5 Managing and configuring OracleBI Discoverer

5.1 About Oracle Enterprise Manager Application Server Control

Oracle Enterprise Manager Application Server Control is part of Oracle Enterprise Manager, which provides a comprehensive systems management platform for managing Oracle middle tier products.

Application Server Control provides Web-based management tools that enable you to monitor and configure Oracle components (e.g. OracleBI Discoverer, OracleAS Portal, OracleAS HTTP Server). You can deploy applications, manage security, and create Oracle Application Server clusters.

The figure below shows the Application Server Control main page.

Figure 5-1 Application Server Control main page

Description of "Figure 5-1 Application Server Control main page"

Notes

• For more information about managing OracleAS components using Application Server Control, see Application Server Control Help and Oracle Enterprise Manager Advanced Configuration.

• For more information about how to display Application Server Control, see Section 5.1.2, "How to start Application Server Control and display the System Components page".

• For more information about OracleAS installations, see Section 7.2, "About Oracle Business Intelligence installations".

• For more information about configuring Discoverer Plus OLAP, see Chapter 6, "Configuring the Discoverer Catalog and Discoverer Plus OLAP".

5.1.3 How to display the Application Server Control Discoverer Home page

You display the Application Server Control Discoverer Home page to monitor, configure, and manage Discoverer installations.

To display the Application Server Control Discoverer Home page:

1. Start Application Server Control and navigate to the System Components page (for more information, see Section 5.1.2, "How to start Application Server Control and display the System Components page").

   Application Server Control displays a list of OracleAS System Components available for the Oracle Business Intelligence installation (e.g. Discoverer, OC4J, HTTP Server).

   
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2. In the Name column, select the Discoverer link to display the Application Server Control Discoverer Home page.

   
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From the Application Server Control Discoverer Home page, you can stop and restart Discoverer client tier components, and manage all aspects of Discoverer (see figure below).

Notes:

• The figure below shows the Application Server Control Discoverer Home page.

Figure 5-2 Application Server Control Discoverer Home page

Description of "Figure 5-2 Application Server Control Discoverer Home page"

Key to figure:
a. Link to the Discoverer Components area (for more information, see Section 5.2, "About using Application Server Control to manage Discoverer components")
b. The Home tab of the Application Server Control Discoverer page.
c. The Administration tab to display Discoverer Catalog administration and Discoverer configuration pages.
d. Buttons to start and stop the Discoverer Service.
e. Current Status indicator, which shows whether the Discoverer Service is running (i.e. Up) or not running (i.e. Down).
f. General information about the Discoverer component (e.g. memory and CPU usage).

5.2 About using Application Server Control to manage Discoverer components

As a middle tier manager, you use Application Server Control to manage the following Discoverer components:

• the Discoverer Service

• the Discoverer Plus component

• the Discoverer Viewer component

• the Discoverer Portlet Provider component

• the Discoverer servlets (for more information, see Section 5.5, "How to start and stop the Discoverer servlets")

The main tasks that you perform using Application Server Control are:

• stopping and starting the Discoverer Service

• enabling and disabling the Discoverer Plus component, Discoverer Viewer component, and Discoverer Portlet Provider component

Figure 5-3 Using Application Server Control to manage Discoverer components

Description of "Figure 5-3 Using Application Server Control to manage Discoverer components"

The figure below shows the Discoverer Plus component, Discoverer Viewer component, and Discoverer Portlet Provider component displayed in the Application Server Control Discoverer Home page.

Figure 5-4 Discoverer components displayed in the Application Server Control Discoverer Home page

Description of "Figure 5-4 Discoverer components displayed in the Application Server Control Discoverer Home page"

Notes

• Discoverer Portlet Provider is only displayed in the components list if the Discoverer installation is associated with an Oracle Infrastructure installation. For more information, see Section 2.1, "About installing Oracle Business Intelligence".

• For more information about the Discoverer Service, see Section 1.8.2, "About the Discoverer CORBA components (Discoverer Service)".

• For more information about the Discoverer client tier components, see Section 1.7, "About the Discoverer client tier".

5.3 About starting and stopping the Discoverer Service

The Discoverer Service comprises the following:

• Discoverer Session

• Discoverer Preference

For more information about the Discoverer Service, see Section 1.8.2, "About the Discoverer CORBA components (Discoverer Service)".

You use Application Server Control to start, stop, and monitor the Discoverer Service running on a machine. For example, you might need to start and stop the Discoverer Service for maintenance (e.g. when you apply a Discoverer patch).

