In This Issue. Q Edition

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1 In This Issue Q Edition Comparing QMF Deployments: Workstation or Web? From the Developers of QMF: QMF Support for Accelerator-only Tables in DB2 Analytics Accelerator Comparing QMF Versions: Workstation or Web? We are often asked the following questions: Which version of QMF, workstation or web, is best for which users? What are the differences between the two versions? Is there a mobile app for QMF? Figure 1a: The QMF for Workstation interface The web version is perfect for users who do not develop content and presentations. The workstation version is ideal for users who create objects such as dashboards, visual reports, ad hoc reports, and so on. The mobile version, Rocket MyVu, is now available for mobile devices that run on the ios and Android operating systems. As Figures 1a and 1b show, the workstation and web interfaces are nearly identical. Users of the web version can consume (execute)

2 2 all QMF objects, such as dashboards. Within the web interface, traditional QMF actions, such as creating a query, creating a basic form, and so on, are available. For users who require a mobile deployment, the web version is a prerequisite. Many organizations implement a combination of workstation, web, and mobile deployments. While the workstation version provides the option for a silent installation on each workstation, updates, such as fix packs, must be distributed to every workstation user. The web version requires a single installation and acts as a hub for all users, who only require a browser. Figure 1b: The QMF for WebSphere interface The workstation version, which is Eclipse-based, displays a perspective, which is collection of views, or screen areas. Figure 1a shows the Administrator perspective. To modify a perspective, users perform tasks such as moving, deleting, and resizing the views. QMF ships a set of perspectives, each of which has a set of default views. Users have free rein to modify the views to suit their needs. It is easy to customize perspectives for specific types of users. For example, some organizations create a simplified perspective for users who are not technical and who require as much real estate as possible to work on reports, charts, and so on. Figure 2: Pop-up text describes each icon in the QMF for Workstation interface. Note the icons in Figure 2 and Figure 3. To learn the function of an icon, hover over it and pop-up text that describes the icon is displayed. So you see that there are similarities between the workstation and web interface. The pop-ups look only slightly different because of the underlying system. Before we go much further, let s look at the web interface as it appears with no changes. Figure 3: Pop-up text describes each icon in the QMF web interface.

3 3 Figure 4 shows the default QMF web interface. As you see, the web interface provides similar functionality as the workstation interface, but with a slightly different arrangement, look, and feel. Users who are experienced with the workstation interface will be just as comfortable using the web interface. Some features and functions of the workstation version are not available in the web version. For example, Figure 5 shows the options that are available on the Window menu in both interfaces. Figure 4: The QMF web interface Because the workstation version is based on Eclipse, users can drag, drop, and resize the views in a perspective. A Reset option is also available so that users can restore a default perspective. Figure 5: Side by side comparisons In some cases, the way that users complete a task is slightly different in each interface. For example, to display an Excel spreadsheet in the workstation version, users choose Results -> Display Excel Sheet or Ctrl + B, as shown in Figure 6. Then QMF invokes Excel and passes the values, formatting, and so on to the Excel spreadsheet, which is automatically displayed. What happens in QMF for the web? Because the option to immediately display a spreadsheet might not be available on a browser-based deployment, the user must save the Excel spreadsheet in a specified location; Ctrl + B does not work. After the worksheet is saved, the user can open it. Figure 6: Displaying an Excel spreadsheet in QMF for Workstation

4 4 Rocket MyVu: The Mobile Interface Figure 7 shows Rocket MyVu, which is the mobile interface for QMF, as it appears in an emulator. This figure shows two file folders (drawers). Each file folder contains objects that were published from the QMF web interface. These objects are available for use with mobile devices that use Apple ios and the Android operating system. Users can open a file folder and select objects that are in the folder, for example, dashboards and ad hoc reports. To obtain Rocket MyVu, which is free of charge, go to your online app store, and search for Rocket MyVu. For additional information about the app, go to: Figure 7: Displaying QMF objects on a mobile device Summary There is an interface to meet the needs of every QMF user. Consumers of QMF objects are best served by the mobile and web versions, which present the functionality those users need to view QMF objects. Giving consumers the workstation version is possible, but keep in mind that those users will have more functionality than they need. Developers require the workstation version to create content and presentations. In a typical QMF environment, users often switch between the workstation and web interfaces, depending upon what they are trying to accomplish. Therefore, it is critical to create a shared repository so that users can access and use saved objects in either interface. Switching from workstation to web is easy and does not require a lot of premeditation. Keep in mind that web users have their processing split between the database and the application server. Therefore, give some consideration to the number of users that the application server supports. Use tracking mechanisms to monitor and view the resources consumed by QMF. In either deployment, the processing is split between the database and the workstation or the application server. Best practices dictate asking users to access only as much data as they need. Administration controls are available to limit the volume of data that specific users fetch. To achieve higher efficiency and performance, consider data volumes consumed. For example, use the QMF UI to limit the number of columns returned from large tables. It makes no sense to execute a SELECT * FROM and return 267 columns when only 10 are required for a report. This consideration is required by every business intelligence and analytics tool on the market today.

