Classic Excel Add-in in Windows 7

Since my post on how to install the Essbase stack on Windows 7, I have had a few people tell me that the classic Essbase add-in doesn't work on Windows 7.  We took a look at the issue and found that the classic add-in now needs modification to three environment variables instead of two.  The classic add-in has always required two environment variables:

• ARBORPATH - Set to the Essbase home directory (ex. C:\Hyperion\products\Essbase\EssbaseClient)
• PATH - Set to %ARBORPATH%\bin

The add-in now requires a third environment variable which was not properly setup by the installer on Windows 7:

• ESSBASEPATH - Set to the same directory as ARBORPATH.

I don't know for sure when (or why) they added this new environment variable, but in the cases we have worked with, if manually add the variable to your system (and, perhaps, reboot afterwards), the classic add-in should work for you.