Tables folder navigation in one panel and the details Data and Schema tabs in another panel.

  3. Open an existing Data Table for establishing a Foreign Key relationship. This table is considered the child Data Table.

  4. Click the Schema tab. The existing column schema for the Data Table displays.

  5. Click the first column of the corresponding row to select the row to create the Foreign Key relationship then click Add Relationship. The Relationship screen displays.

Add Relationship

  1. In the Relationship Name field, type the name of the relationship for this Foreign Key.

  2. From the Target Table drop-down, select the parent Data Table to which the Foreign Key relationship is established.

  3. From the Delete Behavior drop-down, select one of the following three options:

  1. In the Column Mapping drop-down, select the column to establish the Foreign Key relationship.

  2. Click Add Relationship. The selected row (new foreign key row) displays in the Schema tab with the Relationship Name, Target Table, Delete Behavior, and Target Column fields populated.

Data Table Schema Tab with Foreign Key Columns

IMPORTANT: The Index column defaults to selected and Key column is disabled by default. Administrators cannot change these default selections.

REMOVE A FOREIGN KEY RELATIONSHIP

Existing Foreign Key relationships prevent the deletion of parent Data Table schema and modification of its Natural Key definition. To perform such actions, the Foreign Key relationship must first be removed from the child Data Table schema. If deleting an associated record is attempted with a Foreign Key relationship, an error message is posted indicating the deletion is denied.

To remove an existing Foreign Key relationship, perform the following steps:

  1. Open the Admin Home page.

  2. Under Developer Tools, select Data Tables. The Data Tables page displays with the defined Data Tables folder navigation in one panel and the details Data and Schema tabs in another panel.

  3. Open an existing Data Table for removing a Foreign Key relationship. This table is considered the child Data Table.

  4. Click the Schema tab. The existing column schema for the Data Table displays.

Data Table Schema Tab with Remove Relationship

  1. Click on the Foreign Key row to modify and then click Remove Relationship. The Remove Relationship screen displays.

Remove Relationship Confirmation

  1. Click Remove Relationship. The selected row displays in the Schema tab with the Foreign Key relationship removed.

IMPORT AND EXPORT DATA TABLES WITH FOREIGN KEY RELATIONSHIPS

When importing or exporting bulk or individual Data Tables with Foreign Keys relationships, the Foreign Key data values are part of the Data Table files. Foreign Key-related schema import and export is not supported. Administrators cannot add or modify Foreign Key relationships via data table import. Therefore, following the import of a new Data Table, Foreign Keys must be manually added. If a Foreign Key relationship error is detected during import or export, an error message displays and the record is not modified.

Due to the inter-dependencies of records in separate Data Tables with Foreign Keys, the sequence of steps is very important when importing Data Tables with Foreign Key relationships. As applicable, perform the import in the following sequence order:

  1. Import files specific to deleting Foreign Key child records with the deletion behavior defined as On Delete No Action. Administrators must identify records that are only referencing parent records which are intended to be deleted during Step 2 below. Failing to do this will prevent the deletion of the referenced parent records during Step 2.

  2. Import files for parent records. We recommend modify actions be grouped and performed first, followed by delete actions.  This is important because sets of modify and deletes are processed separately upon import and have different behavior, as follows:

    1. First modify set is processed when field records are processed individually. Therefore failed records do not affect successful update of other records in the set.  
    2. Delete set is processed as a whole and any failure results in failure of the whole set of deletes. When deleting records, the On Delete Behavior setting of the Foreign Key schema determines the disposition for deleting or disassociating the child records.

  3. Import files for child records that will be explicitly modified.

MIGRATE DATA TABLES WITH FOREIGN KEY RELATIONSHIPS

Administrators must include all Data Tables related to Foreign Key relationships in the migration package. This ensures the Data Tables are deployed together for data integrity purposes. Administrators must resolve the error messages in the migration log before they can successfully migrate Data Tables with Foreign Key relationships.

Steps to Enable

Foreign Key Data Table enhancements are automatically on all CPQ Cloud 18B sites.

Key Resources

Single Select Pick List Enhancements

A Single Select Pick List, also referred to as a Dynamic Menu, is a Configuration attribute type. Administrators manage the domain of values for a Single Select Pick List attribute within a defined resource (e.g. Data Tables or Configuration arrays). The enhancements available in CPQ Cloud Release 18B address scenarios where a Single Select Pick List filter returns multiple results with the same value, resulting in users seeing the same result multiple times in Single Select Pick List values.

In CPQ Cloud Release 18B, administrators can filter previously returned multiple results to ensure a value displays only once to users in the Single Select Pick List. This is accomplished by selecting the Distinct Values checkbox in Attribute Editor to display only distinct values. The checkbox is only available when using a data table as the domain for a Single Select Pick List.

DISPLAY ONLY DISTINCT VALUES IN A SINGLE SELECT PICK LIST

A Distinct Values checkbox is now available in Attribute Editor. Selecting the checkbox ensures that only distinct values display in the Single Select Pick List, which prevents multiple results with the same value from displaying. The checkbox is only available when using a data table as the resource (i.e. Domain) for a Single Select Pick List.

Attribute Editor

The Distinct Values checkbox provides an improved user experience, preventing duplicate values from displaying to users in a Single Select Pick List.

Sample Single Select Pick List

Steps to Enable

Single Select Pick List enhancements are automatically available on all CPQ Cloud 18B sites.

Tips And Considerations

Consider the following tips when using the Single Select Pick List enhancements:

Key Resources

BOM Mapping Enhancements

The Bill of Materials (BOM) Mapping feature allows administrators to import multi-level BOM product structures for use in CPQ Configuration, Commerce Transactions, and downstream integration of orders to an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system. This data-driven solution significantly reduces the amount of time needed to set up and maintain integrations of configured products with ERP systems using BOM tables and the BOM Mapping rule type.

As part of continuing improvements to BOM Mapping, the following enhancements are available in CPQ Cloud Release 18B:

SINGLE SELECT PICK LIST SUPPORT FOR BOM MAPPING

In prior releases, Single Select Pick List attributes were not supported for BOM Mapping. CPQ Cloud Release 18B provides BOM Mapping support for Single Select Pick Lists, also known as Dynamic Menus. When a Single Select Pick List option is selected, the applicable BOM Mapping rules are invoked to add parts to a Transaction based on the Single Select Pick List selection. The Single Select Pick List attribute type can be created in Configuration for Text, Integer, and Float data types.

IMPORTANT: To ensure proper operation of the BOM Mapping rules, the variable names referenced for the Single Select Pick List options must match the Configurable Attribute variable names and values in the BOM Item Mapping table.

SIMPLE AND ADVANCED CONDITIONS FOR BOM MAPPING RULES

In prior releases, "Always True" was the only Condition Type available for BOM Mapping Rules. CPQ Cloud Release 18B enables Simple and Advanced Condition Types for BOM Mapping Rules. The condition section allows administrators to select the logic that specifies when a rule should run. There are three options: Always True, Simple Condition, and Advanced Condition.

IMPORTANT:  Simple and Advanced Conditions are only evaluated during Configuration, these conditions are NOT evaluated during Reconfiguration.

