Metabase vs Amazon QuickSight: A Comparative Analysis
Introduction
Choosing the right business intelligence tool is crucial for data-driven decision-making. Metabase and Amazon Quicksight are two prominent players in the BI tool market, each with unique features and capabilities.
This comparison will delve into the strengths and limitations of both platforms to assist you in selecting the most suitable option for your analytics needs.
Additionally, we'll explore how Sourcetable offers a contemporary, spreadsheet-like interface that effortlessly integrates with your data, serving as an innovative alternative to Metabase or Amazon Quicksight for tasks like reporting and data analytics.
What is Metabase?
Metabase is an analytics tool designed with a user-friendly UX, making it accessible to a wide range of users. It allows connection to over 20 data sources directly, facilitating queries without the need for extracts.
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Metabase is an analytics tool designed with a user-friendly UX, making it accessible to a wide range of users. It allows connection to over 20 data sources directly, facilitating queries without the need for extracts.
It provides various service tiers including a free open-source option, a pay-as-you-go Pro plan, and a fully managed hosted plan. Metabase also includes single sign-on capabilities, extensive permissions, auditing features, and embedded analytics.
Compliance with GDPR is integrated into its system, ensuring data protection for users. Metabase's scalability is reflected in its Enterprise plan, suitable for larger organizations. Trusted by over 50,000 companies, it also supports docker deployment for ease of installation.
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Key Features
- User-friendly interface
- Connects to multiple data sources
- Queries without extracts
- Free open-source tier
- Pro and Enterprise plans
- Hosted plan available
- Single sign-on
- Permissions and auditing
- Embedded analytics
- GDPR compliant
- Trusted by numerous companies
- Docker deployment option
What is Amazon QuickSight?
Amazon QuickSight is a fully managed business intelligence service that delivers insights and combines data from various sources for organizational use. It operates globally and provides connections to data in the cloud, offering a secure environment for business analytics.
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Amazon QuickSight is a fully managed business intelligence service that delivers insights and combines data from various sources for organizational use. It operates globally and provides connections to data in the cloud, offering a secure environment for business analytics.
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Key Features
- Enterprise-grade security with built-in redundancy
- User-management tools for simplified access management
- SPICE in-memory engine for fast response times
- Low total cost of ownership (TCO)
- Collaborative analytics and dashboard creation
- Automatic data insights, forecasts, outlier detection, and trend analysis
- Translation of data into narratives for ease of understanding
- Embedding capabilities for analytics and dashboards
- Multitenancy support for value-added resellers
- Scripting of dashboard templates for customization
- Enhanced data import capacity and refresh rates
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Security and Management
Amazon QuickSight ensures data safety with extra security features and simplifies user access with shared and personal folders.
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Analytical Capabilities
The service supports creating and managing dashboards, controlling dashboard features, and enables larger data imports as well as more frequent data refreshes.
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Metabase Key Features
Scalability and Self-Service Analytics |
Metabase provides robust features for organizations to scale and deliver self-service internal or embedded analytics. These features cater to the growing needs of businesses and enhance user engagement with data. |
Authentication Options |
Paid plans offer advanced authentication methods, including SAML and JWT, ensuring secure access. Google Sign-In supports multiple domain authentication, enhancing security and user management. |
Enhanced Permissions |
Data sandboxing allows for detailed row and column-level permissions. Additional permissions on paid plans include block, SQL snippet folder, application, download, connection impersonation, database management, and table metadata management permissions. Group managers facilitate the management of people and groups. |
Embedding and Customization |
Interactive embedding features enable the integration of Metabase within applications. Users can embed the entire Metabase app and customize its appearance to match the branding of the host app. |
Dashboard Subscriptions and Alerts |
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Content Moderation and Caching Controls |
Content moderation tools enable oversight of shared data. Advanced caching controls and per-question caching settings optimize performance, ensuring efficient data delivery. |
Data Portability |
Metabase supports the export of application data, facilitating the migration and setup of new instances, thus ensuring continuity and ease of expansion. |
Amazon Quicksight Features
Browser Support |
Amazon Quicksight is compatible with multiple web browsers, ensuring accessibility for users on various platforms. AWS provided support for Internet Explorer until July 31, 2022. |
Metabase Pro Advantages for Business Intelligence
Enhanced Data Access Control
Metabase Pro provides advanced permissions, allowing for granular control over data access. With row-level and column-level permissions, businesses can fine-tune who can see and interact with specific data, ensuring security and compliance.
