Designer Guide

Designer’s Guide BusinessObjects XI Release 2 WindowsPatents Business Objects owns the following U.S. patents, which may cover products that are offered and licensed by Business Objects: 5,555,403; 6,247.008 B1; 6,578,027 B2; 6,490,593; and 6,289,352. Trademarks Business Objects and the Business Objects logo, BusinessObjects, Crystal Reports, Crystal Xcelsius, Crystal Decisions, Intelligent Question, Desktop Intelligence, Crystal Enterprise, Crystal Analysis, WebIntelligence, RapidMarts, and BusinessQuery are trademarks or registered trademarks of Business Objects in the United States and/or other countries. All other names mentioned herein may be trademarks of their respective owners. Copyright Copyright © 2007 Business Objects. All rights reserved. Third-party contributors Business Objects products in this release may contain redistributions of software licensed from third-party contributors. Some of these individual components may also be available under alternative licenses. A partial listing of third-party contributors that have requested or permitted acknowledgments, as well as required notices, can be found at: http://www.businessobjects.com/thirdpartyDesigner’s Guide 3 Contents Chapter 1 Introducing Designer 7 Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Designer and universe fundamentals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 How do you use Designer to create universes? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Who is the universe designer? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Introducing the universe development process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Designer example materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Chapter 2 Doing basic operations 23 Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Starting Designer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Importing a universe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Opening a universe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 Exporting a universe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 Saving a universe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 Closing a universe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 Creating a universe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 Setting universe parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 Using the Designer user interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75 Using Find and Replace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79 Organizing the table display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83 Selecting schema display options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89 Printing a universe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97 Chapter 3 Creating a schema with tables and joins 101 Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102 What is a schema? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102 Inserting tables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104 Using derived tables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109Contents 4 Designer’s Guide Defining joins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113 Defining specific types of joins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133 Using cardinalities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150 Checking the universe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160 Chapter 4 Resolving join problems in a schema 167 Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168 What is a join path problem? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168 Defining aliases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171 Defining contexts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176 Resolving loops . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187 Resolving Chasm Traps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214 Resolving Fan Traps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 220 Detecting join problems graphically . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227 Checking the universe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 229 Chapter 5 Building universes 235 Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236 Introduction to universe building . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236 Using the Universe pane . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239 Basic operations on classes, objects, and conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241 Defining classes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 242 Defining objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246 Defining hierarchies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 283 Using cascading lists of values for hierarchies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 287 Using lists of values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 290 Creating a basic universe automatically . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 306 Testing the universe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 314 Chapter 6 Generating OLAP universes 317 Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 318 Generating OLAP universes from OLAP cube sources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 320 Creating a OLAP connection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 321 Creating a OLAP universe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 324Contents Designer’s Guide 5 Saving and exporting a OLAP universe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 327 Updating OLAP universes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 327 OLAP to universe mapping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 329 Chapter 7 Creating universes from metadata sources 339 Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 340 Generating universes from metadata sources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 340 Selecting a metadata source . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 342 XML metadata sources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 344 Oracle Analytic Workspaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 356 Chapter 8 Creating universes for use as metrics 371 Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 372 Using universes to build metrics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 373 Enterprise metrics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 376 Configuration of universes for Process Analysis charts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 381 Designing universes for set based metrics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 385 Chapter 9 Optimizing universes 389 Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 390 Using aggregate tables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 390 Using @Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 404 Using external strategies to customize universe creation . . . . . . . . . . . . 413 Using analytic functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 426 Chapter 10 Managing universes 439 Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 440 Deploying universes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 440 Setting access restrictions on a universe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 441 Working with multiple designers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 450 Linking universes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 451 Including one universe within another . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 462 Managing users and logins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 463 Optimizing universes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 465Contents 6 Designer’s Guide Appendix A Using the sample materials 469 Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 470 The Club database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 470 Appendix B Business Objects information resources 477 Documentation and information services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 478 Documentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 478 Customer support, consulting and training . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 479 Useful addresses at a glance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 480 Appendix C Post-release additions 483 Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 484 DBUser /DBPass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 484 Index 485chapter Introducing DesignerIntroducing Designer Overview 1 8 Designer’s Guide OverviewThis chapter gives you a general introduction to Designer, the tool you use to build universes. It describes universes, what they contain, how they are created, and the role that universes have in your business environment. The typical universe development cycle is described, with best design practices recommended. The demonstration databases and universes shipped with this release are also described. Note: $INSTALLDIR variable in this guide In this guide the variable $INSTALLDIR is the install root path for the data access files used by Designer and Web Intelligence. This is the Business Objects installation path with the operating system sub directory that contains the Designer executable and the data access drivers. Under Windows$INSTALLDIR = \\...\Business Objects\BusinessObjects Enterprise 11.5\win32_x86. For example C:\Program Files\Business Objects\BusinessObjects Enterprise 11.5\win32_x86. Introducing Designer Designer and universe fundamentals 1 Designer’s Guide 9 Designer and universe fundamentals Business Objects Designer is a software tool that allows you to create universes for Web Intelligence and Desktop Intelligence users. What is a universe? A universe is a file that contains the following: • Connection parameters for one or more database middleware. • SQL structures called objects that map to actual SQL structures in the database such as columns, tables, and database functions. Objects are grouped into classes. Objects and classes are both visible to Web Intelligence users. • A schema of the tables and joins used in the database. Objects are built from the database structures that you include in your schema. The schema is only available to Designer users. It is not visible to Web Intelligence and Desktop Intelligence users. Web Intelligence users connect to a universe, and run queries against a database. They can do data analysis and create reports using the objects in a universe, without seeing, or having to know anything about, the underlying data structures in the database. What is the role of a universe? The role of a universe is to provide an easy to use and understand interface for non technical Web Intelligence users to run queries against a database to create reports and perform data analysis. As the universe designer, you use Designer to create objects that represent database structures, for example columns and database functions, that users need to access and query, to get the information necessary to meet their business requirements. The objects that you create in the universe must be relevant to the end user business environment and vocabulary. Their role is to present a business focussed front end to the SQL structures in the database.Introducing Designer Designer and universe fundamentals 1 10 Designer’s Guide The following diagram shows the role of objects as the mapping layer between a database schema and the Query work area in Web Intelligence, that users use to create queries to run against database tables. What does a universe contain? A universe contains the following structures: • Classes • Objects Classes A class is a logical grouping of objects within a universe. It represents a category of objects. The name of a class should indicate the category of the objects that it contains. A class can be divided hierarchically into subclasses. Objects An object is a named component that maps to data or a derivation of data in the database. The name of an object should be drawn from the business vocabulary of the targeted user group. For example, objects used in a universe used by a product manager could be Product, Life Cycle, or Release Date. A universe used by a financial analyst could contain objects such as Profit Margin, and Return on Investment. database Result Objects pane in Web Intelligence objects database schemaIntroducing Designer Designer and universe fundamentals 1 Designer’s Guide 11 Types of objects In Designer, objects are qualified as one of three types: dimension, detail, or measure. Objects infer SQL structures displayed in a schema The objects that Web Intelligence users see in a universe infer SQL structures that you have inserted into a database schema. You, as the universe designer, create this schema based on the tables and joins that are required to return the data, needed by users for their analysis and report creation. The schema is a part of the universe file, but is only visible and accessible in Designer. You create the schema in the Structure pane of the Universe window. A schema is shown below for the sample universe Beach.unv. Object type Description Dimension Parameters for analysis. Dimensions typically relate to a hierarchy such as geography, product, or time. For example Last Name and City_Id Detail Provide a description of a dimension, but are not the focus for analysis. For example Phone Number Measure Convey numeric information which is used to quantify a dimension object. For example Sales Revenue Columns Joins TablesIntroducing Designer Designer and universe fundamentals 1 12 Designer’s Guide How are objects presented in a universe? Objects are displayed as nodes in an tree explorer view in the Universe pane. You use the object explorer to create, delete, copy, view, and move classes and objects. Each object type is shown below. Viewing the universe window The Universe window in Designer is shown below. It contains both the Universe pane (also visible in Web Intelligence) and the Structure pane (visible only in Designer). detail object dimension object measure object Universe pane Structure paneIntroducing Designer How do you use Designer to create universes? 1 Designer’s Guide 13 How do you use Designer to create universes? Designer provides a connection wizard which allows you to connect to your database middleware. You can create multiple connections with Designer, but only one connection can be defined for each universe. This database connection is saved with the universe. Designer provides a graphical interface that allows you to select and view tables in a database. The database tables are represented as table symbols in a schema diagram. You can use this interface to manipulate tables, create joins that link the tables, create alias tables, contexts, and solve loops in your schema. Web Intelligence users do not see this schema. Designer provides an object explorer view. You use the explorer tree to create objects that map to the columns and SQL structures that are represented in the schema view. Web Intelligence users manipulate these objects to run queries against a database. Designer allows you to distribute universes by importing and exporting universes to the Crystal Management System (CMS) repository. How do objects generate SQL? Web Intelligence users create queries by dragging objects into the Query work area. The definition of each object infers a Select statement. When a query is run, a Select statement and optional Where clause for all the objects is run against the target database.Introducing Designer How do you use Designer to create universes? 1 14 Designer’s Guide When a user chooses to include dimension and/or detail objects with a measure object in the Query work area, a Group By clause containing the content of those dimension and detail objects is automatically added to the Select statement. The tables that are included in the From clause and the Joins in the Where clause, are inferred from the table schema that you build in the Structure pane. What types of database schema are supported? Designer can support most types of database schema, including all those shown below. You do not need to redefine or optimize your database before using Designer. How are universes used? Universes are used by Web Intelligence users. The universes are stored in the Crystal Management System (CMS) repository. An end user connects to a universe from a web browser. The connection to the database is defined in the universe, so by connecting to the universe, the end user automatically has access to the data. The access to data is in turn restricted by the objects that are available in the universe. These objects have been created by you, the universe designer, based on the user needs profile for a defined user group.Introducing Designer How do you use Designer to create universes? 1 Designer’s Guide 15 Representing a targeted data need A universe can represent the data needs of any specific application, system, or group of users. For example, a universe can contain objects that represent the data needs of the Marketing or Accounting departments in a company. A universe can also represent the data needs of a section within a department or any set of organized procedures such as a payroll or inventory system. An example of the types of classes that could be used in a human resources universe is shown below: Examples of classes in the universe depicted above are Employee Information, Attendance Information, and Department Information. Attendance Information Vacation Days Accrued Sick Days Taken Total Absences HUMAN RESOURCES UNIVERSE Employee Information Department InformationIntroducing Designer How do you use Designer to create universes? 