How to estimate the size of a model

[margauxplet]

Hello, I would like to find an app to estimate the size of a model

I can't find it on the App Anaplan Agile

THank you for your help 

[andre.lie]

Hi @margauxplet , this video link might be useful in estimating a model size. I am not sure if there is an app for this.

https://community.anaplan.com/t5/On-Demand-Courses/Model-Size-and-Dimensionality/ta-p/63606

[JaredDolich]

@margauxplet 

Great question because sizing is art as well as science. In my experience I have found that addressing the largest lists and modules are what will get you closest to the actual size. Here's a template I use below. Oh, and remember... estimate the size of the lists as well as the modules. You'd be surprised how much space lists take. Each list item takes 500 Bytes as overhead + the length of the text! Key point: Don't over analyze. As you can see below the P7 SKU List and any associated module will determine the size of this module. So focus on the biggest lists and the respective modules that use them.

[LouiseBourgonjon]

@JaredDolich could you share the tooling template as an Excel file?

In this way, we can see the formulas which are behind.

I have been trying to understand how you come to the total of 66196490 cells, but it does not seem to correspond with the total of rows for lists and modules.

Which conversion do you use to go from cells to Mbytes?

Thank you!

[M.Kierepka]

Hi @LouiseBourgonjon,

Generally, conversion from cells to space depend on format of a line item (or list property):

• TEXT: 8 bytes per cell (+ 2 bytes per character, but I believe this is hidden)
• NUMBER: 8 bytes per cell
• BOOLEAN: 1 byte per cell
• LIST/DATE/TIME PERIOD: 4 bytes per cell
• NO DATA: 0 bytes per cell

Remember that 1024 bytes is 1 KB, 1024 KB is 1 MB, and 1024 MB is 1 GB.
Also, each list member adds 500 bytes.

[ben_speight]

Boolean cells require 1 byte each. Text cells are fixed at 8 bytes, regardless of content. Similarly list items use 500 bytes regardless of name/code length.

[LouiseBourgonjon]

thank you all, I managed to build my own version of the template

[aerodriguezv]

Hi Louise, hope you're doing fine. Do you mind sharing the template for calculation. I'm having some discrepancies regarding the actual model size (59 GB) vs. using the approach of 1,000,000,000 = 9.3 GB, the model has 8.5 billion cells that value the size at 78 GB.

Thanls!

[LouiseBourgonjon]

Hi @aerodriguezv ,

I have attached the template which I created. Note that this has not been validated by Anaplan.

It would be nice if it could be validated by Anaplan. @JaredDolich or @Misbah ?

[Misbah]

@LouiseBourgonjon 

First of all we are not from Anaplan, so our vetting it doesn't mean Anaplan doing it 🙂

To me I believe it is extremely tough to calculate the model size in the design phase. There are so many nuances to it - Dimensions including Native Time, Native Versions, Switchover, Formats of line items, number of list items etc. However we can still give a ball park figure to the clients based on the experience from prior implementations and little bit of calculations based of the above information provided. 

I am not sure if item of Native Time or Native Version takes 500 bytes of space as well - highly unlikely. If that was the case then without using Time as a dimension in the module we could see model size going up based on the number of time periods that we have set in the backend, which is not the case - atleast I have not seen that.

Also Number of Text Characters in any Text Formatted line item also drives the model size but you won't see it in the front end. Your may see model being 50 GB in the front end but in the backend it may be more than 500 GB due to excessive usage of Text formatted lines in the model - this reduces the performance but it doesn't add up to your calculations.

Switchover is another area where it gets tricky - any switchover cell doesn't add up to the total size.

Hope that was helpful

Misbah
MIZ LOGIX