Simple Conditions for BOM Mapping Rules

When Simple Condition is enabled, administrators can define Attributes, Operators, Values, Range Operators, and Range Values for the desired condition. They can also Add Rows and set the Order of Operations to provide multiple conditions.

For example: The following image displays a Simple Condition that will not invoke the BOM Mapping rule unless the user is in the "Technical Administrator" User Group.

BOM Mapping Configuration Rule with Simple Condition

Advanced Conditions for BOM Mapping Rules

The advanced function is meant for complex condition logic. Administrators use BML to define conditions in the Function Editor. After selecting the Advanced Condition type, administrators select the View/Edit the BML Function to access the Function Editor.

BOM Mapping Configuration Rule - Advanced Condition

INHERITED PARENT HIERARCHIES FOR CHILD ITEMS

CPQ Cloud Release 18B introduces the "Option Class" BOM item type to enable inherited parent hierarchies for child BOM items. Option Class items are only added if they contain a descendant BOM item (child, grandchild, etc.) that is not an Option Class item.

For example: The following image displays a Configuration page for a cable channel provider that offers different channel options as part of their Sports Channel and Entertainment Channel plans.

Configuration Page for Cable Channel Provider

When the user selects the Baseball channel and creates a transaction, the parent items (I.e. "Channels" and "Sports Channels") are automatically added as Line Items to the Transaction. The parent items are also added to the BOM Instance, which is sent to the Fulfillment System, to complete the order.

Commerce Transaction for Sports Channel Package

For parent items the Item Type is set to "Option Class", the Item Type for child items can be set to anything other than "Option Class". The BOM parent items will only be added to the BOM Instance when a nested child item is selected. During table-based BOM mapping, "Option Class" items are not added to the BOM instance unless they have a descendant that is not an "Option Class" item.

Advanced BML BOM Mapping rules can be used to add "Option Class" items that do not have a descendant that is not an "Option Class" item.

BOM Item Definition Data Table with Option Class Item Types

MULTIPLE ATTRIBUTE MAPPING FOR BOM MAPPING ITEMS

CPQ Cloud Release 18B provides ten additional mapping attribute and value fields for the BOM Item Mapping table to support mapping to multiple Configurable Attributes. This allows the selection of multiple configuration options to add a single Line Item to a BOM-related Transaction.

Additional Configurable Attributes for BOM Item Mapping

The BOM Item Mapping Table associates BOM items to Configuration attributes. Administrators will upload or migrate BOM structures to CPQ Data Tables using CPQ Cloud’s standard importing features. The Data Table can then be linked to the corresponding BOM Mapping platform tables. Activating this table enables simple Table-Based BOM Mapping Configuration rules. The items that are available for mapping are displayed in the Column Mapping drop-down menus. The list of menu options is derived from the BOM Item Mapping Data Table columns Names.

Edit BOM Table Definition Page for BOM Item Mapping

Configurable Attribute Columns in the BOM Item Mapping Data Table

Prior to mapping, the additional Configurable Attribute and Value fields must be added to the BOM Item Mapping Data Table Schema tab. The following image displays a BOM Item Mapping Data Table with ten additional Configurable Attribute and Value columns added to the Data Table schema.

Oracle BomItemMap Data Table with Additional Configurable Attribute Columns

Multiple Attribute Mapping Example

After the additional Configurable Attribute and Value fields have been added to the BOM Item Mapping Data Table schema, the Data Table can be populated with the additional Configurable Attributes and Values. BOM Mapping can now evaluate the combination of several different Configuration attributes and then add a single child part to the quote based on multiple attribute selections.

For example: The following BOM Item Mapping Data displays two BOM items with "speed" and "dataDownload" attributes. If a user selects a speed of 40Mbps and a data download option of 100GB, then the TelecomPackage1 part will be added to the quote.

BOM Item Mapping Data Table

When additional Configurable attributes have been added and mapped, administrators can view the mapped attributes in the BOM Item Mapping Administration List and BOM Item Mapping Administration pages.

The details for the "TelecomPackage1" are displayed in the following procedure.

View BOM Item Mapping Administration Pages

Complete the following steps to view additional configurable attributes.

  1. Navigate to the Admin Home Page.

  2. Under Products, click Catalog Definition. The Supported Products page opens.

  3. Select Product Families from the Navigation drop-down.

  4. Click List. The Supported Product Families page opens.

  5. Next to the applicable Product Family, select Product Lines from the Navigation drop-down.

  6. Click List. The Product Line Administration List page opens.

  7. Next to the applicable Product Line, select Models from the Navigation drop-down.

  8. Click List. The Model Administration List page opens.

  9. Next to the applicable Model, select BOM Mapping from the Navigation drop-down.

  10. Click List. The BOM Mapping: Rules List page opens.

  11. Select the applicable rule. The BOM Mapping Rule page opens.

BOM Mapping Rule Page

  1. Click Save and View Details.  The BOM Mapping Administration List page opens.

In the following image, the mapped Configuration Attributes are shown. If there are any Additional Configurable Attributes, the Additional Attribute Mapped column will be set to Y.

BOM Item Mapping Administration List Page

  1. Select the applicable Variable Name to view the Additional Configurable Attributes.  The BOM Item Mapping Administration page opens.

The associated Configurable Attribute and Additional Configurable Attributes are displayed.

For example: The BOM Item Mapping details for "TelecomPackage1" are displayed in the following image. When "40Mbps" is selected for the "speed" attribute and "100GB" is selected for the "dataDownload" attribute, the TelecomPackage1 part will be added to the quote.

BOM Item Mapping Administration Page

CONFIGURABLE ARRAY ATTRIBUTE SUPPORT FOR BOM MAPPING

CPQ Cloud Release 18B enhances BOM Mapping support for Configurable Array Attributes. The options selected during Configuration can be used to populate BOM items and attributes in the BOM instance.

BOM Item Mapping for Configurable Array Attributes

When Configurable array attributes are used with BOM Item Mapping, the Array Set row items are mapped to a matching BOM item. The mapping should be one-to-one between the Array Set row and a BOM item.

For example: In the following BOM Item Mapping Data Table there are two BOM items displayed under the "SoftwareRootBOM" item:

BOM Item Mapping Data Table

Customers can use Configurable Array Sets to define BOM items to be selected during Configuration.

For example: The following image displays an Application Software Configuration item with three items: "Enterprise Anti-Virus", "Encryption Software", and "Encryption Software".

Application Software Configuration with Software Packages

When these BOM items are selected during Configuration, the following BOM Instance is generated:

BOM Attribute Mapping for Configurable Array Attributes

When Configurable Array Attributes are used with BOM Item Mapping, related BOM Attribute Mappings can use additional Configurable Array Attributes from the same array set. The additional Configurable Array Attributes for a BOM item are mapped to Attribute Mapping items.

For example: In the following BOM Attribute Mapping Data Table two Configurable Attributes are displayed:

BOM Attribute Mapping Data Table

Customers can also use Configurable Array Sets to define BOM item attributes to be selected during Configuration.

