IBM Cognos 8

IBM Cognos Connection

Version 8.4.1

User Guide
Product Information
This document applies to IBM Cognos 8 Version 8.4.1 and may also apply to subsequent releases. To check for newer versions of this document,
visit the IBM Cognos Information Centers (http://publib.boulder.ibm.com/infocenter/cogic/v1r0m0/index.jsp).

Copyright
Licensed Materials - Property of IBM
© Copyright IBM Corp. 2005, 2009.
US Government Users Restricted Rights – Use, duplication or disclosure restricted by GSA ADP Schedule Contract with IBM Corp.
IBM, the IBM logo, ibm.com, and Cognos are trademarks or registered trademarks of International Business Machines Corp., in many jurisdictions
worldwide. Other product and service names might be trademarks of IBM or other companies. A current list of IBM trademarks is available on
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Adobe, the Adobe logo, PostScript, and the PostScript logo are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Adobe Systems Incorporated in
the United States, and/or other countries.
Microsoft, Windows, Windows NT, and the Windows logo are trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States, other countries, or both.
Microsoft product screen shot(s) reprinted with permission from Microsoft Corporation.
Table of Contents

Introduction 9

Chapter 1: What’s New? 13

New Features in Version 8.4 13
Additional Language Support 13
Support for IBM Metadata Workbench as a Lineage Solution 13
Access to IBM WebSphere Business Glossary 14
Managing Comments Using Cognos Viewer 14
Viewing Lineage Information 14
Hiding Entries 14
Metric Studio Content in Portal Pages 14
Save History Details for Job Steps 14
Enhanced Drill-through Capabilities 14
New Features in Version 8.3 15
My Activities and Schedules 15
My Watch Items 15
Report Alerts 15
Watch Rules 16
Drilling Through on Multiple Values 16
Go Directly to Target Report When Only One Target Report Exists 16
Saving Report Outputs to a File System 16
Resubmitting Failed Jobs and Reports 17
Default Actions for Agent Items 17
Resubmitting Failed Agent Tasks 17
Tabbed Portal Pages 17
Global Filters and Enhanced Portal Interactivity 17
Metric Studio Content in Portal Pages 18
Support for Microsoft Excel 2007 18
Changed Features in Version 8.3 18
Updated IBM Cognos Connection Look 18
More Information in the Go To Page 19
Cognos Watchlist Portlet 19

Chapter 2: Building IBM Cognos 8 Applications 21

Chapter 3: IBM Cognos Connection 23

Log On 23
Log Off 23
Create a Shortcut 24
Create a URL 25
Bookmark an Entry 25
Models and Packages 26
Entry Properties 27
General Properties 27
Permissions 30
Licensed Materials – Property of IBM
© Copyright IBM Corp. 2005, 2009. 3
Table of Contents

Report, Query, Analysis, and PowerPlay Report Properties 30

Job Properties 32
Agent Properties 32
Page Properties 33
Rule Properties 34
Organizing Entries 34
Copy an Entry 35
Move an Entry 36
Rename an Entry 36
Disable an Entry 37
Hide an Entry 38
Select a Link for an Entry 39
Delete an Entry 40
Specify the Order of Entries 40
Create a Folder 41
Specify an Alternative Icon for an Entry 42
Search for an Entry 42
Personalize the Portal 44
My Watch Items 46
View Watch Items 47
Remove Yourself from an Alert List 47
Edit a Watch Rule 48

Chapter 4: Access Permissions 49

Set Access Permissions for an Entry 52
Trusted Credentials 53
Create Trusted Credentials 54

Chapter 5: Pages and Dashboards 55

Create a Page 57
Edit a Page 58
Share a Page 58
Modify a Portlet 59
Enable Communication Between Cognos Portlets 59
Portal Tabs 60
Add a Tab 61
Delete a Tab 62
Reorder the Tabs 62
Change Your Home Page 63
Create a Dashboard with Multiple Tabs 63
Adding Interactivity to Pages and Dashboards 66
Defining Global Filters 66
Enable Sharing of Drill-up and Drill-down Actions 70
Enable Sharing of Drill-through Actions 71

Chapter 6: Reports and Cubes 73

View, Run, or Open a Report 74
Set Default Report Options 74
Set Report Options for the Current Run 75
Set Advanced Report Options for the Current Run 76

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 Table of Contents

Create a Report 79
Creating a Query Studio Report Without Using Actual Data 80
Create a Report View 80
View Lineage Information for a Data Item 81
Access the IBM WebSphere Business Glossary 81
Edit a Report 81
Report Formats 82
HTML Formats 83
XML Format 83
PDF Format 84
Excel Formats 84
CSV Format 84
Report Languages 85
Add Multilingual Properties 85
Specify the Default Language for a Report 86
Specify the Default Prompt Values for a Report 86
Save Report Output 87
View Report Output Versions 88
Specify How Long to Keep Report Output 89
Enable an Alert List for a Report 89
Add Yourself to or Remove Yourself from the Alert List for a Report 90
Watch Rules in Saved Reports 91
Enable Watch Rules for a Report 91
Create a Watch Rule for a Report 92
Modify or Delete a Watch Rule in Cognos Viewer 92
Comments in Saved Reports 93
Enable Comments in Saved Output Versions 93
Add Comments to a Report Version in Cognos Viewer 94
View, Modify or Delete Comments in Cognos Viewer 94
Disable Selection-based Interactivity 95
Distributing Reports 96
Saving a Report 97
Sending a Report by Email 97
Sending a Report to your Mobile Device 97
Printing a Report 97
Distributing a Report by Bursting 97
Create Distribution Lists and Contacts 98
Drilling to View Related Data 99
Drill Up or Drill Down 99
Drill Through to Another Target 100
Drill Through to Another Target Passing Multiple Values 101
Data Sources With Named Sets May Produce Unpredictable Results 102
Series 7 Reports in IBM Cognos Connection 102
Series 7 PowerPlay Reports and Cubes 103
Run or Open a Series 7 PowerPlay Report 103
Change the Defaults for a Series 7 PowerPlay Report 104
Open a Series 7 Cube 105
Multilingual Properties for Series 7 Reports and Cubes 105

User Guide 5
Table of Contents

Chapter 7: Drill-through Access 107

Understanding Drill-through Concepts 108
Drill-through Paths 108
Selection Contexts 108
Drilling Through to Different Report Formats 109
Drilling Through Between Packages 109
Bookmark References 110
Members and Values 110
Member Unique Names 111
Conformed Dimensions 112
Business Keys 113
Scope 113
Mapped Parameters 113
Drilling Through on Dates Between PowerCubes and Relational Packages 114
Set Up Drill-through Access in Packages 114
Set Up Parameters for a Drill-Through Report 117
Set Up Parameters for a Drill-through Target in Analysis Studio 118
Example - Drill Through Between OLAP Reports in the Same Package 119
Example - Drill Through from an OLAP Report to a DMR Report 122
Example - Drill Through to a Hidden Report from a Report Studio Report 125
Specify the Drill-through Text 127
Setting Up Drill-through Access from IBM Cognos Visualizer 127
Setting Up Drill-through Access from PowerPlay Web 128
Create and Test the Target for a Series 7 Report 128

Chapter 8: Agents 131

Run an Agent 131
Change Default Agent Properties 132
Create an Agent View 133
Open or Create an Agent from IBM Cognos Connection 133
Enable an Alert List for an Agent 134
Add Yourself to or Remove Yourself from an Alert List for an Agent 134
Remove All Users from the Alert List for an Agent 135
Receive News Item Headlines 135
View the Most Recent Event List 135

Chapter 9: Microsoft Office Documents 139

Download a Microsoft Office Document 139

Chapter 10: Schedule Management 141

Schedule an Entry 142
Example - Schedule an Entry on the Last Day of the Month 143
Use Jobs to Schedule Multiple Entries 143
Trigger-based Entry Scheduling 146
Setting Up Trigger-based Scheduling 146
Schedule an Entry Based on an Occurrence 147

Chapter 11: Activities Management 149

Manage Current Activities 149
Manage Past Activities 150

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 Table of Contents

Manage Upcoming Activities for a Specific Day 151

Manage Scheduled Activities 152
Manage Entry Run Priority 153
View the Run History for Entries 154
Specify How Long to Keep Run Histories 155
Rerun a Failed Entry Task 155

Appendix A: Troubleshooting IBM Cognos Connection 157

Problems Running Reports 157
Unable to Select Multiple Report Formats When Running a Report 157
Unable to Click Links 157
Scheduled Reports Fail 158
A Report Does Not Run as Scheduled 158
Missing Images in a PDF Report 158
Security Problems 159
Unable to Log On 159

Glossary 161

Index 165

User Guide 7
Table of Contents

8 IBM Cognos Connection

Introduction

This document is intended for use with IBM Cognos 8. IBM Cognos 8 is a Web product with
integrated reporting, analysis, scorecarding, and event management features.
This document explains how to use IBM Cognos Connection, the IBM Cognos 8 portal, to view,
edit, schedule, and distribute standard and complex reports.

Audience
To use this guide, you should be familiar with reporting and security concepts, and have experience
using a Web browser.

Related Documentation
Our documentation includes user guides, getting started guides, new features guides, readmes, and
other materials to meet the needs of our varied audience. The following documents contain related
information and may be referred to in this document.

Note: For online users of this document, a Web page such as The page cannot be found may appear
when clicking individual links in the following table. Documents are made available for your par-
ticular installation and translation configuration. If a link is unavailable, you can access the document
on the IBM Cognos Resource Center (http://www.ibm.com/software/data/support/cognos_crc.html).

Document Description

IBM Cognos 8 Administration and Security Managing servers, security, reports, and portal
Guide services; and setting up the samples, customizing
the user interface and troubleshooting

Analysis Studio User Guide Exploring, analyzing, and comparing dimensional

data

IBM Cognos 8 Getting Started Teaching new users how to use IBM Cognos 8

IBM Cognos 8 New Features Describing features that are new in this release

Query Studio User Guide Creating self-service business intelligence reports

Report Studio Professional Authoring User Authoring reports that analyze corporate data
Guide according to specific needs

Report Studio Express Authoring User Guide Authoring financial reports that analyze corporate
data according to specific needs

Licensed Materials – Property of IBM

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2005, 2009. 9
Introduction

Document Description

Event Studio User Guide Creating and managing agents that monitor data
and perform tasks when the data meets predefined
thresholds

Framework Manager User Guide Creating and publishing models using Framework
Manager

IBM Cognos PowerPlay Enterprise Server Administering PowerPlay servers and deploying
Guide cubes and reports to PowerPlay users in Windows
environments or on the Web

IBM Cognos PowerPlay Web User Guide Viewing, exploring, formatting, and distributing
PowerPlay reports using a Web browser

IBM Cognos Web Portal User Guide Viewing, finding, organizing, and sharing inform-
ation in Upfront, the customizable interface used
to publish IBM Cognos reports to the Web

Metric Studio User Guide Authoring scorecard applications and monitoring

the metrics within them

IBM Cognos 8 Go! Office User Guide Using IBM Cognos 8 Go! Office to retrieve content
from IBM Cognos reporting products within
Microsoft Office

Finding Information
Product documentation is available in online help from the Help menu or button in IBM Cognos
products.
To find the most current product documentation, including all localized documentation and
knowledge base materials, access the IBM Cognos Resource Center (http://www.ibm.com/software/
data/support/cognos_crc.html).
You can also read PDF versions of the product readme files and installation guides directly from
IBM Cognos product CDs.

Using Quick Tours

Quick tours are short online tutorials that illustrate key features in IBM Cognos product components.
To view a quick tour, start IBM Cognos Connection and click the Quick Tour link in the lower-
right corner of the Welcome page.

10 IBM Cognos Connection

 Introduction

Getting Help
For more information about using this product or for technical assistance, visit the IBM Cognos
Resource Center (http://www.ibm.com/software/data/support/cognos_crc.html). This site provides
information on support, professional services, and education.

Printing Copyright Material

You can print selected pages, a section, or the whole book. You are granted a non-exclusive, non-
transferable license to use, copy, and reproduce the copyright materials, in printed or electronic
format, solely for the purpose of operating, maintaining, and providing internal training on IBM
Cognos software.

User Guide 11
Introduction

12 IBM Cognos Connection

Chapter 1: What’s New?

This section contains a list of new features for this release. It also contains a cumulative list of
similar information for previous releases. It will help you plan your upgrade and application
deployment strategies, and the training requirements for your users.
For information about upgrading, see the Installation and Configuration Guide for your product.
For information about other new features for this release, see the New Features Guide.
For changes to previous versions, see New Features in Version 8.3
To review an up-to-date list of environments supported by IBM Cognos products, such as operating
systems, patches, browsers, Web servers, directory servers, database servers, and application servers,
visit the IBM Cognos Resource Center Web site (http://www.ibm.com/software/data/support/cognos_
crc.html).

New Features in Version 8.4

Listed below are new features since the last release. Links to directly-related topics are included.

Additional Language Support

In addition to Japanese, German, and French, the installation documentation and the user interface
for the installation program and IBM Cognos Configuration are available in the following languages:
● Chinese (simplified)

● Chinese (traditional)

● Korean

● Italian

● Spanish

● Portuguese (Brazilian)

You can use the new product languages when personalizing your user interface in IBM Cognos 8
(p. 44).
English product documentation is installed when you install the IBM Cognos 8 gateway component.
The Installation and Configuration Guide, the Quick Start Installation and Configuration Guide,
and the Readme are the exceptions, and are available in all supported languages. To access all other
translated documentation, you must install the Supplementary Languages Documentation.

Support for IBM Metadata Workbench as a Lineage Solution

You can now configure IBM Metadata Workbench as a lineage solution in IBM Cognos 8. For
more information, see "View Lineage Information for a Data Item" (p. 81).

Licensed Materials – Property of IBM

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2005, 2009. 13
Chapter 1: What’s New?

Access to IBM WebSphere Business Glossary

If you use the IBM WebSphere Business Glossary, you can now access the glossary from Cognos
Viewer (p. 81).

Managing Comments Using Cognos Viewer

You can now add user-defined comments to saved HTML, PDF and XML reports using Cognos
Viewer.
For more information, see (p. 93).

Viewing Lineage Information

A data item’s lineage information traces the item’s metadata back through the package and the
package’s data sources. Viewing lineage information ensures that you add the correct data items
to a report. For more information, see "View Lineage Information for a Data Item" (p. 81).

Hiding Entries
You can hide entries in IBM Cognos Connection and IBM Cognos Administration, such as reports,
packages, pages, folders, jobs, data sources, portlets, and so on. This functionality is most often
used with drill-through reports.
Hiding an entry does not affect its security policies.
For more information, see "Hide an Entry" (p. 38).

Metric Studio Content in Portal Pages

An IBM Cognos Connection page or a dashboard can now display metric impact diagrams and
custom diagrams. This new content can be added by using the following new portlets:
● Metrics Impact Diagram
Use to display impact diagrams associated with a metric.

● Metrics Custom Diagram

Use to display custom diagrams associated with a scorecard.

For more information, see "Pages and Dashboards" (p. 55).

Save History Details for Job Steps

You can save history details for job steps when the run activity completes successfully.
For more information, see "Job Properties" (p. 32).

Enhanced Drill-through Capabilities

In earlier versions of IBM Cognos 8, model-based drill-through supported only reports created in
Analysis Studio, Query Studio, or Report Studio as targets. Other types of drill-through targets are
now supported. For example, you can drill through to PowerPlay Studio reports saved in the content
store, or to a package that contains a PowerCube.

14 IBM Cognos Connection

 Chapter 1: What’s New?

In earlier versions of IBM Cognos 8, drill-through access required the existence of parameters in
the target. IBM Cognos 8 now allows dynamic filtering of the data. In cases where more control is
needed, you can continue to use the existing parameterized drill-through.
You now also can restrict the availability of package drill-through definitions to measures as well
as other data when you set the scope.
If the source is based on a dimensional package, you can choose what property of the source
metadata item to map to the target. For example, you can map the member caption of the source
metadata item to a relational value in the target instead of using the business key. For more
information, see "Drill-through Access" (p. 107).

New Features in Version 8.3

Listed below are new features since the last release. Links to directly-related topics are included.

My Activities and Schedules

You can now manage IBM Cognos 8 activities from My Activities and Schedules in IBM Cognos
Connection.
You can view a list of your activities that are current, past, upcoming on a specific day, or scheduled.
You can filter the list so that only the entries that you want appear. A bar chart shows you an
overview of activities.
You can set run priority for entries. You can also view the run history for entries, specify how long
to keep run histories, and rerun failed entries.
For more information, see "Activities Management" (p. 149)

My Watch Items
Use the My Watch Items area of the portal to view and manage alerts for new report versions and
rules that you have set for conditional report delivery (p. 46). The My Watch Items functionality
enables end users to monitor and manage business information that is critical to them from a single
location.
As a report owner, you must allow report users to receive alerts and create watch rules for the
reports. For information about how to enable these features for reports, see "Enable Watch Rules
for a Report" (p. 91).

Report Alerts
By enabling an alert on a report, you can now be notified when a new version is available. Whenever
a report is run and saved due to a scheduled or manual run, all subscribers receive an email that a
new version is available.

Subscriptions are saved to the Alerts tab of My Watch Items (p. 46) and can be maintained from
that location.
For information about how to subscribe to a report, see "Add Yourself to or Remove Yourself from
the Alert List for a Report" (p. 90).

User Guide 15
Chapter 1: What’s New?

Watch Rules
A new watch rule action is available in Cognos Viewer. You can use watch rules to control when
users are notified about the availability of new report versions. When a report is run and saved, a
user-defined threshold condition is checked. If this condition satisfies a user's criteria, the report
can be e-mailed.
To create a watch rule (p. 92), a saved report must be viewable in HTML format. You can select
the data to be monitored and enter the threshold condition that will trigger the delivery of the
report. Watch rules are saved to the Rules tab of My Watch Items (p. 46), and can be maintained
from that location.
This feature lets users maintain their own report distribution preferences and avoid information
overload.

Drilling Through on Multiple Values

Drilling through is now more powerful and flexible. You can pass multiple items, such as products
or countries, to a target report (p. 101). You can now use this feature regardless of the type of drill-
through path that was created. Drilling through is automatically enabled when you select multiple
values.
In previous versions, passing multiple values was available only within drill-through paths created
in IBM Cognos Connection.

Go Directly to Target Report When Only One Target Report Exists

When there is only one target report available, you can now go directly to the target report when
you click the drill-through link in Cognos Viewer. If there are multiple target reports available, you
see the Go To page. This behavior is automatic and works the same way whether the drill-through
is defined in Report Studio or in a drill-through definition in IBM Cognos Connection.
For more information, see "Drill Through to Another Target" (p. 100).

Saving Report Outputs to a File System

You can now export report results directly to a server file system using IBM Cognos Connection.
You decide which formats to export, and select from a predefined set of directory locations. This
feature makes it easy to integrate IBM Cognos content into other external applications.
IBM Cognos 8 does not keep a record of the exported reports, but does prevent and resolve name
conflicts that arise when the same file is saved multiple times to the same directory. You are
responsible for managing the reports after export. An XML descriptor file with the same file name
prefix is created, which can be used by an external application to locate and manage the exported
reports.
The export options appear as run options for a report, provided you were granted access to this
feature. For more information, see "Save Report Output" (p. 87).

16 IBM Cognos Connection

 Chapter 1: What’s New?

Resubmitting Failed Jobs and Reports

You can resubmit a failed job or report (p. 155). For example, you discover that 20 reports in a job
containing 1,000 reports fail due to an invalid signon. The problem is corrected and the job is
resubmitted so that only the 20 failed reports are rerun.
In previous versions, if you submitted a report and it failed, the run options associated with the
report were lost. Now the report can be resubmitted without having to reset the run options.
Failed reports, jobs, and agent tasks can be resubmitted from the run history, accessed from the
Past activities page of IBM Cognos Administration, or accessed from the Actions page of the item.

Default Actions for Agent Items

You can now choose a default action to use when an agent item is selected in IBM Cognos Connec-
tion, rather than automatically opening the agent in Event Studio (p. 132). The new choices are:
● show the most recent event list

● run the agent

● open the agent in Event Studio

The default action is defined on the Agent tab of the item properties in IBM Cognos Connection.

Resubmitting Failed Agent Tasks

Failed agent tasks can now be resubmitted with their original data values (p. 155). In previous versions,
if a task failed, the data passed to the task was lost. Rerunning the agent may not solve this problem
if the task is set to process new events only.

Tabbed Portal Pages

You can now create pages with multiple tabs that are easy to navigate. The new type of pages is
also referred to as dashboards. Dashboards are created by using a new portlet named Multi-page.
For more information, "Create a Dashboard with Multiple Tabs" (p. 63).

Global Filters and Enhanced Portal Interactivity

You can select the dashboard context in the portal with one or more global filters. A global filter
may be a prompt, a drill-up or drill-down action, or a report that is based on drill-through content.
For example, you can add a prompt control to a portal page to automatically pass the selection to
all reports on the page. When a prompt answer is changed, all related reports will refresh accordingly.
So, if you answer a country prompt with Brazil, all related reports on the page will be filtered to
show the data for Brazil.
When these techniques are used on a tabbed dashboard, the context is passed to all corresponding
sections of the dashboard. This functionality allows for a single selection to drive a number of
reports at once.
For more information, see "Adding Interactivity to Pages and Dashboards" (p. 66).

User Guide 17
Chapter 1: What’s New?

Metric Studio Content in Portal Pages

An IBM Cognos Connection page or a dashboard can now display more types of Metric Studio
metrics and a history chart. This new content can be added by using the following new portlets:
● Metric List
Use to add a watchlist, an accountability list, a scorecard metric list, or a strategy metric list
to the page.

● Metric History Chart

Use to add a graphical chart that illustrates the historical performance of a metric to the page.

For more information, see "Pages and Dashboards" (p. 55).

Support for Microsoft Excel 2007

IBM Cognos 8 supports Microsoft Excel 2007 native spreadsheets as a report format, in addition
to the existing Microsoft Excel HTML formats. The Microsoft Excel 2007 XML format, also known
as XLSX, provides a fast way to deliver native Excel spreadsheets to Microsoft Excel XP, Microsoft
Excel 2003, and Microsoft Excel 2007.
The use of a native Microsoft Excel format means that the spreadsheets are smaller and more usable.
Because the new Office Open XML format is a recognized industry standard supported by ECMA
International, the new format provides the added benefit of an open, documented integration format
that extends an open systems solution.
The new format appears in the run report user interface. Users of Microsoft Excel XP and Microsoft
Excel 2003 must install the Microsoft Office Compatibility Pack, which provides file open and save
capabilities for the new format.
For more information about Excel format support, see "Excel Formats" (p. 84).

Changed Features in Version 8.3

Listed below are changes to features since the last release. Links to directly-related topics are
included.

Updated IBM Cognos Connection Look

The IBM Cognos Connection user interface was changed to provide more space for reports and
information that you care about, and use less space for toolbars and functions. The new features
include:

● The Launch menu, which replaces the Tools menu.

This menu lets you access the IBM Cognos 8 studios, Drill-through Definitions, and IBM
Cognos Administration.

● The my area icon , which lets you access the My Watch Items, My Preferences, and My
Activities and Schedules areas in IBM Cognos Connection.

● The portal style named Business.

18 IBM Cognos Connection

 Chapter 1: What’s New?

● The updated Welcome to IBM Cognos 8 page.

For more information, see "Personalize the Portal" (p. 44).

More Information in the Go To Page

Additional information was added to the Related Links page. Related Links, also known as the Go
To page, is used to show users all of the drill-through paths available from a source report. The
page now automatically shows more information, such as the target report and its location. This
information helps you choose which drill-through path to use.

Cognos Watchlist Portlet

The Cognos Watchlist Portlet was replaced by the Metric List portlet. In the new portlet, the
watchlist is now one of the selectable options "Pages and Dashboards" (p. 55).

User Guide 19
Chapter 1: What’s New?

20 IBM Cognos Connection

Chapter 2: Building IBM Cognos 8 Applications

The lifetime of an IBM Cognos 8 business intelligence application can be months, or even years.
During that time, data may change and new requirements appear. As the underlying data changes,
authors must modify existing content and develop new content. Administrators must also update
models and data sources over time. For more information about using data sources, see the IBM
Cognos 8 Administration and Security Guide and the Framework Manager User Guide.
In a working application, the technical and security infrastructure and the portal are in place, as
well as processes for change management, data control, and so on. For information about the
workflow associated with creating IBM Cognos 8 content, see the IBM Cognos 8 Architecture and
Deployment Guide. For additional information, see the IBM Cognos Solutions Implementation
Methodology toolkit, which includes implementation roadmaps and supporting documents.
Information about the toolkit is available on the IBM Cognos Resource Center (http://www.ibm.
com/software/data/support/cognos_crc.html).
The following graphic provides an overview for how to use IBM Cognos 8 to build applications
across all of your IBM Cognos 8 components.

Locate and prepare Build and publish

Deliver the information
data sources and models the content

❑ Locate and prepare data sources and models

IBM Cognos 8 can report from a wide variety of data sources, both relational and dimensional.
Database connections are created in the Web administration interface, and are used for modeling,
for authoring, and for running the application.
To use data for authoring and viewing, the business intelligence studios need a subset of a
model of the metadata (called a package). The metadata may need extensive modeling in
Framework Manager.

❑ Build and publish the content

Reports, scorecards, analysis, dashboards and more are created in the business intelligence
studios of IBM Cognos 8. Which studio you use depends on the content, lifespan, and audience
of the report, and whether the data is modeled dimensionally or relationally. Report Studio
reports and scorecards are usually prepared for a wider audience, published to IBM Cognos
Connection or another portal, and scheduled there for bursting, distribution, and so on. You
can also use Report Studio to prepare templates for self-service reporting.

❑ Deliver and view the information

You deliver content from the IBM Cognos portal or other supported portals, and view
information that has been saved to portals, or delivered by other mechanisms. You can also

Licensed Materials – Property of IBM

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2005, 2009. 21
Chapter 2: Building IBM Cognos 8 Applications

run reports, analyses, scorecards, and more from within the business intelligence studio in which
they were created.
For information about tuning and performance, see the IBM Cognos 8 Administration and
Security Guide and the IBM Cognos Resource Center (http://www.ibm.com/software/data/
support/cognos_crc.html).

22 IBM Cognos Connection

Chapter 3: IBM Cognos Connection

IBM Cognos Connection is the portal to IBM Cognos 8, the Web-based reporting solution. IBM
Cognos Connection provides a single access point to all corporate data available in IBM Cognos 8.
You can use IBM Cognos Connection to work with entries such as reports, analyses, queries, agents,
metrics, and packages. You can use IBM Cognos Connection to create shortcuts, URLs, and pages,
and to organize entries. You can personalize IBM Cognos Connection for your own use.
You can use IBM Cognos Connection to create and run reports and cubes (p. 73) and distribute
reports (p. 96). You can also use it to create and run agents (p. 131) and schedule entries (p. 141).
If you use a customized user interface, you may not have access to all the features documented.

Log On
IBM Cognos 8 supports authenticated and anonymous user access. To use IBM Cognos 8 as an
authenticated user, you must successfully log on. During the logon process, you must provide your
credentials, such as user ID and password, as required by your organization. Anonymous users do
not log on.

Tip: If you want to see a summary of your logon information for the current session, in the portal,
click My Area, My Preferences and then click the Personal tab. This is not available to anonymous
users.

Steps
1. In the portal, click Log On.

2. If the namespace Logon page appears, in the Namespace box, click the namespace you want
to use.

3. Click OK and type your user ID and password.

4. Click OK.
Your session starts.

Log Off
You log off to end your session. Even if you used multiple namespaces in the session, you log off
only once.
If you close your Web browser without logging off, your session ends.

Steps
1. In the portal, click Log Off.
You are now logged out of all the namespaces you were using.

Licensed Materials – Property of IBM

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2005, 2009. 23
Chapter 3: IBM Cognos Connection

2. Choose whether to log on again:

● If you do not want to log on again, close your Web browser.

● If you want to log on as an authenticated user, click Log on again.

● If you want to log on as an anonymous user, click Open a session as an anonymous user.
This is available only if your administrator set it up.

Create a Shortcut
A shortcut is a pointer to another entry such as a report, report view, folder, job, agent, page, or
URL.
You can use shortcuts to organize information that you use regularly. For example, if you frequently
use a report in Public Folders, you can create a shortcut in My Folders.
If you want to make a new entry, it might be easier to make a copy of an existing entry (p. 35) and
modify it. If you want to run an existing agent or report with some minor changes, create an agent
view (p. 133) or a report view (p. 80). For example, to change the format, language, or delivery
method of a report, create a report view.
You cannot update the source entry by clicking the shortcut. Updating the source automatically
updates all shortcuts to the entry.

Tip: If the source entry was deleted or moved to another location, the shortcut icon changes
to indicate a broken link.
You can change access permissions for a shortcut entry, but it does not change the access permissions
for the source entry.

Steps
1. In IBM Cognos Connection, locate the entry you want to create a shortcut to.

2. Under Actions, click More and then click Create a shortcut to this entry .

3. In the Name box, type the name of the shortcut.

4. If you want, in the Description and in the Screen tip box, you can type a description of the
entry.
The description appears in the portal when you set your preferences to use the details view
(p. 44). The screen tip, which is limited to 100 characters, appears when you pause your pointer
over the icon for the entry in the portal.

5. If you do not want to use the target folder shown under Location, choose another location:

● Click Select another folder, select the target folder, and click OK. If the folder box is empty,
go back one folder level using the path at the top of the dialog box.

● Click Select My Folders as the location.

6. Click Finish.

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In the portal, shortcut entries are identified by the shortcut icon .

Create a URL
A URL is a standard way of identifying the location for any external file or Web site. Create URLs
to keep the files and Web sites you use most frequently at your fingertips. Clicking a URL opens
the file or Web site in the browser. After opening a URL, click the back button in your browser to
return to the portal.
The URL must contain a valid server name that is included in the valid domains list, as specified
by your administrator. Otherwise, you cannot create the URL.

Steps
1. In IBM Cognos Connection, go to the folder where you want to create the new URL.

2. Click the new URL button on the toolbar.

3. In the Name box, type the name of the new URL.

4. If you want, in the Description and in the Screen tip box, you can type a description of the
entry.
The description appears in the portal when you set your preferences to use the details view
(p. 44). The screen tip, which is limited to 100 characters, appears when you pause your pointer
over the icon for the entry in the portal.

5. In the URL box, type the URL location.

If the URL points to a Web site address, the protocol must be included. For example, to create
a URL for the IBM Cognos Web site, type http://www.cognos.com.

6. If you do not want to use the target folder shown under Location, choose another location:

● Click Select another folder, select the target folder, and click OK. If the folder box is empty,
go back one folder level using the path at the top of the dialog box.

● Click Select My Folders as the location.

7. Click Finish.

In the portal, URL entries are identified by the URL icon .

Bookmark an Entry
You can bookmark an IBM Cognos 8 entry in your Web browser so that later you can quickly
perform the default action associated with the entry. For example, using a report bookmark, you
can view the most recent report output, run the report, or open it in an authoring tool. For more
information, see "Set Default Report Options" (p. 74).
The bookmark saves the URL of the entry and its default action at the time when the bookmark
was created.

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Some default actions are available only to users who

● have the required access permissions for the entries.

● have the required product components installed.

● have access to specific, secured functions and features.

For example, the capabilities to use a specific IBM Cognos 8 studio.

● use specific Web browsers.

For example, to open an agent, users must have read and traverse permissions for the agent, have
Event Studio installed and the permissions to use it, and use Internet Explorer as their Web browser.

Steps for Internet Explorer

1. In IBM Cognos Connection, locate the entry for which you want to create a bookmark.

2. In the Actions column, click More.

3. In the list of actions available for this entry, click Add to bookmarks .
The Internet Explorer box for adding favorites appears.