Figure 5-5 The Application Server Control Discoverer Home page displaying the Discoverer Service options

Description of "Figure 5-5 The Application Server Control Discoverer Home page displaying the Discoverer Service options"

For information about starting or stopping the Discoverer Service, see Section 5.3.1, "How to stop or restart the Discoverer Service on a machine".

Notes

• When you start the Discoverer Service, note the following:

  • If all Discoverer servlets are running and are not disabled, Discoverer Viewer, Discoverer Plus, and Discoverer Portlet Provider can connect to Discoverer sessions and begin to serve requests (e.g. users can open workbooks using Discoverer Viewer, build worksheets using Discoverer Plus, and create portlets using Discoverer Portlet Provider).

  • The Current Status indicator shows that the Discoverer Service is running (i.e. set to 'Up').

• If the Discoverer Service fails to start:

  • the Current Status indicator shows that the Discoverer Service is not running (i.e. set to 'Down')

  • Application Server Control displays an error message indicating why the Discoverer Service failed to start

• When you stop the Discoverer Service, note the following:

  • Discoverer Plus users cannot access the Discoverer Plus URL and an information message is displayed informing users that the Discoverer Service is down (i.e. a No Response from Application Web Server).

  • Discoverer Viewer users cannot access the Discoverer servlet URL and an error message is displayed that the Discoverer Service is down (i.e. No Response from Application Web).

  • Discoverer Portlet Provider users cannot publish new portlets, edit defaults, customize or refresh portlets, and an information message is displayed informing users that the Discoverer Service is down (i.e. a No Response from Application Web Server).

  • Discoverer servlets release system resources that they are using.

  • Discoverer displays existing portlets in Portal pages using cached data.

  • All Discoverer sessions are terminated.

  • The following processes are terminated (if running):

    • Discoverer Session

    • Discoverer Preference

• Discoverer Plus, Discoverer Viewer, and Discoverer Portlet Provider cannot connect to Discoverer sessions or serve requests (e.g. users cannot open workbooks using Discoverer Viewer, build worksheets using Discoverer Plus, or create portlets using Discoverer Portlet Provider).

• The Current Status indicator shows that the Discoverer Service is not running (i.e. set to 'Down').

• If the Discoverer Service fails to stop:

  • and all components are still running, the Status indicator indicates that the Discoverer Service is up

  • and not all components are running, the Status indicator indicates that the Discoverer Service is in an unknown state

  • Discoverer displays an error message that indicates why the Discoverer Service failed to stop

5.4 About disabling and enabling Discoverer client tier components

Sometimes you will want to disable and enable end user access to Discoverer client tier components (i.e. Discoverer Plus, Discoverer Viewer, and Discoverer Portlet Provider).

For example, you might want to:

• prevent new users from connecting to Discoverer

  However, existing users can still complete their work. When all users have disconnected, you can stop the Discoverer Service.

• restrict access to Discoverer components

  You might disable Discoverer Plus, Discoverer Viewer, or Discoverer Portlet Provider to prevent users from connecting, due to security restrictions or other policies.

The Discoverer client tier components behave differently when you disable them, as follows:

• When you disable the Discoverer Plus and Discoverer Viewer components, Discoverer behaves as follows:

  • All existing Discoverer Plus or Discoverer Viewer sessions will continue to run until users end their sessions.

  • Requests for new user sessions are not accepted. Users whose sessions time out due to inactivity cannot continue to use Discoverer Plus or Discoverer Viewer.

    Note: A user time out is determined differently between Discoverer Plus and Discoverer Viewer as follows:

    • Discoverer Plus uses the server process to determine user time outs

    • Discoverer Viewer uses the servlet to determine user time outs

  • When a user attempts to access a Discoverer Plus or Discoverer Viewer URL, Discoverer displays an error message explaining that the service is unavailable.

• When you disable the Discoverer Portlet Provider component, Discoverer behaves as follows:

  • New Discoverer portlets cannot be added to Portal pages.

  • A user cannot use the Edit Defaults option or the Customize option for existing portlets.

  • If a user is already editing defaults or customizing a portlet when the component is disabled, they can finish the task.

  • Scheduled refreshes that are running can complete. However, scheduled refreshes that have not yet started will not run until you enable the Portlet Provider component.

  • If a user attempts to add a new portlet, edit defaults, or customize an existing portlet, Discoverer displays a message explaining that the service is not available.

  • Discoverer will continue to display data in existing Discoverer portlets using the last cached data.