For example: The following image displays an Application Software Configuration with three items:

Application Software Configuration with Software Packages, Support, and Quantity

When these BOM items and attributes are selected during Configuration, the following BOM Instance is generated:

IMPORTANT:  BOM Attributes can be mapped to both Configurable Array Attributes and non-array type Configurable Attributes.

IMPORTANT:  Refer to the CPQ Cloud Administration Online Help for BOM Mapping Configurable Array Attribute Restrictions that are used to maintain one-to-one mapping between an Array Set row and a BOM item.

Steps to Enable

BOM Mapping enhancements are automatically available on all CPQ Cloud 18B sites.

Key Resources

Commerce Cloud Integration Enhancements

Self-service users in Commerce Cloud can configure complex products for purchase using the CPQ Cloud Configurator. They can also request a CPQ Cloud quote, thereby initiating a CPQ Cloud Transaction that a sales specialist can modify, reconfigure, or discount. The Commerce Cloud integration enhancements available in CPQ Cloud Release 18B support the retrieval and display of eCommerce usage metrics related to the number of times the CPQ Cloud Model Configuration page is accessed from Commerce Cloud (i.e. the number of interactions).

CPQ Cloud customers have the option to pay for our service based on the number of licenses available for the site or the number of user interactions. For customers who integrate with Commerce Cloud, the majority of configurations are performed by unregistered users. As a result, tracking usage by license count does not properly reflect usage. The 18B integration enhancements address this scenario and support CPQ Cloud customers who pay for our service based on the number of interactions that occur by any user.

The following enhancements are available in CPQ Cloud Release 18B:

USE A REST API TO RETRIEVE INTERACTION DATA

Use the new “eCommerce Interaction Metrics” REST API to retrieve usage data related to the number of times the CPQ Cloud Model Configuration page is accessed from Commerce Cloud. Each instance is an interaction representing usage data. Interactions are generated by all users, regardless of company or access type. Commerce Cloud self-service users do not need to invoke the Add to Cart action for an interaction to count as usage metric data.

IMPORTANT: CPQ Cloud uses a custom URL parameter to determine when a configuration is accessed from Commerce Cloud. An interaction is generated every time the parameter is set or an external reconfigure is called using a saved configuration. There may be Configuration scenarios that occur when not integrated with Commerce Cloud that count as interaction data, such as interactions performed by non-Commerce Cloud partners.

The below table identifies interaction scenarios both included and not included in metric data.

Included in Metric Data  Not Included in Metric Data
  • Accessing the Model Configuration page from Commerce Cloud to perform an initial configuration.  
  • Related web service calls including configure, getConfigurations, and getSpare. 
  • Accessing the Model Configuration page from Commerce Cloud to perform an external reconfigure or using parameters from an external partner.
  • Configurations performed when not integrated with Commerce Cloud.
  • Mobile configurations from an external partner.
  • Navigating multiple nodes or branching nodes within a single configuration flow.
  • Subscription Ordering configurations related to the Modify and Follow-On order flows and performed by external partners.
  • Configuring child models in a system for the first time.
  • Configurations not completed due to model-related errors.
  • Adding a model to a quote from Favorites without performing a configuration in the Model Configuration page.
 
  • Adding a model to a quote using the "config Id" and the Commerce "_new_transaction" REST API introduced in CPQ Cloud 2017 R1 to enhance the Request for Quote flow.

REST API Definition

This section describes the “eCommerce Interaction Metrics” REST API, which is available for REST version 6 or later by all Host Company Full Access users. The REST response returns data for all interactions performed between the start and end dates passed in the request. If a start and end date are not included in the request, all records are returned.

URI Endpoint Sample

Sample Response

Interface Catalog

Administrators can access metadata for the “eCommerce Interaction Metrics” REST API from the Interface Catalogs page.

To access the metadata, perform the following steps:

  1. Open the Admin Home page.

  2. Under Integration Platform, select Interface Catalogs. The Interface Catalogs page opens.

  3. Click ecommerceInteractionMetrics to view metadata for the “eCommerce Interaction Metrics” REST API.

Interface Catalogs Page

VIEW INTERACTION DATA IN CPQ CLOUD

Host Company Full Access users with permission to create and modify users can view eCommerce interaction data on the User Administration List page. The eCommerce interaction data represents the number of interactions performed on the CPQ Cloud site in the current month.

To view interaction data in CPQ Cloud, perform the following steps:

  1. Open the Admin Home page.

  2. Under Users, select Internal Users. The User Administration List page opens and displays eCommerce interaction data. The customer is billed for the Monthly Allotment amount, which is a specific number of interactions per month. The number of interactions used by the customer from the beginning of the month to the current date also displays. The value is updated each time the page is opened.  

User Administration List Page Displaying eCommerce Interactions

IMPORTANT: Open a Service Request on My Oracle Support to change the Monthly Allotment amount.

VIEW INTERACTION DATA FROM THE ORACLE CLOUD PORTAL

Customers can use the “eCommerce Interaction Metrics” REST API to view daily interaction metrics from the Oracle Cloud portal, which bypasses the need to access CPQ Cloud directly to view metric data. The daily interaction metrics display in the Oracle Cloud portal automatically. There is no administrator setup required.

Steps to Enable

Refer to the Integrating Oracle Commerce Cloud Service and CPQ Cloud Service Implementation Guide

Tips And Considerations

Consider the following tips when using the Commerce Cloud Integration enhancements:

Key Resources

Product Eligibility REST APIs

Customers can add parts to a Transaction in a variety of ways including via Recommended Item Rules, BOM Mapping Rules, Part Search, Multi-Part Search, Quick Keys, and API calls. CPQ Cloud Release 18A introduced Eligibility Rules as a feature, allowing administrators to define the parts available to specific customers. In CPQ Cloud Release 18B, all methods of adding parts now enforce Eligibility Rules.

The following Eligibility REST API enhancements are available in CPQ Cloud Release 18B:

ACCESS ELIGIBILITY API METADATA FROM THE INTERFACE CATALOG

Administrators can use the Interface Catalog to access metadata for the Eligibility REST APIs available in CPQ Cloud Release 18B. The metadata for the REST APIs used to create, read, update, delete, and deploy Eligibility Rules is available in the “eligibilityRule” resource. The metadata for the REST APIs used to search for and filter parts is available in the “parts” resource.

To access metadata for the Eligibility REST APIs, perform the following steps:

  1. Open the Admin Home page.

  2. Under Integration Platform, select Interface Catalogs. The Interface Catalogs page opens.

  3. Scroll to the “eligbilityRule” or “parts” resource.

  4. Click the associated link to view the resource metadata.

ALLOW EXTERNAL APPLICATIONS TO CREATE, READ, UPDATE, DELETE, AND DEPLOY ELIGIBILITY RULES  

CPQ Cloud exposes eligibility data through REST APIs. As described in this section, Eligibility APIs allow external applications to create, read, update, delete, and deploy eligibility data.

