SAP Analytics Cloud Best Practices for BI Platform Live Universes

Transcription

1 NOTE: Delete the yellow stickers when finished. See the SAP Image Library for other available images. Once the custom image is inserted, click Format Send Backward Send to Back, so the motion band is on top of the image. SAP Best Practices for BI Platform Live Universes Matthew Shaw, SAP March, 2018

2 Best Practices Live Universe

3 Create dedicated (derived) universe Create Model in SAP Analytics Cloud Modify the universe so there s one universe per FACT table Hide objects Create measures in the root folder Create new filters, inc. filters on measures Edit list of values and prompts SAP, for live access, has requirements that basically means dedicated universes are needed Model creation Group dimensions into folders Ready for consumption for SAP Validate for performance 3

4 universe for SAP Performance is key for live access Orientate Universe towards dashboard use-cases, not reporting Need to simplify the universe Easily re-use existing Universes by creating a linked universe Business and Data Security Profiles are not inherited when linking universes May need to re-create such Profiles on the Linked universe 4

5 Create a dedicated Universe folder Enables SAP to list only Universes held in this folder (and subfolders) Benefit is improved ease-of-use within SAP 5

6 Universe Hide objects so that only one run-time context is used No need to delete objects, just hiding them is enough Only a single run-time context is currently supported There must be no context is supported and multiple contexts can be used for these objects, just ensure there s no context prompt! Multiple contexts resolved with JOIN_BY_SQL are not currently supported Any Business Layer Security Profiles are ignored to determine the use of contexts when creating the model Typically need to create multiple linked universes, one for each fact table Remember, live universe models cannot currently be linked to other models in a story 6

7 Universe Hide objects with unsupported data types: date, date/time Instead may need to create year, month, day numeric objects Hide objects with unsupported projection types: count, count without empty For these objects, create sum objects that sum 1s All other projection types are supported, including Database Delegated Easily change state of many objects with multi-select 7

8 Universe Hide objects That contain just text in the SELECT without a TABLES value All objects must be able to run on their own in order for the list of values to be generated It is the objects SELECT that generate the list of values within the Data Explorer interface as well as when adding filters to stories or input controls, rather than the associated List of Values List of values are supported This object has no tables lists in Tables. It fails the requirements as the object will not run on its own, it requires another object to generate tables for the FROM clause. (@Aggregate_Aware objects also have no tables listed, but that is ok as they are calculated at run-time) 8

9 Measures Must have at least 1 measure in the universe Move measures to the root folder Measures within SAC appear with their full path and this can be distracting Need to create new measures in the Universe root folder Hide the original measure objects No need to specify object descriptions as they are ignored in SAC Ensure all measures use an SQL aggregation function (sum, count, avg, max etc.) Don t forget to set the correct Projection Function on the new measures to re-use the SQL of the original objects 9

10 Measures Measures appear in their folders within SAP which is a little distracting: Before objects are moved to the root Story Model definition Data View 10

11 Measures Recreating measures in the root makes them easier to consume in SAP : After measures have been moved to the root Story Model definition Data View 11

12 Measures Display Formats Are currently ignored by SAP All measures have a decimal format 0.00 As an example Rows could only be a whole number and never a decimal SAP has number formatting options at the Story level as shown above that may present the values in a more meaningful manner 12

13 Advanced Object Properties Both Results and Conditions must be enabled to avoid an error within SAP If using a derived universe, then hide the object and create a new object Objects ignored Detail objects If these are needed, create new dimension objects 13

14 Predefined Filter objects Since there is (currently) no query panel for live connectivity there s no opportunity to use the filter objects Input Controls and Advanced Page Filters provide the means to build complex filters, but these still may be short of existing Universe filters Multiple universes, with fixed complex filters, may be needed to fulfil complex filter functions Filtering on measures requires a universe prompt Input Control Advanced Filter (can be story or page level) 14 AND/OR, Include/Exclude, Equals/Does not equal

15 Predefined Filter objects Mandatory Filters with Prompts are currently not supported Includes mandatory filters defined with Native SQL and Business Layer prompts Means that optional prompts are currently not possible Mandatory Filters without Prompts are supported Enables a universe to filter on a particular dataset or business use-case 15

16 @Prompts Since there is (currently) no query panel for live connectivity so there s no opportunity to define prompts Instead they must all be defined in the SQL Business Layer (SELECT, WHERE) or in the Data Foundation Limitations: Cannot use a formula to set dynamic default value Cannot use Index Awareness or List of Values based on Objects with Primary Keys 16