4. Create the bookmark as you normally do in Internet Explorer.

Steps for All Web Browsers

1. In IBM Cognos Connection, locate the entry for which you want to create a bookmark.

2. In the Actions column, click the set properties button for the entry.

3. On the General tab, click View the search path, ID and URL.

4. Right-click the link that appears under Default action URL.

The link shows the entry name and the action that will be performed. If the entry has no default
actions, the link is replaced by None. The text below the link shows the URL used by the link.
A menu box specific to your Web browser appears.

5. From the menu, click the option for creating bookmarks.

For example, if you are using Internet Explorer, click Add to Favorites. If you are using Firefox,
click Bookmark This Link.

6. Create the bookmark as you normally do in your Web browser.

Models and Packages

Models and packages use corporate business rules to define and group the data to be used for
business reporting.
A model is a data structure containing imported data from one or more data sources. IBM Cognos 8
users responsible for data modeling use Framework Manager to create models.

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The data modeler creates a package that defines a subset of data that is relevant to an intended
group of users. For example, the data modeler may create a package that marketing managers use
for information related to market research. The package can then be distributed to report authors
by publishing it to the portal. When you run a report, the result set is defined by the data retrieval
information defined in the package.
In IBM Cognos Connection, you can manage packages the way you manage other entries. For
example, you can organize packages in folders, create shortcuts to packages, and move or copy
packages. You can also hide a package to prevent it from unnecessary use (p. 38).
For more information about models and packages, see the Framework Manager User Guide.

Entry Properties
You can control the way an entry appears and behaves by modifying its properties. The properties
for entries vary depending upon the type of entry selected and your privileges. For example, reports
have properties to control run options while folders do not. If a property is not applicable to the
type of entry you are customizing, it will not appear in the Set properties page.

General Properties
General properties appear on the General tab of the Set properties page.

Property Description

Type The type of entry.

Owner The owner of the entry. By default, the owner is the person
who created the entry. When the owner no longer exists in
the namespace, or is from a different namespace than the
current user, the owner shows as Unknown.

If you have Set policy permissions, click Make me the owner

to become the owner of the entry.

Contact The person responsible for the entry. Click Set the contact
and then click Select the contact to set the contact for the
entry or click Enter an email address to enter the contact’s
email address.

Location The location of the entry in the portal and its ID. Click View
the search path, ID and URL to view the fully qualified loc-
ation and the ID of the entry in the content store.
Entries are assigned a unique identification (ID) number.
For more information, see "Organizing Entries" (p. 34).

Created The date the entry was created.

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Property Description

Modified The most recent date that the entry was modified.

Icon The icon for the entry. Click Edit to specify an alternative
icon. For more information, see "Specify an Alternative Icon
for an Entry" (p. 42)

Disable this entry When selected, users that do not have write permissions for
this entry cannot access it. The entry is no longer visible in
the portal.
If an entry is disabled and you have write access to it, the
disabled icon appears next to the entry.

Hide this entry Select this property to hide reports, packages, pages, folders,
jobs, and other entries. Hide an entry to prevent it from
unnecessary use, or to organize your view. The hidden entry
is still accessible to other entries. For example, a hidden
report is accessible as a drill-through target.
A hidden entry remains visible, but its icon is faded. If you

clear the Show hidden entries check box in my area , My

Preferences, the entry disappears from your view.

You must have access to the Hide Entries capability granted

by your administrator to see this property.

Language A list of languages that are available for the entry name,
screen tip, and description according to the configuration
set up by your administrator.

Click Remove values for this language to remove the entry

name, screen tip, and description for a specified language.

Name The name of the entry for the selected language.

Screen tip An optional description of the entry. The screen tip appears
when you pause your pointer over the icon for the entry in
the portal. Up to 100 characters can be used for a screen tip.

Description An optional description of the entry. It appears in the portal

when you set your preferences to use the details view.
Details view appears only in Public Folders and My Folders.

Run history The number of occurrences or period of time to retain run

histories for the entry.

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Property Description

Report output versions The number of occurrences or period of time to keep report
outputs.
Setting this value to zero (0) saves an unlimited number of
versions.

Package The package that is associated with the entry. If the source
package was moved or deleted, the text reads "Unavailable."

Click Link to a package to link the entry to a different

package. For more information, see "Select a Link for an
Entry" (p. 39).

URL A URL to either a file or Web site address. For more

information, see "Create a URL" (p. 25).
This field is visible only if you have read permissions for the
entry. If you have write permissions without read permis-
sions, this property is not visible.

Source report A path to the source entry for a report view. If the source
entry was moved or deleted, the text reads "Unavailable."

Click Report Properties to view the properties of the source

report. Click Link to a report to link the entry to a different
package. For more information, see "Select a Link for an
Entry" (p. 39).

Source agent A path to the source entry for an agent view. If the source
entry was moved or deleted, the text reads "Unavailable."

Click Agent Properties to view the properties of the source

report. Click Link to an agent to link the entry to a different
package. For more information, see "Select a Link for an
Entry" (p. 39).

Shortcut to A path to the entry that the shortcut points to. If the referred
entry no longer exists, the text reads "Source entry not
found."

Click Source Properties to view the properties of the source

entry.

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Property Description

Advanced routing A list of keywords used to direct requests by package, user

group, or user role to dispatchers in identified server groups.

Click Set to add routing keywords for packages, user roles,

or user groups. The rules used to direct the requests are part
of IBM Cognos Administration.

Gateway The location of the web server where the originating IBM
Cognos product resides. Applies only to Series 7 PowerPlay
reports.

Permissions
Permissions appear on the Permissions tab of the Set properties page.

Property Description

Override the access permissions Whether to replace the permissions that are inherited from
the parent entry.

Access permissions (Name, Type, The permissions that are set for the entry. You can grant or
Permissions) deny read, write, execute, set policy, and traverse permis-
sions. For more information, see "Access Permis-
sions" (p. 49).

Click Add to add more names to the list. Click Delete to

delete names from the list.

Delete the access permissions of all Whether to remove the existing access permissions for all
child entries child entries so that they will use the access permissions for
this entry.

Report, Query, Analysis, and PowerPlay Report Properties

Report properties appear on the following tabs of the Set properties page:

● the Report tab for Report Studio reports

● the Query tab for Query Studio reports

● the Analysis tab for Analysis Studio reports

● the PowerPlay Report tab for Series 7 PowerPlay reports

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Property Description

Default action The default action when the report is run.

Report options: Override the Whether to override default run options for the report. When
default values selected, the values that you can override appear.

Format The default format, orientation, and paper size to use when
the report runs. Appears only if Override the default values
is selected.

Language The default language to use for the report data when the
report runs. Appears only if Override the default values is
selected.

Prompt values The values that are used to filter data when a report is
run(p. 86).

Run as the owner Whether to use the owner credentials (p. 53) when the report
is run.

HTML options: Open in design Whether to open an HTML-format Series 7 PowerPlay report
mode in design mode.

Number of rows per Web page in The number of rows you want to appear per Web page in
HTML reports HTML reports

Enable selection-based interactivity Whether to enable the following in HTML reports that are
in HTML reports viewed in Cognos Viewer: drill up and drill down, drill
through, Cognos Search, watch rules, and agent notification.
For more information, see (p. 95)
Note that to have watch rules evaluated in saved report
output, you must select the Enable enhanced user features
in saved output versions check box.

Enable alerts about new versions Whether to allow report consumers to receive alerts about
new versions of a saved report. If this check box is cleared,
you are prompted whether to remove all users from the alert
list.

Enable enhanced user features in Whether to create additional output formats so that watch
saved output versions rules can be evaluated and saved output versions can be
imported into IBM Cognos 8 Go! Office.

Note that to enable watch rules, you must select the Enable
selection-based interactivity in HTML reports check box.

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Property Description

Enable comments in saved output Whether to allow users to add comments to saved reports.
versions For more information, see "Comments in Saved
Reports" (p. 93).

Refresh the report cache Create new cache data if none is available, when the report
runs interactively.

Cache duration The number of days or months before the report cache data
expires. To enable the cache duration, select the Refresh the
report cache check box.

Job Properties
Job properties appear on the Job tab of the Set properties page.

Property Description

Steps A list of steps in the job.

Submission of steps Whether to run job tasks all at once or in sequence.

Defaults for all steps Set default values at the job level. Click Set, then specify the
defaults for all steps of the job. If no defaults are set, the
defaults for the individual steps are used.

Run history details level Click All to save the complete history details for the job steps
when the run activity completes successfully. The complete
history details for the job steps includes Name, Request time,
Start time, Completion time, Status.

Click Limited to save limited run history details for the job.
The limited run history details include the job start time,
completion time, status and messages.
If the job run fails, the complete history details are saved.
The default is All.
The Run history details level setting for the job overrides the
settings of the job steps.

Agent Properties
Agent properties appear on the Agent tab of the Set properties page.

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Property Description

Tasks A list of tasks in the agent.

Default action The default action when the agent is run.

Prompt values The values that are used to filter data when an agent is run
(p. 131).

Run as the owner Whether to use the owner credentials (p. 53) when the agent
is run.

Alert list Whether to allow users to add themselves to the alert list for
an agent.

Page Properties
Page properties appear on the Layout and Content and Page Style tabs of the Set properties page.

Property Description

Number of columns The number of columns used to organize the content of a

page.
Up to three columns can be used.

Content Type of content added to a page.

Use to add and remove portlets, distribute the portlets
between the columns, change the order of columns and spe-
cify their width.

Language The language in which the page title and instructions can be
typed. It should match the product language.

Title The page title. You can format the title by changing the font
and character style, and the text alignment. To return to the
default browser settings, click Return to default. To modify
the default settings, click Custom.
You can hide the title.

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Property Description

Instructions Additional information about the page. You can format the
text of instructions by changing the font and character style,
and the text alignment. To return to the default browser
settings, click Return to default. To modify the default set-
tings, click Custom.
You can hide the instructions.

Portlet style The way a portlet appears on a page. To avoid cluttering

the page, you can hide the portlet borders, title bars, and the
edit button on the title bar.

Rule Properties
Use the rule properties to define or modify a watch rule. You can access the rule properties from
the My Watch Items, Rules tab by clicking the set properties icon for a watch rule entry. The
properties are located on the Rule tab of the Set Properties page.
The rule properties specify conditions in saved HTML report output so that when the report is
saved and the conditions are satisfied, you are alerted.
For information about creating watch rules, see (p. 92).
The following table describes the rule properties that are available.

Property Description

Disable the rule Whether to disable the watch rule. When disabled, the watch
rule is not applied when report output is generated.

Send an alert when the report The name of the report and the rule defined for the watch
reportname contains: rule.
To edit the definition, click the existing filter condition, such
as > (greater than) and in the list that appears, click a differ-
ent condition. Specify a different value in the box.

For the selected context The objects in the report to which the rule applies.

Alert type The type of alert you receive when the rule is satisfied. You
can be alerted by email or news item.

Organizing Entries
Organize entries such as reports, analyses, agents, and packages in a meaningful way so that you
can easily find them. It is important to plan how you can best organize entries in the portal. Review

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the entries and attempt to group them in a logical way. Consider grouping the entries by type or
frequency of use.
You may decide to create a folder hierarchy by using nested folders. The folder structure should be
logical and should support the chosen method of grouping.
Use meaningful names and detailed descriptions to identify entries in the portal.
You can copy, move, rename, or delete entries. You can create copies of entries and store them in
multiple folders for easy access. You can disable entries and specify the order of entries. You can
select a link for an entry. For example, if a report is deleted, you may want to link an associated
report view to a different report. You can also hide an entry to prevent it from unnecessary use.
Remember that an entry often refers to other entries such as packages, reports, analyses, or queries.
In addition, there may be references to entries in job steps, agents tasks, drill-through targets, or
metrics. Reference IDs are hard-coded in the specification for each entry.

Copy an Entry
When you create a copy of an entry, you create a replica of that entry in another location in the
portal. For example, create a copy if you want to use a generic report as the underlying structure
for additional reports. The copy of the entry has a new ID. If there is another entry of the same
name in the target location, you are prompted to replace the existing entry with the copied entry.
If you choose to replace the existing entry, the ID of the existing entry is used.
If you copy a folder, references for entries in the folder that reference each other are updated to
reference entries in the copied folder.
If you want to run an existing agent or report with some minor changes, create an agent view (p. 133)
or a report view (p. 80). For example, to change the format, language, or delivery method of a
report, create a report view. You can copy multiple entries at the same time to the same location.
If you want a report to appear in more than one location, create a shortcut (p. 24).
You must have read permissions for an entry you are attempting to copy. You must also have traverse
permissions for the current folder, and write and traverse permissions for the target folder (p. 49).

Steps
1. In IBM Cognos Connection, select the check boxes next to the entry or entries you want to
copy.

2. Click the copy button on the toolbar.

3. Go to the desired location for the new entry or entries and click the paste button on the
toolbar.

4. If an entry name is the same as an entry name in the destination folder, choose whether you
want to replace the existing entry with the one that you are copying:

● To replace the existing entry, click Yes.

● To cancel the copy, click No.

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Move an Entry
When you move an entry, you remove it from the current folder and place it in another folder.
You may decide to move an entry if your folder becomes so full that it is difficult to locate particular
entries. You can create a series of subfolders and move the entries to support your new folder
hierarchy. For example, a folder containing weekly sales reports can be divided into sales reports
by month or by author.
When you move an entry, the ID stays the same. References to the entry from other entries are not
broken. However, shortcuts to the entry no longer work.
For example, a report has several report views associated with it. When you move the report to
another location in IBM Cognos Connection, the references in the associated report views are not
broken. However, shortcuts to the entry no longer work.
When you move an entry, if there is another entry of the same name in the target location, you are
prompted to replace the existing entry with the moved entry. If you choose to replace the existing
entry, the ID of the existing entry is kept. References to the moved entry are broken. Shortcuts to
the entry no longer work.
If you want to use a generic entry as the underlying structure for additional entries, make a copy
of the entry (p. 35). If you want an entry to appear in more than one location, create a shortcut
(p. 24). If you want to run an existing agent or report with some minor changes, create an agent
view (p. 133) or a report view (p. 80). For example, to change the format, language, or delivery
method of a report, create a report view.
You must have read permissions for the entry you are attempting to move. You must also have
write and traverse permissions for the current folder and for the target folder.

Steps
1. In IBM Cognos Connection, select the check boxes next to the entry or entries you want to
move.

2. Click the cut button on the toolbar.

3. Go to the desired location for the entry or entries and click the paste button on the toolbar.

4. If an entry name is the same as an entry name in the destination folder, choose whether you
want to replace the existing entry with the one that you are copying:

● To replace the existing entry, click Yes.

● To cancel the copy, click No.

Rename an Entry
You may decide to rename an entry. Perhaps the current name for an analysis is confusing or the
purpose of a report changed.
When you rename an entry, the ID stays the same. However, the search path changes. References
to the entry from other entries are not broken. Shortcuts to the entry no longer work.

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For example, a package has reports, agents, and drill-through definitions associated with it. When
you rename the package, the references in the associated reports, agents, and drill-through definitions
are not broken.
You cannot rename an entry to the same name as another entry that already exists in the same
location.
You must have read permissions for the entry you are attempting to rename. You must also have
write and traverse permissions for the current folder and for the target folder.

Steps
1. In IBM Cognos Connection, locate the entry you want to rename, and in the Actions column,

click the set properties button .

2. Click the Properties tab.

3. In the Name box, type a new name for the entry.

4. Click OK.

Disable an Entry
You can disable entries to prevent users from accessing them.
Disabling entries is useful when you want to perform maintenance operations. For example, you
may want to disable a folder while you reorganize its content. When you disable a folder, the folder
content is also disabled.

If an entry is disabled, the disabled icon appears beside the entry to indicate that it is disabled.

If the source entry is disabled, all shortcuts to the entry appear with the source disabled icon ,
indicating that it no longer works.
You must have read and write permissions for an entry (p. 49) to enable or disable it. You must
also have traverse permissions on the folder that contains the entry.

Steps
1. In IBM Cognos Connection, locate the entry you want to disable and, in the Actions column,

click the set properties button .

2. Click the General tab.

3. Select the Disable this entry check box.

Tip: To enable a disabled entry, clear the Disable this entry check box.

4. Click OK.

If you have only read, execute, or traverse permissions for a disabled entry, you cannot see the entry
in the portal. If you have write or set policy permissions for a disabled entry, it appears in the portal

with the disabled icon .

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Hide an Entry
You can hide entries in IBM Cognos Connection and IBM Cognos Administration such as reports,
packages, pages, folders, jobs, data sources, portlets, and so on, to ensure that the entries are not
accessed or run unnecessarily. This specifically applies to drill-through reports that, when they run,
could have negative impact on system performance. For example, running drill-through reports
that have optional prompts, or no prompts, could result in database queries that use considerable
resources. When these reports are hidden in the portal, users cannot run them and the system is not
overloaded with unnecessary requests.
Hiding an entry does not affect its properties, including security permissions. You can access hidden
entries using different methods, such as using a URL.

Depending on the user preferences specified in my area , My Preferences, a hidden entry either
entirely disappears from the user interface or remains visible, but its icon fades. For more information,
see "View a Hidden Entry" (p. 38).
You cannot hide users, groups, or roles in external namespaces.
An administrator controls which users, groups, or roles can hide entries by granting the users access
to the Hide Entries capability in IBM Cognos Administration. Only users who have access to this
capability can perform the following steps.

Steps
1. In IBM Cognos 8, locate the entry that you want to hide, and click its set properties button

2. On the General tab, select the Hide this entry check box.

3. Click OK.
The entry is now hidden; however, it may still appear in the user interface with a faded icon.
To remove the entry from your view, see "Steps to Change the Preference for Viewing Hidden
Entries" (p. 39).

View a Hidden Entry

Users can change their preferences to either show or remove hidden entries from the user interface.
Icons that represent hidden entries are faded.
Depending on the preferences, a hidden entry may or may not appear in search pages, wizards, save
as boxes, and so on. For example, when the user interface does not show hidden entries, hidden
packages do not appear in the list of available packages when users try to open the applicable studio,
and the search results do not include the packages.
The following are the rules that apply to viewing hidden entries:
● A hidden report is accessible as a drill-through target.
Drill-through targets include parameter values to avoid resource-intensive query operations.
However, the user still requires read and execute permissions to use this target report in a drill-
through activity.

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● A hidden drill-through definition is not displayed in the Go To page if the user interface does
not show hidden entries.

● A visible shortcut can point to a hidden entry. If the shortcut points to a hidden folder, any
hidden entries in the folder are not visible.

● Search pages do not return hidden entries if the user interface does not display the entries.

The following, are examples of situations when hidden entries are always visible, regardless of the
user preferences for viewing hidden entries.

● Hidden entries on the Permissions and Personal tabs

The entries icons are faded.

● Portal tabs associated with hidden pages

● Portlets in a page

● Job steps that refer to hidden entries already in a job

The entries icons are faded.

● Agent tasks that refer to hidden entries already in an agent

The entries icons are faded.

● Details in a report run history

The icons that represent hidden entries do not change.

Only users who have access to the Hide Entries capability in IBM Cognos Administration can perform
the following steps.

Steps to Change the Preference for Viewing Hidden Entries

1. Go to my area and click My Preferences.

2. On the General tab, select or clear the Show hidden entries check box.
If you select this check box, the hidden entries appear in the user interface with faded icons. If
you clear this check box, the hidden entries disappear from the user interface.

3. Click OK.

Select a Link for an Entry

Some entries are linked to other entries when they are created. For example, a report view is linked
to a report and a report or agent is linked to a package. Metrics are linked to a metrics package.
You can change the link for an entry. For example, if a report is deleted, you may want to link an
associated report view to a different report. After you change the link, the report view reflects the
content of the new report.
Select a link that is appropriate for the entry. For example, the package that a report is linked to
must contain a valid model for the report to run correctly.

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If the link associated with the entry is not available, Unavailable appears. For example, Unavailable
appears if the package that a report is linked to is deleted.
You must have write permissions for the entry you are attempting to select a link for. You must
also have write and traverse permissions for the current folder.

Steps

1. In IBM Cognos Connection, locate the entry you want and click the set properties button .

2. Click the General tab and find the current link for the entry.

For example, for a report, look in Package. For a report view, look in Source report.

3. Click the link.

For example, for a report, click Link to a package. For a report view, click Link to report.

4. Select the new entry that you want to link the entry to and click OK.

Delete an Entry
When you delete an entry, you permanently remove it from the portal and its ID is deleted. You
may decide to delete an entry because it is outdated or may no longer satisfy your requirements.
Deleting the source entry for a shortcut removes only the source entry. The shortcut entries remain

but have an invalid reference icon and are not accessible.

Deleting a shortcut or a report or agent view removes only the selected entry and not the source
entry. References from other entries no longer work.
You must have write permissions or set policy permissions for the entry you are attempting to
delete. You must also have write and traverse permissions for the current folder.

Steps
1. In IBM Cognos Connection, select the check boxes next to the entries you want to delete.

2. Click the delete button on the toolbar.

A confirmation box appears.

3. Click OK.

Specify the Order of Entries

You can specify the order of folders and entries in the portal. You may decide to organize entries
by level of usage and place entries that you use daily at the top of the list.
By default, existing entries are sorted alphabetically. Entries added after the order is specified are
shown at the end of the list.

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 Chapter 3: IBM Cognos Connection

To specify the order of entries, you must have read and write permissions for all entries in the folder
and read and traverse permissions for the folder containing the entries.

Steps
1. In IBM Cognos Connection, click the tab you want.

2. Click the order button on the toolbar.

3. Select the entries in the Shown in default order list box and click the right-arrow button
to move them to the Shown first list box.

Note: You specify the order of folders and entries independently.

4. Click the Up, Down, To top, and To bottom links to move the folders and entries within the
list.

5. Click OK.

Create a Folder
You can organize entries into folders. Having folders that are logically labeled and organized helps
you easily locate reports. For example, you might want to create folders in My Folders or Public
Folders to help you organize your entries.
You can create folders in the following locations:
● Public Folders
Entries that are placed in Public Folders are of interest to and can be viewed by many users.
When the focus is on the Public Folder tab, the content is grouped by packages or folders. Each
package contains a single model and all related entries, such as folders, reports, jobs, report
views, agents, metrics, URLs, and shortcuts.

● My Folders
You create personal folders and use them to organize entries according to your preferences.
My Folders are accessible by you only when you are logged on.

You must have write access to a folder to create entries in it.

Tips
● Click More to view a full list of actions that can be performed on an entry.

● Click Set Properties to change the general properties, defaults, permissions, and job prop-
erties for an entry. Not all properties are available for each type of entry.

Steps
1. In IBM Cognos Connection, go to the location for the new folder.

2. Click the new folder button on the portal toolbar.

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Chapter 3: IBM Cognos Connection

3. In the Name box, type the name of the new folder.

4. If you want, in the Description and in the Screen tip box, you can type a description of the
entry.
The description appears in the portal when you set your preferences to use the details view
(p. 44). The screen tip, which is limited to 100 characters, appears when you pause your pointer
over the icon for the entry in the portal.

5. If you do not want to use the target folder shown under Location, choose another location:

● Click Select another folder, select the target folder, and click OK. If the folder box is empty,
go back one folder level using the path at the top of the dialog box.

● Click Select My Folders as the location.

6. Click Finish.

The new folder has the same permissions as the parent folder. For information about changing
access permissions, see "Access Permissions" (p. 49).

Specify an Alternative Icon for an Entry

In the portal, the standard icons that appear next to entries help identify the class to which the entry
belongs. To better identify an entry among several similar entries, you can replace the standard
icon with an alternative icon.
When you specify an alternative icon, use a screen resolution of 16 x 16 pixels to ensure that the
icon is properly aligned and spaced in the portal.
Customizations, such as alternative icons, are not maintained automatically. As a result, alternative
icons must be ported manually upon upgrade.

Steps
1. In IBM Cognos Connection, locate the entry you want and click the set properties button.

2. Click the General tab and next to Icon, click Edit.

3. Click Specify an icon, and in the edit box, specify a name for the image, for example, myicon.gif.
The image must exist in the folder c8_location/webcontent/ps/portal/images.

4. Click OK.

Wherever the entry appears in the portal, the alternative icon appears instead of the standard icon.

Search for an Entry

You can search for entries whose name, description, or both match the string entered in the search
criteria. You can find types of entries by leaving the search string empty and selecting a specific
entry type in the advanced search criteria. The search ignores capitalization.
The following table shows examples of search criteria and results.

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 Chapter 3: IBM Cognos Connection

Method Search criteria Results

Contains the exact string Report 1 "Report 1", "Report 100", "Copy of Report
1"

Starts with the exact string report "report 1", "Report 100"

Matches the exact string Report "Report", "report"

Entries for which you have access permissions are included in the search results.

Steps
1. Go to the highest level folder you want to include in your search.

Tip: You can increase or limit the folders to include in your search by changing the Scope when
you enter the search criteria.

2. Click the search button on the toolbar.

3. In the search box, type the phrase you want to search for.

4. Click Advanced.

5. Choose the type of match between the search string and the results:
● To return entries that include the search string somewhere in the name or description, click
Contains the exact string.

● To return entries whose name or description begins with the search string, click Starts with
the exact string.

● To return entries whose name or description matches the search string word for word, click
Matches the exact string.

6. In the Type box, click the type of entry to search for.

Tip: To search for all shortcuts in the selected location, click Shortcuts.

7. In the Modified box, click the date that the entry was last modified.
For example, if you want the search to return entries that were updated in the last week, click
In last week.

Note: This option is only available in the Cognos namespace.

8. In the Scope box, click the folders you want to include in the search.

9. Click the Search button.

The entries matching the search criteria and for which you have permissions to view appear at
the bottom of the screen under Results.

Tip: To open an entry, click its link.

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Personalize the Portal

You can personalize the way data appears in IBM Cognos Connection by changing your preferences.
For example, you can set the product language and the preferred output format of reports.
Changes take effect immediately in the current session. The preferences are stored and used for
future sessions unless you change them.
You can change the following settings:

General Description

Number of entries in list view The maximum number of rows that appear in a list before
scrollbars are required. This applies to rows where scrolling
is allowed.

Separators in list view The method of separating entries in lists in Public Folders
and My Folders.
Choose from no separator, grid lines, or alternating back-
grounds. This setting applies to all lists with the exception
of the output versions list. This setting is available only if
you use Internet Explorer or Firefox.

Style The uniform look and feel applied to all components of IBM
Cognos 8.
You can choose from the styles available to you.

Show hidden entries Use this setting to show or remove hidden entries from your
view in IBM Cognos Connection.
When you select this check box, the hidden entries remain
visible, but their icons are faded.
When you clear this check box, the hidden entries disappear
from your view. For example, hidden packages are not visible
in IBM Cognos Connection and in the associated studios.

You must have access to the Hide Entries capability granted

by your administrator to see this setting.

Default view The decision to use list view or details view by default. List
view shows the name, modified date, and actions. Details
view shows the name, description, modified date, and pos-
sible actions.
Details view works only in Public Folders and My Folders
in IBM Cognos Connection. In other components, list view
is used.

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General Description

Number of columns in details view The maximum number of columns per row for the details
view.

Report format The preferred format to view the report. Choose between
HTML, PDF, Delimited Text (CSV), Excel, and XML.

Show a summary of the run options The option to show a summary of the run options when a
report is not run interactively.

Show the Welcome page at startup The option to show or hide the Welcome page at the begin-
ning of a session.

Product language The language used by the IBM Cognos 8 user interface. It
applies to all IBM Cognos 8 components, such as IBM
Cognos Connection, Cognos Viewer, and Report Studio.

Content language The language used to view and produce content in IBM
Cognos 8, such as names and descriptions of entries, or data
in reports.

Time zone The time zone used. Select the default server time zone set
by your administrator. For more information, see the
Installation and Configuration Guide. Or you can select
another time zone.

Personal settings appear if you have read permissions for your account.

Personal Description

Primary logon The namespace and credentials that you used to log on to
IBM Cognos 8. Also shows the given name, surname, and
email address if they have been defined.

Secondary logon A list of secondary logons.

The secondary logons exists if you logged on to multiple
namespaces.

Alerts Use to specify an email address for alerts.

When the delivery service processes the alert list, it uses the
email address specified in the Email box to send alerts to the
user. If there is no email address specified, the email address
specified in the Primary logon section is used.

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Chapter 3: IBM Cognos Connection

Personal Description

Credentials Authorization to other users, groups, and roles to run entries

using the credentials.

Click Renew the credentials after you change your password,

or to ensure that all credentials are available if you are logged
on to multiple namespaces.

Groups and roles A list of groups and roles associated both with your primary
and secondary logons.

Capabilities A list of secured functions and features that you can use
based on both your primary and secondary logons. To create
trusted credentials, see "Trusted Credentials" (p. 53).

Portal tabs settings appear if you have read permissions for your account.

Portal Tabs Description

List of entries Represents the tabs, including Public Folders and My Folders,
in your IBM Cognos Connection environment.

Add Use to add a tab for a specified page in IBM Cognos Connec-
tion.
Each tab represents Public Folders, My Folders, or a page.

Remove Use to remove a tab from IBM Cognos Connection.

Modify the sequence Use to change the order of tabs in IBM Cognos Connection.

Steps
1. In IBM Cognos Connection, click My Area, My Preferences, and click the required tab.

2. Choose the appropriate settings.

3. Click OK.

My Watch Items
Use the My Watch Items area of the portal to view (p. 47) and manage watch items from a single
location. Watch items include alert lists and watch rules that help you monitor business events that
are important to you.

The Alerts tab shows the alert lists to which you belong. Use this tab to remove yourself from the
alert list for a report or agent.

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The Rules tab shows the watch rules you created in saved HTML report output. Use this tab to
● edit a watch rule (p. 48)

● enable or disable a watch rule. For information, see "Disable an Entry" (p. 37).

● organize watch rules in folders. For information, see "Create a Folder" (p. 41).

● delete a watch rule. For information, see "Delete an Entry" (p. 40).

● edit the My Watch Items page properties. For information, see "Edit a Page" (p. 58).

You can also add yourself to the alert list for a report (p. 90), add yourself to the alert list for an
agent (p. 134), and create a watch rule for a report (p. 92).
The report owner must allow report users to receive alerts and create watch rules for the report.

View Watch Items

To view the alerts lists to which you belong and the watch rules you created, use the My Watch
Items area of the portal.
You can also remove yourself from an alert list (p. 47), and edit a watch rule (p. 48).

Steps

1. In IBM Cognos Connection, in the upper-right corner, click My Area , My Watch Items.

2. To view your alerts lists, click Alerts.

3. To view your watch rules, click Rules.

Remove Yourself from an Alert List

To remove yourself from an alert list for a report or agent, use the My Watch Items area of the
portal.
When you are added to an alert list, you receive an email notification when the report, or report
associated with the agent task, is saved. After removing yourself from an alert list, you are no longer
alerted.

Tip: You can also add or remove yourself from an alert list for a report using the Report tab of the
Set Properties page (p. 90). For an agent, you can use the Agents tab of the Set Properties page
(p. 134).

Steps

1. In IBM Cognos Connection, in the upper-right corner, click My Area , My Watch Items.

2. Click the Alerts tab, and in the Source column, click the alert list to remove.
You can select multiple alert lists.

3. Click the remove me from the alert list button.

4. Click the refresh button.

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Chapter 3: IBM Cognos Connection

Note that the alert list is removed from the Source column.

Edit a Watch Rule

After creating watch rules in saved HTML report output, you can edit them from the My Watch
Items area of the portal. For example, you can change the general properties, such as name, language,
and description. You can also change the properties, such as rule condition, context, and alert type.
For information about creating a watch rule, see "Create a Watch Rule for a Report" (p. 92).
To edit a watch rule in IBM Cognos Connection, you must have read and write permission to the
My Watch Items page.

Steps

1. In IBM Cognos Connection, in the upper-right corner, click the my area button , and click
My Watch Items.

2. Click the Rules tab, and in the Actions column, click the set properties button for the watch
rule you want to edit.

3. Use the Set properties page, General tab, to change the properties, such as name, language, or
description for the watch rule.