Create Eligibility Rule

Get Eligibility Rule

Get All Eligibility Rules

Update Eligibility Rule

Delete Eligibility Rule

Delete Eligibility Rule

Deploy Eligibility Rule

Deploy Multiple Eligibility Rules

SEARCH AND FILTER PARTS USING THE SEARCH PARTS REST API

CPQ Cloud Release 18B adds eligibility checking and filtering to the standard Search Parts REST API, which supports searching and filtering parts in the following scenarios:

IMPORTANT:The Search Parts REST API supports customizing the REST response by specifying an advanced query object (i.e. “q” criteria) as a request body parameter. This allows administrators to customize the query by specifying various combinations of criteria.

Search Parts Using Configuration Context

IMPORTANT: The attribute data referenced in the allProducts, segment, productLine, and model descriptions contains a set of key value pairs. The attribute’s variableName is the key and the value is the value of the attribute. If the attribute is a Multi Select Menu, it can take a list of values from the item’s array.

URI Endpoint Sample

Request Body Sample

Search Parts Using Commerce Context

URI Endpoint Sample

Request Body Sample

Perform a Quick Key Search in Commerce

In a CPQ Cloud Transaction, Quick Key line items are used to add parts to a quote without navigating away from the Transaction page and to auto-suggest a part to aid in part selection. The Search Part REST API allows implementers to build similar functionality where the Quick Key part selector auto-populates with part numbers when users enter characters into an item field in the Line Item Grid.

URI Endpoint Sample

Request Body Sample

IMPORTANT: If cacheInstanceId is present, the id and process data are ignored.

IMPORTANT: If cacheInstanceId is not present and id is present, the id is used.

IMPORTANT: If cacheInstanceId and id are not available, Commerce attribute values are passed.

Search List of Part Numbers

URI Endpoint Sample

Request Body Sample

Perform an Advanced Part Search

URI Endpoint Sample

Request Body Sample

Search parts based on a part custom field, such as an MSM field. As shown in the below example, any MSM field can be searched using the value attribute.

Steps to Enable

Eligibility REST APIs are automatically available on CPQ Cloud 18B sites.

Key Resources

Transaction REST API Enhancements

The Transaction REST API enables administrators to update transactions from external systems.

As part of continuing improvements to Commerce Transaction REST services, the following enhancements are available in CPQ Cloud Release 18B:

SEND E-SIGNATURE REQUEST REST API

URI Endpoint Sample

Sample Request

Sample Response

REQUEST E-SIGNATURE DETAILS REST API

URI Endpoint Sample

Sample Request

Sample Response

CANCEL E-SIGNATURE DETAILS REST API

URI Endpoint Sample

Sample Request

Sample Response

REFRESH TRANSACTION REST API

URI Endpoint Sample

Sample Request

REFRESH TRANSACTION LINE REST API

URI Endpoint Sample

Sample Request

Steps to Enable

Transaction REST API enhancements are automatically available on CPQ Cloud 18B sites.

Key Resources

Additional CPQ Cloud Enhancements

The CPQ Cloud Release 18B introduces the following enhancements to improve performance and simplify CPQ Cloud services.

CURRENT SESSION LANGUAGE SELECTION

CPQ Cloud Release 18B provides users with the ability to change the language for the current session directly from UI pages, without updating their User Profile.  In previous releases, users had to navigate to User Profile, change the language, and then navigate back to the desired page. Sales users can now change the language on the UI quickly and multiple times in a session allowing them to cater to the language requirements of different clients. When enabled, this enhancement provides a language selection menu in the application header for sales and administration pages.

Current Session Language Selection

IMPORTANT: Users should save any work in progress prior to changing the current language since a page refresh is performed when a new language is selected.

Enable Current Session Language Selection

Complete the following steps to allow users to change the language selection for the current session.

  1. Navigate to the Admin Home page.

  2. Under General, click General Site Options. The Options - General page opens.

Options - General Page - Include Language Preference

  1. Set the Include Language Preference? option to Yes.

  2. Click Update.

Customize Current Session Language Selection by User Type

Administrators can also enable or disable Language Selection for specific User Types. Complete the following steps to customize Current Session Language Selection.

  1. Navigate to the Admin Home page.

  2. Under Styles and Templates, select - Navigation Menus. The Navigation Menus page opens.

  3. Select List Links for the Subheader option. The Navigation Items List - Subheader page opens.

  4. Select Customize Menus. The Customize Links for Subheader page opens.

Customize Links for Subheader

  1. Select the desired Company Type and User Type, then click Go. The settings for the specified User Type display.

  2. Set the Include Language Preference? option:

  1. Click Update.

IMPORTANT: Alta UI Navigation does not support Current Session Language Selection.

CORS ACCESS CONTROL FOR REST API

Cross-Origin Resource Sharing (CORS) enables secure communication when using a browser-based programming language, such as JavaScript, to access content from another domain using HTTP requests.  Previously without CORS Headers, calls into CPQ REST endpoints from other domains in a browser context would be blocked.

In CPQ 18B, trusted origins can access CPQ REST services, and access-control headers can be included in CPQ REST responses. This enables applications in external domains to verify permissions on a CPQ site. CORS enables better access control for CPQ Cloud REST APIs when invoked by external applications by providing support for CORS headers to be included in REST responses.

This functionality is enabled by default. Customers wishing to enable CORS Headers support for external applications should file a Service Request to establish their white-listed trusted origins. The following table lists the supported CORS headers.

CORS Headers

Purpose

Access-Control-Allow-Origin

Contains a comma-separated list of trusted origins that a client application can access resources from.

For example: http://externaldomain.com

Note: An origin value must be provided for this header to enable CORS.

Access-Control-Max-Age

Specifies the duration of storing the results of a request in the preflight result cache.

The default value for caching preflight requests is 3600 seconds.

Access-Control-Allow-Methods

Contains a comma-separated list of permitted HTTP methods supported in a CPQ REST API request.

Default values for allowed methods are GET, POST, PUT, PATCH, Delete, and OPTIONS.

Access-Control-Allow-Headers

Contains a comma-separated list of permitted HTTP headers supported in a CPQ REST API request.

Default values for allowed headers are Accept, Accept-Encoding, Cache-Control, Content-MD5, Content-Type, If-Match, If-None-Match, Origin, User-Agent, X-HTTP-Method-Override, X-Requested-By.

Note: "Authorization" must be included in the list of allowed headers

For example: Accept, Accept-Encoding, Cache-Control, Authorization

Access-Control-Allow-Credentials

Specifies whether a client application can send user credentials with a request.

This option accepts two values:

True to enable sending credentials with the request

False, which is the default value, to disable sending credentials with the request

MIGRATION LOG ENHANCEMENTS FOR AUDIT COMPLIANCE

CPQ Cloud Release 18B delivers an audit compliance property for migration logs. This property allows customers to specify how long migration events are retained before deletion. When an audit compliance timeframe is specified, the delete option will not be available for events within the specified timeframe. The default setting for this property is blank, which allows the deletion of all the migration events prior to and including the current date. Customers must open a Service Request on My Oracle Support to establish and specify the duration of an audit compliance timeframe. The duration setting, which is specified in months, determines how long migration events are maintained before allowing deletion.