1 16 Designer’s Guide Universes and the database schema The following example shows sections of a database schema that have been used to create three universes; PERSONNEL, INVENTORY, and SALES. Each universe contains classes and objects. Each object maps to a part of the database structure. The SALES universe contains a class called STATISTICS which contains two objects; Average Revenue and Total Profit. Who uses universes? Web Intelligence users use universes for reporting and analysis. The universe should provide them with classes and objects relevant to their business domain. EMPLOYEE ADDRESS SALARY BONUS STOCK -Current Value -Out of Stock ITEM NUMBER CUSTOMER UNIT PRICE PRODUCT STATISTICS -Average Revenue -Total Profit SALES universe PERSONNEL universe INVENTORY universeIntroducing Designer Who is the universe designer? 1 Designer’s Guide 17 Who is the universe designer? Universes are created by a universe designer using Designer. There is no standard profile for a universe designer. Within a company, the person designated as the universe designer may be the database administrator, an applications manager or developer, a project manager, or a report creator who has acquired enough technical skills to create universes for other users. Universe design teams There can be more than one universe designer in a company. The number of universe designers depends on the company’s data requirements. For example, one universe designer could be appointed for each application, project, department or functional area. Required skills and knowledge A universe designer should have the following skills and level of technical knowledge: Skill/Knowledge Description Ability to analyze user needs Universes are created to meet a user need for data. The universe designer must have the skills to conduct user needs analyses to create classes and objects that are relevant to the user vocabulary, and to develop universes that meet the needs of the user community. These needs include report creation and query results that are suitable for analysis Database knowledge Universe designer needs to have a good working knowledge of the company’s database management system (DBMS), how the databases are deployed, the logical database structure, and the type of data stored in company databases Stuctured Query Language (SQL) A working knowledge of SQL is necessaryIntroducing Designer Introducing the universe development process 1 18 Designer’s Guide What are the tasks of the universe designer? The universe designer is normally responsible for the following tasks: • Conducting user needs analysis • Designing and creating the universe • Distributing the universe • Maintaining the universe Introducing the universe development process The following sections give an overview of how you manually create a universe, and describe how universe creation fits into a typical universe development cycle. Universe design methodology The universe design methodology described in this manual consists of one planning stage, and three implementation phases: • Analysis of business problem and planning the universe solution • Designing a schema • Building the universe • Distributing the universe to users Each implementation phase is based on an assumption that you have completed an initial planning phase. The planning phase can be done without using Designer, and is the decisive phase for the success or failure of your universe. A poorly planned universe that is not based on a study of user reporting needs will be difficult to design, implement, maintain, and will not be useful to your target users. Each of these phases is described as follows:Introducing Designer Introducing the universe development process 1 Designer’s Guide 19 Plan the universe before you start using Designer Before starting the first phase, you should spend up to eighty percent of the time allotted for the universe creation project, planning the universe. You should note the following points: • You must analyze the data analysis and reporting needs of the target audience for the universe. The structures that you use to create the schema should be based on a clearly defined user need to access the data contained in those tables and columns. • You should have a clear idea of the objects that you need to create before you start using Designer. Do not create objects by looking at the columns available in the database, but identify columns that match an object that you have already identified from your user needs analysis. Designing a schema You create a schema for the underlying database structure of your universe. This schema includes the tables and columns of the target database and the joins by which they are linked. You may need to resolve join problems such as loops, chasm traps, and fan traps, which may occur in the structure by using aliases or contexts. You test the integrity of the overall structure. In this guide, the designing a schema phase is described in the chapters Creating a schema with tables and joins and Resolving join problems in a schema. Building the universe You create the objects that infer Select statements based on the components of your schema. You organize these objects into classes. These are objects that you have identified from an analysis of user reporting needs. You can create many types of objects to enhance user reporting capabilities, multidimensional analysis, and optimize query performance. You test the integrity of your universe structure. You should also perform tests by running reports in Web Intelligence. The building phase is described in the chapter Building universes. Distributing the universe You can distribute your universes to users for testing, and eventually for production, by exporting them to the Crystal Management System (CMS) repository. This phase is described in the chapter Managing universes.Introducing Designer Introducing the universe development process 1 20 Designer’s Guide Universe development cycle Universe development is a cyclic process which includes planning, designing, building, distribution, and maintenance phases. You use Designer to design and build a universe, however, the usability of any universe is directly related to how successfully the other phases in the development cycle interact with each other. This section presents an overview of a universe design methodology that you can use to plan and implement a universe development project. The table below outlines the major phases in a typical universe development cycle: Development phase Description Prepare • Identify the target data source and become familiar with its structure. • Know what data is contained within each table of each of the target databases. • Understand the joins. • Identify the cardinality. • Know what is possible. Analyze • Identify the user population and how it is structured; for example is the user group structured by department or by task. • Identify what information the users need. • Identify what standard reports they require. • Familiarize yourself with their business terminology so that you can name objects sensibly. Plan Identify a project strategy. For example, how many universes should be created and which ones should have the capacity to be linked and to what level. Implement • Build the universe using Designer. This manual covers this part of the universe development cycle, the actual use of the design tool. • Test frequently during the build process for validity and reliability of inferred SQL. Test Form a small group of Web Intelligence power users who have some knowledge of what information they expect to get from the universe. Ask the users to perform thorough tests simulating live usage of the universe(s).Introducing Designer Designer example materials 1 Designer’s Guide 21 Note: Universe design should always be driven primarily by user requirements and NOT the data source structure. Optimizing universe planning and implementation time The analysis of user requirements and design are the most important stages in the process. Users must be heavily involved in the development process if the universe is going to fulfil their needs both with the business language used to name objects and the data that can be accessed. Implementation will be very quick and easy if the first three stages are carried out properly. You can spend up to 80% of the time allocated to the development of a universe on the first three stages: • Preparing • Analyzing • Planning If you have spent the time in the laying the foundation for your universe, the other 20% of the time spent actually using