4. Use the Set properties page, Rule tab, to change the properties, such as rule, context, and alert
type for the watch rule.

● To change a rule, in the Rule section, click the condition that appears, for example, >
(greater than), click a new condition in the list, and specify a value for the condition in the
box.

● To change the context, under For the selected context, select the check box next to the
report items you want to include.

● To edit the alert type, under Alert type, select the alert type, if it is not already selected.
Next to the alert type, click Edit the options.

48 IBM Cognos Connection

Chapter 4: Access Permissions

In IBM Cognos 8, you can secure your organization’s data by setting access permissions for the
entries. You specify which users and groups have access to a specific report or other content in IBM
Cognos 8. You also specify the actions they can perform on the content.
When you set access permissions, you can reference both authentication provider users, groups,
and roles and Cognos groups and roles. However, if you plan to deploy your application in the
future, we recommend that you use only the Cognos groups and roles to set up access to entries in
IBM Cognos 8 to simplify the process (p. 52).

Permissions and Permitted Actions

You can grant or deny the following access permissions.

Permissions Icons Permitted Actions

Read View all the properties of an entry, including the report spe-
cification, report output, and so on, which are properties of a
report.
Create a shortcut to an entry.

Write Modify properties of an entry.

Delete an entry.
Create entries in a container, such as a package or a folder.
Modify the report specification for reports created in Report
Studio and Query Studio.
Create new outputs for a report.

Licensed Materials – Property of IBM

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2005, 2009. 49
Chapter 4: Access Permissions

Permissions Icons Permitted Actions

Execute Process an entry.

● For entries such as reports, agents, and metrics, the user
can run the entry.

● For data sources, connections, and signons, the entries can

be used to retrieve data from a data provider. The user
cannot read the database information directly. The report
server can access the database information on behalf of
the user to process a request. IBM Cognos 8 verifies
whether users have execute permissions for an entry before
they can use the entry.

● For credentials, users can permit someone else to use their

credentials.

Note: Users must have execute permissions for the account

they use with the run as the owner report option.

Set policy Read and modify the security settings for an entry.

Traverse View the contents of a container entry, such as a package or

a folder, and view general properties of the container itself
without full access to the content.

Note: Users can view the general properties of the entries for
which they have any type of access. The general properties
include name, description, creation date, and so on, which are
common to all entries.

Access Permissions for Users

Users must have at least traverse permissions for the parent entries of the entries they want to access.
The parent entries include container objects such as folders, packages, groups, roles, and namespaces.
Permissions for users are based on permissions set for individual user accounts and for the
namespaces, groups, and roles to which the users belong. Permissions are also affected by the
membership and ownership properties of the entry.
IBM Cognos 8 supports combined access permissions. When users who belong to more than one
group log on, they have the combined permissions of all the groups to which they belong. This is
important to remember, especially when you are denying access.

Tip: To ensure that a user or group can run reports from a package, but not open the package in
an IBM Cognos studio, grant the user or group execute and traverse permissions on the package.

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 Chapter 4: Access Permissions

Access Permissions Required for Actions

To perform specific actions, each user, group, or role needs the right combination of access permis-
sions granted for the entry, its parent entry, and its source and target entry. The following table
lists permissions required for specific actions.

Action Permissions required

Add an entry Write permissions for a parent entry

Query the entry properties Read permissions for an entry

View the children of the entry Traverse permissions for an entry

Update an entry Write permissions for an entry

Delete an entry Write permissions for an entry, and write permissions for
a parent entry

Copy an entry Read permissions for an entry and any child entries, tra-
verse permissions for all of the children, and write and
traverse permissions for the target parent entry

Move an entry Read and write permissions for an entry, write permissions
for both the source parent entry and the target parent
entry, and traverse permissions for the target parent entry

Ownership of Entries
If the user is an owner of an entry, the user has full access rights for the entry. This ensures that
users can always access and modify the entries they own. By default, the owner of the entry is the
user who creates the entry. However, any other user who has set policy permissions for the entry
can take ownership of the entry.

Granted and Denied Access

You can grant access or deny access to entries. An icon that represents the type of access appears
next to the entry name on the Permissions tab. For example, when a group has execute permissions

for a report, this icon appears next to the group name on the Permissions tab for the report.

When a group has execute permissions denied for a report, this icon appears next to the group
name.
Denied access has precedence over granted access. When you deny specific users or groups access
to an entry, you replace other security policies that grant access to the entry.
If the grant and deny permissions are in conflict, access to the entry is always denied. For example,
a user belongs to two groups. One group has access granted to a report and the other group has
access denied to the same report. Access to this report is denied for the user.

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Chapter 4: Access Permissions

Deny access only when it is really required. Typically, it is a better administrative practice to grant
permissions than to deny them.

Parent/Child Permissions
Access permissions are acquired from parent entries. If access permissions are not defined, the entry
acquires permissions from its parent entry. You can replace parent permissions by defining permis-
sions for the child entry.
Objects that exist only as children of other objects always acquire permissions from their parents.
Examples of such objects are report specifications and report outputs. They are visible through the
SDK. You cannot set permissions specifically for those objects.

Accessing Entries Associated with Data Sources Secured Against Multiple Namespaces
Data sources in IBM Cognos 8 can be secured against multiple namespaces. In some environments,
the namespace used to secure the data source is not the primary namespace used for access to IBM
Cognos Connection. When you try to access an entry, such as a report, a query, or an analysis, that
is associated with a data source secured against multiple namespaces, and you are not logged on
to all of the required namespaces, a prompt for authentication appears. You must log on to the
namespace before you can access the entry.
When single signon (SSO) is enabled, the prompt for authentication does not appear. You are
automatically logged on to the namespace.
This functionality applies to Cognos Viewer only. If a similar situation occurs in an IBM Cognos 8
studio, you must quit your task and log on to all the namespaces that you want to use in the current
session.

Set Access Permissions for an Entry

Setting access permissions for an entry includes creating new permissions or updating existing per-
missions. You can specify access permissions for all entries in IBM Cognos 8. Some examples of
such entries are reports, queries, analyses, packages, agents, metrics, namespaces, groups, users, or
dispatchers. You can reference entries from different namespaces.
To administer security, you must have set policy permissions.

Steps
1. In IBM Cognos Connection, locate the entry for which you want to set access permissions.

2. In the Actions column, click the set properties button for the entry.

3. In the Set properties page, click the Permissions tab.

4. Choose whether to use the permissions of the parent entry or specify permissions specifically
for the entry:

● To use the permissions of the parent entry, clear the Override the access permissions acquired
from the parent entry check box, then click OK if you are prompted to use the parent
permissions. Click OK.

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 Chapter 4: Access Permissions

● To set access permissions for the entry, select the Override the access permissions acquired
from the parent entry check box, then proceed to step 5.

5. If you want to remove an entry from the list, select its check box and click Remove.

Tip: If you want to select all entries, select the check box at the top of the list in the upper-left
corner. Clear the check box to deselect all entries.

6. To specify the entries for which you want to grant or deny access, click Add, then choose how
to select entries:
● To choose from listed entries, click the appropriate namespace, and then select the check
boxes next to the users, groups, or roles.

● To search for entries, click Search and in the Search string box, type the phrase you want
to search for. For search options, click Edit. Find and click the entry you want.

● To type the name of entries you want to add, click Type and type the names of groups,
roles, or users using the following format, where a semicolon (;) separates each entry:
namespace/group_name;namespace/role_name;namespace/user_name;
Here is an example:
Cognos/Authors;LDAP/scarter;

7. Click the right-arrow button and when the entries you want appear in the Selected entries box,
click OK.

Tips: To remove entries from the Selected entries list, select them and click Remove. To select
all entries in a list, click the check box in the upper-left corner of the list. To make the user
entries visible, click Show users in the list.

8. For each entry in the list, in the box next to the list, select or clear check boxes to specify what
type of access you want to grant or deny.

9. Click Apply.

In the Permissions column, an icon appears next to the user, group, or role. This icon represents
the type of access granted or denied to the entry.

10. If you want to replace the existing permissions of the child entries with the permissions you set
for this entry, in the Option section, select the Delete the access permissions of all child entries
check box.
This option appears only with the entries that are containers. You can use it to restrict access
to a hierarchy of entries.

11. Click OK.

Trusted Credentials
Trusted credentials are used for users who must perform a task or process, but do not have sufficient
access permissions for entries that contain sensitive data, such as database signons and group

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Chapter 4: Access Permissions

memberships. Users with more extensive access permissions, who own the entries, can authorize a
trusted user to use their credentials to access the entries.
Trusted credentials are also used to run scheduled requests when users are not logged on to IBM
Cognos 8, for example, overnight. When the request runs, a user session is created. The trusted
credential is used to log on to IBM Cognos 8 as the user the trusted credential represents and the
user's access permissions are used to run the report or the job.
The credentials are stored as part of the account object in the namespace.

Create Trusted Credentials

You can create trusted credentials (p. 53) when you want to authorize other users to use your cre-
dentials when those users do not have sufficient access permissions to perform specific tasks.
For users to use trusted credentials, traverse permissions must be granted for the namespace.

Steps

1. In IBM Cognos Connection, in the upper-right corner, click the my area button , My Pref-
erences.

2. On the Personal tab, under Credentials, if you have not created credentials before, click Create
the Credentials.

3. Select the users, groups, or roles you want to authorize to use your credentials.
If you are prompted for your credentials, provide your user ID and password.

4. If you want to add entries, click Add then choose how to select entries:
● To choose from listed entries, click the appropriate namespace, and then select the check
boxes next to the users, groups, or roles.

● To search for entries, click Search and in the Search string box, type the phrase you want
to search for. For search options, click Edit. Find and click the entry you want.

● To type the name of entries you want to add, click Type and type the names of groups,
roles, or users using the following format, where a semicolon (;) separates each entry:
namespace/group_name;namespace/role_name;namespace/user_name;
Here is an example:
Cognos/Authors;LDAP/scarter;

5. Click the right-arrow button and when the entries you want appear in the Selected entries box,
click OK.

Tips: To remove entries from the Selected entries list, select them and click Remove. To select
all entries in a list, click the check box in the upper-left corner of the list. To make the user
entries visible, click Show users in the list.

6. If you want to remove an entry from the list, select the check box next to it and click Remove.

7. Ensure that the list contains only the users, groups, or roles that you want, and click OK.

54 IBM Cognos Connection

Chapter 5: Pages and Dashboards

IBM Cognos Connection pages and dashboards provide quick access to IBM Cognos business
intelligence and performance management information, such as reports, metrics, or news items.
The information is relevant to specific users or business objectives, and can be monitored at a glance.
Dashboards are pages with enhanced functionality. The information is displayed on multiple tabs
that are easy to navigate. Each tab can include different segment of information. A dashboard can
be accessed as a standalone application through a URL. Users can print selected dashboard pages.
The content for pages and dashboards is provided by Cognos portlets, or other supported portlets.
Each portlet is an independent application that adds to the page different content and functionality,
such as the ability to browse folders and entries, view reports and metrics, and include custom text
and images or links to other Web pages.
You can add different types of information to your pages and organize them in a way that is
meaningful to you. For example, you may want to see specific IBM Cognos reports and metrics,
or have links to your favorite Web sites.
The following table shows the types of content you can add to an IBM Cognos Connection page,
and the portlets that provide this content.

Page Content Portlet Portlet Group

Browse IBM Cognos folders, reports, and other Cognos Navigator Cognos Content
entries

Search for IBM Cognos reports and other entries Cognos Search

View and interact with IBM Cognos reports and Cognos Viewer
other entries

View and interact with different types of perform- Metric List Cognos Metrics
ance metrics, such as the metrics you want to
monitor closely, or the metrics for which you are
directly responsible.

Add a metric history chart that illustrates the Metric History Chart
historical performance of the metric

Display an impact diagram associated with a Metrics Impact Diagram

metric

Display a custom diagram associated with a Metrics Custom Dia-

scorecard. gram

Licensed Materials – Property of IBM

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2005, 2009. 55
Chapter 5: Pages and Dashboards

Page Content Portlet Portlet Group

View and interact with custom applications cre- Cognos Extended Cognos Extended
ated using IBM Cognos 8 Software Development Applications Applications Portlet
Kit

Register and show active links to other Web pages Bookmarks Viewer Cognos Utility

Add and view custom images, such as logos Image Viewer

Insert any other Web page HTML Viewer

Add and show the content of a Real Simple Syn- RSS Viewer
dication (RSS) news feed specified by a URL
address

Add and view custom text and images HTML Source

Create and view a dashboard with multiple tabs Multi-page Dashboard

Add non-Cognos items to a page Supported other portlets Content associated

with other portlets

The list of pages is cached in an IBM Cognos Connection session. When the state of a page changes
during the current session, users who have access to the page are affected. For example, when a
page is disabled or deleted, it can no longer be used and its tabs are deleted or not functional. To
update the portal with the most current settings, use the IBM Cognos Connection refresh button

.
When you log on to IBM Cognos Connection for the first time, you access the pages an administrator
made available to you. Later, you can create your own pages.
You can perform the following page-related tasks in IBM Cognos Connection:
● create pages (p. 57) and dashboards (p. 63)

● edit pages (p. 58)

● share pages with other users (p. 58)

● modify portlets (p. 59)

● enable communication between portlets (p. 59)

● add, remove, or reorder the portal tabs (p. 60)

● change your home page (p. 63)

● add interactivity to pages and dashboards (p. 66)

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Create a Page
You can create your own pages in IBM Cognos Connection to group different types of information
into a single view.
The pages are saved in Public Folders or My Folders. If you plan to share a page with other users,
save it in Public Folders.
After you create the page, you can edit it to modify its contents, layout and style, and to set access
permissions (p. 58).
You can delete pages in IBM Cognos Connection (p. 40) if you have the required access permissions
for the pages. Deleting a page may affect your portal tabs (p. 60).

Steps

1. In IBM Cognos Connection, click the new page button .

2. Specify a name and location for the page, and, if you want, a description and a screen tip.

3. Click Next.

The Set columns and layout page appears.

4. Define the layout for your page by setting the number and width of columns.

Tip: If you are using multiple columns and one of the columns includes a report that is shown
in Cognos Viewer, set the width to at least 50% to minimize scrolling.

5. In the column to which you want to add portlets, click Add.

6. Click the portlet group that contains the portlets you want to add.

7. Select the portlets, and click the add button to move them to the Selected entries box. If
you want to remove a portlet from the Selected entries box, click Remove.

Tip: You can preview the content of the portlets by clicking the view this portlet button .

8. Click OK.

9. Repeat steps 5 to 8 for each portlet group you want.

10. Click OK, and then click Next.

The Set page style page appears.

11. Customize the appearance of your page.

● If you want, add a title and instructions for the page in the language of the product.
For more information, see "Edit a Page" (p. 58).
To hide the title or instructions, select the associated check box.

Tip: To change the formatting of the text, click Custom. To go back to the default
formatting, click Return to default.

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● If you want, hide the portlet borders, title bars, or the edit button in the title bar. This helps
to avoid clutter and gives the page a uniform look and feel.

12. Click Next.

13. If you want to add the page to the portal tab bar, select the Add this page to the portal tabs
check box. To view the page, select the View the page check box.

14. Click Finish.

Edit a Page
You can change the page content, layout and style, and access permissions. For example, you may
want to see a different report, or change the list of users who can access the page.

Page Titles and Instructions

When you create a page, you can specify a title and instructions for the page only in the product
language you currently use. For example, if you use the French version of IBM Cognos 8, you can
type the title and instructions in French only. After the page is created, you can add the title and
instructions for other language versions by editing the page properties on the Page Style tab.

Steps
1. Go to the page you want to edit.

2. Click the edit page button .

Tip: Alternatively, locate the page in IBM Cognos Connection, and click its set properties
button.

3. Change the page properties as required.

For more information about changing the page content, layout, and style, see "Create a
Page" (p. 57).
For more information about setting the page access permissions, see "Share a Page" (p. 58).

Share a Page
You can share your page with other users by giving them access permissions for the page. You can
set up the permissions so that other users can only view the page or also modify it.
To view a page, traverse and execute permissions for the page, and execute permissions for its
portlets are required. To modify the page, write permissions are also required.

Steps
1. If you did not create the page in Public Folders, copy it there from your personal folders (p. 35).

2. Specify which users, groups, or roles can have read, traverse, execute, or write permissions for
the page.

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For more information, see "Access Permissions" (p. 49)

Modify a Portlet
Portlets provide different types of information for pages. You can modify the content of an instance
of a portlet in a page if you have the required permissions for the page (p. 58). You will retain the
custom settings even if the administrator resets the portlet. Other users who also have access to the
page that contains this portlet instance will also see the changes. However, if the administrator
locks the portlet, you cannot configure it.
The configurable properties for the Cognos portlets vary. For more information, click the help
button in the portlet title bar.

Steps
1. Go to the page that contains the portlet.

2. In the portlet title bar, click the edit button .

3. Edit the properties as required.

Tip: If you want to go back to the default settings, click the reset button.

4. Click OK.

Enable Communication Between Cognos Portlets

You can enable portlet-to-portlet communication so that the portlets can interact. For example,
you can use this functionality when you want to navigate published IBM Cognos reports and view
the selected reports on the same page.
This functionality applies only to Cognos portlets and works between portlets of different groups.
For example, the Metric List portlet can communicate with the Cognos Viewer portlet. One portlet
is a target portlet, and the remaining portlets are source portlets. The results of actions in the source
portlets are shown in the associated target portlets.
Portlets in different pages can communicate between themselves.
You can enable portlet-to-portlet communication between the following source and target portlets.

Source portlet Target portlet

Cognos Navigator Cognos Viewer

Cognos Search Cognos Viewer

Cognos Viewer Cognos Viewer

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Source portlet Target portlet

Metric List Cognos Viewer

Metric History Chart
Metrics Impact Diagram

Metrics Impact Diagram Cognos Viewer

Metric History Chart

Metrics Custom Diagram Cognos Viewer

Metric List
Metric History Chart

Bookmarks Viewer HTML Viewer

Image Viewer HTML Viewer

RSS Viewer HTML Viewer

To enable this functionality, you specify a channel name in the target portlet and refer to this name
in the associated source portlets.

Steps
1. Go to the page or the dashboard that contains the portlets for which you want to enable portlet-
to-portlet communication.

2. Click the edit button in the portlet title bar.

3. For the channel property, type the name you want.

The name can contain letters, numbers, and underscore (_) characters, but must not contain
any spaces. For example, Cognos, Cognos_Portlets, CognosPortlets are valid names.

Note: The boxes where you type the channel name have different labels in different portlets.
For example, Channel, Portlets using channel, or In a destination portlet.

4. Click OK.

5. Repeat the steps for each portlet that you want to broadcast on the same channel.
Ensure that you type the same channel name.

Portal Tabs
The tabs in IBM Cognos Connection are used to quickly access the pages that are important to you.
The tabs represent:

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● Public Folders

● My Folders

● Pages or dashboards

An administrator specifies the default tab setup for users. To personalize IBM Cognos Connection,
you can add (p. 61) and remove (p. 62) tabs, or reorder them (p. 62). Other users are not affected
by your changes.
When you delete a page, the tab associated with this page is automatically removed. Your tabs may
also be affected by changes to the associated pages made by other users who have access to the
pages. For example, when a page is deleted during the current session, its tab is no longer functional,
and an error message may appear when you click the tab. To see the most current tab settings, click

the IBM Cognos Connection refresh button .

Note: If many tabs exist, scrolling is added automatically.

Add a Tab
You can add a tab in IBM Cognos Connection for a new page or for an existing page so that you
can access the page quickly.
If the Public Folders or My Folders tabs are not available in your tab bar, you can add them, too.
Only one tab can exist for each folder or page.
There are various methods to add a tab. Choose the method that is applicable to your current view.

Steps Using My Preferences

1. Click the may area button , My Preferences, and then click the Portal Tabs tab.
A list of your current tabs appears.

2. Click Add.

3. In the list of available pages, select the page you want.

You can select multiple pages.

4. Click the right arrow button to move the page to the Selected entries box.

5. Click OK.
The tab for the page appears in the portal.

6. Click OK to close My Preferences.

Steps Using the Tab Menu

1. From the tab menu on the left side of the tab bar, click Add tabs.

2. In the list of available pages, select the page you want.

You can select multiple pages.

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3. Click the right arrow button to move the page to the Selected entries box.

4. Click OK.
The tab for the page appears in the portal.

Steps Using the Add Button

1. In the list of available pages, locate the page you want.

2. In the Actions column, click its associated add button .

The tab appears in the portal.

Delete a Tab
You can delete a tab when it is not needed.
When you delete a page that has a tab, the tab is automatically removed. When you remove a tab
for a page, the page is not deleted.
You can delete the Public Folders and My Folders tabs, and add them back later, if needed (p. 61).
Deleting the tabs does not delete Public Folders and My Folders from Content Manager.

Steps Using My Preferences

1. Click the may area button , My Preferences, and then click the Portal Tabs tab.
A list of your current tabs appears.

2. Select the check box next to the tab you want to remove, and click Remove this tab.
You can select multiple tabs.

3. Click OK.
The tab is deleted from the tab bar.

Steps Using the Tab Menu

1. On the tab bar, click the tab you want to remove.

2. From the tab menu , on the left side of the tab bar, click Remove this portal tab.

3. In the message box, ensure you are deleting the proper tab, and click OK.
The tab is deleted from the tab bar.

Reorder the Tabs

You can change the order of tabs so that they are organized in a way that is meaningful to you.

Steps Using My Preferences

1. Click the may area button , My Preferences, and then click the Portal Tabs tab.
A list of your current tabs appears.

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2. Click Modify the sequence.

3. In the Tabs box, move the tabs up or down as required.

4. Click OK.
The tabs appear in the new order.

5. Click OK to close My Preferences.

Steps Using the Tab Menu

1. From the tab menu on the left side of the tab bar, click Modify the sequence of tabs.
A list of your current tabs appears.

2. Move the tabs up or down using the appropriate buttons.

3. Click OK.
The tabs appear in the new order.

Change Your Home Page

You can choose any page in IBM Cognos 8 as your home page.

Steps
1. Go to the page you want to set up as your new home page.

2. Next to the home icon , click the arrow, and click Set as Home Page.

Create a Dashboard with Multiple Tabs

A dashboard is a visual display of the most important information that a user needs. The information
is consolidated and arranged on a single screen so that it can be monitored at a glance.
Different segments of information are displayed on different tabs. To create a dashboard, you
assemble the different segments of information into a single view by using the Multi-page portlet
(p. 55). This portlet is linked to a source folder that contains entries that appear as tabs in the
dashboard. You can make changes to the tabs in the dashboard by adding or deleting the associated
entries from the source folder.
The following entries can be used as tabs in a dashboard:
● folders and shortcuts to folders
Use folders to include a second level of tabs.

● packages and shortcuts to packages

Use packages to include a second level of tabs.

● reports and shortcuts to reports

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Use to view or run a Report Studio report.

● report views and shortcuts to report views

Use to view or run a Report Studio report.

● queries and shortcuts to queries

Use to view or run a Query Studio report.

● analysis and shortcuts to analysis

Use to view or run an Analysis Studio report.

● pages and shortcuts to pages

Use to add a page or another dashboard

● URLs and shortcuts to URLs

Use to embed a different Web page.

● PowerPlay reports
Use to view or run a PowerPlay report

● MS Documents
Use to include a link to a Microsoft document, such as an Excel, PowerPoint, or Word document.

The general dashboard properties are the same as page properties. You can edit the dashboard
layout and style (p. 58), modify the properties of the Multi-page portlet (p. 59), set up access per-
missions for the dashboard (p. 58), and add it to the portal tabs (p. 60).

Setting up the Dashboard Folder Structure

Before you start creating your dashboards, we recommend setting up a folder hierarchy in Public
Folders to keep your dashboard resources organized. For example, create a folder for all the dash-
boards you plan to create. Next, create a subfolder for each dashboard to use as source folder for
the entries that you want to include in the dashboard, such as reports, folders, pages, or shortcuts.
The folder structure may look like this:

Root folder

Dashboards

Sales
(1)
Marketing

Sales Resources
(2)
Marketing Resources

Shortcut

(3) Shortcut

Page

Folder

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1. The Sales and Marketing pages are the multi-tabbed dashboards. These are the dashboard master pages that are
built using the Multi-page portlet.

2. The Sales Resources folder is the source folder for the Sales dashboard, and the Marketing Resources folder is the
source folder for the Marketing dashboard.

3. The source folders can contain entries such as reports, pages, folders, shortcuts, and so on. These entries appear
as tabs in the dashboard.

Steps

1. In IBM Cognos Connection, click the new page button .

2. Type the name, and select a location for your page.

3. Click Next.

4. In the Set columns and layout page, set the number of columns to 1, and the column width to
100%.

5. Click Add.
A list of portlet groups appears.

6. In the Available Entries box, click Dashboard.

7. Select the Multi-page portlet, and click the right arrow button to move the portlet to the
Selected Entries box.

8. Click OK, and then Next.

9. In the Set page style page, specify a meaningful title for the page, select any of the remaining
properties, and click Next.

10. In the Select an action page, you can select Add this page to the portal tabs.

11. Click Finish.

The page that you created is the dashboard master page.

12. Open the page you created.

An empty frame of the Multi-page portlet appears.

13. In the portlet toolbar, click the edit button .

The portlet properties page appears.

14. In the Folder section, click Select an entry.

15. Browse to the folder or package that contains the resources for the dashboard, such as shortcuts,
pages, or bookmarks. Select an entry, and click OK.

Tip: To add My Folders as a tab in the dashboard, create a shortcut to My Folders.

16. Specify other portlet properties as required. For example, in the Display Style section, specify
how to display the dashboard tabs, horizontally at the top of the page, or vertically on the left
side of the page.

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17. Click OK.

You can now open and view the dashboard page.

Tip: Other users can access the dashboard through its URL. To see the URL, go to IBM Cognos
Connection, locate the dashboard master page, and open its properties page. On the General tab,
click View the search path, ID and URL.

Adding Interactivity to Pages and Dashboards

Pages and dashboards become much more effective for data reporting and analysis when you add
interactivity to them. A single action in one report can cause other reports to refresh simultaneously
and show the data associated with the action.
You can enhance the page interactivity by
● defining global filters (p. 66)

● enabling the sharing of drill-up and drill-down actions (p. 70)

● enabling the sharing of drill-through actions (p. 71)

Defining Global Filters

Global filters are used to control the display of one or more reports in a single portal page or in a
dashboard. For example, a global filter can be on a report that contains only a prompt or prompt
controls. This allows for a single selection to drive a number of reports at once. When a prompt
answer is changed, all related reports refresh dynamically to show the data that answers the prompt.
For example, if you answer a prompt for a country with Brazil, all related reports on the page are
filtered to show the data for Brazil. When this is used in a dashboard, the context is passed to all
corresponding tabs.
Perform the following tasks to set up a page or a dashboard with global filters:
❑ Prepare the Reports (p. 66)

❑ Create the Global Filters (p. 67)

❑ Assemble the Reports on a Page (p. 68)

Preparing the Reports

Before you start creating a page or a dashboard with global filters, you must know which reports
you can use, and have the reports ready. The reports can be authored in Report Studio, Query
Studio, or Analysis Studio.
If you include reports from only one package, the global filters share parameters using the model
item. If you include reports from different packages, the following conditions must be met:
● All reports must use the same parameter name in their filter statements.
An example of a relational filter is Country = ?pCountryPrompt?. An example of an OLAP
slicer filter is Great Outdoors Company].[Sales Territory].[SalesTerritory].
[Country]->?pCountryPrompt?.

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We do not recommend using the default parameter name, such as Parameter1.

● The Report Studio reports must follow the naming convention used in one of the other studios.
For example, in Query Studio the convention is [attribute name] or [level name], such
as Order_Method1. In Analysis Studio the convention is [hierarchy name], such as Order
Method.

Note: If the page contains only Report Studio reports, we recommend using the p[attribute
name]Prompt convention, for example, pCountryPrompt.

Create the Global Filters

A global filter is a value that is shared across different reports. At least one of the reports that you
are using for the dashboard needs to contain a prompt or prompt control. The prompted report is
embedded into a page or a dashboard using the Cognos Viewer portlet and linked with other reports
in the page using the global filter portlet properties. The prompts that are used as global filters
control the display of your chosen linked reports. If this functionality is implemented in a single
page, the prompts control linked reports in different sections of the page. If the page is a dashboard
with multiple tabs, the prompts can control the report filtering across tabs.
We recommend creating prompt reports in Report Studio. The rich editing environment of this
studio gives the author access to a variety of prompt controls, such as the Next, Reprompt, or
Finish buttons. These controls add more interactivity to portal pages.
For more information about building prompts and prompt pages, see the Report Studio Professional
Authoring User Guide.

Using Metrics as Global Filters

You can use metrics and strategy elements in Cognos Metrics portlets as global filters. In a page,
or in a dashboard with multiple tabs, the Metric List, Metrics Impact Diagram, and Metrics Custom
Diagram portlets can filter prompted parameters for the Cognos Viewer portlet. You must configure
Cognos Viewer to show a report associated with a metric or a strategy element, and set up commu-
nication between the portlets using the same channel name (p. 59).
When a user clicks a metric name in Metric List, Metrics Impact Diagram, or Metrics Custom
Diagram, Cognos Viewer dynamically updates the report if the report prompt parameters are based
on metric values. When a user clicks a strategy element in Metrics Custom Diagram, Cognos Viewer
dynamically updates the report if the report prompt parameters are based on strategy element values.
For this functionality to work, the following parameters that are broadcast on a channel after a
click action in a Cognos Metrics portlet must match the names of the report prompt parameters:
● scorecard_extid

● scorecard_sid

● strategy_sid

● metric_sid

● metric_extid

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● time_period_sid

Steps to Create a Prompted Report

1. In Report Studio, create a prompt on a report page, not on a prompt page, of the report.

Set the Auto-Submit property for the prompt to yes.

If you want to use cascading prompts, only the last prompt in the sequence needs to be on the
report page.

For some prompts, such as the value prompts, you may need to add a Finish button to signal
that the prompt selection is complete. For cascading prompts, the Reprompt button is also
required to restart the prompting sequence.

2. Add other details, such as background images, instructions, or a title.

The prompt can now be added to a portal page or a dashboard (p. 68).

Assemble the Reports on a Page

The prompts and the target reports in a page or a dashboard create an interactive and easy way to
access IBM Cognos BI environment.
Each report is displayed using the Cognos Viewer portlet. The reports communicate with each other
using the properties of this portlet.
You can use different design strategies to implement global filters in a page. Here is an example of
a basic layout:

Prompt report
Target report 1

Target report 2

If your page includes reports from different packages, ensure that the prompt reports use the same
parameter names as the target reports.
Use the following steps when defining global filters in a single page. If you want to implement this
functionality in a dashboard, you must complete additional steps. For more information, see
"Create a Dashboard with Multiple Tabs" (p. 63).

Steps

1. In IBM Cognos Connection, click the new page button .

2. Type the name, and select a location for your page.

3. Click Next.

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4. In the Set columns and layout page, set the number and width of columns.
For example, the reports that display the prompts and prompt controls can be placed in one
column, and the target reports in a separate column to the right.

5. Click Add at the bottom of the first column.

6. In the Available Entries box, click IBM Cognos Content.

7. Select the Cognos Viewer portlet, click the right arrow button to move the portlet to the
Selected Entries box, and click OK.

8. Repeat steps 5 to 7 for each column.

You must add the Cognos Viewer portlet for each report that you want to include in the column.
For example, if the column on the left will contain a prompt and prompt controls, add two
Cognos Viewer portlets.

9. Click Next.

10. Complete the remaining steps in the wizard, if needed, and click Finish.
For more information, see the steps in the section "Create a Page" (p. 57).

11. Go to the folder where you saved the new page, and open it.
In the page columns, you can see the empty frames of the Cognos Viewer portlets.