OVERCROWDED MODE ENHANCEMENTS

Overcrowded mode was introduced in CPQ Cloud 2017 R1 to keep environments running during extremely high loads. During Overcrowded mode, the timeout of idle sessions is reduced and the CPQ Cloud site temporarily prevents users, integrations, and BML URL access functions from creating new sessions to ensure active users can complete their Transactions. CPQ Cloud Release 18B provides SuperUser access during Overcrowded mode to enable site administrators to address performance issues.

CPQ Cloud Release 18B also adds a timestamp to notification emails that are sent when a site enters or exits Overcrowded mode. The timestamp, which corresponds to the site server time, allows administrators to identify the Overcrowded mode timeframe.

PERFORMANCE LOG ENHANCEMENTS FOR WEB SERVICES

CPQ Cloud Release 18B provides Performance Log enhancements to capture details for SOAP and REST API requests. Performance Logs will record all web service calls invoked from integrations, external applications, BML scripts, etc. All properties (except the Browser time) are populated with valid data for each request. The web service type (i.e. SOAP API or REST API) is listed in the Event Type column and action (e.g. getTransaction­­, _change_currency, etc.) is listed in the Action column.

RETAIN RECOMMENDED ITEM SELECTIONS DURING RECONFIGURATION

CPQ Cloud Release 18B provides the ability to retain Recommended Item selections during Reconfiguration. The Retain Selection of Optional Items on Reconfigure and the Select Recommended Items by Default Configuration options determine the selection of Recommended Items during Configuration and Reconfiguration.

Enable Retain Selection of Optional Items on Reconfigure

Complete the following steps to enable the Retain Selection of Optional Items on Reconfigure option:

  1. Navigate to the Admin Home Page

  2. Under Products, click Configuration Settings. The Configuration Options page opens.

  3. Set the Retain Selection of Optional Items on Reconfigure option to "Yes".

  4. Click Update.

Configuration Options Page

UPGRADE PROCESS EFFICIENCIES

Steps to Enable

No steps are required to enable this feature.

Differentiate

Pioneer the next generation selling platform using the following CPQ Cloud 18B features:

Rating/Pricing Engine

Companies use Rating/Pricing Engines to address increasing market requirements to sell products and services in a subscription model. The subscription model allows customers to manage a given product or service as a recurring or usage-based price item. The exact value for a starting or list price is derived by applying various pricing schemes such as flat fee, tiered, usage, overage, etc.

In Release 18B, CPQ Cloud expands the capabilities of the Customer Specific Pricing (CSP) profiles to support a wider range of pricing use cases. This is accomplished by enabling Pricing Profiles to be defined using additional attributes and advanced pricing functions, applying multiple Pricing Profiles to derive the list price for parts and lines, and supporting the ability to provide real-time pricing using RESTful web services.

To reflect these expanded capabilities the link on the Oracle CPQ Cloud Admin home page now appears as Rating/Pricing Engine as shown below.

Admin Home Page - Rating/Pricing Engine Link

The following platform enhancements provide added flexibility for customers to manage their process for deriving list pricing using CPQ Cloud Release 18B:

RATING/PRICING ENGINE OPTIONS

CPQ Cloud Release 18B introduces new Commerce and General Options to support the Rating/Pricing Engine. The new Rating/Pricing Engine features entail changes to the order of operations for pricing calculations that may impact pre-existing pricing setup. For this reason, the features may be most easily adopted in net new pricing applications.

Complete the following steps to set up the Rating/Pricing Engine options:

  1. Navigate to the Admin Home page.

  2. Under Commerce and Documents, click Commerce Settings. The Commerce Options page opens.

Commerce Options Page > Pricing Options

  1. Set the Commerce Pricing Behavior option. This option modifies the order of actions and formulas for line item updates.

IMPORTANT:  Switching pricing Version options may affect existing pricing and transactions. Oracle recommends thoroughly testing the impact of the new version before implementing the change into a production environment. Once Version 2 is enabled in a production environment, returning transactional data to Version 1 may require significant effort.

IMPORTANT: Release 18B introduces a new Commerce System Attribute ,"_price_calculation_info", used to store in JSON the details of the pricing calculation performed by an Advanced Discount Pricing Profile. This attribute is automatically available in the Commerce Subdocument Price Attribute Set and will be populated in Commerce if the Transfer Advanced Pricing Profiles JSON to Commerce option is selected.

  1. Set the Transfer Advanced Pricing Profiles JSON to Commerce option. This option determines if the Advanced Pricing Profile JSON information is sent to Commerce.

  1. Click Update. The Admin Home page opens.

  2. Under General, click General Site Options. The Options - General page opens.

Options - General Page > Pricing Profile Option

  1. Set the Apply only the first matching Pricing profile option. With the new support for multiple pricing profiles, administrators may choose how to apply these profiles at run-time. Either the first matching profile or all matching profiles will be applied based upon this setting.

  1. Click Update.

PRICING ATTRIBUTES

CPQ Cloud Release 18B supports additional Pricing Attributes in the CPQ Cloud pricing module to enable Rating/Pricing Engine features. In addition to the Account Name and Part Number available in prior releases, Commerce or Parts attributes can be used to define pricing profiles for deriving list prices.

The pricing module calculates prices for Configuration, Invocation, Commerce, Reconfigure, and Calculate Price REST API web services using the Rating/Pricing Engine Profiles and Rules. When creating a quote within CPQ Cloud, existing integration functionality can be used to send contract and subscription data to external applications such as Oracle Contracts Cloud. These applications invoke the Calculate Price REST API to retrieve pricing information from CPQ Cloud.

Administrators create Pricing Attributes and map source attributes in a Commerce process or in Part/Item data to be used in the Rating/Pricing Engine. After mapping, Pricing Attributes are available in defining Pricing Rules and Pricing Profiles and will automatically populate the values referenced in conditions and functions. As in previous releases, Pricing Rules are linked to applicable Pricing Profiles that apply prices to individual parts.

A new 'Attributes' tab has been added to the Rating/Pricing Engine for defining Pricing Attributes and their source mapping.

Create a Pricing Attribute

Complete the following steps to create a Pricing Attribute.

  1. Navigate to the Admin Home Page.

  2. Under the Products section, click Rating/Pricing Engine. The Product Pricing page opens.

  3. Click the Attributes tab.

  4. Click the + Add Attribute button in the left panel. The New Pricing Attribute dialog box appears.

New Pricing Attribute Dialog

  1. Enter a name in the Name field.

  2. The Variable Name field populates automatically. The Variable Name can be changed before saving. After saving, this field is read-only. Variable names can only contain alphanumeric characters and underscores.

  3. Select the Data Type.

  4. Select the Header Level option:

  1. Select the Array Type option.

  1. Enter a Description (if desired).

  2. Click Save.  The New Pricing Attribute dialog box closes and the Pricing Attribute appears under the Attributes tab.

Product Pricing Attributes Tab

  1. Select the Data Source from the drop-down menu.

  2. Select the appropriate attribute from the Mapping drop-down menu.

ADVANCED PRICING RULES

In prior releases, administrators could define the Account, Start Date, and End Date for Pricing Rules. CPQ Cloud Release 18B adds an Advanced Pricing Rule type, which allows administrators to define BML functions to define more flexible criteria for a Pricing Rule and to feed input values to the Rating/Pricing Engine. Advanced functions for Pricing Rules can reference only Main_Doc Pricing Attributes and must return TRUE or FALSE to indicate if the associated Pricing Profiles should be applied.

