Creative uses for the Business Glossary functionality in Cognos

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Creative uses for the Business Glossary
functionality in Cognos
IBM Cognos Rocky Mountain Users Group August
5,2011
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Presentation Requests

• Please turn off your cell phone/beeper
• If you must leave the early, please do so as
  discretely as possible
• Please avoid side conversation during the
  presentation
• Thank you for your cooperation!

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Introduction

• Angela Hooper, Sr. Business Intelligence
  Consultant with Infolink Consulting.
• This presentation focuses on redirecting the IBM
  business glossary functionality in Cognos 10 to
  an external website for a low cost data
  dictionary solution.

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Topics of Discussion

• Clients Business Need
• Infolinks solution
• Technical components
• Take home points
• Links of interest

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Business Need

• Utilize a publically hosted online data
  dictionary
• Provide direct link between Clients data
  elements and data dictionary.
• Boundaries and limitations
• Redesign/renaming of FM Query items not Possible
• Do not spend any money

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Solution

• Use Business Glossary and redirect to appropriate
  webpage
• Create a crosswalk database table to handle
  naming differences
• Create custom JSP to read the crosswalk and
  redirect to new URL

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Solution Example
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Solution Example
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Technical Components

• Enable Business Glossary
• Install Database drivers
• Database table to handle crosswalk
• JSP Code

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Technical Components

• Configure the business glossary URI following the
  steps outlined in the IBM Cognos 8.4/10 Security
  and Administration Guide
• Edit the IBM Business Glossary URI to read
  http//10.xx.xxx9300/p2pd/glossary.jsp
• Where the ip is Cognos BI server.
• Place the glossary.jsp file into the following
  Cognos BI server location ../ibm/cognos/c10/webap
  ps/p2pd/

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Technical Components
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Technical Components

• Deal with Database drivers and Connectivity
• Oracle
• Create a copy of the Oracle JDBC drivers and
  place into the webapps/p2pd/WEB-INF/lib/
  directory 
• On the Cognos BI server append the CLASSPATH
  with
• ORACLE_HOME/jdbc/lib/ojdbc6.jar
• Restart the Cognos Services!

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Technical Components

• Database table to handle crosswalk
• SearchText
• Crosswalked value
• URL

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Technical Components

• JSP Code Walk through
• See file glossary.jsp

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Take Home points

• Database/Driver connectivity was the hardest
  part.
• Could use ASP/PHP what works for you?
• Start small, redirect to main data dictionary
  page for every element

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Links of Use

• Infolink Consulting
• IBM InfoSphere Business Glossary
• Ironside Group Original idea
• Security and Administration guide Configure
  Business Glossary