Designer to build your universe will be much more productive than if you have not spent the necessary time in planning and analysis. Designer example materials The following samples are shipped with Designer: Demonstration databases Most of the examples in this guide are based on the Club database built with Microsoft Access 2000. This database is used by the sales manager of the fictitious business, Island Resorts, to perform sales and marketing analysis. You can find the database file, Club.mdb, in the Databases subfolder in the Business Objects installation path. Deploy Distribute the universe by exporting universe to the Crystal Management System (CMS) repository, where it can be accessed by end users. Evolve Update and maintain the universe as the data sources and user requirements change and grow. Development phase DescriptionIntroducing Designer Designer example materials 1 22 Designer’s Guide For more information on the structure of this database, refer to the appendix at the back of this guide. The efashion database is also shipped with this release. This MS Access 2000 database tracks 211 products (663 product color variations), sold over 13 stores (12 US, 1 in Canada), over 3 years. The database contains: • A central fact table with 89,000 rows of sales information on a weekly basis. • A second fact table containing promotions. • Two aggregate tables, which were set up with aggregate navigation. Demonstration universes A complete demo universe called beach.unv is delivered in the Universes subfolder of the Samples folder in the BusinessObjects installation path. It was built with the Club database described above. You can use this universe to learn how to build specific objects and classes with Designer. Designer also comes with the efashion universe built using the efashion database.chapter Doing basic operationsDoing basic operations Overview 2 24 Designer’s Guide OverviewThis chapter describes the basic operations you perform in Designer to create, modify, and update universes. The following topics are covered: • Starting Designer • Importing a universe • Opening a universe • Exporting a universe • Saving a universe • Creating a universe • Setting universe parameters • Using the Designer user interface • Using Find and Replace • Organizing the table display • Selecting schema display options • Printing a universe Note: $INSTALLDIR variable in this guide In this guide the variable $INSTALLDIR is the install root path for the data access files used by Designer and Web Intelligence. This is the Business Objects installation path with the operating system sub directory that contains the Designer executable and the data access drivers. Under Windows$INSTALLDIR = \\...\Business Objects\BusinessObjects Enterprise 11.5\win32_x86. For example C:\Program Files\Business Objects\BusinessObjects Enterprise 11.5\win32_x86. Starting Designer Designer can only be used with a Central Management System (CMS) repository. You must log in to the repository before starting Designer. If you are starting Designer for the first time and want to work on an existing universe, you need to open the universe directly first, save it with a secure connection and export it to the repository. You then import the universe to make updates and export updated versions. This ensures that the CMS and the local universe versions are synchronized. Once you start Designer you can open a universe in one of the following ways:Doing basic operations Starting Designer 2 Designer’s Guide 25 • Create a new universe • Import a universe from the CMS repository • Open a universe directly from the file system A universe is only available to Web Intelligence users when it is exported to the repository. Importing a universe, making changes, then exporting the updated universe is the most common way of working with Designer. It ensures that the CMS (repository) version is synchronized with the file version. Note: You can save a universe to the file system. You do this when you want to share the universe with other users who may not have a connection rights to the target CMS. See the section “Saving a universe” on page 33 for more information. You start Designer from the task bar by clicking the Designer icon in the group of installed Business Objects products for this release. You are prompted to log into the CMS before Designer starts. Starting Designer To start Designer: 1. Click the Start button on the taskbar. 2. Point to the Programs menu. 3. Click the Designer program from the BusinessObjects command. The login box for the CMS appears. DesignerDoing basic operations Starting Designer 2 26 Designer’s Guide 4. Type the following information. This information is normally provided for you by the BusinessObjects administrator. 5. Click the OK button. The Designer startup screen appears, and an empty Designer session opens. The user name and CMS name appear in the title bar. Note: Depending on options set for Designer, the Quick Start universe design wizard can start automatically when you start Designer.Click Cancel to close the wizard. For more information on disabling other wizard options, see the section “Disactivating the Quick Design wizard” on page 27. If you want to use the Quick Design wizard, then you can refer to the section “Using the Quick Design Wizard” on page 307 of the . Login information Description System Name of the CMS server. User Name Your repository user name. Password Your repository password. Authentication Your security level User and CMS nameDoing basic operations Starting Designer 2 Designer’s Guide 27 Using the Quick Design Wizard appropriately When you start a Designer session for the first time, a Quick Design wizard appears by default. You can use the wizard to quickly create a universe, or to familiarize yourself with Designer, however, it is not an appropriate tool for creating a complete universe that responds to end user reporting requirements. It is recommended that you disable the Quick Design wizard, and use it only as a means to familiarize yourself with Designer, and not use it to design universes. All the universe design, building, and maintenance information and procedures in this manual assume that you have disabled the Quick Design wizard, except for the chapter “Using the Quick Design Wizard” on page 307 which deals specifically with using the wizard. For information on disabling other Quick Design wizard options, see the section “Disactivating the Quick Design wizard” on page 27. Disactivating the Quick Design wizard When you first start a Designer session, a Quick Design wizard appears by default. You can prevent the wizard appearing automatically when you create a new universe as follows: To disactivate the Quick Design wizard: 1. Select Tools > Options. The Options dialog box opens to the General page. 2. Clear the Show Welcome Wizard check box. This check box is already cleared if you have cleared the Run this Wizard at Startup check box from the Startup Wizard Welcome page. 3. Clear the File/New Starts Quick Design Wizard check box. 4. Click OK. Note: You can activate the Quick Design Wizard at any time by selecting the above check boxes from the General page of the Options dialog box. Using the Quick Design wizard is covered in the section “Using the Quick Design Wizard” on page 307. Giving all users access to a universe You can make a universe accessible to all Designer users in both workgroup and enterprise mode, by saving a universe in workgroup mode. The connection for the universe cannot be a secured connection. If you want to make a universe available to all users, you must save the universe with an unsecured connection.Doing basic operations Importing a universe 2 28 Designer’s Guide To make a universe accessible to all Designer users: 1. Verify that the universe that you want to make available to all users does not have a secured connection. 2. Secured connections are required to export universe to the CMS. If a universe has a secured connection, select or create a new shared connection. See the section “Defining and editing connections” on page 41 for more information. 3. Select File > Save As. A File Save box appears. 4. Select the Save For All Users check box. 5. Click OK. Importing a universe You can import one or more universes stored in a universe folder in the repository. You can only import a universe that has already been exported to the repository. When you import a universe, the CMS checks the universe version on the repository file system. If the version is identical, the universe is made available to Designer. If the universe version on the repository file system is more recent than the CMS version, a message box appears asking if you want to replace the universe in the folder. If you answer Yes, then the universe on the repository file system is replaced by the version in the CMS. Select Save for all usersDoing basic operations Importing a universe 2 Designer’s Guide 29 Importing a universe from the repository 􀁘 To import a universe from the repository 1. Select File > Import. The Import Universe dialog box appears. 