Create an Advanced Pricing Rule

Complete the following steps to add an Advanced Pricing Rule.

  1. Navigate to the Admin Home Page.

  2. Under the Products section, click Rating/Pricing Engine.  The Product Pricing page opens.

  3. Click the Rules tab.

  4. Click the + Add Rule button in the left panel.  The New Pricing Rule dialog box appears.

New Pricing Rule Dialog

  1. Enter a name in the Name field.

  2. The Variable Name field populates automatically. The Variable Name can be changed before saving. After saving, this field is read-only. Variable names can only contain alphanumeric characters and underscores.

  3. For the Selection Type option, select Advanced.

  4. Enter a Description (if desired).

  5. Click Save. The New Pricing Rule dialog box closes and the Pricing Rule appears under the Rules tab.

Product Pricing Rules Tab

  1. Click Advanced Function. The Select Attributes window opens.

  2. Select the applicable Pricing Attributes and Library Functions.

  3. Click Next. The BML Editor opens.

  4. Enter the applicable BML function.

For example:

  1. Click Save and Close.

PRICING PROFILE ENHANCEMENTS

In prior releases, administrators could define simple Pricing Profiles for a part/currency combination using discount types of Percent, Amount, and Absolute Price. CPQ Cloud Release 18B adds an Advanced discount type, which allows administrators to define simple conditions and add advanced BML functions for Pricing Profiles. The advanced BML functions return the following pricing items:

Create an Advanced Discount Type Pricing Profile

Complete the following steps to add an advanced BML function to Pricing Profiles.

  1. Navigate to the Admin Home Page.

  2. Under the Products section, click Rating/Pricing Engine. The Product Pricing page opens.

  3. Click the Profiles tab.

  4. Click the + Add Profile button in the left panel. The New Pricing Profile dialog box appears.

New Profile Dialog

  1. Enter a name in the Name field.

  2. The Variable Name field populates automatically. The Variable Name can be changed before saving. After saving, this field is read-only. Variable names can only contain alphanumeric characters and underscores.

  3. For the Discount Type option, select Advanced.

  4. Enter a Description (if desired).

  5. Click Save.  The New Pricing Profile dialog box closes and the Pricing Profile appears under the Profiles tab.

Product Pricing Profiles Tab

Pricing Profile Conditions

  1. Select the applicable Attribute Name from a dropdown list of the Pricing Attributes defined for this site.

  2. Select an Operator.

  3. Enter the desired Attribute Value.

  4. Click the  icon to add the condition to the Pricing Profile.

  5. Enter Row Grouping if applicable.

  6. Click Save.

  7. Repeat Step 10 through Step 15 to add additional conditions.

  8. Click Advanced Pricing. The Select Attributes window opens.

  9. Select the applicable Pricing Attributes, Special Parameters, and Library Functions.

  10. Click Next. The BML Editor opens.

  11. Enter the applicable BML function.

  12. Click Save and Close.

CALCULATE PRICE REST API

URI Endpoint Sample

Sample Request

Sample Response

INTERFACE CATALOG ENHANCEMENTS

The Calculate REST API supports the customization of pricing components contained in the Pricing Calculation Info JSON attribute. Customers can integrate the elements of this JSON attribute with external applications. The Interface Catalog enhancements enable administrators to upload the customer-specific definition for the Calculate Price REST API to the CPQ Interface Catalog.  This creates an accurate reflection of REST API pricing components for web service calls and component mapping such as that used in Oracle’s Integration Cloud Services (ICS).

Custom pricing component definitions are listed within the "profileCalculationInfo" component in the Calculate Price REST API. By defining the custom elements contained in the "profileCalculationInfo" attribute in the REST API metadata, consuming applications can interpret and use these elements to understand the pricing calculations performed by CPQ's Rating/Pricing Engine.

Define Custom Pricing Components for the Calculate Price REST API

Complete the following steps to upload the custom definition for the Calculate Price REST API to the CPQ Interface Catalog:

  1. Navigate to the Admin Home Page.

  2. Under Integration Platform, click Interface Catalogs.  The Interface Catalogs page opens.

Interface Catalogs Page

  1. Click Edit Custom Components. The Pricing Metadata Definition opens.

Pricing Metadata Definition

  1. Enter the custom definition in the profileCalculationInfo Definition field.

For example: The following definition adds pricing code, extended price, and description items to the Calculate Price REST API.

  1. Click Save.  The Pricing Metadata Definition is updated to reflect the custom definition.

PRICING MIGRATION

The Migration Center is the user interface where all migration takes place within CPQ Cloud. In CPQ Cloud Release 18B, "Pricing" displays as a migration component in the Content pane. Administrators can migrate pricing properties, attributes, custom schema components, profiles, and rules as independent entities and include pricing components in a migration package using the Migration Center functionality available in prior releases. In addition, administrators can view the granular differences between pricing components between the source and target sites.

Migration Center Pricing Details

Steps to Enable

Administrators must set up General Site Options and Commerce Options to enable the Rating/Pricing Engine.

Tips And Considerations

Consider the following tips when using the Rating Engine feature:

IMPORTANT: Switching pricing Version options may affect existing pricing and transactions. Oracle recommends thoroughly testing the impact of the new version before implementing the change into a production environment. Once Version 2 is enabled in a production environment, returning transactional data to Version 1 may require significant effort.

Key Resources

Deal Management Enhancements

CPQ Cloud's Deal Management provides robust tools for sales representatives using CPQ Cloud to drive profitability. The Deal Negotiation features guide CPQ Cloud sales representatives in achieving optimal prices and discounts for their customers using Price Score metrics, Last Price Paid, and a Deal Comparison analytic. The Win Probability feature employs machine learning technology to aid sales users in understanding their customers' price sensitivity in the quoting process. The Price Optimization feature also applies machine learning to maximize either margins or net revenue by predicting the optimal discount percentage for a Transaction.

As part of continuing improvements to Deal Management, the following enhancements are available in CPQ Cloud Release 18B:

AUTOMATIC SELECTION OF WIN PROBABILITY DRIVER ATTRIBUTES

In previous releases, administrators manually specified attributes to drive the machine learning for Win Probability analytics. However, administrators may not have insight to which attributes are the real predictor of a win. CPQ Cloud Release 18B provides administrators with an option for CPQ Cloud to utilize machine learning to automatically choose the attributes to be used in predicting Win Probability. In addition to the pre-existing behavior (now labeled 'Custom'), administrators may select a "Choose For Me" option, which uses numeric and non-numeric driver attributes in order to address use cases where other, non-pricing-related factors are key determinants of the likelihood that a quote will become a closed sale. For example, win probability may vary significantly for different industries or geographies independent of the discounts offered.