12. For any portlet in the page, click the edit button in the portlet toolbar.

13. In the portlet properties page, click Select an entry to select the report you want to display in
the portlet.

14. Click Edit Properties.

The Advanced Properties Editor appears.

15. For the Fragment Action property, specify the default portlet action when the portlet is invoked
in a page.
You can choose to show the run icon, run the report, or view the most recent saved output.

Tip: For more information about the portlet properties, click the Help button in the portlet.

16. For the Prompt the user property, specify how to execute the prompts.

17. For the Prompt values property, select the Communicate with other portlets check box.
This property enables communication between this portlet and other portlets in the page that
have this property set up.

● When you select Every time, if the report contains optional or required prompts, the user
is prompted to enter the prompt values before the report is run.

● When you select Only when required parameter values are missing, the user is prompted
if the report contains required prompts and the values are missing. Otherwise the report
runs successfully.

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● When you select Never and show the report only when required values are provided, Cognos
Viewer attempts to run the report, but the page remains hidden until the required prompt
values are provided.

● When you select Based on the prompt settings of the report, Cognos Viewer uses the
prompts specified in the report.

18. If you want to set up communication between only specific portlets in the page, type the
channel name in the box provided.
Only the portlets that share the same channel name can interact. By specifying the channel
name, you have more control over the page. For example, you can link only the reports that
have matching parameters.

For more information about this property, click the Help button in the portlet.

19. If you want to see the portlet toolbar in the page, for the Show Toolbar property, select the
Normal mode and Maximized mode check boxes.

20. Click OK to close Advanced Properties Editor, and click OK again to close the general properties
page.

21. Repeat steps 12 to 20 for each portlet in the page.

Enable Sharing of Drill-up and Drill-down Actions

In pages, you can enable sharing of drill-up and drill-down actions, between reports that are based
on a dimensionally modelled data source. A drill action on an item in one report causes the same
action in an associated report if the report is on the same page and contains the same item. For
example, when you drill down on the item 2005 in one report, all reports in the page drill down
on the same item and the data for the year 2005 appears in all reports.
This functionality is enabled using the properties of the Cognos Viewer portlet. By default, drill
actions are disabled in a page.
This functionality is not supported for dashboards with multiple tabs. However, a single page with
drill-up and drill-down actions enabled can be embedded into a dashboard as one of the tabs.

Steps
1. In IBM Cognos Connection, create a page that contains the Cognos Viewer portlet for each
report that you want to add to the page.
For more detailed information, see the steps in "Create a Page" (p. 57).

2. Configure the Cognos Viewer portlets to display the reports that you want to add to the page.

In the portlet properties page, click Select an entry to select the report you want to display in
the portlet.

3. In the Advanced Properties Editor of the Cognos Viewer portlets, for the Drill down and drill
up property, select the Communicate with other portlets on the page check box.
This property enables communication between all portlets in the page using the default channel.

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For more information, click the Help button in the portlet.

4. If you want to set up communication between only specific portlets in the page, type the
channel name in the box provided.
Only the portlets that share the same channel name can interact. By specifying the channel
name, you have more control over the page.

Enable Sharing of Drill-through Actions

You can enable sharing of drill-through actions in a page. When a user drills from a source report
to a target report, the target report appears in the specified area of the page.
For this feature to work, a page must have a report that contains an authored drill-through path.
The page must also contain a placeholder Cognos Viewer portlet that is set up to receive the drill-
through requests.
Report-based drill-through works with both interactive reports and saved report outputs. However,
it only works for a single drill-through request. If the drill-through contains multiple targets, it must
be invoked from the context menu.

This functionality is enabled using the Channel property of the Cognos Viewer portlet. You must
specify the same channel name for the portlet that contains the source report and the portlet that
receives the target report. By default, drill-through actions are disabled in a page.
This functionality is not supported for dashboards with multiple tabs. However, a single page with
drill-through actions enabled can be embedded into a dashboard as one of the tabs.

Steps
1. In IBM Cognos Connection, create a page that contains the Cognos Viewer portlets for the
drill-through source report, and the target report.
For more detailed information, see the steps in the section "Create a Page" (p. 57).

2. Configure one of the Cognos Viewer portlets to display the Report Studio source report that
contains the drill-through path.

In the portlet properties page, click Select an entry to select the report you want to display in
the portlet.

3. Configure the other Cognos Viewer portlet to display the drill-through target report.
As the target report, we recommend using a report that contains prompts.

In the portlet properties page, click Select an entry to select the report you want to display in
the portlet.

4. For both portlets configured in step 2 and 3, in the Advanced Properties Editor page, for the
Report-based drill-through property, select the Communicate with other portlets on the page
check box, and type the channel name in the box provided.
The channel name is mandatory.

For more information about this property, click the Help button in the portlet.

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Chapter 6: Reports and Cubes

You can use reports, cubes, and documents to analyze data and help you make informed and timely
decisions. In IBM Cognos 8, reports and cubes can be published to the portal to ensure that everyone
in your organization has accurate and relevant information when they need it.

Query Studio and Report Studio Reports

Typically, for Query Studio and Report Studio reports, your data modeler creates models (p. 26)
from subsets of corporate data. These models are then published as packages in IBM Cognos 8.
Query Studio and Report Studio users can create reports based on the packages and publish them
in IBM Cognos 8. In IBM Cognos Connection, a Query Studio report is called a query and a Report
Studio report is called a report.
OLAP sources do not need additional modeling.

Analysis Studio Reports and Cubes

An Analysis Studio administrator can publish Analysis Studio reports and cubes in IBM Cognos 8.
Analysis Studio users can create reports and publish them in IBM Cognos 8. In IBM Cognos Con-
nection, an Analysis Studio report is called an analysis.

Working with Reports and Cubes

A report can refer to the specification that defines the information to include in a report, or the
results themselves. For Report Studio and Query Studio, report specifications can have saved results
or you can run a report to produce new results. For Analysis Studio, reports are always run against
the latest data in the cube.
After a report is published to the portal, you can view, run, or open it (p. 74) or view report output
versions (p. 88). You can also view the report in various formats (p. 82).
You can distribute reports by saving them, sending them by email, sending them to your mobile
device, printing them, or bursting them (p. 96). You can also set run options for the current run
(p. 75), and set advanced run options for the current run (p. 76).
You can create an ad hoc report using Query Studio or you can use Report Studio to define layouts,
styles, and prompts for your report (p. 79). You can also create Analysis Studio reports (analyses).
You can schedule a report to run at a later time or on a recurring basis. You can schedule a report
as part of a job or based on a trigger. You can view the run history for a report. For more inform-
ation, see "View the Run History for Entries" (p. 154). You can also include a report in an agent
(p. 131).
You can add yourself to the alert list for a report so that you are alerted when new versions of the
report are created (p. 90). You can also specify watch rules in saved HTML report output so that
you are alerted whenever the events specified by the watch rules are satisfied (p. 91).
You can disable selection-based features (p. 95), such as drilling up and down and drill-through.

Licensed Materials – Property of IBM

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2005, 2009. 73
Chapter 6: Reports and Cubes

Mixed Currencies
Mixed currency values occur when you calculate values with different currencies. When using an
OLAP data source, mixed currency values use the asterisk character (*) as the unit of measure.

Accessibility for the Disabled

We are committed to assisting people with disabilities, and promotes initiatives that make workplaces
and technologies accessible. IBM Cognos 8 provides an accessible report reading solution. This
solution allows disabled users and users of Assistive Technology the ability to access and display
reports in Cognos Viewer.

Series 7 Reports and Cubes

For information on working with Series 7 reports and cubes in IBM Cognos 8, see "Series 7 Reports
in IBM Cognos Connection" (p. 102).

View, Run, or Open a Report

You can view the most recent run of a report, run a report, or open a report in the authoring tool.
The default action is to view the most recent run of a report but you can select the default action
that you prefer (p. 74).
You must have execute permission to run a report. You must have read and traverse permissions
for the folder that contains the report.

Step
● In IBM Cognos Connection, click the report that you want.
For more information about using PowerPlay Web Explorer, see PowerPlay Web User’s Guide.
For information about using Analysis Studio, see the Analysis Studio User's Guide.

Set Default Report Options

You can set one of the following actions as the default when a report is run (p. 74):
● view the most recent report or run if it has not been previously run (default)

● run the report

● open the report in the authoring tool that was used to create it (Query Studio, Report Studio,
or Analysis Studio)

You can set default report options such as format and language. You can also set the default to
prompt for values (p. 86) and run as the owner. For information about properties, see "Entry
Properties" (p. 27).

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You must have execute permissions for the report. You must have read and traverse permissions
for the folder that contains the report.

Steps

1. In IBM Cognos Connection, click the set properties button on the actions toolbar to the
right of the report.

2. Click the Report tab for a Report Studio report, the Query tab for a Query Studio report, or
the Analysis tab for a Analysis Studio report.

3. Under Default action, select the default action for when the report is run.

4. If you want to override report options, under Report options, click the Override the default
values check box.
You can change some or all of the options, such as format and language.

5. If you want to prompt for values to filter the data in the report, click select the Prompt for
values check box under Prompt Values.

Note: You are prompted for values only if the report specification or model includes prompts
or if you have access to multiple data source connections or signons.

6. If you want to run the report using the owner credentials, click the check box next to the owner
listed under Run as the owner.

7. To set additional report options, click Advanced options.

● Under Number of rows per Web page in HTML reports, click the number of rows you
want to allow.

● To allow such features as drill up and drill down, drill through, Cognos Search, watch
rules, and agent notification when the report is viewed in Cognos Viewer, select Enable
selection-based interactivity in HTML reports.

● If you want to allow the creation of additional output formats so that watch rules can be
evaluated and saved output versions can be imported into IBM Cognos 8 Go! Office, select
Enable enhanced user features in saved output versions.

● If you want users to receive alerts when new report output is generated, select Enable alerts
about new versions.

● To create an expiry date for the report cache data, select Day or Month and type a corres-
ponding number under Cache duration. Report cache data is created only if there is no
cache data or if the cache data is expired.

8. Click OK.

Set Report Options for the Current Run

You can set the following options for the current run of a report:

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● report output format (p. 82)

● language (p. 85)

● delivery method (p. 96)

● prompt for values (p. 86)

These options override the defaults for a report for a one-time run.

Tip: You can also force database access by clicking More next to the report, and then clicking Clear
the cache.
You can change default run options for reports (p. 74)
If you change the delivery method while a report is running, the run operation is cancelled. The
report is run again using the new delivery method that you select. This can be time-consuming for
large reports. To save time, specify the delivery method before you run the report.
To specify a time for the report to run, to choose additional formats or more than one language,
or for additional delivery methods, use advanced run options (p. 76).
You must have execute permissions for the report you are attempting to run. You must have read
and traverse permissions for the folder that contains the report.

Steps
1. In IBM Cognos Connection, click the run with options button on the actions toolbar to
the right of the report you want to run.

2. Under Format, click the format that you want for the report output.

3. Under Language, click the language that you want for the report output.

4. Under Delivery, choose to view the report now, save the report, print the report, or send the
report your mobile device.

5. If you choose to print, click Select a printer, click the button next to the printer you want to
use, and click OK. If the printer is not listed, you can type the printer information.

6. If you want to prompt for values to filter the data in the report, under Prompt Values, click
the Prompt for values check box.
You are prompted for values only if the report specification or model includes prompts or if
you have access to multiple data source connections or signons.

7. Click Run.

Set Advanced Report Options for the Current Run

You can specify the following advanced run options for a report for the current run:
● time when the report should run

● multiple report output formats if you choose to run the report later and additional format
choices for HTML and PDF (p. 82)

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● one or more languages (p. 85)

● one or more delivery methods (p. 96)

● prompt for values (p. 86)

● burst the report (p. 96)

The report runs in the background if you run the report later, select multiple report formats or
languages, select to save, print or email the report, send the report to your mobile device, or burst
the report. If you set your preferences to show a summary of the run options (p. 44), the summary
appears whenever the report is not run interactively.
The report runs in the background. When done, the output versions button appears next to the
report on the Actions toolbar.

Tip: Click the output versions button to view the selected formats. For more information, see
"View Report Output Versions" (p. 88).
Default options are set by the report author. You can change default run options for reports "Set
Default Report Options" (p. 74).
If you choose to save, print, or send the report by email, you can choose multiple formats. If you
choose to run the report later, the delivery option is automatically changed to save. For more
information on saving report output, see "Save Report Output" (p. 87).
You must have execute permissions for the report you are attempting to run. You must have read
and traverse permissions for the folder that contains the report. You need the appropriate permissions
to set advanced run options.

Steps
1. In IBM Cognos Connection, click the run with options button on the actions toolbar to
the right of the report you want to run.

2. Click Advanced options.

3. Under Time and mode, click Run in the background, and then click Now or Later. If you specify
Later, set a date and time for the report to run.

4. Under Format, click the formats you want for the report output.
● The Enable selection-based interactivity check box is selected by default. For information
about deselecting this option, see "Disable Selection-based Interactivity" (p. 95).

5. If you want to select a different or additional languages for the report, under Languages, click
Select the languages and use the arrow keys to move the available languages to the Selected
languages box and click OK.

Tip: To select multiple languages, use the Ctrl key or use the Shift key.

6. Under Delivery, choose the delivery method that you want:

● If you schedule a report for a future time, select multiple formats or languages, or burst
the report. You cannot view the report now. Select one of the other delivery methods.

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● If you choose to print, click Select a printer. Click the button next to the printer you want
to use and click OK. Or, if the printer is not listed, you can type the printer information.

● If you choose to save using report view, you can change the name or destination folder of
the report view. Click Edit the save as options, make the changes and click OK.

● If you choose to email the report, proceed to step 7.

● If you choose to send the report to your mobile device, enter your Mobile device ID.

7. If you select Send the report by email, click Edit the email options and set the following options:

● To display the blind copy field, click Show Bcc.

● To choose IBM Cognos 8 recipients, click Select the recipients. Select the check box next
to the names you want to include, and click To, Cc (copy), or Bcc (blind copy). The entries
that you select are listed under Selected entries.

Tip: To select all entries in a list, click the check box in the upper-left corner of the list. To
remove names from Selected entries, select the check box next to the name and click Remove.
To search, click Search. In the Search string box, type the phrase you want to search for.
For advanced search features, click Edit. For more information, see "Search for an
Entry" (p. 42).

When you are done, click OK.

● To send the email to other recipients, in the To:, Cc, or Bcc boxes, type the email addresses
separated by semicolons (;).

Tip: If you logged on, your name automatically appears in the To list box.

● Under Subject, type the subject of the email.

● Under Body, type a message to be included in the email.

Tip: By default, the body of the email is in HTML format, which provides advanced editing
features such as font type and size, text color, text formatting and justification, numbers
and bullets, indentation, and tables. To use plain text, click Change to plain text.

● To include a hyperlink to the report, select the Include a link to the report check box. To
include the report as an attachment, select the Attach the report check box.

● Click OK.

8. If you want to be prompted for values to filter the data in the report, under Prompt Values,
select the Prompt for values check box.
If you run the report later, the prompt values you provide are saved and used when the report
runs.

Note: You are prompted for values only if the report specification or model includes prompts
or if you have access to multiple data source connections or signons, even if the Prompt for
values check box is selected.

9. Under Bursting, specify whether the report should be bursted.

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This option is available only if the report author defined burst keys in the report.

10. Click Run.

Create a Report
You can create reports to analyze data and answer specific questions related to your business.
Use Query Studio to intuitively explore data by creating ad hoc reports. Report Studio is a compre-
hensive report authoring environment. Use it to create both highly interactive and sophisticated
production reports for mass consumption by specifying queries and layouts for each report. Use
Analysis Studio for analyses.
Access to the report authoring tools is controlled by the capabilities defined for your logon. If you
require access to the report authoring tools but the links are not available on the top navigation
bar, contact your system administrator.
An existing report may contain most of the information you require, but you may need new prompt
values or changes to the layout or style. Instead of creating a new report, you can create a report
view to satisfy your requirements (p. 80).
For instructions about using the studios, see the following guides:
● Query Studio User Guide

● Report Studio Professional Authoring User Guide

● IBM Cognos Analysis Studio User Guide

Before creating a report, confirm that the package containing the data for your report is available
in the portal. If you do not have access to the package, contact your administrator.

Tip: A package is identified by the package icon .

You must have write and traverse permissions for the folder in which you want to save the new
report.

Steps
1. In IBM Cognos Connection, choose whether you want to create a simple or complex report:

● To create a simple report, in the upper right corner, click the Query Studio link .

● To create a complex report, in the upper right corner, click the Report Studio link .

● To create an Analysis Studio report, in the upper right corner, click the Analysis Studio

link .

2. If the Select Package dialog box appears, do one of the following to select the package containing
the data you want to use in your report:

● In the Recently used packages list, click the package.

● In the List of all packages list, navigate to the package and click it.

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Creating a Query Studio Report Without Using Actual Data

You can create a report without accessing the data that will eventually be used in the report. Query
Studio’s preview mode lets you create or modify reports without retrieving actual data from the
database. Instead, simulated data is shown.
For more information about preview mode, see the Query Studio User Guide.

Create a Report View

You can create a report view, which uses the same report specification as the source report, but has
different properties such as prompt values (p. 86), schedules, delivery methods, run options, languages
(p. 85), and output formats (p. 82).
Creating a report view does not change the original report. You can determine the source report
for a report view by viewing its properties. The report view properties also provide a link to the
properties of the source report.
If the source report is moved to another location, the report view link is not broken. If the source

report is deleted, the report view icon changes to indicate a broken link , and the properties
link to the source report is removed.
If you want to use a generic report as the underlying structure for additional reports, make a copy
of the report (p. 35). If you want a report to appear in more than one location, create a shortcut
(p. 24).
To create a report view, you must have execute or read permissions for the original report.

Steps
1. In IBM Cognos Connection, locate the report you want to use to create the report view.

2. Under Actions, click the report view button next to the report.

3. In the Name box, type the name of the entry.

4. If you want, in the Description and in the Screen tip box, type a description of the entry.
The description appears in the portal when you set your preferences to use the details view
(p. 44). The screen tip, which is limited to 100 characters, appears when you pause your pointer
over the icon for the entry in the portal.

5. If you do not want to use the target folder shown under Location, click Select another location
and select the target folder and click OK.

6. Click Finish.

In the portal, report view entries are identified by the report view icon .
The report view has the same run options and properties as the original entry. To change the default
properties of a report view, see "Set Default Report Options" (p. 74). For information about
properties, see "Entry Properties" (p. 27).

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View Lineage Information for a Data Item

Lineage information traces the metadata of a data item in an HTML report or a report view back
through the package and the data sources used by the package. Lineage also displays any data item
filters that were added by the report author, or that were defined in the data model. For example,
you can click a cell in a crosstab to see how the cell value was calculated.

You can view the data item’s lineage in the Business View or in the Technical View.
The business view shows high-level textual information that describes and explains the data item
and the package from which it comes. This information is taken from IBM Cognos Connection
and the Framework Manager model.
The technical view shows a graphical representation of the lineage of the selected data item. The
lineage traces the data item from the package to the data sources used by the package. When you
click the item, its properties appear at the bottom of the page. If you click an item in the Package
area, you see the item’s model properties. If you click an item in the Data Sources area, you see the
item’s data source properties.
You cannot view lineage information when running a report from a mobile device.
IBM Cognos 8 can be configured to use the default lineage solution that comes with the product,
or a custom lineage solution. IBM Metadata Workbench is also supported.

Steps
1. Open an HTML report or report view in Cognos Viewer.

2. Right-click the data item you want, and click Lineage.

The lineage views appear.

Access the IBM WebSphere Business Glossary

If you already use the IBM WebSphere Business Glossary, you can access the Glossary from Cognos
Viewer, and from the metadata tree in Report Studio, Query Studio and Analysis Studio.

Before you can access the Glossary, you must have permissions for the Glossary capability, and the
Glossary URI must be configured by an administrator.

Steps for Cognos Viewer

1. Open an HTML report or report view in Cognos Viewer.

2. Right-click the data item you want, and click Glossary.

Edit a Report
You can use the IBM Cognos 8 authoring tools to edit an existing report. You may want to change
the report layout, style, or font. The report may need to be updated because of changes to the data
or to add language support.

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If the report was created in Report Studio, you can edit the report in Report Studio. If the report
was created in Query Studio, you can edit the report in either Query Studio or Report Studio. If
you edit a Query Studio report in Report Studio, you cannot go back and edit the report in Query
Studio. For more information about modifying reports, see the Report Studio Professional
Authoring User Guide, and the Query Studio User Guide.
If the report was created in Analysis Studio, you can edit the report in either Analysis Studio or
Report Studio. If you edit an Analysis Studio report in Report Studio, you cannot go back and edit
the report in Analysis Studio. For more information about modifying Analysis Studio reports, see
the Report Studio Professional Authoring User Guide, and the Analysis Studio User Guide.

The edit button differs depending on whether the report is a Query Studio report , a Report

Studio report , or an Analysis Studio report .

Editing a report modifies the report specification so that everyone who views the report sees the
changes you made.
Report properties, such as the preferred output format, language, prompt values, or report retention,
can be specified by changing the run options in the portal (p. 74). For information about properties,
see "Entry Properties" (p. 27).
If you want to use a generic report as the underlying structure for additional reports, make a copy
of the report (p. 35). If you want a report to appear in more than one location, create a shortcut
(p. 24). If you want to keep the underlying report specifications but want the choice of another
report format, language, delivery method, or run option, create a report view (p. 80).
You must have read and write permissions for the report you are attempting to edit. You must have
traverse permissions for the folder containing the report.

Step to Edit a Report in IBM Cognos Connection

● In IBM Cognos Connection, click the open button on the Actions menu for the report you want
to edit.

The report opens in the authoring tool used to create the report.

Step to Edit a Query Studio Report in Report Studio

● Click the More link on the actions toolbar and click Edit with Report Studio

Report Formats
You can choose the output format for a report. You may want to view reports in a browser, or you
may want the report in a format that is easily imported into another application.
You can choose from the following formats:
● HTML

● HTML fragment

● XHTML

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● XML

● PDF

● Excel 2000

● Excel 2000 single sheet

● Excel 2002

● Excel 2007

● delimited text (CSV) format.

You can specify the default format to be used when a report is run (p. 74). All shortcuts to a report
acquire the default format from the source entry.
You can specify the report format in the run options page (p. 75), in the report properties (p. 27),
or in your preferences (p. 44). When you run a report without specifying run options, the format
specified in the report properties is used. When it is not specified in the report properties, the format
specified in your preferences is used.
XHTML and some PDF formats are only available when you set advanced run options (p. 76).
You can also select multiple formats when you set advanced run options.
To specify the report format, you must have read and write permissions for the report and traverse
permissions for the folder that contains the report.

HTML Formats
You can select from the following HTML formats:
● HTML for standard HTML formatting

● HTML fragment if you must imbed the HTML in an existing Web page

● XHTML for HTML that is passed through a parser

To select HTML fragment and XMTML or the number of rows per web page, see "Set Advanced
Report Options for the Current Run" (p. 76).

XML Format
XML report outputs save the report data in a format that conforms to an internal schema,
xmldata.xsd. You can find this schema file in c8_location/bin.
This format consists of a dataset element, which contains a metadata element and a data element.
The metadata element contains the data item information in item elements. The data element contains
all the row and value elements.
You can create models from reports and other data that conform to the xmldata.xsd schema. This
is useful if you want to use a report as a data source for another report, or if you use a database
that cannot be read by Framework Manager. In this case, export the data from the data source to
an XML file, in conformance with the xmldata schema, and then open the XML file in Framework
Manager.

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For more information, see the Framework Manager User Guide.

PDF Format
Use the PDF format to view and distribute reports in an online book format.
You must have administrator privileges to specify the advanced PDF options.

Excel Formats
The Excel 2000 format can be viewed with versions of Excel 2000 and later. It supports up to
65,536 rows and multiple sheets. The Excel 2000 format is only available in IBM Cognos 8 when
IBM Cognos Application Firewall validation is disabled.
Excel 2000 single sheet format offers improved security. Excel 2000 may have cookies in the URLs
to spreadsheets, which could be used to illegally impersonate a user. Excel 2000 single sheet format
does not use outgoing URLs. However, there is a limit of 65,536 rows, and page breaks for multiple-
author pages are ignored.
Excel 2002 format and Excel 2000 single sheet format also offer the following benefits:
● Both work with SSL protocol.

● Both work with a single signon.

Secure reports can be accessed without subsequent signons because the system automatically
identifies users and provides security information.

● Both work with Netscape 7.01.

● Spreadsheets are contained in a single file for reliable spreadsheet navigation.

The IBM Cognos 8 full date format does not always appear correctly in Microsoft Excel 2000 if it
is on a system with a regional setting other than English. This does not occur with Microsoft Excel
2002 or 2003 versions. To fix this, reapply the proper format in Excel.
Excel 2007 format renders report output in native Excel XML format, also known as XLSX, that
provides a fast way to deliver native Excel spreadsheets to Microsoft Excel 2002, Microsoft Excel
2003, and Microsoft Excel 2007. Users of Microsoft Excel 2002 and Microsoft Excel 2003 must
install the Microsoft Office Compatibility Pack, which provides file open and save capabilities for
the new format. The output is similar to other Excel formats, with the following exceptions:
● Charts are rendered as static images.

● Row height can change in the rendered report to achieve greater fidelity.

CSV Format
Reports saved in delimited text (CSV) format open in the application associated with the.csv file
type, usually Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Windows Wordpad, or Star Office.
Reports saved in CSV format
● are designed to support Unicode data across many client operating systems

● are UTF-16 Little Endian data-encoded

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● include a BOM (Byte Order Mark) at the beginning of the file

● are tab-delimited

● do not enclose strings in quotation marks

● use a new line character to delimit rows

● show only the results of a report query. Page layout items, such as titles, images, and paramDis-
play values do not appear in the CSV output.

Report Languages
You can choose the languages for a report. You can specify the report language on the run options
page (p. 75), in the report properties (p. 27), or in your preferences (p. 44). When you run a report,
the language specified in the report properties is used. When it is not specified in the report properties,
the language in your preferences is used.
You can run a report using the default language (p. 74), select a different language for a single run
of the report (p. 75), or select more than one language for a report (p. 76).
You can add multilingual properties for each of the entries in the portal (p. 85). You can specify
the default language to be used when a report is run (p. 74).
Selecting a language for your report does not change the language used in the portal. You can
change the language used in the portal interface by personalizing the portal (p. 44). All shortcuts
to a report acquire the default language from the source entry.
To specify the report language, you must have read and write permissions for the report and traverse
permissions for the folder that contains the report (p. 49).
The package used to create the report must contain multilingual data before the report outputs are
shown in the selected languages (p. 26).

Report Languages When Using an SAP BW Data Source

When a report runs, the report server connects to the underlying data source to obtain data. When
using an SAP BW data source, if the SAP BW server does not support the language associated with
your content locale, IBM Cognos 8 checks a locale map for a corresponding locale. If the SAP BW
server supports the language for the corresponding locale, this language is used. Otherwise, the
report runs using the default language installed on the SAP BW server.

Add Multilingual Properties

You can set multilingual properties for each of the entries in the portal. You can add a name, screen
tip, and description for each of the locales defined by your administrator. A locale specifies linguistic
information and cultural conventions for character type, collation, format of date and time, currency
unit, and messages.
If the entry has multilingual properties defined for the selected language, the entry shows the
properties. If the entry does not have multilingual properties defined, they are empty.

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For information about changing the language to be used by the portal, see "Personalize the
Portal" (p. 44).

Steps

1. In IBM Cognos Connection, click the set properties button next to the entry you want to
change.

2. Click the General tab.

3. Under Language, select a language from the list.

Languages that already have multilingual properties defined appear at the top of the list above
a separator line.

4. If you want, type a description in the Name, Description, and Screen tip box.
The name appears in the list of portal entries. The description appears when you set your
preferences to use the details view (p. 44). The screen tip, which is limited to 100 characters,
appears when you pause your pointer over the icon for the entry in the portal.

Tip: To remove multilingual properties for a language, select the language in the list and click
Remove values for this language.

5. Click OK.

Specify the Default Language for a Report

To specify the default language for a report, change the report properties.

Steps

1. In IBM Cognos Connection, click the set properties button next to the report you want
to change.

2. On the Report options tab, under Language, select the default language from the list box and
click OK.

Specify the Default Prompt Values for a Report

You can use prompt values to specify the range of data included in a report when it is run. For
example, you can specify a date range that is a subset of the dates available in the report.
You may be prompted for values if the report author defines prompts in the report or if there is
more than one connection or signon. For information about adding prompts to reports, see the
Report Studio Professional Authoring User Guide, the Query Studio User Guide, or the Analysis
Studio User Guide.
If you are the report author, you can create default prompt values for a report. When the report is
run, the data is automatically filtered based on the prompt values that you specify. The user does
not have to specify prompt values when the report is run. You may find this useful if most users
use the same prompt values each time they run a report.

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If you have write access to a report and change the prompt values, those values are saved for
everyone running the report after you. If you consistently use prompt values that differ from the
majority of users, create a report view of the report (p. 80) in your personal folders.
By default, you are prompted for values each time the report runs. You can change this in the report
properties (p. 27) or when you set run options for a report (p. 75).
To set default prompt values, you must have read and write permissions for the report and read or
traverse permissions for the folder that contains the report.

Steps

1. In IBM Cognos Connection, click the set properties button next to the report you want
to change.

2. On the Report tab for Report Studio reports, the Query tab for Query Studio reports, or the
Analysis tab for Analysis Studio reports, under Prompt values, click either Set or Edit.

If the report does not have saved prompt values, the run options show No values saved and
clicking Set results in a message indicating that the report does not contain prompts.

3. Select the default value for the prompts and click OK.

4. If you want to be prompted each time the report is run, select the Prompt for values check box.
If the check box is selected, you will be prompted for values if the report contains prompts or
if you have access to multiple data source connections or signons.
If the check box is not selected and the report is run interactively, you will be prompted only
if there are missing values or if you have access to more than one connection or signon. The
report will have missing values if saved prompts or default prompts were specified for the
report.
If the check box is not selected and the report is run in the background, the report fails if prompt
values are missing.

5. Click OK.

Save Report Output

All report output is stored automatically in IBM Cognos 8. You may also be able to save copies of
reports in other file locations:
● in IBM Cognos 8 so that it can be used again and for archive purposes

● outside of IBM Cognos 8 for use in external applications such as web sites and for use by people
who don’t have access to IBM Cognos 8

You select how to save report copies as a delivery option.

You can also choose how to save a report when you schedule it (p. 141).

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Before you can save report output to file locations, your administrator must set up the locations.

Steps
1. In IBM Cognos Connection, click the run with options button on the actions toolbar to
the right of the report you want to run.

2. Click Advanced options.

3. Under Time and mode, click Run in the background, and then click Now or Later.

4. Under Delivery, choose where you want to save your report:

● To save a copy in IBM Cognos 8, click Save. Then, click Save the report or Save the report
as report view. If you choose to save as report view, you can a change the name or destin-
ation folder of the report view. Click Edit the options, make the changes and click OK.

● To save a copy outside IBM Cognos 8, click Save to the file system. To change the report
name, click Edit the options. You can also change how file conflict is resolved. Click Keep
existing files to not overwrite existing files, Replace existing files to simply overwrite
existing files. Click Make the file names unique and append a timestamp or Make the file
names unique and append a sequence number to avoid overwriting existing files by making
new files with unique timestamps or sequence numbers and click OK.

5. If more than one file location is defined, select the location where you want to save from the
Location list.

6. Click Run.

View Report Output Versions

Reports are run directly against the data source so that they reflect the latest data. However, viewing
the most recent data may not always meet your needs. You may want to view older data. For
example, you may want to compare monthly sales volume for a product before and after new features
are added.
The report output is saved when a report runs in the background. A report cannot be viewed at
the time it is run when it
● runs later

● has multiple formats or languages

● has a delivery method of save, print, or email

● is a burst report

Report output versions are listed by report format (p. 82). By default, the list contains report output
versions for the language that is defined in your content locale. If no reports versions are found for
that language, report formats for all languages are shown.
If burst keys are used, they appear next to the report format sorted by burst key and then by lan-
guage.