5.5 How to start and stop the Discoverer servlets

You can start and stop the Discoverer servlets (i.e. the Discoverer J2EE components) running on a standalone machine in an OracleAS component farm from any machine in the farm. For example, you might want to perform maintenance tasks on a machine and need to stop the Discoverer servlets.

For more information about the Discoverer servlets, see Section 1.8.1, "About the Discoverer J2EE components".

To start and stop the Discoverer servlets:

1. Start Oracle Application Server Control and display the System Components page (for more information, see Section 5.1.2, "How to start Application Server Control and display the System Components page").

   
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2. In the Name column, select the OC4J_BI_Forms link to display the OC4J_BI_Forms page.

3. Do one of the following:

   • click Start to start the OC4J_BI_Forms component, which starts the Discoverer servlets (i.e. Discoverer Plus, Discoverer Viewer, Discoverer Portlet Provider)

   • click Stop to stop the OC4J_BI_Forms component, which stops the Discoverer servlets (i.e. Discoverer Plus, Discoverer Viewer, Discoverer Portlet Provider)

   • click Restart to stop and then start the OC4J_BI_Forms component, which starts the Discoverer servlets (i.e. Discoverer Plus, Discoverer Viewer, Discoverer Portlet Provider)

5.6 About configuring the options for the Discoverer Service and Discoverer client tier components

You use Application Server Control to configure options for the Discoverer Service and the Discoverer client tier component as follows:

• using the Discoverer Administration tab in Oracle Application Server Control, you can:

  • install and manage the Discoverer Catalog

  • manage public connections (i.e. create, edit, and delete connections)

  • enable users to create their own private connections

  • configure Discoverer session logging

• using the Discoverer Components pages in Oracle Application Server Control, you can:

  • specify the communication protocol, look and feel, Java Plug-in type, and session logging settings for Discoverer Plus

  • specify caching, session logging, delay time, printing, email, PDF generation, and Connection supported settings for Discoverer Viewer

  • specify session, session logging, and generic parameter settings for Discoverer Portlet Provider (available if the Discoverer installation is associated with an OracleAS Infrastructure.

For more information about how to configure Discoverer and Discoverer component options, see Section 5.6.1, "How to change configuration options for individual Discoverer client tier components".

5.7 About monitoring Discoverer metrics

As the Discoverer middle tier administrator, you will typically want to analyze system performance by monitoring a number of statistics or metrics. This enables you to easily compare the total resources used by Discoverer with other installed applications and services.

You can use Application Server Control to monitor the following Discoverer metrics:

• current status

• uptime

• memory usage

• CPU usage

• session information

You can view the Discoverer metrics in two different ways:

• you can view summary metrics for all Discoverer client tier components

• you can view individual metrics for particular client tier components

For more information about how to monitor Discoverer metrics, see:

• Section 5.7.1, "How to monitor summary metrics for all Discoverer client tier components"

• Section 5.7.2, "How to monitor metrics for a single Discoverer client tier component"

Notes

• Metrics are a snapshot taken at the time displayed on the Application Server Control page and do not update automatically. To get up-to-date metrics, choose the refresh option in the browser.

5.8 How to list ports used by Oracle Application Server

Discoverer uses the same listen ports as the Oracle HTTP Server (of type Listen or Listen (SSL)).

To see a list of ports used by Oracle Application Server:

1. Start Oracle Application Server Control and display the System Components page (for more information, see Section 5.1.2, "How to start Application Server Control and display the System Components page").

   
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2. Display the Ports tab.

   
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Refer to the value in the Port In Use column for the Oracle HTTP Server component in the Component column (for type Listen or Listen (SSL)).

For information about changing the default OracleAS ports for OracleAS components, see Section 5.8.1, "How to change the port on which Discoverer is deployed".

5.9 About running Discoverer Plus with different Java Virtual Machines

OracleBI Discoverer Plus supports the following default Java Virtual Machines (JVMs):

• Sun Java Plug-in (default)

• Oracle JInitiator

You might want to change the JVM in the following circumstances:

• if you want to use a newer version of the JVM to improve performance

• if a different JVM is already installed and you want to use that JVM

• if you want to deploy Discoverer Plus on a non-Windows browser that requires a different JVM (e.g. for which JInitiator is not available)

Note: If you use a different JVM, you must ensure that it is certified to work with Oracle Business Intelligence.

If Discoverer Plus users use Apple Mac OS X client machines, you must specify the Sun Java Plug-in on the Discoverer middle tier (for more information, see Section 5.9.1, "How to specify a different Java Virtual Machine for Discoverer Plus").