Administrators can also select attributes to be excluded from the automatic driver selection (i.e. Excluded Driver Attributes) in order to avoid circular logic or address other business requirements. For example, the Commerce Step for a Transaction may indicate that the Transaction has already been converted to a sales order. As a result, this attribute will likely be identified as a driver attribute, even though it is of no value in predicting the outcome of an 'in progress' transaction. Administrators can select numeric, non-numeric and the following system attributes for Excluded Driver Attributes: System Number of Step Transitions, System Transaction Author Currency Preference, System Transaction Author Language Preference, System Transaction Update Count, and System Transaction Author User Id.

After an administrator creates a Win Probability analytic, the Choose For Me option will display as the default selection for the Driver Selection menu. When Choose For Me is selected, the option to select a Primary Driver Attribute is not available, but administrators can add and select Excluded Driver Attributes.

Win Probability Driver Selection

IMPORTANT:  The Choose For Me Driver Selection option is only available for Win Probability analytics without Optimization, it is not available when the Win Probability type "with Optimization" option is selected. (i.e. Choose For Me is not available for Price Optimization analytics.)

IMPORTANT:  Win Probability analytics with Optimization automatically optimize a transaction discount percentage, therefore Primary Driver Attribute selection is not allowed.

IMPORTANT: However, customers can use the Choose For Me option to better inform their definition of Price Optimization analytics. The driver attributes selected by the Choose For Me option on a Win Probability analytic can be used as the Additional Driver Attributes in the definition of Price Optimization analytics.

After the Status Attribute and the Won Value are selected, the administrator initiates a training session to acquire driver attributes derived from machine learning.

USE MACHINE LEARNING TO SELECT WIN PROBABILITY DRIVER ATTRIBUTES

Complete the following steps to use machine learning to select driver attributes for a Win Probability analytic:

  1. Navigate to the Admin Home page.

  2. Under Commerce and Documents, click Process Definition. The Processes page opens.

  3. Next to the applicable process, select Analytics from the Navigation drop-down.

  4. Click List. The Analytics List page opens.

  5. Click Add. The Analytics Definition Editor page opens.

  6. Define the following Properties:

    1. Enter a name in the Name field. The Variable Name field populates automatically. The Variable Name can be changed before saving. After saving, this field is read-only. Variable names can only contain alphanumeric characters and underscores.

    2. Enter a Description (if desired).

    3. Select Win Probability from the Type drop-down.

    4. Select the main Commerce document from the Document drop-down.

    5. Enter an analytic title in the Title field.

  7. Click Next.

  8. Define the following Win Probability Settings:

    1. Select Choose For Me from the Driver Selection drop-down.

    2. Click Add Row to define Excluded Driver Attributes, if desired.

    3. Select the Status Attribute from the drop-down.

    4. Select the Won Value attribute from the drop-down.

    5. Select the Lost Value attribute from the drop-down, if desired.

  9. Click the Train tab. The Training History is displayed.

  10. Click the Train button.

After the training session is complete, the training session is listed in the Training History on the Analytics Definition Editor page under the Train tab.

Use the Refresh button to update the Training History results.

IMPORTANT: A minimum of thirty Transactions are required to complete a training session.

Training History Results

  1. Click the training session link. The Training Details page opens.

The Training Details page displays the Test, Accuracy, Train Accuracy, Won Records, Lost Records, Training Time, and Drivers Selected.

  1. Evaluate the training session results.

  2. Click Back, to return to the Training History.  Re-initiate training if the results are unacceptable.

  3. Click the Build tab.  The Driver Selection, Status Attribute, Won Value, and Lost Value attributes are now read-only.

IMPORTANT: To edit the Driver Selection, Status Attribute, Won Value, and Lost Value attributes following a successful training session, you can delete that training session and then editing is re-enabled for the attributes.

  1. Define the following Filters, (if desired):

    1. Select a date attribute from the Date Filter drop-down.

    2. Select a time period value from the Duration drop-down.

    3. Click Add Row to define Advanced Filters.

  2. Define the following Output values:

    1. Select a Commerce Modify-type action for the Win Probability Trigger Action.

    2. Select a Commerce attribute for the Win Probability Value Prediction Attribute.

  3. Click Update.

VIEW AUTOMATICALLY SELECTED DRIVER ATTRIBUTES FOR WIN PROBABILITY

The Training Details page is displayed when an administrator navigates to the Analytics Definition Editor Training tab and clicks a training session link. This page displays the Test Accuracy, Train Accuracy, the number of Won Records, the number of Lost Records (if the Lost attribute value is defined), and Training Time. If the "Choose For Me" option has been selected for this Win Probability analytic, the Drivers Selected by machine learning will also display as shown below:

Training Details Page - Details Tab

PREVIEW WIN PROBABILITY ANALYTICS GENERATED USING THE "CHOOSE FOR ME" OPTION

The Win Probability Analytic Preview allows administrators to preview how driver attributes impact the analytic before displaying the results in a Commerce Transaction. Beginning in CPQ Cloud Release 18B, the Win Probability Analytic Preview will also provide a preview for analytics that are generated using the drivers selected using the "Choose For Me" option.

IMPORTANT:  If the primary driver identified is not numeric, the Win Probability Analytics chart cannot be displayed and an error will display on the Training Details page Preview tab.

ADDITIONAL "CUSTOM" DRIVER ATTRIBUTES FOR WIN PROBABILITY

CPQ Cloud Release 18B enables the selection for the "Custom" Primary Driver Attribute from a broader set of options. Currency and Summation Commerce attributes, System Number of Step Transitions, and System Transaction Update Count attributes may also be selected as the Primary Driver Attribute. The System Number of Step Transitions and System Transaction Update Count system attributes can also be selected for the Primary Driver Attribute.

Administrators can also select the following system attributes for Additional Driver Attributes: System Number of Step Transitions, System Transaction Author Currency Preference, System Transaction Author Language Preference, System Transaction Update Count, and System Transaction Author User Id.

IMPORTANT:  Primary Driver Attribute selection is not available when using the Choose For Me option.

IMPORTANT:  The Primary Driver Attribute drop-down menu only displays the allowable numeric attributes.

CLONE DEAL MANAGEMENT ANALYTICS

CPQ Cloud Release 18B provides the ability to clone Win Probability, Price Optimization, or Deal Comparison scatterplot analytics. This functionality allows administrators to quickly define and preview alternative analytics to evaluate the results with differing inputs.

Complete the following steps to copy an analytic:

  1. Navigate to the Admin Home page.

  2. Under Commerce and Documents, click Process. The Processes page opens.

  3. Select Analytics from the Navigation menu, next to the applicable process.

  4. Click List. The Analytics List page opens.

  5. Select the checkbox next to the applicable analytic.

  6. Click Copy. The Analytics Definition Editor page opens.

  7. Update the analytic properties as desired.

  8. Initiate machine learning to train the new analytic.

  9. Preview the new analytic to analyze the results.

IMPORTANT: Training sessions and results, and analytic output actions and attributes are not copied as part of the cloning process.