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You can specify how long you want to keep report output (p. 89).

Steps

1. In IBM Cognos Connection, click the view report output versions button next to a report
that has multiple output versions.

2. Choose the output version that you want to view:

● To show report formats in a specific language or all languages, click Languages and select
from the list.

● To show a different output version, select the version from the Versions list.

● To show the current version, click the report format.

Tip: To delete a version that you have write access to, click Manage versions, select the versions
that you want to delete, click Delete and then click the close button to return to the review
report output versions page.

3. If you want to download a report output version, click the download icon in the Actions column.

Specify How Long to Keep Report Output

You can keep report output for a specific number of runs or for a specific number of days or months.
For example, you can keep the report output for the ten latest occurrences or you can keep the
report output for the 2 days or 6 months. You can also choose to keep all report output.
You must have read and write permissions for the entry and read or traverse permissions for the
folder that contains the entry.

Steps

1. Click the set properties button next to the entry you want.

2. On the General tab, under Run history, choose the retention method and type the value:

● To keep report output for a specific number of occurrences, click Number of occurrences
and type the number. To save an unlimited number of report outputs, set this value to 0.

● To keep report output for a specific length of time, click Duration and click either Days
or Months. Type the appropriate value in the box.

3. Click OK.

Enable an Alert List for a Report

Granting permission for an alert list lets the report user decide whether to be alerted when new
versions of the report output become available. Whenever the report is run and report output is
saved, the report user is alerted by email as a Bcc recipient. The email contains a link to the latest
report output.

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The permission to enable an alert list for a report does not extend to a report view associated with
the report. You must grant permission for the report view independently.
The alert list is independent of any distribution lists associated with the report (p. 98).
To grant permission for an alert list, you must have write permission.

Steps
1. In IBM Cognos Connection, click the set properties button next to the report for which you
want to enable an alert list.

2. On the Report tab for Report Studio reports, the Query tab for Query Studio reports, or the
Analysis tab for Analysis Studio reports, click Advanced options, and then click the Enable
alerts about new versions check box.

3. Click OK.

Users can now add their names to the alert list for notifications of the report outputs.

Add Yourself to or Remove Yourself from the Alert List for a

Report
By adding yourself to the alert list for a report, you receive an email notification when new versions
of the report output are saved. In this way, you can monitor changes in the output of reports that
are of interest to you.
In the email, you are included as a Bcc recipient. The email contains a link to the latest report output.
Being on the alert list is independent of any distribution lists associated with the report (p. 98).
You can view and manage the alert list for a report as a watch item.
You can add yourself only once to the alert list for a report.
Before you can add yourself to an alert list for a report, the report owner must enable the alert list.
To receive alerts, you must have an email address defined in the My Preferences, Personal tab or
in your LDAP security profile (used only in special circumstances).

Steps in IBM Cognos Connection

1. In the portal, locate the report.

2. In the Actions column, click More.

3. In the Perform an action page, click Alert me about new versions or Do not alert me about new
versions.

4. Click OK.

In the My Watch Items area of the portal, note the change in the watch list.

Steps in Cognos Viewer

1. Open the saved report output.

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2. On the toolbar, under Watch New Versions, click Alert Me About New Versions or Do Not
Alert Me About New Versions.

Steps to Remove Yourself from Multiple Alert Lists

1. In IBM Cognos Connection, click My area, My Watch Items.

2. On the Alerts tab, select the alerts to delete from the list of alerts.

3. Click Remove me from the alert list.

Watch Rules in Saved Reports

Watch rules are defined in Cognos Viewer by report users so that they can monitor events of interest
to them in saved reports. Creating watch rules does not require access to Event Studio.

Tip: Users can view and edit watch rules in a single location from the My Watch Items area in IBM
Cognos Connection.
Watch rules are based on event conditions that are evaluated when the report is saved, not when
the report runs interactively. When the event condition is satisfied, the report user is alerted by
email or news item.
The event conditions are created using a numeric measure and can be specified only in saved HTML
reports. You can define an unlimited number of conditions for a report. The locale for the conditional
report output is the same as the locale for the report that contains the event condition.
Before a user can create watch rules and receive alerts, the report owner must enable watch rules
for the report (p. 91).
To create watch rules, the report user must have read and traverse permissions to the report output.

Enable Watch Rules for a Report

Enabling watch rules lets the report user specify conditions in saved HTML report output and
receive alerts based on these conditions. Whenever the report is run and report output is saved and
the conditions are satisfied, the report user is alerted by email or news item.
For information about creating a watch rule, see "Create a Watch Rule for a Report" (p. 92).
To allow watch rules for a report, you must have write permission for the report.

Steps
1. In IBM Cognos Connection, click the set properties button next to the report.

2. On the Report tab for Report Studio reports, the Query tab for Query Studio reports, or the
Analysis tab for Analysis Studio reports, under Advanced options, select the Enable selection-
based interactivity in HTML reports and Enable enhanced user features in saved output versions
check boxes.
Selecting these options specifies that additional context information is saved with the report
output.

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3. Click OK.

After selecting the advanced options, you must run the report and save the report output in HTML
format before users can create watch rules.

Create a Watch Rule for a Report

Use watch rules to monitor user-defined events in saved HTML reports. When the report is saved
and the watch rule is satisfied, you are alerted by email or news item.

You can view or edit the watch rules you create for reports by using the My Watch Items area of
the portal. For more information, see "My Watch Items" (p. 46).
Watch rules can be created only in saved HTML reports. For example, you cannot create watch
rules in PDF report output.
You must have read and traverse permissions to the report output.

Steps
1. In the IBM Cognos Connection portal, go to the saved HTML report and open it in Cognos
Viewer.

2. In the report, click a numeric data item, right-click, and then click Alert Using New Watch
Rule.

3. In the Specify the rule - Alert Using New Watch Rule page, in the conditional expression that
appears, click the down arrow, click the expression you want for the watch rule, for example,
>= (greater than or equal), and specify a value in the box.

4. Under For the selected context, click the report items to which the rule applies.

5. Click Next.

6. In the Specify the alert type page, specify how you want to be alerted when the rule is satisfied:

● To be alerted by email, select the Send the report by email check box. If you want to change
the email options, click Edit the options.

● To be alerted by news item, select the Publish a news item check box. If you want to change
the news item options, click Edit the options.

7. Click Next.

8. In the Specify a name and description - Alert Using New Watch Rule page, specify a name,
description, and location for the watch rule.

You can organize watch rules in folders on the Rules tab of the My Watch Items area of the
portal.

9. Click Finish.

Modify or Delete a Watch Rule in Cognos Viewer

Watch rules you create in saved HTML reports can be edited and deleted in Cognos Viewer.

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For information about creating a watch rule, see "Create a Watch Rule for a Report" (p. 92).

You can also delete and edit watch rules from the My Watch Items area of the portal. For more
information, see "My Watch Items" (p. 46).
To modify or delete a watch rule, you must have write access to the rule.

Steps
1. Open the saved report output in Cognos Viewer.

2. On the toolbar, click Watch New Versions and, while hovering over the watch rule, from the
submenu,

● click Modify to edit the watch rule. The Set properties dialog box appears. Proceed to step
3.

● click Delete to delete the watch rule.

3. Click the General tab to change properties, such as the language, name, and description of the
watch rule.

4. Click the Rules tab to edit the rules properties, such as the conditional expression for the rule,
the items to which the rule applies, and the alert type.

Note that the changes you make to a watch rule in Cognos Viewer are made also in the My Watch
Items area of the portal.

Comments in Saved Reports

Report users can add comments to saved reports using Cognos Viewer. Comments can be added
to HTML, PDF and XML reports, but not Excel or CSV reports.
Comments are added to a specific version of a report and are deleted with that report version. The
comments are not available in other versions of a report, unless they are manually added by a report
user.
Comments are included when a report is viewed online or when a burst report is distributed via
the portal, but they are not included in printed or emailed reports.
Before a user can add comments, the report owner must enable comments in saved output versions.
To add comments, a report user must have read permission to the report output. These comments
are visible to all other users who have read permission to the report output. However, only the
comment owner, or an administrator, can modify or delete comments.

Enable Comments in Saved Output Versions

Enabling comments lets a report user add comments to saved HTML, PDF or XML reports.
For information about adding comments, see "Add Comments to a Report Version in Cognos
Viewer" (p. 94).

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To enable comments for a report, you must have write permission for the report.

Steps

1. In IBM Cognos Connection, click the set properties button next to the report.

2. On the Report tab for Report Studio reports, the Query tab for Query Studio reports, or the
Analysis tab for Analysis Studio reports, under Advanced options, select the Enable comments
in saved output versions check box.

3. Click OK.

You must now run the report and save the report output in HTML, PDF or XML format before
users can add comments to it.

Add Comments to a Report Version in Cognos Viewer

Use comments to add simple, unformatted text notes to saved reports. You can add multiple com-
ments to a report.
Comments can be added to HTML, PDF and XML reports only. You cannot add comments to
other report formats.
You must have read permission to the report output to add comments to it.

Steps
1. Open the saved report output in Cognos Viewer.

2. On the toolbar, click Add Comments and then click Add a Comment.

3. In the Add a Comment window, type the comment name and description.

4. Repeat steps 2 to 3 to add further comments as required.

5. Click Finish to save the comment.

Each comment is added to a drop-down list available from the Add Comments button.

View, Modify or Delete Comments in Cognos Viewer

Comments added by a report user can be viewed by all other users who have read permission to
the report output. Only the comment owner, or an administrator, can modify and delete comments.

Tip: You can use the Search feature to find specific comments. For more information, see "Search
for an Entry" (p. 42).
For information about adding comments, see "Add Comments to a Report Version in Cognos
Viewer" (p. 94).

Steps to View Comments

1. Open the saved report output in Cognos Viewer.

2. On the toolbar, click Add Comments and then select the required comment from the list of
comments available.

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A summary of the comment appears, which includes the comment name and description, the
date it was last modified, and the owner.

3. To view the full details of the selected comment, click View.

The View Comment window appears.

4. Click Finish.

Steps to Modify Comments

1. Open the saved report output in Cognos Viewer.

2. On the toolbar, click Add Comments, select the required comment from the list of comments
available, and then click Modify to edit the comment.

The Modify Comments window appears.

3. Edit the comment name or description.

4. Click Finish.

Steps to Delete Comments

1. Open the saved report output in Cognos Viewer.

2. On the toolbar, click Add Comments, select the required comment from the list of comments
available, and then click Delete.

3. Click OK to confirm that you want to delete the comment.

Disable Selection-based Interactivity

You can disable selection-based interactivity for an HTML report that is viewed in Cognos Viewer
to shorten the time that it takes the report to run. After you disable this functionality, you cannot:
● drill up and down in a report

● drill through to other reports

● use Cognos Search

● use conditional report delivery

● use agent notification

If selection-based interactivity is enabled in IBM Cognos Connection, a user can perform drill up
and down and drill-through actions in Report Viewer or Query Studio. If selection-based interactivity
is disabled in IBM Cognos Connection, the ability to perform drill up and down and drill-through
are disabled regardless of how the drill through definitions and settings are authored in Report
Studio and IBM Cognos Connection.
Selection-based interactivity is enabled by default.

Tip: You can instead enable or disable selection-based interactivity for the current run only.

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Click Run with options next to the report and then click Advanced options. Click Enable selection-
based interactivity in HTML reports.

Steps

1. In IBM Cognos Connection, click the set properties button on the actions toolbar to the
right of the report.

2. Click the Report tab for a Report Studio report, the Query tab for a Query Studio report, or
the Analysis tab for an Analysis Studio report.

Tip: Disabling selection-based interactivity on an Analysis Studio report has no effect.

3. Click Advanced options.

4. Clear the Enable selection-based interactivity in HTML reports check box.

Note that disabling selection-based interactivity on an Analysis Studio report has not effect.

Distributing Reports
You can distribute reports to other users to share information with them. In IBM Cognos 8, you
can distribute reports by
● saving them (p. 97) where other IBM Cognos 8 users can access the reports at their convenience

● sending them to users by email (p. 97)

● printing them (p. 97)

● bursting them (p. 97)

You can schedule the distribution of your reports so that recipients receive the reports regularly
(p. 141).
Recipients must have read permissions for the report and traverse permissions for the folder that
contains the report.
When you attach a report to an email, the report is no longer secured by the IBM Cognos security
system.
When sending a report by email, note that if you choose the recipient from a list, such as a group,
role, or distribution list, you must have read access to both the list and the recipient’s email account.
Otherwise, the report delivery fails. However, if you type the email address manually, read access
is not required.
To distribute reports to more than one recipient, you can create distribution lists (p. 98), which
contain references to users, groups, and roles. If a recipient is not part of the IBM Cognos security
system, you can create a contact (p. 98) for that person and add it to a distribution list.

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Saving a Report
You can share a report with others by saving the report in a location that is accessible to other
users, such as in the public folders. Public folders typically contain reports that are of interest to
many users.
You can save a report when you set options for the current run (p. 75) or you can use advanced
report options (p. 76) to save a report in Report View (p. 80).
To share a report that is currently located in your personal folders, copy the report (p. 35), move
the report (p. 36), or create a shortcut to the report (p. 24) and save it in the public folders.
For information about saving reports, see Query Studio User Guide, the Report Studio Professional
Authoring User Guide, or the Analysis Studio User Guide.

Sending a Report by Email

You can share a report with others by sending the report by email. This is especially useful if you
want to share the report with a group of people who do not have access to the portal. To send a
report by email, you must have Directory Administrator privileges.
You can attach reports to email (p. 76). You can also include a URL to the report in an email.
Entries that are sent as attachments to emails are no longer secured by the IBM Cognos security
system.
To send a report to others by email, both you and the email recipients must have valid email
addresses. Also, if you choose the recipient from a list, such as a group, role, or distribution list,
you must have read access to both the list and the recipient’s email account. Otherwise, the report
delivery fails. However, if you type the email address manually, read access is not required.

Sending a Report to your Mobile Device

You can choose to send a report to your mobile device. You must have Cognos 8 Go! Mobile
installed.

Printing a Report
It may be convenient for you to have a printed copy of a report. You may need to review a report
when your computer is not available, or you may need to take a copy of a report to a meeting.
You can use run options to print a report and choose a printer (p. 76).

Distributing a Report by Bursting

Bursting is the process of running a report once and then sending the results to recipients, each of
whom sees only a subset of the data. Distribute reports by bursting them when you want users to
receive or view reports that contain data applicable only to them.
If you distribute burst reports by email, the recipients are specified by the burst options. Note that
if you choose the recipient from a list, such as a group, role, or distribution list, you must have read
access to both the list and the recipient’s email account. Otherwise, the report delivery fails.

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If the burst report contains a drill-through link to another report and the burst report is distributed
by email, set the email options to include a link to the report. Otherwise, if you include the report
in the email, the drill-through links in the burst report will not work.
You can burst reports only if the report author defined burst options for the report.
You can use advanced run options (p. 76) to distribute a report by bursting.
You must have read and write permissions for the report to enable bursting.

Create Distribution Lists and Contacts

Use distribution lists if you want to send a report to more than one recipient at a time. Distribution
lists contain a collection of users, groups, roles, contacts, or other distribution lists.
If a recipient is not part of the IBM Cognos security system, you can create a contact for this person.
The contacts you create can also be assigned as contacts for reports.
Note that if you choose the email recipient from a list, such as a group, role, or distribution list,
you must have read access to both the list and the recipient’s email account. Otherwise, the report
delivery fails.

Steps for a Distribution List

1. In IBM Cognos Connection, in the upper-right corner, click Launch, IBM Cognos Administra-
tion.

2. On the Configuration tab, click Distribution Lists and Contacts.

3. Click the Cognos namespace.

4. On the toolbar, click the new distribution list button .

Tip: To remove a distribution list, select the entry and click the delete button.

5. Type a name and, if you want, a description and screen tip for the distribution list, and click
Next.

6. If you want to add to the distribution list, click Add and choose how to select entries:
● To choose from listed entries, click the appropriate namespace, and then select the check
boxes next to the users, groups, or roles.

● To search for entries, click Search and in the Search string box, type the phrase you want
to search for. For search options, click Edit. Find and click the entry you want.

● To type the name of entries you want to add, click Type and type the names of groups,
roles, or users using the following format, where a semicolon (;) separates each entry:
namespace/group_name;namespace/role_name;namespace/user_name;
Here is an example:
Cognos/Authors;LDAP/scarter;

7. Click the right-arrow button and when the entries you want appear in the Selected entries box,
click OK.

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Tips: To remove entries from the Selected entries list, select them and click Remove. To select
all entries in a list, click the check box in the upper-left corner of the list. To make the user
entries visible, click Show users in the list.

8. Click Finish.

You can now choose this list when you specify recipients for a report.

Steps for a Contact

1. In IBM Cognos Connection, in the upper-right corner, click Launch, IBM Cognos Administra-
tion.

2. On the Configuration tab, click Distribution Lists and Contacts.

3. Click the Cognos namespace.

4. On the toolbar, click the new contact button .

Tip: To remove a contact, select the entry and click the delete button.

5. Type a name and email address for the contact and, if you want, a description and screen tip,
and click Finish.

Drilling to View Related Data

Reports that you run in IBM Cognos Connection and view in Cognos Viewer support various drill
operations so that you can view different layers of related data. You can perform drill operations
in lists, crosstabs, and charts.
You can
● drill up or drill down within the same report

● drill through to another target

● drill through to another target passing multiple values

Drill Up or Drill Down

You can drill up and drill down within a report that is run from IBM Cognos Connection. Reports
run from IBM Cognos Connection appear in Cognos Viewer.
In lists and crosstabs, hyperlinks identify drillable items. In charts, the pointer changes to a hand
when you pause the pointer over a drillable item, and a tooltip indicates what you are drilling on.
For example, a column chart shows revenue by product line by year. You can drill on a single axis,
such as product line or year. You can also drill on both axes, such as Camping Equipment and
2005. In this case, you are drilling on the intersection of Camping Equipment and 2005.
If groups of data items from different queries are linked, when you drill up or drill down in one
query, the data item also drills up or drills down in the linked queries. For more information about
how to link groups of data items, see the Report Studio Professional Authoring User Guide.

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After you drill up or drill down, you can save the report as a report view for later viewing. For
more information, see "Create a Report View" (p. 80).
The drill-up and drill-down functionality is available only when you use dimensionally structured
data and view the report in HTML format. You can drill only on members in a level.
By default, the drill-up and drill-down functionality is enabled.

Steps
1. Run the report in IBM Cognos Connection and view it in Cognos Viewer.

Tip: Alternatively, you can open an Analysis Studio report or Query Studio report in their
respective studios.

2. Right-click the report item you want to drill on and click Drill Up or Drill Down .

Drill Through to Another Target

You can navigate from a report to one of the following targets:
● a Query Studio report

● a Report Studio report

● an Analysis Studio analysis

● a PowerPlay Studio report

● a package that contains a PowerCube

● a Microsoft SQL Server Analysis Services (SSAS) action

You can also navigate from a report or analysis authored in one package to more detailed inform-
ation in a report which was authored in another package. For example, this is useful when you
want to drill from a summarized OLAP source, such as your sales information, into the detailed
relational or transactional information, such as your inventory volumes.
Drilling through from one report to another is a method of passing information from the source
(your starting report) to the target (your ending report). For example, you may be evaluating a
report and discover something you need to investigate in a certain product line. You can drill
through to the detailed target report which provides a focused view of that product line. When
drilling through to the target, the product line you selected in the source is passed and the target
report is run with that filter, making a more focused report.
By default, the ability to drill through from one report to another is enabled. You can disable it by
using the Enable selection-based interactivity option. For more information, see "Disable Selection-
based Interactivity" (p. 95).
Before you can navigate to another target, a drill-through definition must be created in either the
Report Studio source report or in IBM Cognos Connection.

Steps
1. Run the report in IBM Cognos Connection and view it in Cognos Viewer.

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Tip: Alternatively, you can open an Analysis Studio report or Query Studio report in their
respective studios.

2. Right-click the report item from which you want to navigate and click Go To , Related
Links. The Go To page appears, showing the available targets.

Note: If there is only one possible target for the column, the reports runs and appears in Cognos
Viewer.

3. Click the target you want to navigate to.

Depending on how the drill-through definition was set up and the report type, the target opens in
either Cognos Viewer, Query Studio, PowerPlay Studio, or Analysis Studio.

Drill Through to Another Target Passing Multiple Values

You can have a report that contains a drill-through definition that can be filtered by multiple values
in a single query item. For example, while analyzing an OLAP source, you may want to focus on
Canada and the United Kingdom. When you drill through, the target report is filtered by both
countries. After you run the report in Cognos Viewer, you are prompted to choose values when
you navigate from the report to the drill-through target. The values you specify are used to filter
the results in the target.
For more information about drilling through to a target, see "Drill Through to Another Tar-
get" (p. 100).
Drilling through using multiple values is available regardless of whether the drill-through definition
is authored in the Report Studio source report or in IBM Cognos Connection, Drill-through
Definitions. In previous releases, this functionality was available only when the definition was
authored in IBM Cognos Connection.

Steps
1. Run the report in IBM Cognos Connection and view it in Cognos Viewer.

Tip: Alternatively, you can open an Analysis Studio, Query Studio, or PowerPlay Studio report
in their respective studios.

2. Ctrl+click to select more than one value in a column.

● If hyperlinks appear in the column in which you are attempting to select cells, click in the
empty area around the hyperlinks.

● If there are no visible hyperlinks but you know that a drill-through target exists, select the
cells you want to use as the filter, regardless of whether they are in the same column. Note
that when you select multiple values from different columns, the resulting filter in the target
report performs an and rather than an or operation with the values passed, for example,
Canada and Camping Equipment; United Kingdom and Fax.

3. Right-click in one of the selected cells from which you want to navigate, and from the menu
that appears, do one of the following:

● Under Go To, click the drill-through target name, if one exists.

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● Under Go To, click Related Links. On the Go To page, click the target report you want
to run.

The target report runs and if it can be filtered by the selection made in the source report, the target
is filtered by those values.

Data Sources With Named Sets May Produce Unpredictable

Results
If your dimensional data sources include named sets, which are sets of members or set expressions
that are created for reuse, the data results are unpredictable in Query Studio when combined with
filtering and level nesting.
Additionally, if your data sources include multi-level named sets, the data results are unpredictable
in Analysis Studio when aggregated.
We therefore recommend that you avoid exposing named sets or multi-level named sets to Query
Studio and Analysis Studio users.
Working with named sets may also cause unpredictable results in Report Studio. For more
information, see the Report Studio Professional Authoring User Guide

Series 7 Reports in IBM Cognos Connection

If your administrator configures IBM Cognos 8 to use the IBM Cognos Series 7 namespace, you
can see Series 7 entries in IBM Cognos Connection. When you run a Series 7 report, the report runs
in the Series 7 application used to create it.

The contents of the Series 7 NewsIndex appears at the bottom of the page in Public Folders. The
contents of your Series 7 personal NewsBox appears at the bottom of the page in My Folders.
Alternatively, PowerPlay 7.3 can be configured to use IBM Cognos Connection rather than Upfront
as a portal. However, if you are accessing content from other IBM Cognos applications or versions
previous to PowerPlay 7.3, the administrator may still depend on the Upfront portal.
When you access Series 7 entries from IBM Cognos Connection, consider the following things:
● If the Series 7 namespace and the IBM Cognos 8 namespace are different, you must log on to
both. Otherwise, you cannot see content in both areas.

● If you log off when you are in Upfront, you can no longer access Series 7 entries in IBM Cognos
Connection. You should always log off in IBM Cognos Connection.

● If you belong to several Series 7 user classes, you are unable to select a different user class when
you access Upfront through IBM Cognos Connection.

● If you use an Upfront theme other than standard70, an error message may appear when you
click the More link in the Actions column. You cannot access Series 7 entries.

● If you want to cut, copy, and paste Series 7 entries, use the More link in the Actions column,
and then use the Upfront toolbar.

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● If you perform a search in IBM Cognos Connection, the Series 7 entries are not included in the
search.

● You cannot combine IBM Cognos 8 entries and Series 7 entries in a single folder or NewsBox.

For information about working with Series 7 entries in Upfront, see the IBM Cognos Series 7 Web
Portal User Guide.

Series 7 PowerPlay Reports and Cubes

After Series 7 PowerPlay reports and cubes are published to the IBM Cognos 8 portal, you can use
PowerPlay authoring tools to create and edit Series 7 PowerPlay reports. For more information
about PowerPlay authoring tools, see the PowerPlay Web User’s Guide.
You can change the default run options of Series 7 PowerPlay reports and cubes (p. 104) and select
multilingual properties (p. 105).
Series 7 PowerPlay reports and cubes function differently from other reports. The following actions
do not apply to Series 7 PowerPlay reports and cubes:
● viewing the run history and report output versions

● specifying how long to keep report outputs and histories

● canceling and suspending reports

● specifying prompt values for report formats other than PDF

● specifying language for the content of reports

● running a report as the owner

● scheduling reports

● distributing reports

Run or Open a Series 7 PowerPlay Report

You can run Series 7 PowerPlay reports in the following formats (p. 82):

● If the HTML icon is visible, the report opens in PowerPlay Web Explorer.

● If the PDF icon is visible, the report runs in the PowerPlay Web Viewer.

PowerPlay administrators can restrict who can open cubes. For information about publishing
Series 7 PowerPlay reports and cubes in IBM Cognos 8, see the PowerPlay Enterprise Server Guide.
If you use secured Series 7 cubes, the namespace against which the cubes are secured must be con-
figured as an authentication source in IBM Cognos 8. This namespace need not be the only
authentication namespace or the primary logon for the user. For more information about configuring
authentication namespaces see the Installation and Configuration Guide.

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Before you can run or open Series 7 PowerPlay reports and cubes directly from IBM Cognos 8,
you must have both PowerPlay 7.3 and IBM Cognos 8 installed and configured. You also must
have the following permissions:
● execute and read permissions to run or open a report or cube

● read and traverse permissions to access the folder that contains the report or cube

● read and write permissions to set properties for cubes and reports

Step
● In IBM Cognos Connection, click the report that you want.

Depending on the default action for the report, the report runs in either PDF format (default) or
opens with PowerPlay Web Explorer.
If you have the required permissions, you can change the run options for Series 7 PowerPlay reports
and cubes (p. 104). For information about using PowerPlay Web Explorer and PowerPlay Web
Viewer, see the IBM Cognos PowerPlay Web User's Guide.

Tip: To run any Series 7 PowerPlay report in PowerPlay Web Explorer, click the open with

PowerPlay Explorer button in the actions toolbar. You can also click More next to the report
you want and then open the report in Analysis Studio or Report Studio. The migration tools must
already be installed. For information about installing these tools, see the IBM Cognos 8 Migration
Tools Installation and Configuration Guide. When you open the report, it is upgraded to the format
of the studio that you opened it in. If you save the report, it is saved in the upgraded format. There
may be differences between the original PowerPlay report and the IBM Cognos 8 version of the
report. If you do not save the report, it remains a Series 7 PowerPlay report. For more information
about upgrading Series 7 PowerPlay reports, see the IBM Cognos 8 Migration Tools User Guide.

Change the Defaults for a Series 7 PowerPlay Report

You can change the defaults for Series 7 PowerPlay reports. You can select one of the following
default actions when a report is run:
● run the report in PDF format (default)

● open the report with PowerPlay Web Explorer

For HTML format reports, you can choose to open the report in design mode (without data).
Opening a report in design mode is useful to quickly view the structure of the report.
For PDF format reports, you can choose to be prompted for values that filter the range of data
included in a report. For example, you can specify a date range that is a subset of the dates available
in the report. If the Series 7 PowerPlay report was created with prompt values, you are prompted
to enter values when the report runs.

Steps

1. In IBM Cognos Connection, click the set properties button on the actions toolbar to the
right of the report you want to run.

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2. Click the PowerPlay report tab.

3. Under Default action, select the default action for when the report is run.

4. For HTML reports, if you want to open the report without data, design mode, select the Open
in design mode check box.

Tip: You can also click the open with PowerPlay Web Explorer in design mode button if
it appears in the actions toolbar.

5. For PDF reports, if you want to be prompted for values, select the Prompt for values check
box.

Tip: The Prompt for values check box appears only if prompt values are created for the report.
You can also click More next to the report you want and then click the run the report in PDF

format and prompt for values button .

Open a Series 7 Cube

You can open Series 7 cubes and work with them in PowerPlay Web Explorer.
For more information about using PowerPlay Web Explorer, see PowerPlay Web User’s Guide.

Step
● In IBM Cognos Connection, click the cube that you want.

Multilingual Properties for Series 7 Reports and Cubes

In IBM Cognos Connection, you can select the multilingual properties of a Series 7 report or cube
(p. 85). The name, screen tip, and description uses the language that you select.
The content, data, category labels, and other labels do not change. The language for these items is
set by the PowerPlay administrator who creates the report or cube.

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Drill-through access helps you to build business intelligence applications that are bigger than a
single report. Drill-through applications are a network of linked reports that users can navigate,
retaining their context and focus, to explore and analyze information.
Drill-through access works by passing information from the source to the target object, usually a
report. You define what is passed from the source report by having the system match information
from the selection context of the source report to the content of the target (dynamic drill through)
or by defining parameters in the target (parameterized drill through). You define drill-through
access for the source, either at the package level, in IBM Cognos Connection (Launch, Drill-through
Definitions) or at the report level (Report Studio Professional authoring mode). Within a package,
you control the scope of the data for which drill-through access is available in the drill through
definition. Within a report, you define the drill-through access on a report item.

What You Should Know

For a drill through link to work, it is necessary to know:
● what the source report is or is going to be

● what the target report is or is going to be

● whether the users of the drill through link in the source report have the appropriate permissions
to view or run the target report

● how the data in the two reports is related

Depending on the underlying data, you may create a drill through definition and have IBM
Cognos 8 match the data (dynamic drill through) or map the source metadata to parameters
defined in the target report or package (parameterized drill through)

● whether to run the target report or to open it

The target of drill-through access is usually a saved report definition. The report can be created
in Report Studio (Professional authoring mode), PowerPlay Studio, Query Studio, or Analysis
Studio. The target of drill-through access can also be a package that contains a PowerCube, in
which case a default view of the PowerCube is created.

● if the target is being run, in what format to run it and what filters to run it with
If you don't want to run the target report on demand, you may link instead to a bookmark in
the saved output.

Sources and Targets

In IBM Cognos 8, there are many different combinations of source and target. For example, you
can drill through
● between reports created in different packages against different data source types (p. 114), such
as from an analysis against a cube to a detailed report against a relational data source.

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● from one existing report to another report using Report Studio (Professional authoring mode)

● between Cognos Viewer reports authored in Report Studio, Query Studio, PowerPlay Studio,
and Analysis Studio

● from Series 7 PowerPlay Web cubes to IBM Cognos 8 reports (p. 128)

● from Metric Studio to other IBM Cognos 8 reports by passing parameters using URLs.
For more information, see the Metric Studio User Guide.

Understanding Drill-through Concepts

Before you set up drill-through access, you must understand the key concepts about drilling through.
Knowing these concepts will help you to avoid errors so that report consumers drill through as
efficiently as possible.

Drill-through Paths
You can create a drill-through path in a source report in Report Studio (Professional authoring
mode), or using Drill-through Definitions in IBM Cognos Connection. A drill-through path is the
definition of the path that is taken when moving from one report to another, including how the
data values are passed between the reports.