Customized Data Analytics
Row filtering in Metabase Pro enables tailored analytics experiences, highlighting relevant data for different users or teams. This feature streamlines reporting and enhances the decision-making process.
Embedding and Integration
The ability to embed charts, dashboards, or the entire Metabase interface into other applications facilitates seamless integration with existing business workflows, promoting data-driven culture across the organization.
Branding and Personalization
Metabase Pro's white-labeling feature allows businesses to customize the look and feel of their analytics tools, aligning with brand identity and providing a consistent user experience.
Dedicated Support
A world-class success team provides technical support along with onboarding and offboarding assistance, ensuring smooth operation and quick resolution of any issues encountered.
Operational Efficiency
With features like usage analytics, subscriptions and alerts, and content caching, Metabase Pro enhances the efficiency of BI tasks by automating routine processes and improving system performance.
Advanced Configuration and Management
Businesses can export configurations as YAML files, sync multiple environments, and create templates from settings files, simplifying the management of complex BI ecosystems.
Impersonation and Role-Based Permissions
Metabase Pro supports role-based permissions with connection impersonation, providing enhanced security and ensuring that users access data in a manner consistent with their organizational role.
Disadvantages of Using Metabase for Business Intelligence
Complex Queries and Data Linking
Linking data for complex queries in Metabase is cumbersome, posing a challenge for users who need to perform advanced data analysis.
Performance Issues
Metabase experiences slowdowns with concurrent usage by multiple team members, which can impede productivity in collaborative environments.
Versioning and Data Governance
The absence of code versioning in Metabase limits its utility for tracking changes over time, while its data governance capabilities are restricted.
Software Updates and Maintenance
Users find Metabase challenging to update, which may lead to longer periods of downtime or security vulnerabilities if not managed properly.
Dashboard Creation and Database Joining
The platform is not optimized for creating dashboards or joining different databases, limiting its effectiveness as a comprehensive BI tool.
Handling Large Data Volumes
Metabase struggles with large data loads, exhibiting significant delays and latency which can affect real-time decision-making.
Report Loading and Data Rendering
Reports often take a long time to load and data can be slow to render, reducing efficiency in data-driven environments.
Customization and Integration Limitations
Frequently Asked Questions About Metabase
How can I use the trend widget in Metabase?
You can use the trend widget in Metabase to display data trends over time and filter the results by date.
What should I do if I encounter a 550 5.7.60 SMTP error in Metabase?
If you encounter a 550 5.7.60 SMTP error in Metabase, you should check your SMTP setup as this error can occur due to misconfiguration.
Can Metabase be used to display comments on Postgres tables?
Yes, Metabase can be used to display comments on Postgres tables.
Is it possible to edit data in Snowflake or Athena through Metabase?
No, Metabase does not allow editing of data in Snowflake and Athena.
What type of license does Metabase use?
Metabase uses the AGPL license.
Use Cases for Metabase
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Bringing company-wide transparency to customer care
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Helping teams get insights from their data
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Transforming data analysis
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Embedding analytics in SaaS platforms
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Facilitating data-driven decision-making
Advantages of Amazon QuickSight for Business Intelligence
Cost-Effectiveness and Scalability
Amazon QuickSight serves as a cost-effective Business Intelligence (BI) tool within the AWS ecosystem. Its high scalability allows it to cater to business needs of varying sizes, from small-scale operations to enterprises with tens of thousands of users.
Performance and Interactivity
With its fast performance, Amazon QuickSight enables rapid data analysis. The platform is extremely interactive, allowing for intuitive data visualization and self-service analytics, which are essential for timely business decision-making.
Data Handling and Accessibility
Amazon QuickSight's ability to handle multiple data sources simplifies the consolidation of information. Its accessibility across multiple devices ensures that users can engage with their data and perform independent analyses from anywhere.
Business Application and Independence
This BI tool is versatile across several business domains, making it a handy resource for business owners. It allows users to independently measure and track business metrics, fostering a culture of data-driven decision-making.