2. Select a universe folder from the drop down list box. Or Click the Browse button and select a universe using the folder browser. You want to import a universe from this folder. 3. If you want to lock the universe, double-click the universe name. A locked universe appears with a padlock symbol. To unlock a universe, double-click it again. 4. Click a universe name. This is the universe that you want to import. 5. Verify the file path for the import folder in the Import Folder box. The universe is imported to this folder. 6. Click OK.Doing basic operations Opening a universe 2 30 Designer’s Guide What is the difference between opening and importing? You can open a universe directly from the file system. When you save this universe, it is saved only to the file system, it is not updated in the CMS. Updates in this universe are not available to Web Intelligence users. When you import a universe, the current version available in the repository is made available to Designer. When you have finished modifying the universe, you export it to the repository. The CMS is updated with the latest changes. Opening a universe You open a universe using the menu commands or by clicking the Open button. When you open a universe directly without importing, you are opening a version on the local file system, that may not correspond to the latest version in the CMS. 􀁘 To open a universe directly 1. Select File > Open. A File Open box opens to the directory designated as the default universe file store. You can set this directory in the Save page of the Options dialog box (Tools > Options > Save). 2. If necessary, browse to the directory that contains the universe file (.UNV). 3. Select a universe file and click Open Or Double click the universe file. The Universe opens in the current Designer window.Doing basic operations Exporting a universe 2 Designer’s Guide 31 Exporting a universe You make a universe available to Web Intelligence users and other designers by exporting a universe to the repository. When you export a universe the universe is: • moved to the selected universe folder on the repository file system and • created in the Central Management System (CMS). Each time the universe is exported to the repository, the universe version in the CMS is updated. This is the version that is available to Web Intelligence users. Note: Saving a universe is not the same as exporting a universe. Saving updates the universe on the repository local file system, but not the CMS repository version of the universe. See the section “What is the difference between exporting and saving?” on page 33 for more information. How are universes organized on the repository file system? The repository stores universes on the local file system and in the CMS server. You work on the universe version on the local file system. The local file system is the server on which Designer is installed. Your universes are saved by default in the universes folder in your user profile path as follows: The universes stored in the CMS server are used for version control. When you export an updated universe to the repository, the updated universe is copied to the CMS server. Example: Universe folders on the repository file system The following diagram shows the universe folders on the repository file system for a user designer1. The subfolders that store universes are created under the universes folder. This is the default root folder for universes for a user. \\Documents and Settings\\Application Data\Business Objects\Business Objects 11.5\universes\@\universe folder\.unvDoing basic operations Exporting a universe 2 32 Designer’s Guide The user designer1 has rights to the repository VITRE. All universe folders for designer1 are under the subfolder @VITRE.j Exporting a universe to the repository 􀁘 To export a universe to the repository 1. Select File > Export. The Export Universe dialog box appears. 2. Select a universe folder from the folder drop down list box. Or Click the Browse button and select a universe folder in the folder browser. You want to export the universe to this folder. 3. If you want to lock the universe, double-click the universe name. A locked universe appears with a padlock symbol. To unlock a universe, double-click it again. 4. Click a group in the Groups list box. This is the user group that uses the exported universe. 5. Click a universe in the Universes list box. The Universes list box shows the names of the active universes. 6. If you want to export other universes that are not open, click the Add Universe button, and then use the browser to select the other universes.Doing basic operations Saving a universe 2 Designer’s Guide 33 7. Click OK. What is the difference between exporting and saving? When you save a universe, you update the version in the repository file system. This does not update the CMS version. When you export a universe, the update of the version in the repository file system is synchronized with the update of the universe in the CMS. If you save a universe and do not export the updated version, the CMS is not updated. The saved universe is not available to other users. Each universe in the repository is assigned a system identifier. Refer to the section “Identifying a universe in the repository” on page 441 for more information in identifiers. You can not export a universe if it has been locked in the repository by another designer. You can export only a universe defined with a secured connection. Saving a universe You should regularly save your universes throughout a work session. When you save a universe, Designer stores it as a file with a .UNV extension on the local file system. In Web Intelligence, a user identifies the universe by the universe name (long name). When you save a universe, the changes are not saved to the CMS. You must export the universe to the CMS when you have completed updating a universe. You can use the following maximum characters in the universe name (the long name) and .unv file name: Name type Maximum number of characters Universe name 100 .unv name Operating system maximumDoing basic operations Saving a universe 2 34 Designer’s Guide Universe file names as identifiers You should not change the universe filename .unv after reports have been created based on that universe. If you change the filename, any report built on the universe with the old name, will not point to the universe once its name has been changed. Saving a universe The universe name can be different from the .unv name. When you use Save As to save the universe under new name, the new universe is not associated in the CMS. You must export the new universe to the CMS to create a version of the new universe. You can use the following methods to save a universe: 􀁘 To save a universe • Select File > Save from the menu bar • Click the Save icon • Press CTRL+S from the keyboard Saving a universe definition as PDF You save the universe information as an Adobe PDF file. You can save the same information that you can print out for a universe. This information includes: • General information: parameters, linked universes, and the graphical table schema. • Component lists: lists of components in the universe including objects, conditions, hierarchies, tables, joins, and contexts. • Component descriptions: descriptions for the objects, conditions, hierarchies, tables, joins, and contexts in the universe. You can select what components that you want to appear in the PDF from the Print Options dialog box (Tools > Options > Print). These options are described in the section “Setting print options” on page 98. To save universe information as a PDF file: 1. Select File > Save AsDoing basic operations Saving a universe 2 Designer’s Guide 35 2. Select portable Document Format (PDF) from the Save as type drop down list box. 3. Click Save. Setting default save options By default, Designer stores the files that you save in the Universe subfolder in the Business Objects path. You can specify another default save folder as follows: 1. Select Tools > Options. The Options dialog box appears. 2. Click the Save tab. The Save page appears. 3. Type a file path in the Default Universe Folder text box. Or 4. Browse to a folder that contains .unv files. 