Biostatistics teams rarely have time to think about infrastructure. Analysis timelines are tight, submission dates hold firm, and the statistical computing environment (SCE) is expected to simply work. Over time though, even a well-run environment builds up friction: software ages out of support, data gets copied between systems that don’t talk to each other, one analysis server ends up doing too many jobs at once, among other pain points. Accel Apollo is our response to those pressures, and it’s the most significant update we’ve made to Accel.
Aging software creates risk you can’t ignore
Every component in an statistical computing environment has a support window, and most teams only notice when one closes. Explaining to a sponsor or auditor that a validated environment runs an unsupported operating system or an aging SAS release is hard. Re-validating those pieces one at a time is slow, requires engaging with IT, and it usually lands in the middle of a study. Forced upgrades arrive on someone else’s deadline, and the testing burden falls on IT, who are usually either too busy or ill-equipped for validation requirements.
Apollo resets the environment to a supported baseline in one step. The release ships with Windows Server 2025, SAS 9.4 M9, R 4.5.2, Python 3.13.7, and other updated components. Legacy systems get current software without a patchwork of individual upgrades.
Windows and Linux teams keep moving data by hand
Posit’s tools for R and Python, including Workbench, Connect, and Package Manager, run on Linux. Most biostatistics groups do much of their work on Windows. The result is a familiar routine: an analyst exports data from one system, moves it to another, runs the processing, and copies the results back. Each handoff adds time and creates another copy of the data. Those copies raise questions nobody wants to answer during a submission. Which version was reviewed? Who made the last change, and from where?
Apollo’s shared storage, built on Amazon FSx for NetApp ONTAP, connects Windows and Linux to a single data location. Both environments work from the same files, so the copying step goes away. Posit products are available as a standard add-on, so R and Python publishing and package management can sit alongside the SAS work the team already does.
Waiting on IT for routine requests
A file deleted by mistake shouldn’t require a ticket and a day of waiting; neither should a forgotten password. These small requests stack up, and each one pulls IT staff away from the work that needs them most. Remote access rules that require a VPN add friction for anyone working from home or traveling.
Apollo handles more of this without intervention. The storage layer supports self-serve file restore. Users can reset their own passwords without raising a support request, and the environment no longer requires a VPN to connect.
One server, too many jobs
Many teams run SAS, R, and everyday office work on the same analysis server. Every open spreadsheet, remote desktop session, and browser tab draws on the processing power that a long-running SAS program needs. When a big job starts, the whole team feels it. Analysts wait, deadlines tighten, and someone eventually asks for a bigger server, which is expensive and only moves the problem. When performance drops, nobody can tell right away whether a runaway job or a crowded desktop session is the cause.
Apollo gives each user an AWS WorkSpace instead of a direct login to the server. Microsoft Office, Adobe, and the analytical clients now run on that workspace. The analysis server keeps its processing power for SAS and R programs and can take on more analysis load. Heavy jobs stop competing with routine office work.
Setting up R and Python takes time away from analysis
Programmers often spend their first days assembling tools: installing an editor, finding the right packages, and confirming everything works together. That time doesn’t go toward the protocol, the tables, or the questions the sponsor is asking.
Apollo ships with VS Code, a full integrated development statistical computing environment for R and Python, and an extensive set of R packages already installed. Programmers can start on analysis as soon as they log in.
Version control and audit trails that can keep up
When analysis code changes across several people and several months, teams need to know what changed and why. Ad hoc version control gets messy quickly, and in a regulated setting a messy history is a liability. Audits tend to arrive with little warning. When an auditor asks about a particular change, the answer should take minutes, not an afternoon of digging.
Apollo includes a commercial version control stack, VisualSVN, by default. VisualSVN provides a more robust foundation than the open-source setup it replaces. Aspire Audit now captures more event types, so teams can search for the specific events they need instead of interpolating from other events.
Rigid SCEs that can’t grow with the team
Small and mid-sized teams often outgrow their statistical computing environment faster than expected, while larger teams face their own issues. A new therapeutic area brings new tools, and a new collaborator needs a package the environment doesn’t include. If the platform can’t adapt, teams rely on workarounds, and validation gaps tend to appear there. Some groups stand up a second environment for the new work, doubling the maintenance and validation effort.
Apollo offers multiple software bundles and add-ons, plus the flexibility to add customer-requested software. Accel is pre-validated, industry-ready, and deployable in weeks, so the environment can grow without sacrificing its validated baseline.
Built for how teams actually work
Most biostatistics teams no longer work in one language. SAS, R, and Python often run side by side on the same studies and supporting that mix is a real operational burden. Staff who maintain these environments end up translating between two worlds, and that work rarely appears in anyone’s budget. Apollo is built around the mix as it exists today, so teams keep using the tools they know while the platform underneath becomes easier to maintain.
See what Accel Apollo can do for your team. Request a demo to walk through the new architecture with our team, or speak to our experts about what an upgrade would mean for your current environment. And don’t forget to follow us on LinkedIn!