17 @Prompt Limitations continued: Single values answers, not multiple, for Hardcoded list of values (so the selection mode is always mono, multi is ignored) When constrained mode is Free Applies to Business Layer and Data Foundation ApplicationType.Application_Type_Name AppType','A, {'CMC','BI launch pad }, Multi,Constrained,Persistent) If multiple values are needed, use a list of values on an object For multiple free text entry use multiple prompts with OR in the SQL ApplicationType.Application_Type_Name AppType','A',,Multi,Free,Persistent) 17

18 List of Values referred to Needed to provide multiple value answers All the type of List of Values are supported Limitations: no hierarchy, no multi-column, no delegated search etc. Best Practices for List of Values Keep the list short to provide good performance in the user interface ApplicationType.Application_Type_Name AppType','A','Characteristics\lov',Multi, Constrained,Persistent) Multiple Answers Single Answer ApplicationType.Application_Type_Name AppType','A','Characteristics\lov,Mono, Constrained,Persistent) 18

19 Prompt datatypes All types are supported: Alphanumeric (A), Number (N), Date (D) and Datetime (DT) Date provides a calendar pop-up Datetime requires data entry For ease of use, use Date over Datetime Datetime Date 19

20 Universe Prompts are visible in the SAP modeller Select Variables Currently no options available 20

21 How Prompts work within a Story Upon creating a new story, all universe prompts are shown 21

22 Set a visualisation to use either story or chart variables Allows for different visualisations to use different variables 22

23 Dynamic text can be added to show prompt/variable settings Works at both Story and Visualisation levels 23

24 Result is two visualisations, each using a different prompt/variable No need to create a model per set of variable values, rather re-use the existing model and change the variable on the story/visualisation 24

25 Multiple models using the same Variables will result in a prompt for each Linking Variables is currently not supported for live universes Tooltip shows Remote systems are not compatible 25

26 Validate universe Run an integrity check on the universe before publishing Resolve any issues 26

27 Validate universe With either BI Launchpad or Web Intelligence Rich Client Login as the user you will use from SAP Create a new Web Intelligence document & new query off the Universe Add every object into the query panel with no filters Check the SQL has only 1 query with no multiple paths shown 27

28 Validate universe performance Add the Query Summary to see the duration and number of rows returned The query time shown is for all the objects and no filters, so its likely to be the worst performance from the perspective of an SAP user To mimic a more typical query, build new queries with just measures and a few dimensions It s critical the query duration is as small as possible (10 seconds max) If query duration is too high need to tune 28

29 Universe Performance Considerations Restrict the universe to a limited time period, or to a particular use-case Add filters/prompts as needed until desired performance is obtained Optimisation features you ve not yet implemented, such as: Use of summary tables In-line derived tables with BOUNDARY_WEIGHT_TABLE These add a filter to tables before then being joined to other tables Limitations Can t be used at the same time Can t be used on a derived universe, need to include the universe so to set table rows count Move WHERE clauses into the FROM with FILTER_IN_FROM 29

30 Validate BI Platform authorisations Save the document into Favorites Folder A BOELiveProviderTempFolder folder will be create here by SAP This folder is used to store temporary Web Intelligence documents created through SAP workflows to access data The name of the folder is defined in boe.properties: boe.temporarydocumnetfolder=boeliveprovidertempfolder Delete the document 30

31 Model Creation Give the model a meaningful name and description No spaces for model names allowed! Use a naming convention to help identify what connection is which 31

32 Dimension Setting Define Groups for objects, so to group the objects making it easier for users No spaces in group names allowed! 32

33 Grouping result shown in user interface Grouping in modeller 33

34 - summary Create dedicated (derived) universe Create Model in SAP Analytics Cloud Dedicated universe Designed for SAP consumption only Performance of the Universe and underlying database is critical for ease-of-use, usability and adoption Typically focused on single use-case and for dashboarding, not reporting 34

35 Step-by-step example

36 Step-by-step example An example boe.properties Information Design Tool Universe folder for SAP Universes Call the folder 'SAP ' or another name. The name should correspond to the boe.compatibleuniversefolderproperty held in the boe.properties file. The boe.compatibleuniversefolder property, if set, will limit the universes listed within SAP to only those in that folder and subfolders. Restart the webapp cs_ina_agent once the boe.properties file has been updated. i.e. restart Tomcat. 36

