This week we’re announcing a major update to EmcienScan. Versions 1.3 and 1.4 made it easy for users to load data or connect to a database and discover the relationships and groups that define a given dataset. Friday’s release of Scan 1.5 includes updates that will be transformational.

The latest improvements add much more functionality:

  • Enhanced Data profiling, showing users even more of what’s in their data
  • The ability to scan collections of files at once to make monitoring database quality easier
  • Extensive Filtering Options from the home page, allowing the user to easily make sense of hundreds of columns
  • Outlier and Surprising Data Point Detection, locating values in both numeric and categorical columns that point to dirty or noteworthy data
  • A Rapidly Growing List of Database Connectors, making it easier for users to connect to their data
  • Significant UI Enhancements, increasing usability and decreasing the time to get to answers

…but those aren’t even the most exciting thing about this release:

The addition of APIs allow the application to run autonomously, taking EmcienScan from an end-user data discovery tool to an embedded enterprise application that enables data users across the enterprise.

With the new database connectors and APIs, discovery and profiling automation become part of the existing data infrastructure. Instead of requiring users to connect to data, the new Scan leverages APIs to scan files, tables, views, and even collections of scans, automatically. This persistent scanning allows users to schedule repeated scans and watch data change through time. When the connected strength, distribution, or anomalies shift suddenly, the user will be alerted.

EmcienScan becomes the entry point for understanding enterprise data. Instead of querying the enterprise data warehouse or loading a file into a BI reporting tool, Scan is the fastest way to connect users with the value in their data.