5. If you want to specify an automatic save time, select the Save Automatically check box and select or type a time period number from the Minutes value select box. 6. Click OK.Doing basic operations Closing a universe 2 36 Designer’s Guide Closing a universe You can use the following methods to close a universe. To close a universe: • Select File Close from the menu bar • Click the close window button at the top right corner of the universe window • Press CTRL+W from the keyboard. Creating a universe Before you can build a universe, you must firstly create a new universe file. When you create a new universe file, you must define a connection parameter to allow the universe to access your database middleware. You can also define other parameters that determine how Designer creates objects, links from the current universe to other universes, and query restrictions. You save the new universe as a .unv file. The new universe contains no classes and objects. You create these during the universe development process by designing a table schema and then creating objects that map to database structures. What are universe parameters? Universe parameters are definitions and restrictions that you define for a universe that identify a universe and its database connections, specify the type of queries that can be run using the universe, and set the controls on the use of system resources. You define universe parameters from the Universe Parameters dialog box (File > Parameters) when you create a universe. The database connection is the only parameter that you must manually select or create when you create a new universe.Doing basic operations Creating a universe 2 Designer’s Guide 37 You can modify these parameters at any time.You can define the following universe parameters: Creating a new universe The following procedure describes how you can create a new universe from scratch by defining universe parameters then saving the universe. The procedure provides an overview of all the pages available from the Parameters dialog box. For more detailed information on each step you should refer to the respective section for the parameter in this chapter. Defining all the parameters at universe creation may not be necessary. You must select a connection, but you can accept the default values for other parameters, and then modify them as appropriate when necessary. Parameter Description Definition Universe name, description, and connection parameters and information. These are the parameters that identify the universe. Refer to the section “Identifying the universe” on page 40 for information on defining and modifying this parameter. Summary information Version and revision information, designer comments, and universe statistics. Refer to the section “Viewing and entering summary information” on page 49 for information on defining and modifying this parameter. Strategies Indicates the strategies used by the universe. A strategy is a script used to extract structural information from a database. Refer to the section “Selecting strategies” on page 51 for information on defining and modifying this parameter. Controls Indicates the limitations set for the use of system resources. Refer to the section “Indicating resource controls” on page 56 for information on defining and modifying this parameter. SQL Indicates the types of queries that the end user is allowed to run from the Query pane. Refer to the section “Indicating SQL restrictions” on page 59 for information on defining and modifying this parameter. Links Indicates the settings defined for linked universes. Refer to the section “Indicating options for linked universes” on page 61 for information on defining and modifying this parameter. Doing basic operations Creating a universe 2 38 Designer’s Guide Creating a new universe from scratch To create a new universe from scratch: 1. Select File > New. The Universe parameters dialog box opens to the Definition page. See the section “Identifying the universe” on page 40 for information on this page. • Type a name and description for the universe. • Select a connection from the Connection drop-down list box. Or • Click the New button if you want to define a new connection that is not listed in the drop-down list. See the section “Defining and editing connections” on page 41 for information on defining a new connection. 2. Click the Summary tab. The Summary page appears. See the section “Viewing and entering summary information” on page 49 for information on this page. • Type universe information in the Comments box. 3. Click the Strategies tab. The Strategies page appears. It displays the strategies available for your connected data source. See the section “Selecting strategies” on page 51 for information on this page. • Select a strategy from each of the Objects, Joins, and Tables dropdown list boxes. Depending on the RDBMS for the connection, there can be more than one strategy available from each drop-down list box. 4. Click the Controls tab. The Controls page appears. See the section “Indicating resource controls” on page 56 for information on this page. • Select or clear check boxes in the Query Limits group box. • Enter values for the check boxes that you select. 5. Click the SQL tab. The SQL page appears. See the “Indicating SQL restrictions” on page 59 for information on this page. • Select or clear check boxes as appropriate. 6. Click the Links tab, if you want to link the new universe with an existing universe.Doing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 Designer’s Guide 39 The Links page appears. See the section “Indicating options for linked universes” on page 61 for information on this page. • Click the Add Link button to select a universe to link with the new universe. 7. Click the Parameters tab. The Parameters page appears. It lists SQL parameters that can be set to optimize SQL generation. See the section “Setting SQL generation parameters” on page 61 for information on this page. 8. Click OK. The universe and structure panes open up in Designer 9. Select File > Save. • Type a name for the universe file. • Click Save. Setting universe parameters You can set universe parameters for the following purposes: • Identifying the universe • Defining and editing connections • Viewing and entering summary information • Selecting strategies • Indicating resource controls • Indicating SQL restrictions • Indicating options for linked universes • Setting SQL generation parameters Each type of parameter is contained on a page in the Parameters dialog box (File > Parameters).Each group of parameters is described in its respective section below.Doing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 40 Designer’s Guide Identifying the universe Each universe is identified by the following parameters: The name and description parameters are defined at universe creation from the Definition page of the Universe Parameters dialog box. You can modify the universe identification parameters at any time. You also define the database connection from this page. For information on defining a new connection, you can refer to the section “Defining and editing connections” on page 41. You can define the following identification parameters for a universe: Modifying universe identification parameters To modify universe identification parameters: 1. Select File > Parameters. Or Identifier Used by File name (8 characters) File system, and Web Intelligence to reference the universe. Long name (35 characters) Web Intelligence users. Web Intelligence Description Web Intelligence users. Unique numeric ID CMS to identify universe. This number is assigned to the universe when it is first exported to the CMS. Identification parameter Description Name Universe name. Identifies the universe to Web Intelligence users. The name characters supported by the registry are defined by the General Supervisor. Character support is RDBMS dependent. Description Description of universe purpose and contents. Optional field. This description is viewable by Web Intelligence users, so information in this field can provide useful information about the role of the universe. Connection Named set of parameters that defines how Web Intelligence accesses data in a database file. All available connections appear in the Connections drop-down list box. You can also create new connections.Doing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 Designer’s Guide 41 Click the Universe Parameters button in the toolbar. The Universe Parameters dialog box opens to the Definition page. 2. Type a name and a description. 3. Select a connection from the Connection drop-down list box. 4. Click the Test button to verify that the connection is valid. If you receive a message informing you that the server is not responding, the connection is not valid. You can correct connection parameters by clicking the Edit button and editing connection properties. If the error persists, refer to the section of the RDBMS documentation relating to error messages. 