Using Drill-through Definitions, you can create a drill-through path from any report in the source
package to any target report in any other package in IBM Cognos Connection. This type of drill-
through definition is stored in the source package. Users of any report in the package can use the
drill-through definition to drill between any combination of Analysis Studio, Query Studio,
PowerPlay Studio, or Cognos Viewer reports in any package.
For any target report that contains parameters, you should map the target parameters to the correct
metadata in the drill-through path. This ensures that the values from the source report are passed
to the correct parameter values, and that the target report is filtered correctly. If you do not map
parameters, then the users may be prompted for values when the target report is run.
A report-based drill-through path refers to a path created and stored in a Report Studio source
report (Professional authoring mode). This type of drill-through path is also called "authored drill
through". The path is associated with a specific data column, chart, or cross tab in the source report,
and is available only when users select that area of the report. If an authored drill-through definition
is available, a hyperlink appears in the source report when it is run.
Report-based drill-through is limited to Report Studio source reports (Professional authoring mode)
and any target reports. Use this type of drill-through access when you want to pass data item values
or parameter results from within a source report to the target report, pass the results of a report
expression to a target report, or a use URL link as a part of the drill-through definition.

Selection Contexts
The selection context represents the structure of the values selected by the user in the source. In
Analysis Studio, this includes the context area. When a package drill-through definition is used,

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the selection context is used to give values for mapped parameters (parameterized drill-through) or
also to map the appropriate data items and values.
Drill-through links can also be defined to open the target object at a bookmark. The content of this
bookmark may also specified by the selection context.
Drill-through access is possible between most combinations of the IBM Cognos 8 studios. Each
studio has been optimized for the goals and skills of the audience that uses it, and in some cases
for the type of data source it is designed for. Therefore, you may need to consider how the various
studios manage the selection context when you drill through between objects created in different
studios, and how the data sources are conformed. During testing or debugging, you can see how
source values are being mapped in different contexts using the drill-through assistant.

Drilling Through to Different Report Formats

The settings in the drill-through definition determine how users see the report results. For example,
the users may see the reports in Cognos Viewer as an HTML Web page, or the reports may open
in Query Studio, PowerPlay Studio, or Analysis Studio. If your users have PowerPlay Studio, then
they may also see the default view of a PowerCube.
Reports can be opened as HTML pages, or as PDF, XML, CSV, or Excel formats. When you define
a drill-through path, you can choose the output format. This can be useful if the expected use of
the target report is something other than online viewing. If the report will be printed, output it as
PDF; if it will be exported to Excel for further processing, output it as Excel or CSV, and so on.
If you define a drill-through path to a report that is created in Analysis Studio, PowerPlay Studio,
or Query Studio, consumers can open the report in its studio instead of in Cognos Viewer. This
can be useful if you expect a consumer to use the drill-through target report as the start of an analysis
or query session to find more information.
For example, if an application contains a dashboard style report of high-level data, you can define
a drill-through link to Analysis Studio to investigate items of interest. The Analysis Studio view can
then be drilled through to a PDF report for printing.

Note: Drilling through to open the target in Report Studio is not supported for the Express
Authoring mode. The Report Studio Professional authoring mode does not display data results.

Drilling Through Between Packages

You can set up drill-through access between different packages. The two packages can be based on
different types of data source, but there are some limits.
The following table shows the data source mappings that support drill-through access.

Source data source Target data source

OLAP OLAP

Note: OLAP to OLAP drill through is supported only if

the data source type is the same, for example, SSAS to
SSAS.

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Source data source Target data source

OLAP Dimensionally modeled relational

OLAP Relational data

Note: For more information, see "Business Keys" (p. 113).

Dimensionally modeled relational Dimensionally modeled relational

Dimensionally modeled relational Relational

Relational Relational

Bookmark References
When you drill through, the values that you pass are usually, but not always, used to filter the
report. IBM Cognos 8 Business Intelligence supports bookmarks within saved PDF and HTML
reports so that a user can scroll a report to view the relevant part based on a URL parameter. For
example, you have a large inventory report scheduled to run daily or weekly during off hours
because of resource considerations. Your users may want to view this report as a target because it
contains detailed information, but you want them to view the saved output rather than run this
large report. Using this Action option and bookmark settings, users can drill through from another
source location based on products to open the saved report to the page that shows the product they
want to focus on.
When a bookmark in the source report is used in a drill-through definition, it provides the value
for the URL parameter. When report consumers drill through using this definition, they see the
relevant section of the target report.
Bookmark references are limited to previously run reports that are output as PDF or HTML and
contain bookmark objects.

Members and Values

Dimensionally modeled data, whether stored in cubes or stored as Dimensionally Modeled Relational
(DMR) data, organizes data into dimensions. These dimensions contain hierarchies. The hierarchies
contain levels. And the levels contain members.
An example of a dimension is Locations. A Locations dimension may contain two hierarchies:
Locations by Organization Structure and Locations by Geography. Either of these hierarchies may
contain levels like Country and City.
Members are the instances in a level. For example, New York and London are members in the City
level. A member may have multiple properties, such as Population, Latitude, and Longitude.
Internally, a member is identified by a Member Unique Name (MUN) . The method by which a
MUN is derived depends on the cube vendor.
Relational data models are made up of data subjects, such as Employees, which are made up of
data items, such as Name or Extension. These data items have values, such as Peter Smith.

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In IBM Cognos 8, the methods of drilling through available are

● Dimensional (member) to Dimensional (member)

● Dimensional (member) to Relational (data item value)

● Relational (data item value) to Relational (data item value)

If the target parameter is a member, the source must be a member. The source and target should
usually be from a conformed dimension (p. 112). However, if the data will support it, you may also
choose to define a mapping using different properties of the source metadata item.
If the target parameter is a value, the source can be either a value or a member. If the source is a
dimensional member, you must ensure that the level or dimension is mapped to the target data item
correctly in the drill-through definition. The business key from which the member is sourced should
usually match the relational target value, which is most often the business key (p. 113). However,
if the data will support it, you may also choose to define a mapping from the caption of the source
metadata item.

Member Unique Names

The member unique name (MUN) is a unique identifier for a member in IBM Cognos reports. It is
stored in the report specification when the member is referenced in the report directly. The MUN
is used in drill-through between OLAP data sources. The member keys in the MUN for the different
OLAP data sources must match.
The MUN is used to find the member in the data source, which is similar to how business keys are
used to find records in a table. For example, when you create OLAP dimension Products, you use
the Product Line database column as s label for the members in your Product Line level. However,
you use the Product Line Code business key from the database table to ensure that all the Product
lines are unique in that level. The source value that you used to create the members is used in
combination with the data source name, hierarchy, and level information in the member unique
name.
If the MUN changes, members that are directly referenced in expressions, filters, or reports are no
longer found. Changes to the MUN may be related to other changes. For example, changes to the
hierarchy and level structures may change the level unique name, and changes to the business key
values may change the member key path. Other factors that can affect the MUN are application
changes during the design stage or over time, IBM Cognos PowerCube category codes that are
unpredictably unique, the production environment that has more members than the test environment,
or removing the member from the data source.
To avoid potential problems, we recommend the following best practices when you build OLAP
data sources:
● Use unique codes and keys within a dimension for the member keys.

● Define your OLAP and relational packages using unique conformed values for the source values
(business keys) within similar dimensions or data values where drill-through between applications
may be required.

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● Ensure that the business keys and dimension metadata structure are the same in the production
and test environments.

● Do not change the business keys in Framework Manager in the production environment.

● Resolve the non-unique keys in a dimension in the data source before you build the cube.
Ensure that there are no duplicate source values in all levels of a dimension before you build a
PowerCube. We do not recommend using the tilde character (~) in the category codes.
For more information, see the section about uniqueness in the IBM Cognos Series 7 Step-by-
Step Transformer.

For information about PowerCubes migrated from IBM Cognos Series 7, see the IBM Cognos 8 BI
PowerPlay Migration and Administration Guide.

Conformed Dimensions
If you work with more than one dimensional data source, you may notice that some dimensions
are structured the same, and some are not. The reason that dimensions can be structured differently
is that the data sources may serve different purposes.
For example, a Customer dimension appears in a Revenue data store, but not in an Inventory data
store. However, the Products dimension and the Time dimension appear in both data stores.
Dimensions that appear in multiple data stores are conformed if their structure is identical for all
of the following:
● hierarchy names

● level names

● level order

● internal keys

Drilling through is possible between different dimensional data stores only if the dimensions are
conformed, and if the dimension data store is of the same vendor type, such as IBM Cognos
PowerCube as the source and the target. For example, in two data stores for Revenue and Inventory
that contain Products and Time dimensions, it is possible to define the Products and Time dimensions
differently for each data store. However, for drill-through between the Products and Time dimensions
to work, their structures must be identical in each data store.
If you are not sure whether your dimensions are conformed, then you should check with the data
modeler to ensure that the drilling through will produce meaningful results.

Dimensionally-modeled Relational Data Sources

Ensure that each level contains a business key that has values that match your PowerCube or other
DMR models. Also, you must also ensure that the Root Business Key property is set and uses the
business key of the first level in the hierarchy. This helps to ensure that you have a conformed
member unique name when attempting to drill through using members from this dimension.

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Business Keys
When drill-through access is defined from a member to a relational value, the business key of the
member is passed by default. This means that your relational target parameter must be set up using
the data item with a matching value, which is most often the business key data item. You can also
choose to pass the caption of the source metadata item.
For example, employees are usually uniquely identified by an employee number, not by their name,
because their name is not necessarily unique. When you drill through from a dimensional member
to a relational data item, the value provided is the business key. Therefore, the parameter in the
target report must be defined to accept a business key value. The exact logic used to define the
business key value supplied depends on the cube vendor. For IBM Cognos PowerCubes, the business
key value is the Source property defined for the level in IBM Cognos Transformer. IBM Cognos
Series 7 Transformer PowerCubes pass the source value if the drill-through flag was enabled before
the cube was built. Otherwise, the category code is used.
In Report Studio (Professional authoring mode), you can determine what the member business key
is using an expression such as roleValue('_businessKey',[Camping Equipment]). This
expression is case sensitive.
SSAS 2005 multi-part business keys are not supported in drill-through operations.

Tip: When other users run your drill-through report, you may not want them to be prompted for
a business key. In Report Studio, you can build a prompt page with a text that is familiar to the
users, but filters on the business key. Your Framework Manager modeler can also set the Display
Item Reference option for the Prompt Info property to use the business key when the data item is
used in a prompt.

Scope
Scope is specific to drill-through definitions created using Drill-through Definitions in IBM Cognos
Connection (package drill-through definitions). The scope you set defines when the target report
is shown to the users, based on the items they have in the source report.
Usually, you define the scope of a drill-through path to match a parameter that it passes. For
example, if a target report contains a list of employees, typically you only want to display the report
as an available drill-through choice when a user is viewing employee names in a source report. If
employee names are not in the source report and the scope was set on the employee name in the
drill-through definition, the employee report does not appear on the list of available drill-through
target reports in the Go To page. You can set the scope to a measure or to an item in the report.
In report-based drill-through access, where the drill-through path is associated with a specific report
column, the column serves as the scope.

Mapped Parameters
Drill-through targets may contain existing parameters, or you may choose to add parameters to
the target for greater control over the drill-through link. You usually map all parameters in a drill-
through target to items from the source.
When you map source items that are OLAP or DMR members to target parameters, you can select
from a set of related member properties to satisfy the requirements of the target parameter. For a

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dimensional target, a dimensional source item uses the member unique name by default. For a
relational target, a dimensional source item uses the business key by default.
For example, you could change the source member property that is used for a mapping to the
member caption instead of the business key to match the parameter in a relational target. For a
dimensional target, you could define a parameter that accepts a particular property (such as business
key or parent unique name), then pass the appropriate source property to satisfy that target.
Note that if you define drill through between non-conformed dimensions, you should test carefully
to ensure that the results behave as expected.
If you do not specify parameter mappings, then by default, you will be prompted for any parameters
required in the target when you use the drill-through link. To customize this behavior, use the display
prompt pages setting.
When the action is set to "Run using dynamic filtering", then additional filtering is applied if names
from the context in the source report match names of items in the target. Use this action as well
when there are no parameters defined in the target.
If parameters are not mapped correctly, then you may receive an empty report, the wrong results,
or an error message.
The source and target cannot contain identical parameter names when they are from different
packages, even if the data structure is conformed. If the source and target are from the same package,
there is no restriction.
If you have the necessary permissions, you can use the drill-through assistant to look at what source
parameters are passed, and what target parameters are mapped for a given drill-through link.

Drilling Through on Dates Between PowerCubes and Relational Packages

Usually, drilling through from OLAP to relational packages requires that the target report parameter
is set using the business key in the relational data. However, this method does not work well for
dates. OLAP data sources typically view dates as members, such as Quarter 1 2006, while relational
data sources view dates as ranges, such as 1/Jan/2006 to 31/March/2006.
A special feature exists for drilling through between PowerCubes and relational packages. Ensure
that the target report parameter is set up using in_range. Note that the parameter must be of type
date-time, and not integer.
An example follows:
[gosales_goretailers].[Orders].[Order date] in_range
?Date?

Also ensure that the drill-through definition maps the parameter at the dimension level and that
the PowerCube date level is not set to suppress blank categories. Enabling the option to suppress
blank categories in the Transformer model before you build the cube may cause the drill-through
on dates to be unsuccessful. This happens because there are missing values in the range.

Set Up Drill-through Access in Packages

A drill-through definition specifies a target for drill-through access, the conditions under which the
target is available (such as the scope), and how to run or open, and filter the target. In IBM Cognos

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Connection, a drill-through definition is associated with a source package. The drill-through path
defined in the drill-through definition is available to any report based on the source package it is
associated with. The target can be based on any target package in IBM Cognos Connection and
can be stored anywhere. For example, all reports authored in the GO Data Warehouse (analysis)
sample package or in a folder linked to this package can access any drill-through definition created
in this package.

Note: For reports created in Report Studio (Professional authoring mode), you can define drill-
through access in specific reports by setting up the drill-through definition in the report instead of
in the package, or restrict drill-through access by changing report settings so that the report is
unavailable as a drill-through target. For more information, see the Report Studio Professional
Authoring User Guide. Reports created in Report Studio Express are not supported as drill-through
targets.
You can define drill-through definitions between reports created in the different IBM Cognos 8
studios, and reports based on different packages and data sources (p. 109).
The target report must exist before you start creating the drill-through definition in IBM Cognos
Connection. Drill-through targets can be reports, analyses, report views, PowerCube packages and
queries.
Drill-through definitions support both dimensional and relational packages, and are available to
Analysis Studio, Query Studio, PowerPlay Studio, and Cognos Viewer.

Steps to Create a Drill-through Definition

1. Check the drill-through target:
● Confirm that the drill-through users have access to the target.

● Hide the target from direct access if you want(p. 38).

● If necessary, check what parameters exist in the target.

When a drill-through definition links objects in different packages, you must consider the
data types used in both the source and the target object. Review the structure and values
of data that you intend to pass in the drill-through, and ensure that the created parameters
are appropriate for your scenario, if you have defined parameters, or that dynamic drill
through will work successfully. For more information, see "Conformed Dimensions" (p. 112)
and "Business Keys" (p. 113).

2. In IBM Cognos Connection, in the upper-right corner, click Launch, Drill-through Definitions.

3. Navigate to the top level of the package for which you want to create the drill-through definition.

4. Click the new drill-through definition button on the toolbar.

Tip: If you do not see the drill-through definition button, then confirm that you are at the top
level of the package, and not in a folder in the package. Drill-through definitions must be stored
at the package level.

5. Type a name for the drill-through definition.

6. If you want, type a description and screen tip, and then click Next.

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7. Follow the instructions on the screen:

● If you wish, restrict the scope to a query item or a measure in the source.
If the target contains parameters, you should set the scope to the parameters that are mapped
to the target report. For more information, see "Scope" (p. 113).

● Select the target from any package available in IBM Cognos Connection.
If IBM Cognos 8 BI PowerPlay targets are available, then you must choose whether to set
the target as a report or a PowerCube.

● Click Next.

8. In the Action section, specify how to open the target object when the drill-through link is run
and if you chose to run the report, in the Format section, specify the format to run the report
in.

Users may be able to change the Action settings when they use the drill-through link.If you are
using bookmarks in the target, then you must select the action View most recent report.

9. In the Parameter values table, specify how to map the source metadata to any parameters that
exist in the target report or object.
For example, if you drill through between OLAP data sources, then members are mapped to
each other. If you drill through from an OLAP to a relational data source, then the source value
(member) is mapped to the query item name (value).
Usually, every parameter that exists in the target should be mapped to the source metadata. If
not, then the report user may be prompted for any missing values when the drill-through link
is used.

10. ● Click Map to metadata, or click the edit button.

● In the screen that appears, select the metadata from the source to map to the target para-
meter.

● If the source package is dimensional, you can select what property of the source metadata
item to use in the mapping. By default, the business key is used for a relational target, and
the member unique name is used for a dimensional target.

● Repeat for each parameter in the list.

11. In the Display prompt pages section, specify when the prompt pages will appear.
You can only set this action when there are parameters in the target report and the target report
will be run. If you change the action to View most recent report, for example, for bookmark
references, the Display prompt pages property is disabled because you will use a previously-run
report. If you choose to open the report directly in Analysis Studio, then the the Display prompt
pages property is also disabled.

You specify prompt settings in IBM Cognos Connection (Report Properties, Prompt for Values).

12. Click Finish.

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13. Run a report from the source package, and test the drill-through link.

Note: The drill-through definition is associated and stored with the source. Errors related to
the target are only generated when you run the drill-through links, not when you save the drill-
through definition.

Steps to Edit an Existing Drill-through Definition

1. In IBM Cognos Connection, in the upper-right corner, click Launch, Drill-through Definitions.

2. Click a package name to view its drill-through definitions.

3. Click the set properties button on the actions toolbar to the right of the drill-through definition
that you want to modify.

Tip: If you do not see the drill-through definitions, check that you are not in a folder in the
package. Drill-through definitions are all stored at the root level of the package. If you do not
see a specific drill-through definition, confirm that you have the correct permissions.

4. Click the Target tab.

5. Make the necessary modifications, and click OK.

6. Run a report from the source package, and test the drill-through link.

Note: The drill-through definition is associated and stored with the source. Errors related to
the target are only generated when you run the drill-through links, not when you save the drill-
through definition.

Set Up Parameters for a Drill-Through Report

For greater control over drill-through access, you can define parameters in the target report. For
more information about defining parameters, see the Report Studio Professional Authoring User
Guide or the Query Studio User Guide.

Steps in Report Studio

1. Open the target report in Report Studio Professional authoring mode.

2. Ensure that the report is available for drill-through access:

● From the Data menu, select Drill Behavior.

● In the Basic tab, select Accept dynamic filters when this report is a drill-through target and
then click OK.

3. Create a parameter that will serve as the drill-through column, or that will be used to filter the
report. (Data menu, Filters).
For example, to drill through or filter on Product line, create a parameter that looks like this:
[Product line]=?prodline_p?

Tip: Use the operators in or in_range if you want the target report to accept multiple values,
or a range of values.

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4. In the Usage box, specify what to do when a value for the target parameter is not passed as
part of a drill-through:

● To specify that users must click a value in the source report, click Required.
If a value for the target parameter is not passed, users are prompted to choose a value.

● To specify that users do not need to click a value in the source report, click Optional.
Users are not prompted to choose a value and so the value is unfiltered.

● To specify not to use the parameter, click Disabled.

The parameter is not used in the report, and therefore not available for drill-through
definitions. For more information about defining report parameters, see the Report Studio
Professional Authoring User Guide.

Tip: If the parameter is needed in the report for other reasons, then you can also specify
not to use it in the drill-through definition (Parameters table, Method, Do not use para-
meter).

The drill-through definition controls when prompt pages or parameters are displayed.

Steps in Query Studio

1. Open the target report in Query Studio.

2. Confirm that the report is available for drill-through access:

● From the menu, select Run Report, Advanced Options.

● Select Enable drill through from a package in the report output and then click OK.

3. Create a filter that will serve as the drill-through parameter, or that will be used to filter the
report.
● Select the column that you want to filter on, and click the filter button.

● Change the settings as needed, and click OK.

Set Up Parameters for a Drill-through Target in Analysis Studio

You can create a drill-through target analysis and add target parameters in the analysis by setting
a dimension as the Go To parameter. When you create a drill-through definition for the analysis,
this parameter appears in the target parameter list.
To support drilling down within the dimension and then drilling through, map the dimension in
the source metadata to the target dimension. The member or members which are currently in your
view are passed to the target analysis as filter values. This applies to any query, report, or analysis
used in IBM Cognos 8 drill-through actions. To support drilling through directly from a particular
level, map that level in the source metadata to the target dimension.

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You can set multiple parameters in an analysis target. However, you cannot pass members within
a selection set in Analysis Studio.

Steps
1. In Analysis Studio, create a cross-tab analysis using the package that was set up for drill-through
analysis.

2. If you want, add as a row or column the data item that you want to be the prompt.

3. Move or add the dimension or level that you want to be a target parameter to the Context area.

Note: You cannot pass members within a selection set in Analysis Studio.

4. View the list for the item in the Context area and click Use as "Go To" Parameter.

5. Save this analysis as your target report in IBM Cognos Connection.

You can now create the drill-through definition under a source package.

When you create the drill-through definition (p. 114) and use the cross-tab analysis as a target, the
Go To parameter item in the analysis appears as a drill-through parameter. You can map to this
parameter the same way that you drill through to Report Studio or Query Studio reports.

Example - Drill Through Between OLAP Reports in the Same

Package
You want to drill through from an Analysis Studio report that shows revenue breakdown according
to order method to a report created in Report Studio, which shows details of planned and actual
revenue.

Both of these reports exist as samples in the Sales and Marketing (cube) package. The reports are
both based on the same package, so the data is conformed (p. 112). You decide to use a parameterized
drill-through definition for greater control, because prompt parameters exist in the target already.
You also decide to restrict the scope of access to the drill-through target, so it that it is only available
to a report in the source package that uses the measure Revenue. This means that any reports created
in the package will see this drill-through definition if they contain the measure Revenue. If the
source report does not contain order year or order method, then users will be prompted for values
for those parameters when the drill-through target is run.
You must have the IBM Cognos 8 BI samples from the deployment zip file Cognos_DrillThrough-
Samples installed to follow this exercise. If you want to check the target report, you must have
access to Report Studio, Professional mode.

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The target report shows data

for the context of the source:
the Special order method type,
and the year 2005.

Steps to Check the Target and Source Report

1. Open the target report, Actual vs. Planned Revenue, in Report Studio.

● Go to IBM Cognos Connection.

● In Public Folders, open the package Sales and Marketing (cube), and then open the folder
Report Studio Report Samples.

● Select the report Actual vs. Planned Revenue, and click the Open with Report Studio icon.

2. In the Actual vs Planned Revenue report in Report Studio, confirm that you have parameters
for order method and time.

● Open the query explorer tab and select Query 1.

● In the Detail Filters box, confirm that a filter parameter exists for each of Order Method
and Year, and note the parameter names.

3. From the Data Items box, note the name of the measure that you plan to use for the scope
(Revenue).

4. Close the Actual vs Planned Revenue report.

5. Open the source report, Custom Rank Sample, in Analysis Studio.

● Go to IBM Cognos Connection.

● In the Public Folders, open the package Sales and Marketing (cube), and then open the
folder Analysis Studio Report Samples.

● Select the report Custom Rank Sample, and click the Open with Analysis Studio icon.

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6. In the Custom Rank Sample report in Analysis Studio, check the name of the measure that you
want to use to restrict scope (Revenue).

7. Check the rows and columns in the report and confirm that the data structure will match the
parameters in the Actual vs Planned Revenue report.

Tip: Pause the mouse over a label in the crosstab to see the path.

8. Leave the Custom Rank Sample report open for testing.

Steps to Create and Test the Drill-through Definition

1. In IBM Cognos Connection, navigate to the Sales and Marketing (cube) package.

2. From the upper right-hand corner of the screen, click Launch, Drill-through Definitions.

3. Click New Drill-through Definition in the upper right hand corner of the screen.

Tip: If you don’t see the New Drill-through Definition button, check that you are at the root
of the folder, and not still in the Analysis Studio Reports folder.

4. In the Drill-through Definition wizard, type the name "Drill Through From Custom Rank to
Revenue Details" and a description, and click Next.

5. Click Set the scope, and in the screen that appears, set the scope to the Revenue measure, and
then click OK.

6. Click Set the target, and in the screen that appears, set the target report to Actual vs. Planned
Revenue, in the Report Studio Report Samples folder of the Sales and Marketing (cube) package.

7. In the Prompt Values table, map the parameters pMethod and pYear in the target to the metadata
in the source:

● confirm that values in the Type column are Connection

Use the value "Connection" when you link dimensional data sources.

● for the pMethod parameter, click the edit button and select [sales_and_marketing].[Order
method].[Order method].[Order method type] from the metadata tree.

● for the pYear parameter, click the edit button and select [sales_and_marketing].[Time].
[Time].[Year] from the metadata tree.

8. Set Display Prompt Pages to Only when required parameter values are missing.

9. Follow the instructions on the screen to save the drill-through definition.

10. Go to the Custom Rank Sample report, right-click outside the report data, and select Go To,
Related Links.

11. Go to the Custom Rank Sample report, right-click on a cell in the cross-tab, and select Go To.
A list of possible targets for the package and the data that is in scope appears, including the
Actual vs. Planned Revenue report.

12. Click the Actual vs. Planned Revenue, and the report runs using the context you selected.

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The drill-through definition that you have created should be identical to the sample definition
MeasureDrill.
You can also try the following:
● In the drill-through definition, change the prompt settings for the target report.

● In the Sales and Marketing (cube) package, create a report that does not use the Revenue
measure, and confirm that the Actual vs Planned Revenue report is no longer available as a
drill-through target.

● A sample drill-through definition also exists for the same target report, Actual vs. Planned
Revenue, from the PowerPlay Studio report Revenue by Order Method. If you use PowerPlay
Studio, check the source and target reports and try to recreate the drill through definition.

● If you have permission to debug drill through definitions, then you can view the parameters
passed from the source (View passed source values) and available in the target (from the drop
down beside the target report name, select View Target Mapping).

Example - Drill Through from an OLAP Report to a DMR Report

You want to drill through from an Analysis Studio report named Top 10 Promotions by Retailers,
based on the package Sales and Marketing (cube) to a Report Studio report named Promotion Plan
Revenue, based on the package Sales and Marketing (conformed). You set the drill-through definition
up in the package, so that the Promotion Plan Revenue report is available to any report based on
the source package, and you use dynamic drill through, instead of defining parameters.
You must have the IBM Cognos 8 BI samples from the deployment zip file Cognos_DrillThrough-
Samples installed to follow this exercise. By default, the samples are installed in the Public Folders
in IBM Cognos Connection.

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The target report shows

data for the context of the
source: Campaign.
Other context, such Time, i
s not used by the target.

Steps to Check the Target and Source Reports

1. Run the target report:

● In IBM Cognos Connection, go to the Sales and Marketing (conformed) package, and open
the folder Report Studio Report Samples.

● Run Promotion Plan Revenue in Cognos Viewer.

2. Note what information is available in the target, and how you will filter it. In this example,
you filter on the campaign name.

3. Close the target report Promotion Plan Revenue.

4. Open the source report:

● In IBM Cognos Connection, go to the Sales and Marketing (cube) package and open the
Analysis Studio Report Samples folder.

● Select Top 10 Promotions by Retailer, and open it in Analysis Studio.

● Note the names of the dimension and level that you want use to drill through. In this
example, you will drill through on Campaign.

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5. Keep the Top 10 Promotions by Retailer report open for testing.

Steps to Create and Test the Drill-through Definition

1. In IBM Cognos Connection, navigate to the Sales and Marketing (cube) package.

2. From the upper right-hand corner of the screen, click Launch, Drill-through Definitions.

3. Click New Drill-through Definition in the upper right hand corner of the screen.

Tip: If you don’t see the New Drill-through Definition button, check that you are at the root
of the folder, and not still in the Analysis Studio Report Samples folder.

4. In the Drill-through Definition wizard, type the name "Drill Through to Promotion Plan Rev-
enue" and a description if you want, and click Next.

Tip: This is the name that users see in the Go To page, for example when they have to select
from more than one drill-through target. As with any other object in IBM Cognos Connection,
you can create translations of this name.

5. Click Set the scope, and set the scope to Campaign, in the Promotions dimension.

This drill-through definition will only be available when Campaign is part of the selection
context.

6. Click Select the target, and set the target report to Promotion Plan Revenue, in the Report
Studio Report Samples folder of the Sales and Marketing (conformed) package, click OK, and
then click Next.

Note: If PowerPlay Studio is available in your installation, then you must also specify that the
target is a report and not a PowerCube package.

7. Under Action, select Run the report using dynamic filtering.

8. Under Parameter mapping, in the Source metadata item column for the parameter pcampaign,
click map to metadata.

9. In the screen that appears, click Promotions and select Campaign.

10. Click Finish to save the drill-through definition.

You can edit the properties of the drill-through definition at any time.

11. From IBM Cognos Connection, run the Analysis Studio report Top 10 Promotions by Retailers
and test the drill-through definition.

The target report appears, filtered by the context you selected.

The drill-through definition that you created should be identical to the drill-through definition
DrillToDMR.

The sample drill-through definition PPStoHidden also goes from an OLAP to a DMR package,
from the PowerPlay Studio report Top 20 Product Brands.

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Example - Drill Through to a Hidden Report from a Report

Studio Report
You want to set up a drill-through link from an employee satisfaction report created in Report
Studio to a hidden list report about compensation, also created in Report Studio.

The source report (Employee Satisfaction 2006) is based on the package GO Data Warehouse
(analysis) which is modeled on a DMR data source. The target report (Compensation (hidden)) is
based on the package GO Data Warehouse (query). You set up this drill-through connection from
within Report Studio (report-based, or authored drill through) because you do not want to make
a report about compensation available for drill through from any source report in the package. The
target report is already hidden in the portal, so that it is unlikely to be run by anyone who does not
use the drill through link.
You must have the IBM Cognos 8 BI samples from the deployment zip file Cognos_DrillThrough-
Samples installed to follow this exercise, and you must have access to Report Studio, Professional
authoring mode.

The Compensation report is a hidden report. You may be able to set whether hidden reports are
visible (My Preferences, General tab) and whether you can hide reports. This capability is set by
your administrator.

Steps to Check the Target Report

1. Open the target report:

● In IBM Cognos Connection, go to Public Folders, GO Data Warehouse (query), Report

Studio Report Samples.

● Locate the report Compensation (hidden) and open it in Report Studio.

Tip: If you don’t see the report, go to IBM Cognos Connection and confirm that you can
view hidden reports (My Preferences, General tab).

2. In Report Studio, from the Data menu, click Filters and check what filter parameters are
available.
You want to filter from the source report on department, not time, so you will only use the
pPosition parameter in the drill-through definition.

3. In the report body, select the list column body Position-department (level 3) and review the
data item properties.
Because the drill-through definition goes from DMR to relational, the data item values will
need to match.

4. Close the Compensation (hidden) report.

Steps to Create and Test the Drill-Through Definition

1. Open the source report:

● In IBM Cognos Connection, go to Public Folders, GO Data Warehouse (analysis), Report

Studio Report Samples.

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● Locate the Employee Satisfaction 2006 report and open it in Report Studio.

2. Save the Employee Satisfaction 2006 report with a new name, such as Employee Satisfaction
2006 New.
This is to keep the original report and drill-through definition intact for comparison.

3. In the table Employee rankings and terminations by department, select the column Position-
department (level 3).

4. In the properties pane, review the data item properties, to confirm that the data item names
match values in the target report.

5. In the properties pane, under Data, double-click Drill-through definitions.

6. Select the definition DrilltoHiddenRep and delete it.

Note: In the following steps, you recreate the drill-through definition. For comparison, use the
original sample report.

7. In the Drill-through Definitions box, click the new drill-through definition button.

8. Click the rename button, and type a name for the drill-through definition.

Tip: This is the name that consumers see when they select from a list of possible drill-through
definitions in the final report.