You can specify a different JVM in one of two ways:

• to toggle between the Sun Java Plug-in or JInitiator version installed with OracleBI, use Oracle Enterprise Manager (for more information, see Section 5.9.1, "How to specify a different Java Virtual Machine for Discoverer Plus")

• to choose your own Java Plug-in or JInitiator version, edit the configuration.xml file directly (for more information, see Section 5.9.2, "How to specify your own Java Virtual Machine for Discoverer Plus")

5.10 About configuring Discoverer to export to Web Query format

Microsoft Excel Web Query is an external data format in Microsoft Excel that enables you to include dynamic data from a URL (e.g. a Discoverer worksheet) in a Microsoft Excel worksheet. For example, you might want to create a Microsoft Excel worksheet that contains a Discoverer sales report for a range of dates that you specify when you open the worksheet in Microsoft Excel. The Microsoft Excel worksheet stores the query used to obtain the Discoverer data, so that the data can be refreshed automatically.

You can export data to Web Query format from Discoverer Plus and Discoverer Viewer.

Note: To access Discoverer data in Web Query format, you need Microsoft Excel 2000 or later.

Discoverer enables Microsoft Excel Web Query format by default using the default Discoverer URL "http://machine-name:port/discoverer/viewer". If you want to disable Microsoft Excel Web Query format or change the Discoverer URL, you must add the following preferences to the pref.txt file on each Discoverer host:

• ExportToWebquery=<0 or 1>

• WebQueryBaseURL=<Discoverer URL>

• EnableWebqueryRun=<0 or 1>

Note: The EnableWebqueryRun preference enables you to turn the Discoverer response on or off when a query is run in Microsoft Excel.

For more information about preferences, see Chapter 10, "Managing OracleBI Discoverer preferences".

Notes

• If export to Web Query is enabled in Discoverer, when Discoverer end users export worksheets they will see the Web Query option (i.e. Web Query for Microsoft Excel (*.iqy)) in the list of export types.

• If Discoverer end users open an exported file, Microsoft uses the IQY file to create an XLS file when they open the IQY file. If Discoverer end users save the exported file after the export, they get an IQY file that is converted to an XLS file when they next open the IQY in Microsoft Excel. To display a prompt to either save or open the Web Query file, Discoverer end users must do the following on their machine:

  1. Start Windows Explorer.

  2. Display the Folder Options dialog (e.g. choose Tools | Folder Options).

  3. Display the File Types tab.

  4. Select 'IQY Microsoft Excel Web Query File', then click Advanced to display the Edit File Type dialog.

  5. Select the Confirm Open After Download check box.

  6. Click OK to save the settings.

• Export to Microsoft Excel Web Query format is not available to users accessing Discoverer via Single Sign-On. You must disable SSO if you want Discoverer end users to be able to export to Web Query format. For more information, see Section 14.7.2.2, "How to enable and disable Single Sign-On for Discoverer".

• Due to a limitation in Microsoft Excel, when Microsoft Excel end users enter a database password or Oracle e-Business Suite password, the password is displayed in readable text rather than with asterisks.

• The maximum length for dynamic prompts in Microsoft Excel is 257 characters. When you define dynamic prompts for parameters in Discoverer Plus, do not exceed the 257 character limit.

• Graphics bars are not exported to Microsoft Excel.

• In Microsoft Excel, worksheet data is formatted as left to right using the left to right HTML tag (LTR). Microsoft Excel does not support the right to left HTML tag (RTL).

• Due to a limitation in Netscape Navigator, when you export a Discoverer worksheet to Web Query format, Netscape might not launch Microsoft Excel within the browser. In this scenario, run Microsoft Excel separately and open the exported Web Query file (*. iqy).

• If you delete a Discoverer workbook that has been exported to Web Query format while its export file is open in Microsoft Excel, Excel can continue to access the deleted workbook until the Excel session is re-started.

• Discoverer users using a public connection do not get the Do you want to prompt Excel users for connection information? radio button when they use the Discoverer Export Wizard. An Excel end user accessing this exported query file is always prompted for a database password. In other words, the Discoverer user must provide the public connection password to Excel end users who want to access the data.

• Due to limitations in Microsoft Excel, the exported font size for headings and data may be reduced from the original size specified in the worksheet.

• Negative numbers formatted to be displayed with angle brackets i.e. <1,234> in Discoverer will have the angle brackets missing in Excel.