Disadvantages of Using Amazon Quicksight for Business Intelligence
Limited Data Modeling Capabilities
Amazon Quicksight's support for complex data modeling in dashboards is lacking, posing challenges for users who need to perform intricate data manipulations within their BI platform.
Dataset Limitations
Users face unusual constraints when working with child datasets derived from datasets with Row-Level Security (RLSS) and when creating and loading datasets, which can hinder efficient data management.
Restricted Dataset Refresh Options
The platform does not offer flexible options for refreshing datasets from the graphical user interface, limiting the ease of maintaining up-to-date data for reporting and analysis.
Advanced Functionality Constraints
Advanced features in dashboards are limited, which can restrict the ability to create sophisticated, interactive reports and analytics.
Quality Control Issues
Amazon Quicksight exhibits a higher number of bugs and oversights than expected, potentially affecting the reliability and user experience of the service.
Lack of Environment Staging
The absence of support for a development, quality assurance, and production (Dev/QA/Prod) environment framework complicates the process of testing and deploying reports and dashboards in a controlled manner.
Inadequate Folder Structure
The folder system in Quicksight does not represent true folders, which can lead to organizational difficulties and inefficiencies in managing BI assets.
Version Control Challenges
There is no straightforward mechanism for version control, making it challenging to track and revert changes in the BI content over time.
Frequently Asked Questions About Amazon Quicksight
What browsers are supported by Amazon Quicksight?
Amazon Quicksight supports Chrome, Firefox, Edge, and Safari.
Can I use Internet Explorer to access Amazon Quicksight?
No, AWS support for Internet Explorer ended on 07/31/2022.
Use Cases for Amazon Quicksight
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Making reliable forecasts
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Identifying outliers
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Finding hidden trends with machine learning
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Creating and sharing interactive dashboards
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Combining and analyzing data from various sources
Why Sourcetable is the Superior Choice for Business Intelligence
Sourcetable offers a streamlined solution for business intelligence by integrating data across various services into an intuitive spreadsheet-like interface. This simplification of reporting and analytics sets Sourcetable apart as a superior alternative to Metabase and Amazon Quicksight.
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Sourcetable offers a streamlined solution for business intelligence by integrating data across various services into an intuitive spreadsheet-like interface. This simplification of reporting and analytics sets Sourcetable apart as a superior alternative to Metabase and Amazon Quicksight.
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Unified Data Integration
Sourcetable excels in synchronizing data from multiple sources, eliminating the need to connect to over 20 different data sources individually, a complexity often encountered with Metabase.
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User-Friendly Interface
While Metabase is recognized for its friendly UX, Sourcetable further simplifies the user experience by offering a familiar spreadsheet format, making it an accessible choice for users of all skill levels.
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Efficient Data Management
Sourcetable's seamless data sync and management surpass the need for separate tools for analytics, reporting, and business intelligence, providing a comprehensive all-in-one platform that outperforms the segmented offerings of Metabase and Amazon Quicksight.
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Streamlined Reporting
The spreadsheet-like interface of Sourcetable allows for quick and efficient reporting, a stark contrast to the multi-step processes found in Metabase, which can be more time-consuming and less intuitive for end-users.
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Enhanced Collaboration
Sourcetable facilitates better collaboration by allowing teams to work together within a single, unified interface, as opposed to navigating through the various tiers and plans of Metabase and Amazon Quicksight.
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Comparing Metabase and Amazon QuickSight
Business Intelligence Capabilities
Both Metabase and Amazon QuickSight serve as business intelligence tools. They enable companies to perform analytics and create dashboards for data visualization.
Self-Service Analytics
Metabase and Amazon QuickSight offer self-service analytics, allowing non-technical users to explore data and glean insights without extensive technical expertise.
User-Friendly Interface
Each platform boasts a user-friendly interface, which simplifies the process of querying data, generating reports, and sharing insights across organizations.
Multi-Data Source Connectivity
Both tools can connect to various data sources, including databases and data warehouses, facilitating comprehensive data analysis within their environments.
Deployment Options
Metabase and Amazon QuickSight provide multiple deployment options. Metabase is available as an open-source tool and on Metabase Cloud, while Amazon QuickSight is cloud-native with AWS.