MIGRATE DEAL MANAGEMENT ANALYTICS

The Migration Center is the user interface where all migration takes place within CPQ Cloud. Deal Management Analytics are displayed in the Analytics folder under the applicable Commerce process. Deal Management Analytics are migrated when the parent Commerce process is migrated.

Deal Management Analytics in Migration Center

Steps to Enable

The Deal Management enhancements are automatically available on CPQ Cloud 18B sites.

Key Resources

System Configuration Enhancements

System Configuration refers to the manner in which customers use CPQ Cloud to configure and bundle the product or set of products they wish to sell using a group of related models that together define an entire system. A system is a hierarchical arrangement of connected configurable models with a system root containing all of the other models. A Bill of Material (BOM) instance is used to represent a set of products being bought together on a Quote.

The following example illustrates a complex System Configuration with multiple inter-model dependencies. Assume a telecommunications provider wants to offer multiple bundled packages to their customers or Sales teams, which could then be sold to large apartment complexes or businesses. These bundles typically have several models with multiple options and restrictions, such as:

As part of continuing improvements to System Configuration, CPQ Cloud Release 18B enables the selection and migration of System Configuration attributes from other product families in advanced inter-model rules. These inter-model relationships can drive restrictions to define which selections can be made in each model. Such restrictions or recommendations help the end users (e.g. Sales, Self service, or resellers) accurately identify items for each configuration in context of the larger product set which is being sold to their customer.  This feature supports the following Configuration rules types: recommendations, constraints, hiding, pricing, Configuration flows, and BOM Mapping rules for conditions or actions, when applicable.

INTER-MODEL RULES WITH REFERENCES TO ATTRIBUTES IN OTHER PRODUCT FAMILIES

CPQ Cloud Release 18B enables administrators to create configuration rules that reference configuration attributes from different product families. The System Configuration folder is available when there is at least one root item defined in an active BOM Item Definition Table, and will be shown when an administrator selects Add Attributes from within an advanced BML function.

The System Configuration folder shows all available root items on the site. Upon expanding a folder, the model and its associated attributes are displayed. In prior releases, only the models within the same product family as the rule being defined had the Configurable Attributes folder. Administrators select attributes from the Configurable Attributes folder to populate the advanced BML function.

For example: The following image shows a Constraint Rule for a cable modem within the Internet model, that references the phoneServiceType attribute within the Phone model.

Constraint Rule with Inter-Model Attribute

IMPORTANT: Attribute values from BOM models will be empty until the BOM model is configured.

CROSS-PRODUCT FAMILY MIGRATION

CPQ Cloud Release 18B provides the ability to migrate Configuration rules that reference System Configuration attributes even if they do not exist on the target site. Upon opening a migrated Configuration rule with references to an attribute that does not exist on the current site, administrators are given a warning message stating a reference is missing. During Configuration, an empty result value is returned when a referenced attribute does not exist.

For example: The following image shows a warning message that is displayed when an administrator opens a migrated rule where the attribute does not exist on the current site.

Constraint Rule with Warning Message

Administrators can close the rule, but no changes to the rule can be saved until the reference is removed or the corresponding attribute exists on the current site. The warning message will change to an error message if the administrator attempts to validate or save a rule with a missing reference warning. Warning and error messages are also displayed in the BML Editor when the administrator views the advanced BML function.

For example: The following image shows a warning message that is displayed when an administrator attempts to validate or save the advanced BML function for a migrated rule where an attribute does not exist on the current site.

Edit BML Advanced Function with Error Message

Steps to Enable

The System Configuration enhancements are automatically available on CPQ Cloud 18B sites.

Tips And Considerations

Consider the following tips when using the CPQ Cloud 18B System Configuration enhancements:

Key Resources

Pre-Upgrade Considerations

KNOWN FUNCTIONALITY

In CPQ Cloud Release 18B, the Alta Transaction UI is disabled by default. Open a Service Request (SR) on My Oracle Support to have it enabled. If customers later choose to disable the Alta Transaction UI, they must open a SR on My Oracle Support to re-enable it.

When customers currently using the Alta Transaction UI upgrade to Release 18B, the Alta Transaction UI will remain enabled.

MIGRATION

When migrating from one site to another using the Migration Center, both sites must use the same major release. Content may only be migrated across minor releases within the same major release. Migration across major releases cannot occur.

          "Major release" = A major product release, e.g. Release 18B

          "Minor release" = A release update, e.g. Release 18B Update 1

RESOLVED KNOWN ISSUES

For information on bugs fixed in Release 18B, refer to the CPQ Cloud 18B Resolved Known Issues document available on My Oracle Support and the CPQ Cloud Online Help.

TRANSLATION

For some system-defined messages and components, strings were removed and others added in CPQ Cloud 18B. If you have created your own implementation-specific translations of system-defined strings, some of these strings may no longer appear. Other strings may appear in English. The strings appearing in English are new and require translation.

Most of these messages and components are on the Administration side of CPQ Cloud, but you should review both your end user and administration pages before deploying your updated installation to confirm that all strings appear in the desired language.

TRANSLATION STATUS

CPQ Cloud supports the consumption of both single and multi-byte character sets. Submit a service request on My Oracle Support to enable your site for a new language.

For the following languages, a translation of the CPQ Cloud user interface is available for both the platform and the reference application:

Post-Upgrade Considerations

Upgrade and test all test instances on Oracle CPQ Cloud 18B before upgrading to production.

BROWSER SUPPORT

CPQ Cloud supports all browser versions that meet the criteria of the Oracle Software Web Browser Support Policy.

Supported Browsers

Windows

Mac OS X

iOS

If an issue arises when using a supported browser, use a certified browser version until the delivery of a fix. Certified browsers are selected based on current market share and thoroughly tested to work with the current version's standard functionality.

Certified Browsers

Windows

IMPORTANT: Compatibility issues with the selected browsers may exist when sites contain additional JavaScript, alternate CSS, or other custom functionality. Customizations may require add-on work. Contact My Oracle Support to determine the availability of workarounds and minor fixes.

SALESFORCE MANAGED PACKAGE SUPPORT

Oracle officially supports the Spring 18 update of the Oracle Adapter for Salesforce Lightning (the Salesforce Adapter) and version 7.2 of the oracle CPQ Commerce Integration (the Managed Package). Previous versions of these packages are expected to continue to work, but Oracle will not address new issues that arise. We strongly encourage customers to upgrade to a supported version.

TRAINING

Please refer to the release documentation for all versions between your current version and the version to which you are upgrading to see all new functionality, resolved known issues, and functional known issues. 

Refer to the CPQ Cloud Online Help to become familiar with the new features introduced in Oracle CPQ Cloud 18B. For additional help, see My Oracle Support.

Verify any information not explicitly mentioned in this document as supported by the software against the product help for Oracle CPQ Cloud 18B or the Oracle CPQ Cloud Consulting team.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

For more information on Oracle CPQ Cloud, visit the Oracle CPQ Cloud documentation site.

DISCLAIMER

The details in this document are provided for high-level informational purposes only and are not intended to function as a specification or to replace the Online Help. Upgrading to a subsequent release may require the re-deployment of Commerce Processes, Configuration, or global function settings. Modifications to integration XSL files or APIs may also be required.