5. Click OK. Defining and editing connections A connection is a named set of parameters that defines how a Business Objects application accesses data in a database file. A connection links Web Intelligence to your middleware. You must have a connection to access data. You must select or create a connection when you create a universe. You can modify, delete, or replace the connection at any time. Note: See the Data Access Guide for complete information on creating, modifying, and optimizing connections You can create a new connection from the Definition page of the Universe Parameters dialog box (File > Parameters > Definition). You create a new connection when there is not an existing connection appropriate to the current universe. You can also edit the properties for a connection from the Definition page. You can view all connections available to a universe from the Connections list (Tools > Connections). You can delete, edit, and create new connections from this page. A connection contains three elements: • Data Access driver • Connection and login parameters • Connection type Each element is described in the following sections: Data Access driver A Data Access driver is the software layer that connects a universe to your middleware.Doing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 42 Designer’s Guide Data Access drivers are shipped with Business Objects products. There is a Data Access driver for each supported middleware. When you install Designer, your Data Access key determines which Data Access drivers are installed. When you create a new connection, you select the appropriate Data Access driver for the RDBMS middleware that you use to connect to the target RDBMS. Connection and login parameters You configure the Data Access driver by specifying the following connection and login parameters. Connection type The type of connection determines who can use the connection to access data. Designer automatically stores all the connections that you create during a work session. The next time you launch a session, these connections will be available to you. Parameter Description Type Type of connection, personal, shared, or secured. Name Identifying name for the connection. User name Your database user name. This is normally assigned to you by the database administrator. Password Your database password. This is normally assigned to you by the database administrator. Use Single Sign-On when refreshing reports at view time When selected, the user name and password used to access the CMS are automatically used as database login parameters. See the BusinessObjects Enterprise Administrator’s Guide for information on setting up Single Sign-On. Use database credentials associated with BusinessObjects user account When selected the user is forced to enter a database user password associated with their BusinessObjects account to refresh a report. This is set at the Central Management Console level. Refer to BusinessObjects Enterprise Administrator’s Guide for information on setting up this option. Data source/Service Data source or database name. If you are using an ODBC driver the data source name identifies the target database. If you are using a native driver, the database name identifies the target database.Doing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 Designer’s Guide 43 You can create three types of connections with Designer: • Personal • Shared • Secured Each connection type is described as follows: Personal connections Restricts access to data to the universe creator and the computer on which it was created. Connection parameters are stored in the PDAC.LSI file located in the LSI folder in the Business Objects 11.5 folder in you user profile directory, for example: C:\Documents and Settings\\Application Data\Business Objects\Business Objects 11.5\lsi These parameters are static and cannot be updated. Personal connections are unsecured in terms of Business Objects products security. You do not use personal connections to distribute universes. You could use personal connections to access personal data on a local machine. Shared connections Allows access to data for all users. These connections are unsecured in terms of Business Objects products security. Connection parameters are stored in the SDAC.LSI file located in the LSI folder in the Business Objects 11.5 folder in you user profile directory, for example: C:\Documents and Settings\\Application Data\Business Objects\Business Objects 11.5\lsi Secured connections • Centralizes and controls access to data. It is the safest type of connection, and should used be to protect access to sensitive data. • You can create secured connections with Designer. • You must use secured connections if you want to distribute universes through the CMS. • Secured connections can be used and updated at any time.Doing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 44 Designer’s Guide Setting passwords with personal and shared connections You can set a password on any universe that has a personal or shared connection type. Using passwords, you can protect the universe from unauthorized users in an environment without a repository. Note: If you forget a password, you can not recover the universe file. You should keep a backup file of universe passwords. There are two different options available for the password you can set: • Protection Password causes a dialog box to appear; it simply prompts the user to enter the password. If the password is correct, the universe is opened. • Write Reservation Password causes the following dialog box to appear: The user can then open the universe in read only mode, or in read-write mode by entering the correct password. To set a password when using personal or shared connections: 1. Select Tools > Options The Options dialog box appears. 2. Click the Save tab. The Save page appears.Doing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 Designer’s Guide 45 3. Type a pass word in the Protection Password or the Write Reservation Password text boxes. You can enter up to 40 alphanumeric characters. 4. Click OK. Defining a new connection You can define a new connection using the New Connection wizard. You access the wizard from: • Definition page of the Universe Parameters dialog box (File > Parameters> Definition). You normally define a new connection when there is not an existing connection available for the data that the universe needs to access. • Connections list (Tools > Connections). See the section “Editing a connection” on page 48 for more information on using the Connections dialog box. You can use the connection wizard to set advanced and custom parameters for a connection. Refer to the Data Access Guide (Help > Data Access Guide) for complete information on creating, editing, and optimizing connections. To define a new connection: 1. Select File > Parameters. Or Click the Universe Parameters button in the toolbar. The Universe Parameters dialog box opens to the Definition page. 2. Click the New button. Note: You can also create a new connection from the Connections dialog box. Select Tools > Connections and click the Add button from the Connections list. The Welcome page of the Connection Wizard appears. 3. Click Next. The Database Middleware page appears. It lists the database and middleware that correspond to your Data Access driver key. 4. Expand the node for the target database for the connection. The supported middleware for that database appear under the node. 5. Expand the node for the target middleware for the connection. ParametersDoing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 46 Designer’s GuideThe Data Access driver for the middleware appears. 6. Click a driver name and click Next. The Login Parameters page appears. The login parameters are described in the section Connection and login parameters. Do the following on the Login Parameters page: • Select the connection type from the Type list box: Secured, Shared, or Personal. • Type a name for the connection. • Type your user name and password. These are normally assigned by your database administrator. 7. Click Next. The Test Connection page appears. It summarizes the information for your connection and allows you to verify that the connection is valid. 8. Click the Test Data Source button. If the connection is valid a message box appears indicating that the connection is correct. If you receive an error message, check to see that you entered all the parameters correctly. If the error persists, refer to the section of your RDBMS documentation relating to error messages. 9. Click Next. Oracle Client is the Data Access driver for the Oracle middlewareDoing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 Designer’s Guide 47 10. The Advanced Parameter page appears. You can set connection time, array fetch, and set locked resource options from this page. Refer to the Data Access Guide for a full description of advanced options. You can access the Data access Guide by selecting Help > Data Access from Designer. 