Embedded Analytics
Both platforms allow for the embedding of analytics into other applications, making it possible to integrate data visualizations directly into customer-facing products.
Security and Compliance
Metabase and Amazon QuickSight emphasize security and privacy, with compliance features such as SOC 2 Type II and GDPR to ensure data protection.
Metabase vs Amazon QuickSight
Deployment Options
Metabase offers flexibility in deployment, with options for a cloud-hosted solution called Metabase Cloud, an open-source deployment, or using Docker. On the other hand, Amazon QuickSight is primarily a cloud-based service integrated within the AWS ecosystem.
User Interface and Experience
Metabase is known for its user-friendly and intuitive interface, which is designed for non-technical users to create dashboards and analytics easily. Amazon QuickSight also provides a user-friendly interface, but Metabase is often praised for its simplicity and speed of setup.
Open Source Availability
Metabase is available in a free open-source tier, allowing users to explore its full capabilities without any cost. Amazon QuickSight does not offer an open-source version, as it is a proprietary AWS service.
Data Source Connectivity
Both Metabase and Amazon QuickSight can connect to a variety of data sources. Metabase can connect to over 20 data sources, including SQL databases and data warehouses, without requiring data extracts. Amazon QuickSight also connects to many data sources, with a seamless integration into AWS services.
Embedding Analytics
Metabase allows embedding of analytics into other applications easily and without code, offering iframe or JWT-signed embeds. Amazon QuickSight also supports embedding, but with different integration methods, possibly requiring deeper AWS knowledge.
Pricing Structure
Metabase has a pay-as-you-go Pro plan and a free open-source tier, providing a flexible cost structure for different company sizes. Amazon QuickSight uses a pay-per-session pricing model, which may be beneficial for occasional use but potentially costly for frequent access.
Compliance and Security
Metabase complies with SOC 2 Type II and GDPR, offering enterprise-grade security and compliance. Amazon QuickSight also provides strong security features, being part of the AWS suite, which is known for its comprehensive compliance certifications.
Community and Support
As an open-source tool, Metabase has a community-driven support system, with the option for paid support on higher tiers. Amazon QuickSight, as part of AWS, offers support plans that can be added to the user's AWS support tier.
Metabase vs Amazon Quicksight vs Sourcetable
Metabase Overview
Metabase is a user-friendly business intelligence tool designed for self-service analytics. It allows users to create dashboards and reports, explore data, and connect to a variety of data sources including SQL databases, data warehouses, and production databases. Metabase supports over 20 different data sources and offers a visual query builder, making it accessible for non-technical users. It is available in free open-source, Pro, and Enterprise tiers, with over 50,000 companies using it. Metabase complies with SOC 2 Type II and GDPR, emphasizing security and privacy.
Amazon Quicksight Overview
Amazon Quicksight is a scalable business intelligence service by AWS for building visualizations, performing ad-hoc analysis, and quickly getting business insights from data. It integrates seamlessly with AWS data services and is designed to be easy to use for all skill levels. Quicksight provides features such as ML Insights, pay-per-session pricing, and serverless architecture. It is suitable for enterprises already utilizing AWS infrastructure and looking for deep integration with AWS services.
Sourcetable Overview
Sourcetable is a spreadsheet-like tool for business intelligence and analytics that combines data from various sources into a single platform. Users can manipulate and visualize data similar to traditional spreadsheet applications but with the added capability of handling larger data sets and more complex operations. Sourcetable focuses on simplifying data collaboration and management without the need for advanced technical skills.
Comparison
Contrast
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Frequently Asked Questions About Sourcetable
What is Sourcetable and who is it for?
Sourcetable is a spreadsheet application that replaces workflows typically done in Excel, Google Sheets, and Business Intelligence tools. It's designed for growth teams, business operations folks, and anyone needing to centralize, analyze, and model data that updates over time.
Do I need to know how to code to use Sourcetable?
No, Sourcetable does not require any coding to use.
How does Sourcetable sync data?
Sourcetable syncs data from over 100 applications and most databases, updating every 15 minutes on the regular plan and every 5 minutes on the pro plan.
What are the pricing plans for Sourcetable?
Sourcetable costs $50 per month for the starter plan and $250 per month for the pro plan. Additional seats cost $20 per month each.
Is there a trial period for Sourcetable?