9. In the Target Report tab, select the target report:

● Under Report, click the ellipsis button (...).

● Navigate to GO Data Warehouse (query), Report Studio Report Samples, and select the
Compensation (hidden) report.

Tip: If you don’t see the report, go to IBM Cognos Connection and confirm that you can
see hidden reports (My Preferences, General tab).

10. Under Action, select Run the report.

11. Under Parameters, click the edit button.

A table of parameters available in the target report appears, showing the parameter pPosition.

12. Map the parameter from the Compensation (Hidden) report to the metadata in the Employee
Satisfaction 2006 report:

● In the Method column, select Pass data item value, because the target report is based on a
relational data source.

● In the Value column, select Position-department (level 3).

Tip: In this report, you pass values from the column where the drill-through is defined. In
other cases, you might pass a related parameter. For example, you could drill through on
employee name, but pass the employee number.

13. Save the report.

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14. Run the report, and click a department to test the drill-through definition.

When you test the drill-through link, the Compensation (hidden) report appears, filtered by the
department you selected. The report appears as a drill-through target whether or not it is hidden
in IBM Cognos Connection.
If your administrator has given you the capability to debug drill through, then you can see additional
information you right-click on the link and select Go To see a list of drill-through targets. From
the Go To page, you can see what source values are passed, and what target parameters are mapped.

Specify the Drill-through Text

You can specify the drill-through text that appears when users can drill through to more than one
target. For example, if users from different regions view the report, you can show text in a different
language for each region.

Steps
1. Right-click the drill-through object and click Drill-Through Definitions.

2. If more than one drill-through definition exists for the object, in the Drill-Through Definitions
box, click a drill-through definition.

3. Click the Label tab.

4. To link the label to a condition, in the Condition box, do the following:

● Click Variable and click an existing variable or create a new one.

● Click Value and click one of the possible values for the variable.

5. In the Source type box, click the source type to use.

6. If the source type is Text, click the ellipsis (...) button beside the Text box and type text.

7. If the source type is Data Item Value or Data Item Label, click Data Item and click a data item.

8. If the source type is Report Expression, click the ellipsis (...) button beside the Report Expression
box and define the expression.

9. If the label is linked to a condition, repeat steps 5 to 8 for the remaining possible values.

When users run the source report and click a drill-through link, the Go to page appears. The drill-
through text you specified appears for each target. If you did not specify the drill-through text for
a target, the drill-through name is used.

Setting Up Drill-through Access from IBM Cognos Visualizer

Setting up drill-through access from IBM Cognos Visualizer to IBM Cognos 8 involves
❑ specifying the IBM Cognos 8 target and selecting the filters to add to the target report
You must configure drill through to IBM Cognos 8 for individual IBM Cognos Visualizer
reports. For more information, see the IBM Cognos Visualizer User Guide.

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❑ creating and testing the target report (p. 128)

Setting Up Drill-through Access from PowerPlay Web

Setting up drill-through access from PowerPlay Web to IBM Cognos 8 involves
❑ for PowerCubes, specifying drill-through targets for IBM Cognos 8 reports in the Transformer
model
For more information, see the Transformer documentation.

❑ for other cubes, specifying drill-through targets for IBM Cognos 8 reports in PowerPlay Connect.
For more information, see the PowerPlay OLAP Server Connection Guide.

❑ configuring drill-through access in PowerPlay Server Administration

In addition to enabling drill-through access to IBM Cognos 8, you must specify the location of
the IBM Cognos 8 server and the IBM Cognos 8 folder that contains the target reports. For
more information, see the PowerPlay Enterprise Server Guide.

❑ selecting the filters to add to the target report

In PowerPlay Enterprise Server Administration, enable and use IBM Cognos 8 Assistance to
identify the filter expressions required in the target report. For more information, see the
PowerPlay Enterprise Server Guide.

❑ creating and testing the target report (p. 128)

Create and Test the Target for a Series 7 Report

The target report must be based on a published package that contains the metadata items that you
want to filter on, or contains items that are mapped to those metadata items.
When you create the target report, ensure that the names of the parameters you add are identical
to the parameter names listed in the Drill Through Assistant page in IBM Cognos Series 7. However,
the metadata item that you use in the target report for that parameter name does not have to be
the identical label. The data values between the target parameter and the source value shown in the
drill assistant must match. You may also need to change the type of operator in the target parameter
from what is recommended in the Drill Through Assistant. For example, if the assistant recommends
an = operator but you want to pass a date range, you should change the parameter operator in the
target to in_range.

Steps
1. Start Report Studio (Professional authoring mode) and create a new report.

2. Add the data items and other objects you want.

3. From the Data menu, click Filters.

4. In the Detail Filters tab, click the add button.

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5. In the Expression Definition box, create the parameterized filter you want by typing the filter
expression.

6. Click OK.

7. In the Usage box, click Optional.

If you do not make the filter optional, a prompt page appears when you drill through to the
report.

8. Repeat steps 4 to 7 for other parameterized filters you want to add.

9. Save the report.

The report name must match what you specified as a target in the PowerCube, other cube, or
IBM Cognos Visualizer report.

10. Test the drill through in the PowerPlay report or IBM Cognos Visualizer report.

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Chapter 8: Agents

You can create agents in Event Studio (p. 133) to monitor your organization’s data for occurrences
of business events, and then perform tasks. For example, tasks can include sending an email, adding
information to the portal, and running reports. For more information, see the Event Studio User
Guide.
After an agent is published to the portal, use IBM Cognos Connection to do the following:
● run the agent (p. 131)

● change default properties (p. 132)

● create an agent view (p. 133)

● enable an alert list (p. 134)

● add or remove yourself from an alert list (p. 134)

● receive news item headlines (p. 135)

● view a list of the most recent event instances for an agent (p. 135)

● view the run history (p. 154)

● rerun a failed agent with the initial parameters (p. 155)

You can schedule agents to run at a specified time or based on a trigger, such as a database refresh
or an email. You can also view the run history of scheduled agents. For more information, see
"Schedule Management" (p. 141).

Run an Agent
Usually, agents run automatically according to the schedule specified by the agent author. However,
you can run the agent manually at any time if you want to check for occurrences of specified events
and perform specified tasks if those events occur.
For example, an agent is created to send an email to sales staff when they reach 75 percent of their
sales quota for the month. The agent prompts for the sales region. A sales manager specifies Spain,
and emails are sent only to sales staff in Spain.
You must have execute permission to run an agent. You must have traverse permissions for the
folder that contains the agent.

Steps
1. In IBM Cognos Connection, click the run with options button on the actions toolbar next
to the agent you want to run.

2. Under Time, click Now to run the agent now or click Later to specify a later date and time.

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3. If you want the agent to prompt for values to filter the results it retrieves, under Prompt Values,
select the Prompt for values check box.

4. Click Run.
The confirmation page appears.
You are prompted for values if the agent specification or model includes prompts or if you
have access to multiple data source connections or signons.

5. To view the run history of the agent, select View the details of this agent after closing this dialog.

6. Click OK.
The options override the default agent options for the current run only.

Change Default Agent Properties

You can change the defaults that are set for agents in Event Studio, such as whether to use prompt
values and run as the owner. If the agent contains one or more tasks with a destination of My
Folders, and someone other than the owner runs the agent, the task fails unless run as the owner
is selected.
You can run an agent (p. 131), create agent views (p. 133), and create and edit agents in Event Studio
(p. 133).
You must have execute permissions for the agent. You must have traverse permissions for the folder
that contains the agent.

Steps

1. In IBM Cognos Connection, click the set properties button on the actions toolbar next to
the agent you want to run.

2. Click the Agent tab.

The tasks in the agent are shown.

3. Under Default action, specify the default action for the agent.

4. If you want the agent to prompt for values to filter the results that it retrieves, under Prompt
Values, select the Prompt for values check box. The Prompt for values check box appears only
if prompt values are created for the agent in Event Studio.

5. If you want the agent to run using the owner credentials, click the check box next to the owner
listed under Run as the owner.

6. To allow users to add themselves to the alert list for the agent, click the Allow users to add
themselves to the alert list check box.

7. Click OK.
The next time the agent runs, it uses these properties instead of the original defaults.

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Create an Agent View

Agent views share event definition and tasks with the agent but can have different properties, such
as prompt values and run as the owner (p. 32).
Creating an agent view does not change the original agent. Except for changes to notification lists,
any changes to the original agent are automatically reflected in the agent view. You can determine
the source agent for an agent view by viewing its properties. The agent view properties also provide
a link to the properties of the source agent.

If the source agent is deleted or moved to another location, the agent view icon changes to
indicate a broken link, and the properties link to the source agent is removed.
If you want to change the properties of an agent and do not need to retain an agent with the original
properties, change the default agent properties (p. 132). If you want to use a generic agent as the
basis for a new agent, make a copy of the agent (p. 35). If you want an agent to appear in more
than one location, create a shortcut (p. 24).
To create an agent view, you must have execute or read permissions for the original agent.

Steps
1. In IBM Cognos Connection, locate the agent you want to use to create the agent view.

2. Under Actions, click the agent view icon next to the agent.

3. In the Name box, type the name of the entry.

4. If you want, in the Description and in the Screen tip box, you can type a description of the
entry.
The description appears in the portal when you set your preferences to use the details view
(p. 44). The screen tip, which is limited to 100 characters, appears when you pause your pointer
over the icon for the entry in the portal.

5. If you do not want to use the target folder shown under Location, choose another location,
click Select another folder, select the target folder, and click OK.

6. Click Finish.

In the portal, agent view entries are identified by the agent view icon .
The agent view has the same run options and properties as the original entry. For information about
changing agent properties, see "Entry Properties" (p. 27).

Open or Create an Agent from IBM Cognos Connection

You can open or create agents from IBM Cognos Connection and work with them in Event Studio.
To open an existing agent in Event Studio, do the following:

● In Public Folders or My Folders, click the agent.

To create a new agent in Event Studio, do the following:

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● In IBM Cognos Connection, in the upper-right corner, click Launch, Event Studio.

For information about using Event Studio, see the Event Studio User Guide.

Enable an Alert List for an Agent

By granting users permission to add an alert list to an agent, users can monitor business events that
are important to them. With this permission, users can add themselves to the alert list (p. 134) and
be alerted by email as a Bcc recipient when the agent runs and the associated tasks are performed.
The permission to add an alert list to an agent does not extend to an agent view associated with
the agent. You must grant permission for the agent view independently.
To grant permission for an alert list, you must have execute permission for the agent and traverse
permission for the folder that contains the agent.

Steps
1. In IBM Cognos Connection, click the set properties button next to the agent for which you
want to enable an alert list.

2. Click the Agent tab, and select the Allow users to add themselves to the alert list check box.

Emails are sent whenever the agent is run interactively or in the background according to a schedule.

Add Yourself to or Remove Yourself from an Alert List for an

Agent
Because an agent monitors important business events, you may want to add yourself to the alert
list for the agent. When you subscribe to an alert list, you receive an email notification when the
agent is run. You can also view and manage the alert list for the agent as a watch item.
Adding yourself to the alert list of an agent does not automatically add you to the alert list for any
agent views associated with the agent. If you want to receive alerts for an agent view, you must add
yourself to the alert list for the agent view.
The agent author must include an email task with the agent and enable an alert list for the agent
(p. 134).
To add yourself to the alert list of an agent, you must have read and traverse permissions for the
agent. You must also have an email address defined in your LDAP security profile or in the My
Preferences, Personal tab.

Steps for One Alert List

1. In IBM Cognos Connection, locate the agent.

2. In the Actions column, click More.

3. Click Add me to the alert list . or Remove me from the alert list .

4. Click OK.

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Note the change for the alert list in the watch item list. To view your watch items, from the My
Area menu, click My Watch Items.

Steps to Remove Yourself from Multiple Alert Lists

1. In IBM Cognos Connection, click the my area icon and then click My Watch Items.

2. On the Alerts tab, select the alerts to delete from the alert list.

3. Click the remove me from the alert list button.

Remove All Users from the Alert List for an Agent

You can remove all users from the alert list for an agent. Any user that is currently on the alert list
is removed. For more information about alert lists, see "Add Yourself to or Remove Yourself from
an Alert List for an Agent" (p. 134).
You must have set policy permission for the agent.

Steps
1. In IBM Cognos Connection, locate the agent.

2. In the Actions column, click More.

3. Click Remove all from the alert list.

Receive News Item Headlines

The author of an agent can specify that news item headlines be published to a folder in IBM Cognos
Connection when an event occurs. To be able to read headlines as an RSS-style list, you must set
up a page in IBM Cognos Connection that includes a Cognos Navigator portlet that displays the
folder where the headlines are published. Edit the properties of the portlet to view the entries as a
news list. For instructions, see "Pages and Dashboards" (p. 55).
For more information about news items, see the Event Studio User Guide.

View the Most Recent Event List

The most recent event list compares current data with data from the last time the agent ran and
groups events by event status.
For example, an agent is created to tell you when the quantity sold of any product by any sales
person in your database changes. The first time the agent runs, the most recent event list identifies
all sales as new events.

Product number Sales person Quantity sold

NEW EVENTS

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Product number Sales person Quantity sold

3345 Ashley McCormick 25

3345 Bayard Lopes 15

2256 Alessandra Torta 100

The second time the agent runs, it finds the following product sales.

Product number Sales person Quantity sold

3345 Ashley McCormick 35

3345 Bayard Lopes 15

2256 Ashley McCormick 15

2256 Alessandra Torta 150

If you now view the most recent events list, you see the following list:

Product number Sales person Quantity sold

NEW EVENTS

2256 Ashley McCormick 15

ONGOING (UNCHANGED)

3345 Bayard Lopes 15

ONGOING (CHANGED)

3345 Ashley McCormick 35

2256 Alessandra Torta 150

Steps
1. In IBM Cognos Connection, locate the agent you want.

2. Under Actions, click the set properties icon.

3. Click the Agent tab.

4. Under Default action, click View most recent event list.

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5. Click OK.

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138 IBM Cognos Connection

Chapter 9: Microsoft Office Documents

If Microsoft Office workbooks and presentations are available in IBM Cognos Connection, you
can access and open them in Microsoft Office.

Download a Microsoft Office Document

You can download a Microsoft Office document from IBM Cognos Connection if it was published
in IBM Cognos 8 using IBM Cognos 8 Go! Office or IBM Cognos BI Analysis for Microsoft Excel
®. For more information, see the IBM Cognos 8 Go! Office User Guide and the IBM Cognos 8 BI
Analysis for Microsoft Excel ® User Guide.
You can download documents created in Microsoft Office Excel, Microsoft Office PowerPoint and
Microsoft Office Word. The default action for any Microsoft Office document is to download it.
You must have read and traverse permissions to access Microsoft Office documents in IBM Cognos
Connection.

Steps
1. In IBM Cognos Connection, locate the document that you want to open.

2. Click more on the actions toolbar to the right of the document that you want to download.
The IBM Cognos Connection actions page opens.

3. Download the Microsoft Office document:

● For a Microsoft Office workbook, click the View most recent document in Excel object

● For a Microsoft Office presentation, click the View most recent document in PowerPoint

object .

● For a Microsoft Office word document, click the View most recent document in Word

object .

● For a Microsoft Office document of unknown type, click the View most recent document

object .

The File Download dialog box appears.

4. Click Open or Save and follow the prompts that appear.

When you open the document, it opens in the application that was used to create it.

You can now perform the same actions that you would perform for any Microsoft Office document
of the selected type.

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Chapter 9: Microsoft Office Documents

140 IBM Cognos Connection

Chapter 10: Schedule Management

You can schedule IBM Cognos 8 entries to run at a time that is convenient for you. For example,
you may want to run reports or agents during off hours when demands on the system are low. Or
you may want to run them at a regular weekly or monthly interval.
You can schedule entries to run at specified intervals. You can schedule entries individually (p. 142)
or use jobs to schedule multiple entries at once (p. 143). Jobs have their own schedules independent
from report schedules.
You can schedule entries to run on the last day of each month (p. 143). You can also schedule entries
to be triggered by occurrences, such as database refreshes or emails (p. 146).
Only one schedule can be associated with each entry. If you require multiple schedules for a report
or agent entry, you can create report views (p. 80) or agent views (p. 133) and then create a schedule
for each view.
After you create a schedule, the entry or job runs at the time and date specified. You can then view
the scheduled entries and manage them. For more information, see "Activities Management" (p. 149).

Prompts in Scheduled Entries

If an entry that contains prompts is scheduled, you must save the prompt values or specify default
values (p. 86) to ensure that values exist when the report runs according to the schedule.
In a job, you can specify prompt values for job steps. When an entry runs as part of a job, the
prompt values saved in the job definition are used instead of the values saved with the entry. If no
values are specified in the job definition, IBM Cognos 8 uses the values saved in the entry.

Priority for Scheduled Entries

When you schedule an entry, you may be able to select a run priority from 1 to 5. For example, an
entry with priority 1 runs before an entry with priority 5. If there is more than one entry with a
specific priority, the one that arrived in the queue first runs first. The default is 3. If you do not
have permissions for entry priorities, the priority appears but you can not change it.
When you schedule a job, you can set priority for the whole job only, not for individual entries
within a job. However, you can change the priority of individual entries when they are pending in
the queue.
The priority of entries in the queue does not affect an entry that is already running. The running
entry completes and then the queue priority is checked for the next entry to run.
For more information, see "Manage Entry Run Priority" (p. 153).

Run Histories for Scheduled Entries

IBM Cognos 8 keeps history information each time a scheduled entry runs. You can use the run
history for an entry to see the times at which it ran and whether the it ran successfully . For more
information, see "View the Run History for Entries" (p. 154).

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Chapter 10: Schedule Management

Schedule an Entry
You schedule an entry to run it at a later time or at a recurring date and time. For example, you
can schedule a report or an agent.
If you no longer need a schedule, you can delete it. You can also disable it without losing any of
the scheduling details. You can then enable the schedule at a later time. For more information, see
"Activities Management" (p. 149).
You can schedule an entry to run on the last day of each month (p. 143) or as part of a job (p. 143).
You can schedule reports based on trigger occurrences (p. 146).
To schedule an entry, you need the permissions that are required to run the entry. For example, to
schedule a report or report view, you must have read, write, execute, and traverse permissions for
it. To schedule a child report view, you must have execute permissions on the parent report. You
also require the following access permissions for any data sources used by the report:
● dataSource - Execute and Traverse

● dataSourceConnection - Execute and Traverse

With only Execute access, you are prompted to log on to the database.

● dataSourceSignon - Execute

Steps

1. Click the schedule button for the entry you want to schedule .

2. Set the priority for the scheduled entry.

Select a lower number for higher priority. The default is 3.

3. Under Frequency, select how often you want the schedule to run.

The Frequency section is dynamic and changes with your selection. Wait until the page is
updated before selecting the frequency.

4. Under Start, select the date and time when you want the schedule to start.

5. Under End, select when you want the schedule to end.

Tip: If you want to create the schedule but not apply it right away, select the Disable the
schedule check box. To later enable the schedule, clear the check box.

6. If additional options are available on the Schedule page, specify what you want.
For example, for reports, you can select formats, languages, delivery method (including how
to save report output files), and prompt values. For more information, see "Reports and
Cubes" (p. 73).

7. Click OK.

A schedule is created and the report runs at the next scheduled time.

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Example - Schedule an Entry on the Last Day of the Month

You want to schedule a financial report to run automatically on the last day of each month for the
next year.

Steps

1. Click the schedule button for the entry you want to schedule .

2. Under Frequency, select By Month, and then select Day.

3. Enter Day 31 of every 1 month(s).

Entering 31 as the day ensures that the entry runs on the last day of the month, regardless of
how many days are in the month.

4. Under Start, select the last day of the current month as the day you want the monthly schedule
to start.

5. Under End, select the last day of the same month next year as the day you want the monthly
schedule to end.

6. Click OK.

Use Jobs to Schedule Multiple Entries

You can set the same schedule for multiple entries by creating a job. A job identifies a collection of
reports, report views, and other jobs that are scheduled together and share the same schedule settings.
When a scheduled job runs, all the entries in the job run.

Tip: If a job item is unavailable, you can select a different link by clicking Link to an entry.
Jobs contain steps, which are references to individual reports, jobs, and report views. You can
specify whether to run the steps all at once or in sequence.
● When steps are run all at once, all the steps are submitted at the same time. The job is successful
when all the steps run successfully. If a step fails, the other steps in the job are unaffected and
still run, but the job has a Failed status.

● When the steps are run in sequence, you can specify the order in which the steps run. A step is
submitted only after the preceding step runs successfully.You can choose to have the job stop
or have the other steps continue if a step fails.

You can schedule a job to run at a specific time, on a recurring basis, or based on a trigger, such
as a database refresh or an email (p. 146).
The individual reports, jobs, and report views in steps can also have individual schedules. Run
options for individual step entries override run options set for the job. You can set run options for
the job that serve as the default for step entries that do not have their own run options. Note that
the run options that are available for a job with multiple entries may not apply to every entry. If
the option does not apply to an entry, it is ignored.

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You can run reports to produce outputs based on the options that you define, such as format and
language.

Cached Prompt Data

For reports that prompt for values each time that the report is run, you may want to use cached
prompt data. Reports run faster because data is retrieved from the cache rather than from the
database.
The cache is used only when a requested language is the same as one in the cache. For example, the
cache contains data for English, English (United States), and German (Germany). When prompted,
you request English (United States) for the report. There is an exact match and the cached data is
used. The cached data is also used when there is a partial match. If you request English (Canada),
the cached data for English is used. If you request German (Austria), there is no match and the
cached data is not used.
You can use caches for reports or report views. For report views, the report view cache is used first.
If no report view cache is found, the cache for the associated report is used.
You must use a job to create or refresh a cache. You can refresh the cache automatically by
scheduling the job to run periodically. If you want to use live data the next time that you run the
report, you can clear the cache.

Permissions
Permissions required to include an entry as part of a job vary depending on the type of entry. The
permissions are the same as for scheduling an entry (p. 142).

Steps

1. Click the new job button .

2. Type a name and, if you want, a description and screen tip for the job, select the location in
which to save the job, and then click Next.

The Select the steps page appears.

3. Click Add.

4. Select the check boxes for the entries you want to add and click the right arrow button .When
the entries you want appear in the Selected entries box, click OK.

You can also click Search, and in the Search string box, type the phrase you want to search
for. For search options, click Edit. When you find the entry you want, click the right arrow
button to list the entry in the Selected entries box and click OK.

To remove entries from the Selected entries list, select them and click Remove. To select all
entries in a list, click the check box in the upper-left corner of the list. To make the user entries
visible, click Show users in the list.

5. If you want to change run options for an individual entry when it runs as part of the job, click

the set icon , click Produce report outputs, select the Override the default values box, make
the changes, and click OK.

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To send the report to mobile recipients, select Send the report to mobile recipients and click
Select the recipients.

Tip: To return to defaults for individual entries, click the delete button.

6. If you want to refresh the cache for a report when the job runs, click the edit icon next to the
report, and then from the Run the report to menu, click Refresh the report cache. Click Override
the default values. To accept the displayed language, click OK. To change the language, click
Select the languages, select the languages you want, and then click OK. Click OK to accept the
displayed languages.

Tip: To clear the cache, click the delete button.

7. If you want to create or refresh the cache, click the set icon, click Refresh the report cache,
select the Override the default values box, add languages, if you want, and click OK.

Tip: To clear the cache, click More next to the report whose cache you want to clear, click
Clear the cache, and click OK twice.

8. Under Submission of steps, select whether to submit the steps All at once or In sequence.

If you select In sequence, the steps are executed in the order they appear in the Steps list. If you
want the job to continue to run even if one of the steps fails, select the Continue on error check
box.

Tip: To change the order, click Modify the sequence, make the changes, and click OK.

9. If you want to specify default run options at the job level, under Defaults for all steps, click
Set.
Note that the run options that are available for a job with multiple entries may not apply to
every entry. If the option does not apply to an entry, it is ignored.

10. If you want to override defaults, select the category and select the Override the default values
check box and select the default options you want for the job and click OK.

11. To save the complete history details for the job steps when the run activity completes successfully,
click All from the Run history details level list. Click Limited to save limited run history details
for the job. If the job run fails, the complete history details are saved.

The default is All.

12. Select the action you want:

● To run now or later, click Run now or at a later time and click Finish. Specify the time and
date for the run. Click Find only or Find and fix, then click Run. Review the run time and
click OK.

● To schedule at a recurring time, click Schedule to run at a recurring time and click Finish.
Then, select frequency and start and end dates. Click Find only or Find and fix, then click
OK.

Tip: To temporarily disable the schedule, select the Disable the schedule check box. To
view the schedule status, see "Activities Management" (p. 149).

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● To save without scheduling or running, click Save only and click Finish.

A job is created and will run at the next scheduled time.

Trigger-based Entry Scheduling

You can schedule entries based on an occurrence, such as a database refresh or an email. The
occurrence acts as a trigger, causing the entry to run. For example, you may want to run a report
every time a database is refreshed.
Trigger-based scheduling may be used to run entries automatically based on an occurrence. It may
also be used to limit when users can run entries. For example, in a warehouse environment where
the database is refreshed only once a week, there is no need to run reports more frequently.
Trigger-based scheduling applies only to the entry, not to any entry view associated with it. For
example, if trigger-based scheduling applies to a report, it does not apply to report views associated
with the report. However, you can schedule a report view using a trigger.

Setting Up Trigger-based Scheduling

To schedule an entry based on an occurrence and confirm trigger-based scheduling, you must have
read, write, execute, and traverse permissions. You also require the following access permissions
for all data sources used by the entry.

Data source Permissions

dataSource Execute and Traverse

dataSourceConnection Execute and Traverse

With only Execute access, you are prompted to log on to the
database.

dataSourceSignon Execute

Before setting up trigger-based scheduling, ensure that your credentials exist and are up to date.

Tip: Click the my area button , My Preferences, and, on the Personal tab, click Renew the cre-
dentials.
Follow this process to set up trigger-based scheduling:
❑ Schedule an entry based on the occurrence (p. 147).

❑ Have your administrator set up the trigger occurrence on a server.

Trigger occurrences can also be set up by an SDK developer using the IBM Cognos 8 Software
Development Kit (SDK). For more information, see the SDK Developer Guide.

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Schedule an Entry Based on an Occurrence

As part of setting up trigger-based scheduling, you must schedule an entry based on an occurrence.
Trigger-based schedule is activated if the user firing the trigger has:
● read and traverse permissions for the schedule entry

● traverse permissions for all ancestors of the schedule entry

● access to IBM Cognos Administration

Steps

1. Click the schedule button next to the entry you want to schedule.

2. Under Frequency, click the By Trigger tab.

3. In Trigger name, type the name of the trigger occurrence.

Note: The trigger name that you enter may be provided to you by your administrator or
developer. If not, you must inform your administrator or developer of the trigger name that
you use.

4. The default start date is "now", and the default end date is "forever", which means the trigger
schedule runs when the trigger is fired (either from trigger.bat or from an SDK application). If
you enter a valid start and end date, the trigger schedule can only be fired between those dates.

5. Click OK.

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148 IBM Cognos Connection

Chapter 11: Activities Management

You can manage IBM Cognos 8 activities from My Activities and Schedules in IBM Cognos Con-
nection.
You can view a list of your activities that are current, past, upcoming on a specific day, or scheduled.
You can filter the list so that only the entries that you want appear. A bar chart shows you an
overview of activities.
You can set run priority for entries (p. 153). You can also view the run history for entries (p. 154),
specify how long to keep run histories (p. 155), and rerun failed entries (p. 155).

If you switch views, you must refresh to see current data. For example, if you switch from Past
Activities to Upcoming Activities, you must refresh to see current data in the panes.

You must have the Scheduling capability to access My Activities and Schedules.

Manage Current Activities

Current activities are entries that are currently being processed in IBM Cognos 8. Each entry is listed
by name and shows the request time and the status, and the priority for background activities. The
bar chart shows the total number of entries, broken down by the number of pending, executing,
waiting, and suspended entries.
You can suspend background entries and release them later when you want them to run. You can
permanently cancel runs for entries that have one of the following statuses:
● pending in the queue

● executing

● suspended

● waiting for a process external to IBM Cognos 8 to complete

You can filter the entries to display only those you want. In My Activities and Schedules, you can
choose to display only those entries with a specific status or priority, or entries of a specific type
or scope.
If you cancel an entry that contains other entries, such as a job or an agent, steps or tasks that have
not yet been completed are cancelled. However, steps or tasks that have already completed remain
completed.
You can change the priority of entries (p. 153) and view the run history (p. 154).

Steps in IBM Cognos Connection

1. Start IBM Cognos Connection.

2. In the upper-right corner, click the my area button , and click My Activities and Schedules,
Current Activities.
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Chapter 11: Activities Management

3. In the Filter menu, click the filtering items that you want to use.

4. Click Apply.
The list shows the entries that you selected.

5. To perform an action on an individual entry, click the arrow to the right of the entry and select
the action. To perform an action on several entries, select the check box for the entries you
want and then click one of the following buttons on the toolbar.

Tip: To select all entries, click the check box in the upper left-hand corner, next to Name.

Goal Button

Show entry details

Hide entry details

Cancel the run

Suspend the run

Release suspended entries

Set entry priority

Manage Past Activities

Past activities are entries that have finished processing in IBM Cognos 8.

Each entry is listed by name and shows the request time and the status. You can sort the Request
time and Status columns. The bar chart shows the total number of entries, broken down by status.
If an entry has failed, a button appears showing the severity of the error.

You can filter the entries to display only those you want. In My Activities and Schedules, you can
choose to view a list of activities that occurred over a specified length of time, such as the last four
hours or the last day, or you can specify a date or time range. You can filter by status, type, and
scope.
You can view the run history (p. 154).

Steps in IBM Cognos Connection

1. Start IBM Cognos Connection.

2. In the upper-right corner, click the my area button and click, My Activities and Schedules,
Past Activities.

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3. From the Filter menu, click the filtering items that you want to use.

Tips: If you want to use advanced filtering options, click Advanced options. To reset all selections
to the default settings, click Reset to default.

4. If an error occurred when the entry ran, pause over the error button next to the status to see
the severity of the error.

5. Click Apply.
The list shows the entries that you selected.

6. To perform an action on an individual entry, click the arrow to the right of the entry and select
the action. To perform an action on several entries, click one of the following buttons on the
toolbar.

Goal Button

Show entry details

Hide entry details

Manage Upcoming Activities for a Specific Day

You can choose to view a list of all upcoming activities that are scheduled for a specific day. Each
entry is listed by name and shows the request time, the status, and the priority. A bar chart shows
an overview of activities broken down by scheduled and canceled items.
You can filter the entries to display only those you want. You can choose the day for which you
want to view upcoming activities. You can filter by status, priority, type, and scope.
You can also change the priority of an entry in the queue (p. 153).

Steps in IBM Cognos Connection

1. Start IBM Cognos Connection.

2. In the upper-right corner, click the my area button and click My Activities and Schedules,
Upcoming Activities.

3. From the Filter menu, click the filtering items that you want to use and click Apply.

4. Click Apply.
The list shows the entries that you selected.

5. To perform an action on an individual entry, click the arrow to the right of the entry and select
the action. To perform an action on several entries, select the check box for the entries you
want and then click one of the following buttons on the toolbar.

Tip: To select all entries, click the check box in the upper left-hand corner, next to Name.

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Goal Button

Show entry details

Hide entry details

Cancel the run

Re-schedule a run that was cancelled

Set entry priority

Manage Scheduled Activities

You can choose to view a list of scheduled entries. Each entry is listed by name, status, and priority.
A bar chart shows you an overview of activities broken down by enabled and disabled schedules.
You can filter the entries to display only those you want. You can choose to display only those
entries with a specific status or priority, or entries of a specific type or scope.
You can set properties, run the schedule once, disable and enable scheduled entries, modify the
schedule, remove the schedule, set the priority (p. 153), and view the run history (p. 154). Depending
on the entry, you may also be able to perform other functions, such as view outputs or event lists.
For more information on schedules, see (p. 141).