37 Step-by-step example Create a linked universe off the universe you d like to consume in SAP This example uses the BI Platform Audit Analysis Universe Right click to select 'Create Linked Universe Select Next to use the same connection with the core universe Select a folder to store your project Provide a Business Layer Name, Data Foundation Name and a Description Press Finish 37

38 Step-by-step example Only a single run-time context is supported Hide all the objects that generate more than 1 context Hide universe folders: Specific Event Types (multiple values per event), Audit Details (multiple values per event), Advanced Query Objects Hide objects using unsupported data-types 'Start datetime' 38

39 Step-by-step example Hide all the original measure objects Create new measure objects in the root For each new measure object provide the name and in the SELECT to reference the original measure The result will be a set of measures all defined in the root of the universe folder, but all based off, the now hidden, original measure objects 39

40 Step-by-step example Publish the Universe to the folder you created earlier, 'SAP ' in this example Resolve any issues identified with the integrity checkthird level 40

41 Step-by-step example Either: Logon to BI Launchpad and login as the user you will use later to connect to the BI Platform from within SAP. Select Applications-Web Intelligence, to launch Web Intelligence Or Start Web Intelligence Rich Client Select new document 41

42 Step-by-step example Select the universe you published in an earlier step and press OK Add all the objects (every single object, all measures and all dimensions) into the Results Objects pane Ensure there are no filters applied Press the 'show script' to show the SQL Validate the SQL is a single statement and it has NO 'multiple paths' (i.e. no join and no merging of separate SQL statements). If the are multiple paths then the universe will not be compatible for consumption with SAP live universe connector. Press Close 42

43 Step-by-step example Run query without any filters 43

44 Step-by-step example Add a new report (tab) by selecting 'Page Setup' - 'Add Report In the new report, add the 'Query Summary', by selecting 'Report Elements' - 'Cell' - 'Query Summary' and then adding that into the report by clicking on it Validate the query duration and number of rows returned 44

45 Step-by-step example Press the Save icon Select the 'Favorites Folder', give the document a name and press Save Delete the document after you have saved it If you are unable to successfully save the document then SAP will generate errors to the user 45

46 Step-by-step example Login to SAP, but very importantly: If you are using a reverse proxy (which will require a 'PATH' connection) then you must login via the Reverse Proxy. If you are using CORS (which will require a 'DIRECT' connection) then you can login directly to the cloud application. Be sure to login with a user that has administration rights to create connections and models Select 'Connections' from the menu Add a connection by selecting '+' - 'Live Data Connection' - 'SAP Universe' Give the connection a name and description. Importantly note, the name cannot be changed once created Select the Connection Type, either 'Path' (for use with a Reverse Proxy), or 'Direct' when using CORS 46

47 Step-by-step example If using a Reverse Proxy, the name of the Path Prefix must match that of the path statement as defined in the Apache httpd.conf file. The application will add a '/' to the path if one is not entered. So in this example 'mybip' and '/mybip' are both valid and have the same effective value. Select Authentication Method 'User Name and Password' and enter the corresponding details. The username and password are not stored. Press OK, to save the connection. Process Flows for creating a connection are available 47

48 Step-by-step example Select 'Create' - 'Model Select 'Use a datasource' and then 'Live Data connection' 48

49 Step-by-step example Select the 'System' to the connection you created earlier Select the Universe you published earlier Give the model a name and description Press OK The model will be created (the Universe metadata is uploaded to the Cloud) 49

50 Step-by-step example Select the spanner icon and then 'Dimension Settings Remove the folder name ('Time' in this example') from the 'Description' of each object, and add it to the 'Group' column You will notice a folder structure appearing on the right hand side 50

51 Step-by-step example Once all the objects have been Grouped the result will be shown Save the model Process flow for creating a new model are available 51

52 Step-by-step example Create a new story 52

53 Step-by-step example Select the option Data acquired from an existing model 53

54 Step-by-step example Select the model you created earlier Select at least one measure and add dimensions as you see fit Use the Explorer interface to filter, sort, rank, change chart types, add/remove measures and to look at the data by different dimensions Copy the visualisation to a Story Page 54

55 Step-by-step example 55

56 Step-by-step example 56

57 Step-by-step example 57

58 Step-by-step example Within a few minutes you can build yourself a dashboard with an input control to filter the charts as you please 58

59 Thank you. Matthew Shaw Analytics Product Management, SAP