5 5 From the Developers of QMF: QMF Support for Acceleratoronly Tables IBM DB2 10 for z/os APAR PI30375 and its associated co-requisites added accelerator-only tables and in-database transformation (IDT) to DB2. An accelerator-only table (AOT) is a table that does not originate from a DB2 base table. The AOT data is immediately accessible to users and exists only on the accelerator. Data in the AOT can only be modified by data-manipulation (DML) statements (INSERT, UPDATE, and DELETE). This type of modification is called in-database transformation (IDT). AOTs provide many benefits. Users no longer need to use multiple steps and intermediate tables to move and transform data, so the overall process is accelerated. This acceleration results in improved performance because batch window requirements are reduced. In addition, acceleration can save disk space and CPU cost. To create an AOT, you use the CREATE TABLE statement and the new 'IN ACCELERATOR' clause. The SQL INSERT statement can populate the table. SQL SELECT statements then benefit from the acceleration. There is no replication involved; access to the data is immediate. QMF is the perfect tool to take advantage of the speed and resource savings that AOTs provide. QMF procedures that perform multiple RUN QUERY and SAVE DATA sequences benefit from the use of AOTs to expedite final report processing. After the target table of the SAVE DATA command is defined as an AOT*, the SAVE DATA command inserts rows directly to the AOT. Follow-on queries that select from the AOT benefit from acceleration. To see how QMF procedures might benefit from AOTs, let's look at an example. Assume that tables Dept_AOT1 and Staff_AOT2 are defined as accelerator-only tables. The following is a typical QMF procedure: RUN QUERY SR_E RUN QUERY Dept_Query1 SAVE DATA AS Dept_AOT1 RUN QUERY Staff_Query2 SAVE DATA AS Staff_AOT2 RUN QUERY ProjDept_Query3 PRINT REPORT Contents of Query SR_E: SELECT CURRENT QUERY ACCELERATION = 'ELIGIBLE' The CURRENT QUERY ACCELERATION special register must be set to a value other than 'NONE' in order for the QMF commands to operate correctly on AOTs. Contents of Query Dept_Query1: SELECT ID, "NAME", DEPT, JOB, "YEARS", SALARY, COMM FROM Q.STAFF -- WHERE DEPT IN (10,20, 15, 38,42,51,66,84) If table Q.STAFF exists on the accelerator, this query could benefit from query acceleration. SAVE DATA AS Dept_AOT1 Because Dept_AOT1 already exists as an AOT on the accelerator, this command inserts the rows retrieved from Query Dept_Query1 into the AOT named Dept_AOT1. Query Staff_Query2 drills down in table Dept_AOT1 to mine specific information and joins the information with MYORG_ACCEL, which exists on the accelerator as well: SELECT ID, "NAME", DEPT, JOB, "YEARS", SALARY, COMM, LOCATION FROM SYSADM.DEPT_AOT1, MYORG_ACCEL WHERE DEPT=DEPTNUMB SAVE DATA AS Staff_AOT2 Because Staff_AOT2 already exists as an AOT on the accelerator, this command inserts the rows retrieved from Query Staff_Query2 into the AOT named Staff_AOT2. Query ProjDept_QUERY3 selects from AOT STAFF_AOT2 and from table MYPROJECT_ACCEL.

6 6 SELECT ID, "NAME", A.DEPT, JOB, "YEARS", SALARY, COMM, LOCATION, PROJNO FROM SYSADM.STAFF_AOT2 A, MYPROJECT_ACCEL B WHERE A.DEPT=B.DEPT By the time the PRINT REPORT statement has executed, the entire QMF workload has been accelerated. Accelerator-only tables can boost QMF procedure performance for procedures that are similar to those described above. Give them a try! * For QMF 11.1 and lower, you must manually define that is, use the CREATE TABLE statement to create the AOT for commonly used tables that the SAVE DATA command references. You can use any methodology to retrieve the existing table DDL and use it to define the new AOT. Because the QMF SAVE DATA command never deletes an existing table, after the table is defined, QMF simply inserts rows into the existing table. Need More Info? Please contact us! See details below: QMF website: Direct inquiries & comments to: Blanca Borden, WW QMF Marketing Manager at blanca@us.ibm.com To schedule a demo or product update, contact: blanca@us.ibm.com IBM, the IBM logo, DB2, and z/os are trademarks of IBM Corp., registered in many jurisdictions worldwide. Query Management Facility, QMF, and IMS are trademarks of IBM corp. Other product and service names might be trademarks of IBM or other companies. A current list of IBM trademarks is available at