Steps in IBM Cognos Connection

1. Start IBM Cognos Connection.

2. In the upper-right corner, click the my area button , and click My Activities and Schedules,
Schedules.

3. From the Filter menu, click the filtering items that you want to use and click Apply.

4. Click Apply.
The list shows the entries that you selected.

5. To perform an action on an individual entry, click the arrow to the right of the entry and select
the action. To perform an action on several entries, select the check box for the entries you
want and then click one of the following buttons on the toolbar.

Tip: To select all entries, click the check box in the upper left-hand corner, next to Name.

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Goal Button

Show entry details

Hide entry details

Enable the schedule

Disable the schedule

Set entry priority

Manage Entry Run Priority

Scheduled entries can be assigned a priority from 1 to 5. For example, an entry with priority 1 runs
before an entry with priority 5. If there is more than one entry with the same priority, the one that
arrived in the queue first runs first. The default priority is 3.
Interactive entries always run immediately and priority cannot be changed once they are running.
You set the priority for an entry when you schedule it (p. 142). When an entry is in the current,
upcoming, or scheduled queue, you can change the priority.
You may want to set a low priority for entries that take a long time to run so that other entries in
the queue are not delayed.
When you schedule a job (p. 143), you set the priority for the whole job, not for individual entries
within the job. You may want to set a low priority for a job with many entries so that other entries
in the queue are not delayed.
You schedule priority for the parent job. When the job runs, all the child entries inherit the priority
of the parent. When the job is in the queue and is not yet running, you can update the priority. You
cannot do this for the individual entries in the job. Changing the priority of the job changes the
priority of all its child entries. You can view the run history of a job (p. 154) while it is executing
and see which of its entries have completed, are executing, or are pending.
The priority of entries in the queue does not affect an entry that is already running. That entry
completes and then the queue priority is checked for the next entry to run.
You must have the Scheduling capability to access manage entry run priority.

Steps in IBM Cognos Connection

1. Start IBM Cognos Connection.

2. In the upper-right corner, click the my area button , and click My Activities and Schedules
and then click Current Activities, Upcoming Activities, or Schedules.

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Chapter 11: Activities Management

3. To change the priority for one entry, click the arrow to the right of the entry and select Set
Priority. To change the priority of more than one entry, select the check box for the entries you

want and then click the set priority button on the toolbar.

Tip: To select all entries, click the check box in the upper left-hand corner, next to Name.

4. From the menu, click the priority that you want, and then click OK. If you selected one entry,
the current priority of the entry appears in the Set the priority box. If you selected multiple
entries, the Set the priority box contains (Multiple).

The new priority appears in the Priority column next to the entries that you selected.

View the Run History for Entries

Sometimes entries are scheduled to run in the background, without anyone waiting to view them.
This includes scheduled entries, entries that are run once and saved, and interactive entries that are
saved or mailed. Interactive entries do not have run histories.
IBM Cognos 8 keeps history information each time an entry runs in the background. The run history
for an entry includes information such as the request time, start time, completion time, and whether
the report ran successfully.
You can look at a more detailed run history for the entry, which includes general, error, and
warning messages related to the entry and any actions you can take. If there is email associated
with the entry, the status of the email delivery is included.
Some types of entries display additional information in the detailed run history page:
● For reports, a report output version (p. 88) is kept each time a report is run according to a
schedule. You can view the report output version from the detailed run history.

● For jobs, you can view a list of job steps and see a detailed run history for each one. You can
also see the parts of the job that have not yet completed. If the entry is part of a parent entry,
you can view the parent entry that initiated the run.

You can rerun failed entries (p. 155) from the detailed run history page. You can view a list of related
runs that are part of the rerun series and see a detailed run history for each one. You can specify
how many run history occurrences to keep or for how long to keep them (p. 155).

Steps in IBM Cognos Connection

1. Start IBM Cognos Connection.

2. In the upper-right corner, click the my area button , and click My Activities and Schedules.

3. Click Schedules or Past Activities.

4. Next to the entry, click the arrow and then click View run history .

5. If you want, select the Status of entries that you want to view.
A list of selected entries appears.

154 IBM Cognos Connection

 Chapter 11: Activities Management

6. If you want to view the run history details, in the Actions column, click the view run history

details button next to the entry you want. Then, if you want, from the Severity list, select
the severity of the entries.
Under Job Steps, the complete run history details is shown. If the job run history details level
was set to Limited, no history details for the jobs steps are recorded.

7. If there is a report output version, in the Actions column, click the view outputs button
for the entry you want. Then, from the Versions list, click the version you want. To delete a
version, click Manage versions click the check box for the version, and then click Delete.

Specify How Long to Keep Run Histories

You can keep run histories for a specific number of runs or for a specific number of days or months.
For example, you can keep the run histories for the ten latest runs (occurrences) or for the past two
days or six months. You can also choose to keep all run histories.
You must have read and write permissions for the entry and read or traverse permissions for the
folder that contains the entry.

Steps in IBM Cognos Connection

1. Click the set properties button next to the entry you want.

2. On the General tab, under Run history, choose the retention method and type the value:

● To keep run histories for a specific number of occurrences, click Number of occurrences
and type the number. To save an unlimited number of run histories, set this value to 0.

● To keep run histories for a specific length of time, click Duration and click either Days or
Months. Type the appropriate value in the box.

3. Click OK.

Rerun a Failed Entry Task

When an entry, such as a report, agent task, or job runs according to a schedule or runs in the
background and the entry fails, you can resubmit the failed entry with the same options that were
specified in the original run.
For a job that contains steps that ran successfully and steps that did not run successfully, you are
not required to rerun the entire job, but can run the job steps individually. If the job steps are run
sequentially, you can rerun the job starting with the failed job step. If you wish, you can select
which steps to rerun and skip the failed steps. However, the selected job steps run sequentially and
if a step fails, then the steps that occur after the failed step are not run.
When you rerun a job step individually, a new run history that includes only the single job step is
created for the parent job. For more information about run histories, see "View the Run History
for Entries" (p. 154).

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Chapter 11: Activities Management

When rerunning an agent entry, associated tasks, such as an email that sends report output to a list
of email recipients, are also rerun if they failed initially. If there are two associated tasks running
in parallel and one task fails and one succeeds, rerunning the agent only reruns the failed task.
However, if tasks are selected to run on failure, they are run again when the rerun fails.
Although the run history shows entries that ran successfully, you cannot rerun an entry that suc-
ceeded. The run options are not stored for these entries.
A rerun can fail when a task associated with a failed entry is deleted or updated.
You must have execute permission to rerun a failed task.

Steps in IBM Cognos Connection

1. Start IBM Cognos Connection.

2. In the upper-right corner, click the my area button , and click My Activities and Schedules,
Past Activities.

3. Next to the entry, click the arrow and then click View run history details .

The View run history details page shows run details, such as start time and completion time,
run status, and error messages for a failed run. Other information that appears in the page
depends on whether the entry is for a single task, a job with multiple steps, or an agent with
tasks. For example, if it is a single task, the report options and the report outputs appear. If it
is a job with multiple steps, a Job section appears with the run details of the job steps.

4. Under Status, next to Failed, click Rerun.

● If the rerun task is a single task, you receive a message asking you to confirm the rerun.

● If the rerun task is a job with multiple job steps or an agent with tasks, the Rerun page
appears. Select the check box next to the entries you want to rerun.

Tips: You can also rerun failed entries by clicking Rerun in the Outstanding to complete section.
To rerun a single job step, in the Job section, in the Actions column, click the view run history

details button for the failed step.

156 IBM Cognos Connection

Appendix A: Troubleshooting IBM Cognos Connec-
tion

You can find troubleshooting topics for all IBM Cognos 8 components in the troubleshooting section
of the Administration and Security Guide.

Problems Running Reports

The topics in this section document problems you may encounter when running reports.

Unable to Select Multiple Report Formats When Running a Report

When running a report with options, you cannot select multiple formats when the delivery option
is to view the report.
Before selecting multiple formats on the Run with advanced options page, you must first change
the Delivery option to Save the report, print it, or send an email.

Unable to Click Links

Links in IBM Cognos Connection will not work if your browser is not properly configured. Con-
sequently, you cannot perform operations such as running a report or starting Report Studio. For
all Web browsers, cookies and JavaScript must be enabled.
For more information, see your browser help.
For Internet Explorer only, the following must be enabled:
● Run ActiveX controls and plug-ins

● Script ActiveX controls marked safe for scripting

● Active scripting

IBM Cognos does not provide or download ActiveX controls as part of IBM Cognos 8. Report
Studio uses the native Internet Explorer XML support, which is an integral component of the
browser. Because Microsoft implements XML using ActiveX, you must enable ActiveX support
for Report Studio.

Steps to Enable Internet Explorer Options

1. In Internet Explorer, from the Tools menu, click Internet Options.

2. On the Security tab, click Custom Level.

3. In the Security Settings dialog box, scroll to the Activex controls and plug-ins settings and
enable Run Activex controls and plug-ins and Script Activex controls marked safe for scripting.

4. Scroll to the Scripting settings and enable Active scripting.

Licensed Materials – Property of IBM

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2005, 2009. 157
Appendix A: Troubleshooting IBM Cognos Connection

5. Click OK.

Scheduled Reports Fail

You schedule reports that previously ran successfully, but now fail. The following error message
appears:
CAM.AAA Error authenticating user
This may happen because a user changed a password. IBM Cognos 8 uses a copy of the user ID
and password to run the scheduled report.
The solution is for the user to renew their credentials.

Steps to Renew Credentials

1. Ask the user who scheduled the report to log on to IBM Cognos Connection.

2. In IBM Cognos Connection, click the my area button and click My Preferences.

3. On the Personal tab, scroll to the Credentials section.

4. Click Renew the credentials.

Note that this does not apply to users from an IBM Cognos Series 7 namespace.

A Report Does Not Run as Scheduled

A scheduled report may fail, or an administrator may cancel it.
To view the run history and status of a report you scheduled and to view detailed information about
why a scheduled report failed, do the following:

Steps
1. In IBM Cognos Connection, click the my area button, and click My Activities and Schedules,
Schedules.

2. Click the arrow next to the item to view the Actions menu, and then click View run history.

The View run history page appears.

3. To view the run history details, in the Actions column, click the view run history details button.

Missing Images in a PDF Report

Images that appear in reports rendered as HTML are missing in reports rendered as PDF. The
embedded GIF, JPG, and BMP images do not appear. Only the borders of the missing images appear.
If you use Microsoft Internet Information Services (IIS), go to the properties sheet of the Web site
and ensure that the Enable the HTTP Keep Alives option is selected.
Ensure that the virtual directory where the images are stored has anonymous access enabled. Open
IIS and open the properties sheet for the virtual directory for your images. Select the Anonymous
Access check box.

158 IBM Cognos Connection

 Appendix A: Troubleshooting IBM Cognos Connection

Security Problems
The topics in this section document security problems.

Unable to Log On
If IBM Cognos 8 uses an Active Directory Server as the security provider, you may not be able to
log on using only your user ID. One of the following errors may appear:
Your password has expired. Please change it.
The provided credentials are invalid.
This problem occurs when the Content Manager service runs under the local system account and
runs on a computer that is not part of the Active Directory Server domain.
To log on, you must qualify your user ID using the domain name. For example, when you log on,
type

domain\user ID
If you still cannot log on, contact your IBM Cognos 8 security administrator.

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Appendix A: Troubleshooting IBM Cognos Connection

160 IBM Cognos Connection

Glossary

access permissions
Rules defining the access rights to resources. Access permissions can be granted to any combination
of namespaces, groups, or users. Examples of resources are reports and folders.

agent
The object type created and edited by Event Studio. An agent contains the event condition and the
associated tasks to perform.

analysis
A process where a user interacts with data to gain insight and understanding. In IBM Cognos 8,
Analysis Studio is designed to facilitate analysis.

authentication
The process of validating the identity of a user or server.

burst
To create several report results by running a single report once. For example, the user can create a
report that shows sales for each employee, and run it once, sending different results to regional
managers by bursting on region.

capabilities
Capabilities refer to the ability to use certain functions and features within IBM Cognos 8. The
Capabilities tool controls access to secured functions such as Administration and the IBM Cognos
Query Studio, and secured features, such as User Defined SQL and Bursting. The permissions define
which of the predefined and built-in Cognos groups and roles have access to which secured functions
and features, and the type of access. Access to these capabilities is set by the security administrator.
Users can see their access permissions in the Personal area of their Preferences, under Capabilities.

contact
A named e-mail address to which reports and agent e-mails can be sent. Contacts are never
authenticated.

content locale
A code that is used to set the language or dialect used for browsers and report text, and the regional
preferences, such as formats for time, date, money, money expressions, and time of day.

credentials
Information stored about the identity of an IBM Cognos user, usually a user name and password.
You can assign your credentials to someone else so that they can use resources that you are
authorized to use.

Licensed Materials – Property of IBM

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2005, 2009. 161
Glossary

Credentials are created for IBM Cognos components. If a user schedules or programs an action,
credentials must be stored in the content store.

drill down
In a multidimensional representation of data, to access information by starting with a general category
and moving downwards through the hierarchy of information. For example from Years to Quarters
to Months.

drill up
To navigate from one level of data to a less detailed level. The levels are set by the structure of the
data.

event
A change to a state, such as the completion or failure of an operation, business process, or human
task, that can trigger a subsequent action, such as persisting the event data to a data repository or
invoking another business process.

group
A collection of users who can share access authorities for protected resources.

job
A group of runnable objects, such as reports, agents, and other jobs that the user runs and schedules
as a batch.

locale
A setting that identifies language or geography and determines formatting conventions such as
collation, case conversion, character classification, the language of messages, date and time repres-
entation, and numeric representation.

metric
A measure to assess performance in a key area of a business.

metric package
In Cognos Connection, a representation of a Metric Studio application. A metric package contains
connection information, reports, and metric management tasks for that application.

model
A physical or business representation of the structure of the data from one or more data sources.
A model describes data objects, structure, and grouping, as well as relationships and security. In
Cognos BI, a model is created and maintained in Framework Manager. The model or a subset of
the model must be published to the Cognos server as a package for users to create and run reports.
In Cognos Planning, a group of D-cubes, D-lists, D-links, and other objects stored in a library. A
model may reside in one or more libraries, with a maximum of two for Contributor.

162 IBM Cognos Connection

 Glossary

namespace
In XML and XQuery, a uniform resource identifier (URI) that provides a unique name to associate
with the element, attribute, and type definitions in an XML schema or with the names of elements,
attributes, types, functions, and errors in XQuery expressions.

news item
A single entry in a rich site summary (RSS) compatible format. It can include a headline, text, and
a link to more information. A news item task in an agent can be used to create news items for display
in a Cognos Connection portlet.

package
A subset of a model, which can be the whole model, to be made available to the Cognos server.

passport
Session-based information, stored and encrypted in Content Manager memory, regarding authen-
ticated users. A passport is created the first time a user accesses Cognos 8, and it is retained until
a session ends, either when the user logs off or after a specified period of inactivity.

portlet
A Web component that provides specific services or information to users and that is specifically
designed to be aggregated with other portlets in the context of a composite page or portal.

product locale
The code or setting that specifies which language, regional settings, or both to use for parts of the
product interface, such as menu commands.

publish
In Cognos BI, to expose all or part of a Framework Manager model or Transformer PowerCube,
through a package, to the Cognos server, so that the data can be used to create reports and other
content.
In Cognos Planning, to copy the data from Contributor or Analyst to a data store, typically so that
the data can be used for reporting purposes.

report
A set of data deliberately laid out to communicate business information.

report output
The output produced as a result of executing a report specification against a data set.

report specification
An executable definition of a report, including query and layout rules, which can be combined with
data to produce a report output.

User Guide 163

Glossary

report view
A reference to another report that has its own properties, such as prompt values, schedules, and
results. Report views can be used to share a report specification instead of making copies of it.

rich site summary

An XML-based format for syndicated Web content that is based on the RSS 0.91 specification. The
RSS XML file formats are used by Internet users to subscribe to Web sites that have provided RSS
feeds.

session
The time during which an authenticated user is logged on.

task
An action performed by an agent if the event status meets the task execution rules. For example,
an agent can send an e-mail, publish a news item, or run a report.

user
Any individual, organization, process, device, program, protocol, or system that uses the services
of a computing system.

watch list
A list of metrics that each user has chosen to monitor closely. If notification is enabled in Metric
Studio, the user will receive e-mail notification of changes to these metrics. Users can also choose
to display their watch list as a portlet within Cognos Connection.

watch rule
A user-defined condition that determines whether a report is delivered to the user. When the rule
is run, the output is evaluated and, if it satisfies the condition or rule, the report is delivered by e-
mail or news item. Watch rules limit report delivery to those reports containing data of significance
to the user.

Web Services for Remote Portlets

A standard for creating presentation-oriented Web services so that they can be easily integrated
within other applications, such as Web portals.

164 IBM Cognos Connection

Index

for reports, 90
A removing for agents, 134
access permissions removing from watch items, 47
credentials, 53 viewing in IBM Cognos Connection, 47
definition, 161 alerts
granting or denying, 51 report, 15
ownership of entries, 51 analyses
pages, 58 definition, 161
setting, 52 Analysis Studio
users, 50 cubes, 73
See Also permissions report properties, 30
access rights, See access permissions reports, 73
actions setting up drill-through targets, 118
credentials, 53 authentication
permissions, 51 definition, 161
activities users, 23
managing, 149 authentication prompts, 52
adding
comments, 94 B
agents, 131 bookmarks
adding yourself to alert list, 134 creating for drill-through access, 110
allowing alert list, 134 creating for IBM Cognos 8 entries, 25
creating from IBM Cognos Connection, 133 browser
default actions, 17 settings, 157
definition, 161 bursting
deleting alert list, 135 reports, 97
most recent event list, 135 bursts
news item headlines, 135 definition, 161
opening from IBM Cognos Connection, 133 business keys
properties, 32, 132 using for drill-through, 113
removing yourself from alert list, 134
rerunning failed, 155 C
running, 131 CAM.AAA errors, 158
viewing, 133 cancel entry run, 149
agent tasks capabilities
resubmitting on fail, 17 definition, 161
alert lists changed features
allowing for agents, 134 version 8.3, 18
allowing for reports, 89 Cognos Viewer portlet
deleting for agent, 135 drill-down actions, 70
for agents, 134 drill-through actions, 71

Licensed Materials – Property of IBM

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2005, 2009. 165
Index

drill-up actions, 70 creating, 63

global filters, 68 drill-through actions, 71
comments, 93 drill-up and drill-down actions, 70
adding in Cognos Viewer, 94 global filters, 66
adding to saved reports, 14 Multi-page portlet, 63
deleting in Cognos Viewer, 94 See Also pages
enabling, 93 data
managing in Cognos Viewer, 14 viewing lineage, 81
modifying in Cognos Viewer, 94 data modeling, 26
viewing in Cognos Viewer, 94 data sources
contacts securing against multiple namespaces, 52
creating, 98 data stores
definition, 161 conformed dimensions, 112
content dates
setting languages, 44 using for drill-through access, 114
content locale default actions
definition, 161 for agents, 17
copying defaults
entries, 35 agent properties, 132
creating PowerPlay reports, 104
watch rules, 92 report languages, 86
credentials, 23 report prompt values, 86
definition, 161 report run options, 74
trusted, 53 deleting
credentials invalid, 159 entries, 40
CSV formatting pages, 57
reports, 84 tabs, 62
cubes, 73 denying access, 51
Analysis Studio, 73 dimensions
IBM Cognos Series 7, 103 conformed for drill-through access, 112
IBM Cognos Series 7 multilingual properties, 105 directories, See folders
opening IBM Cognos Series 7, 105 disabled
currencies access to reports, 73
displaying mixed, 73 disabling
current entries, 37
activities, 149 selection-based interactivity, 95
entries, 149 displaying
current run mixed currencies, 73
advanced options, 76 distributing
report options, 75 burst reports, 97
customizing reports, 96, 98
portals, 44 reports by email, 97
distribution lists
D creating, 98
dashboards, 17 downloading, 139
adding interactivity, 66

166 IBM Cognos Connection

 Index

downloading IBM Cognos 8 Go! Office documents in specifying text, 127

IBM Cognos Connection, 139 drill up
drill down definition, 162
definition, 162 drill-up actions
drill-down actions Cognos Viewer portlet, 70
Cognos Viewer portlet, 70 pages and dashboards, 70
pages and dashboards, 70
drilling down, 99 E
drilling through editing
multiple values, 16 pages, 58
selection contexts, 108 reports, 81
setting up target parameters, 117 emailing
drilling up, 99 reports, 97
drill-through enabling
multiple values, 16 comments, 93
one target report, 16 communication between portlets, 59
passing multiple values, 101 entries, 27, 37
to target report, 100 entries
drill through, See drill-through access agents, 131
drill-through access, 107 cancel run, 149
between packages, 109 copying, 35
between PowerCubes and packages, 114 creating bookmarks, 25
business keys, 113 current, 149
concepts, 108 deleting, 40
conformed dimensions, 112 disabling, 37
defining access in packages, 114 enabling, 27, 37
formats, 109 hiding, 14, 38
members, 110 managing, 149
model-based access, 108 moving, 36
new features in version 8.4, 14 ordering, 40
report-based access, 108 organizing, 34
setting up for IBM Cognos Visualizer reports, 127 past, 150
setting up for PowerPlay reports, 128 properties, 27
setting up in packages, 114 renaming, 34, 36
setting up targets in Analysis Studio, 118 rerunning failed, 155
using bookmarks, 110 run history, 154
using dates, 114 run priority, 153
using scope in model-based, 113 scheduled, 152
using URLs, 110 scheduling, 142
values, 110 scheduling based on occurrences, 147
drill-through actions scheduling last day of month, 143
Cognos Viewer portlet, 71 searching, 42
pages and dashboards, 71 selecting links, 39
drill-through definition, 108 specifying alternative icon, 42
drill-through reports suspend run, 149
hiding, 14 upcoming, 151

User Guide 167

Index

viewing hidden entries, 38 Go To page

error messages more information, 19
CAM.AAA, 158 granting access, 51
credentials invalid, 159 groups
password expired, 159 definition, 162
events
definition, 162 H
viewing most recent, 135 hidden entries, 38
Event Studio viewing, 38
agents, 131 hiding
Excel, See Microsoft Office documents drill-through reports, 14
Excel formatting entries, 14, 38
reports, 84 home pages
execute permissions, 49 setting, 63
HTML formatting
F reports, 83
failed entries
rerunning, 155 I
filter expressions IBM Cognos 8 Go! Office
creating for drilling through from IBM Cognos Series downloading documents in IBM Cognos Connec-
7 to IBM Cognos 8, 128 tion, 139
filters IBM Cognos Connection, 23
global, 17 agents, 133
folders downloading IBM Cognos 8 Go! Office docu-
creating, 41 ments, 139
My Folders, 41 downloading Microsoft Office documents, 139
ordering, 40 troubleshooting, 157
personal, 41 updated look for 8.3, 18
public, 41 IBM Cognos Connection styles, 44
formats IBM Cognos Resource Center, 11
drill-through access, 109 IBM Cognos Series 7
formatting opening cubes, 105
reports, 82 opening PowerPlay reports, 103
reports in CSV format, 84 PowerPlay reports and cubes, 103
reports in Excel format, 84 reports in IBM Cognos Connection, 102
reports in HTML, 83 running PowerPlay reports, 103
reports in XML, 83 IBM Cognos Visualizer reports
setting up drill-through access to IBM Cognos 8, 127
G IBM Cognos Watchlist, See Metric List
global filters IBM Metadata Workbench, 13
Cognos Viewer portlet, 68 lineage solution, 81
drill-through reports, 17 IBM WebSphere Business Glossary
drill-up and drill-down actions, 17 accessing in Cognos Viewer, 81
pages and dashboards, 66 icons
prompts, 17 specifying alternative for entry, 42
using metrics, 67

168 IBM Cognos Connection

 Index

images Metric Studio

missing in PDF report, 158 portlets, 14, 18
interactivity in pages and dashboards, 66 Microsoft Excel 2007
support, 18
J Microsoft Office documents
jobs, 17 downloading, 139
definition, 162 downloading from IBM Cognos 8, 139
delivery options, 32 model-based drill-through access
properties, 32 using scope, 113
rerunning failed, 155 models, 26
scheduling, 143 definition, 162
steps, 143 moving
submission of steps, 32 entries, 36
Multi-page portlet, 17
L creating dashboards, 63
languages multiple formats
choosing for reports, 85 unable to select, 157
defaults for reports, 86 multiple values
new support in version 8.4, 13 drill-through, 16
SAP BW data sources, 85 My Folders, See folders
levels
member unique names, 111 N
lineage named sets
IBM Metadata Workbench, 81 limitations, 102
viewing, 14, 81 namespaces
links definition, 162
entries, 39 multiple namespaces, 52
unable to click, 157 new features
locales IBM WebSphere Business Glossary, 14
definition, 162 version 8.3, 15
logging off, 23 version 8.4, 13
logging on, 23 news item headlines
multiple namespaces, 52 receiving, 135
news items
M definition, 163
members
drill-through access, 110 O
member unique names opening
relational metadata, 111 agents from IBM Cognos Connection, 133
metadata, 26 PowerPlay reports, 103
Metric History Chart, 18 reports, 74
Metric List, 18 options
metric packages advanced current run, 76
definition, 162 current report run, 75
metrics report run defaults, 74
definition, 162

User Guide 169

Index

ordering granting or denying, 51

entries, 40 parent/child, 52
folders, 40 properties, 30
organizing read, 49
entries, 34 set policy, 49
traverse, 49
P write, 49
packages, 26 See Also access permissions
definition, 163 personal folders, See folders
drilling-through, 109 portal, 44
setting up drill-through access, 114 portal problems
pages unable to click links, 157
access permissions, 58 portals, 23
adding interactivity, 66 personalizing IBM Cognos Connection, 44
content, 55 portlets
creating, 57 definition, 163
creating tabs, 60 enabling communications, 59
deleting, 57 Metric History Chart, 18
deleting tabs, 62 Metric List, 18
drill-through actions, 71 modifying, 59
drill-up and drill-down actions, 70 Multi-page, 17
editing, 58 new in IBM Cognos Connection, 14, 18
global filters, 66 PowerPlay
home, 63 changing report defaults, 104
managing in IBM Cognos Connection, 55 report properties, 30
multiple tabs, 17 using PowerPlay report authoring tools, 103
properties, 33 PowerPlay reports
sharing, 58 setting up drill-through access to IBM Cognos 8, 128
See Also dashboards PowerPlay Web Explorer
paper sizes working with cubes, 105
defining, 30 PowerPoint, See Microsoft Office documents
passports preferences
definition, 163 viewing hidden entries, 38
password expired, 159 preferences, See IBM Cognos Connection styles
past printing
entries, 150 reports, 97
past activities, 150 printing reports
PDF format missing images in PDF, 158
reports, 84 product languages
PDF problems setting, 44
missing images in report, 158 product locale
PDF security definition, 163
setting in reports, 84 prompts
permissions cache data, 143
actions, 51 scheduled entries, 141
execute, 49 specifying default report values, 86

170 IBM Cognos Connection

 Index

properties report output files

agents, 32, 132 saving, 87
contacts, 27 report outputs
disabling entries, 27 definition, 163
entries, 27 saving to a file, 16
formats, 30 reports, 24, 73
jobs, 32 accessibility for the disabled, 73
languages, 27, 30 adding multilingual properties, 85
multilingual, 85 adding to alert list, 90
multilingual IBM Cognos Series 7 reports and advanced current run options, 76
cubes, 105 allowing alert lists, 89
owners, 27 Analysis Studio, 73
pages, 33 bursting, 97
permissions, 30 changing PowerPlay defaults, 104
prompt values, 30 choosing languages, 85
report output versions, 27 comments, 93
rules, 34 comments in saved reports, 14
run histories, 27 creating, 79
running as the owner, 30 creating distribution lists, 98
screen tips, 27 creating in Query Studio without data, 80
shortcuts, 27 creating views, 80
source reports, 27 CSV formats, 84
public folders, 41 current run options, 75
publishing default languages, 86
definition, 163 default options, 74
definition, 163
Q distributing, 96
Query Studio drilling down, 99
creating reports without data, 80 drilling through, 107
report properties, 30 drilling through passing multiple values, 101
reports, 73 drilling through to target report, 100
quick tours drilling up, 99
using, 10 drill-through text, 127
editing, 81
R emailing, 97
read permissions, 49 enabling comments, 93
refresh enabling watch rules, 91
caches, 143 Excel formats, 84
refresh cache data, 143 formats, 82
renaming HTML formats, 83
entries, 34, 36 IBM Cognos Series 7, 103
reordering IBM Cognos Series 7 in IBM Cognos Connec-
tabs, 62 tion, 102
report output IBM Cognos Series 7 multilingual properties, 105
how long to keep, 89 opening, 74
viewing, 88 PDF format, 84

User Guide 171

Index

printing, 97 run priority, 153

Query Studio, 73
removing from alert list, 90 S
Report Studio, 73 SAP BW data sources
rerunning failed, 155 languages, 85
resubmitting failed, 17 saving
running, 24, 74 report output files, 87
saving, 97 reports, 97
saving report outputs to a file, 16 schedules
scheduling, 141 creating for last day of month, 143
scheduling last day of month, 143 credentials, 53
scheduling views, 141 entries, 142
specifying default prompt values, 86 entries based on occurrences, 147
targeting, 16 jobs, 143
using alerts, 15 last day of month, 143
viewing, 74 manage, 152
viewing older versions, 88 manage upcoming activities, 151
watch rules, 91 managing, 141, 154
XML formats, 83 multiple entries, 143
report specifications prompts, 141
definition, 163 reports and report views, 141
Report Studio run history, 141
report properties, 30 trigger-based, 146
reports, 73 scope
report subscriptions, 15 using in drill-through access, 113
report views searching
definition, 163 entries, 42
resubmitting failed, 17 security
rights, See access permissions access permissions, 49
RSS credentials invalid, 159
definition, 164 password expired, 159
rules setting for PDF output, 84
properties, 34 unable to log on, 159
run history selection-based interactivity, 95
how long to keep, 155 sessions
scheduled entries, 141 definition, 164
viewing, 154 set policy permissions, 49
running setting
agents, 131 access permissions, 52
entry history, 154 advanced current run options, 76
PowerPlay reports, 103 current run report options, 75
reports, 24, 74 default report options, 74
running reports home pages, 63
not running as scheduled, 158 setting up
scheduled reports fail, 158 drill-through access in packages, 114
unable to select multiple formats, 157 drill-through targets in Analysis Studio, 118

172 IBM Cognos Connection

 Index

sharing V
pages, 58 versions
shortcuts viewing older reports, 88
creating, 24 viewing
source reports, 24 reports, 74
skins, See styles
source reports W
shortcuts, 24 watch items, 15
styles removing alert lists, 47
choosing in IBM Cognos Connection, 44 rule properties, 34
pages, 57 viewing in IBM Cognos Connection, 47
suspend watch lists
entries, 149 definition, 164
suspend entry run, 149 watch rule
definition, 164
T watch rules, 16, 91
tabs creating, 92
adding, 61 deleting in Cognos Viewer, 92
deleting, 62 enabling, 91
managing, 60 modifying in Cognos Viewer, 92
reordering, 62 viewing in IBM Cognos Connection, 47
target reports write permissions, 49
creating for drilling through from IBM Cognos Series WSRP
7, 128 definition, 164
tasks
definition, 164 X
time zones XML formatting
setting, 44 reports, 83
traverse
permissions, 49
trigger-based scheduling, 146
troubleshooting
IBM Cognos Connection, 157
trusted credentials, 53
creating, 53
scheduling, 53

U
upcoming activities, 151
URLs
creating, 25
users
anonymous logon, 23
classes and permissions, 50
definition, 164

User Guide 173