Yes, all plans have a 14-day free trial period.
Metabase Pricing Overview
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Starter Plan
Metabase offers a Starter plan at $85/month, including 5 users. Each additional user costs $5/month. Annual billing provides a 10% discount, with a yearly cost of $918.
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Pro Plan
The Pro plan is priced at $500/month, covering 10 users. Extra users can be added for $10/month each. Opting for annual billing affords a 10% discount, setting the yearly rate at $5400.
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Enterprise Plan
Custom pricing applies to the Enterprise plan with a starting rate of $15,000/year per user. The cost varies based on user count and specific client needs.
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Open Source Plan
Metabase also provides an Open Source plan, which is available at no cost.
Amazon Quicksight Pricing
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Paginated Reports
Quicksight offers paginated reports at a fixed monthly rate of $500.
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Session Pricing
Sessions are priced at $0.30 each, with a cap of $5 per month.
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Alerts Cost
- Cost per 1000 metrics evaluated: $0.50.
- Cost per metric evaluated: $0.0005.
User Reviews of Metabase
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Overall Ratings and Alternatives
Metabase has received an overall rating of 4.5 out of 5. It is often compared to Tableau and Microsoft Power BI, which are considered its top alternatives.
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Usability
Users commend Metabase for its ease of use, which has earned a perfect 5.0 rating. The platform is particularly praised for being accessible to non-technical users and for having a user-friendly interface.
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Functionality
Reviewers appreciate the ability to build dashboards and analyze data with Metabase. The tool has also received a 5.0 rating for its features, including integration with SQL and Google Analytics, and its capability to track KPIs.
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Performance
Some users have noted performance issues, stating that Metabase can be slow with many concurrent users and may experience significant delays and latency with larger data sets. Reports of the platform being buggy and slow in rendering data have also been noted.
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Customer Service and Value
Metabase is applauded for its customer service, with reviewers giving it a 5.0 rating. It is also considered inexpensive, offering good value for money.
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Technical Aspects and Limitations
Despite its ease of setup and deployment, some users report difficulties due to the tool being written in CoffeeScript, which also makes it challenging to contribute to. Additionally, it does not allow for joins between different databases and requires non-trivial configuration to run in open source mode.
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Data Security and Self-Hosting
Users note that Metabase excels in data security and integrity. It also provides a self-hosted version that is available for free.
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Reports and Analytics
Reviewers highlight Metabase's effectiveness for data visualization exercises and self-service analytics. However, issues with loading or downloading reports have been reported by some.
Amazon Quicksight User Reviews
Amazon Quicksight users have noted several points of feedback regarding the platform's functionality and limitations. These insights are derived from actual user experiences and reviews.
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Amazon Quicksight users have noted several points of feedback regarding the platform's functionality and limitations. These insights are derived from actual user experiences and reviews.
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Dataset Capacity
Users highlight that Quicksight allows for substantial dataset sizes, up to 1 TB, catering to large-scale data analysis needs.
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Data Modeling Capabilities
Reviews point out that unlike some competitors, such as PowerBI, Quicksight lacks a robust data model, which may impact users accustomed to that feature.
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SPICE Dataset Limitations
- Creating child SPICE datasets from SPICE datasets with Row-Level Security (RLSS) is limited, which could affect data management strategies.
- There are noted constraints on how frequently datasets can be refreshed, potentially affecting the timeliness of data analysis.
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Environment Management
Limited capabilities in setting up distinct development, quality assurance, and production environments are a concern among users, impacting deployment workflows.
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Dashboard Organization
The platform's constraints on using folders to organize dashboards have been mentioned, which may pose challenges for users with numerous dashboards to manage.
These reviews are sourced from user experiences and do not come from marketing material. They reflect the practical considerations of using Amazon Quicksight for data analysis and visualization.
Conclusion
In summary, both Metabase and Amazon Quicksight offer unique features for business intelligence that cater to different user needs. Metabase is known for its user-friendly interface and flexible setup options, while Amazon Quicksight excels in its integration with AWS services and scalability.
For users seeking a more straightforward approach to business intelligence, Sourcetable may be the preferred option. It streamlines the process by synchronizing data in real-time across various services into a familiar spreadsheet interface, making it accessible and easy to manage.
Try Sourcetable
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