11. You can accept the default advanced settings, or type and select advanced options. Click Next. 12. The Custom page appears. You can customize the settings for listed parameters. Refer to the Data Access Guide for a full description of Custom settings. 13. Accept the default, or modify the listed settings. 14. Click Finish. If you created the connection from the Universe Parameters dialog box, the Universe Parameters dialog box appears with the new connection listed in the Connection box. If you created the connection from the Connections dialog box, the Connections appears. the new connection is now in the list. Click Finish to close the list. Viewing available connections You can view all available stored connections in the Connections list. You can edit existing connections, and create new connections. To view available connections: 1. Select Tools > Connections.Doing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 48 Designer’s GuideThe Connections list appears. It displays all the connections available to the current universe. 2. Click Cancel to close the dialog box. You can edit connections from the Connections dialog box. You can edit a secured connection only if you are working in online mode. Personal and Shared connections can be modified in any mode. You cannot modify the name of an existing connection. Editing a connection To edit a connection: 1. Select Tools > Connections. The Connections list appears. 2. Click a connection name in the list of available connections. 3. Click the Edit button. The Login page for the connection appears. 4. Type a new data source, or database name in the Data Source or Service box if required. 5. Type modifications to login parameters as required. 6. Click Next. The Perform a Test page appears. 7. Click the Test Data Source button to verify the modified connection.Doing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 Designer’s Guide 49 8. Click Next to move to the Advanced and Custom pages. You can modify parameters as required. You can also accept the default or existing values. 9. Click Finish from the Custom page to apply the changes to the connection. Deleting a connection You can delete connections from the Connections list. You can delete a secured connection only if you are working in online mode. Personal and Shared connections can be deleted in any mode. To delete a connection: 1. Select Tools > Connections. The Connections list appears. 2. Select a connection name in the list. 3. Click the Remove button. A confirmation box appears. 4. Click Yes. The connection is removed from the list. Adding a new connection You can add a new connection from the Connections page by selecting Select Tools > Connections, clicking the Add button, and following the Define a new connection wizard. Full Instructions for following the connection wizard are in the section Adding a new connection. Viewing and entering summary information The Summary page displays universe administration information. You can use this information to help you keep track of the development of the active universe. The Summary page displays the following information: Information Description Created Universe creation date and the name of the creator. Modified Date of last modification and the name of the modifier. Revision Revision number which indicates the number of times the universe has been exported to the CMS.Doing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 50 Designer’s Guide Viewing and modifying summary information To view and modify summary information: 1. Select File > Parameters. Or Click the Parameters tool. The Universe parameters dialog box appears. 2. Click the Summary tab. The Summary page appears. 3. Type a comment in the Comment text box. 4. Click OK. Comments Information about universe for yourself or another designer. This information is only available in Designer. You should include information about the universe for users in the Description field on the Identification page. Statistics List of the number of classes, objects, tables, aliases, joins, contexts, and hierarchies contained in the universe. Information DescriptionDoing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 Designer’s Guide 51 Selecting strategies A strategy is a script that automatically extracts structural information from a database or flat file. Strategies have two principle roles: • Automatic join and cardinality detection (Join strategies) • Automatic class, object, and join creation (Objects and Joins strategies) Strategies can be useful if you want to automate the detection and creation of structures in your universe based on the SQL structures in the database. Note: Strategies that automate the creation of universe structures are not necessarily an essential part of universe design and creation. They can be useful if you are creating a universe quickly, allowing you to use metadata information that already exists in a database or database design tool. However, if you are building a universe by creating objects and joins that are based on relationships that come directly from a user needs analysis, then you will probably not use the automatic creation possibilities that strategies offer. In Designer you can specify two types of strategies: Selecting a strategy To select a strategy: 1. Select File > Parameters. Or Click the Parameters tool. The Universe parameters dialog box appears. 2. Click the Strategies tab. Strategy Description Built in strategy Default strategy shipped with Designer. Built in strategies can not be customized. External strategy User defined script that contains the same type of information as a Built in strategy, but customized to optimize information retrieval from a database.Doing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 52 Designer’s GuideThe Strategies page appears. 3. Select a strategy from the Objects, Joins, or Tables drop-down list boxes. 4. Click OK. Using built-in strategies Built-in strategies are default strategies that are shipped with Designer. There are built-in strategies for all supported databases. These cannot be modified. Built-in strategies appear by default before external strategies in the strategy drop-down lists.Doing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 Designer’s Guide 53 You can use built-in strategies for the following purposes: Table 2-1 :* These automatic creation uses for strategies must be activated from the Database page of the Options dialog box. Using the Objects strategy The Objects strategies are used only for creating classes and objects automatically when you add a table to the table schema. To use this strategy you must activate it from the Database page of the Options dialog box. For more details see the section “Using the automatic creation functions of a strategy” on page 54. Using the Joins strategy The selected Joins strategy determines how Designer automatically detects cardinalities and joins in your table schema. Depending on your database, there can be one or more Join strategies in the list. For example, when using Oracle databases, you can specify a Join strategy to automatically detect joins based either on matching column names, or matching column number names. If you do not select a strategy, Designer uses the default Joins strategy which matches columns names to detect joins. The use of the selected join strategy to detect joins does not have to be activated. The strategy is always used when you choose to detect the joins or cardinalities in your table schema. Strategy Used for... Objects Automatic creation of default classes and objects when tables are created in the table schema.* Joins • Automatic extraction of default joins when tables are created in the table schema.* • Automatic insertion of cardinality at join creation.* • Automatic detection of joins in table schema. When you select Tools > Automated Detection > Detect Joins, Designer uses the strategy to automatically detect candidate joins. You can choose to implement the joins or not. • Automatic detection and insertion of cardinalities for existing joins in the table schema. When you select Tools > Automated Detection > Detect Cardinalities, Designer uses the strategy to detect cardinalities for joins selected in the table schema. Tables Filtering information available for tables in the table browser.Doing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 54 Designer’s Guide The Joins strategy is also used to automatically create joins and implement cardinality when joins are created. To use the automatic default creation functions of this strategy you must activate it from the Database page of the Options dialog box. For more details see the section “Using the automatic creation functions of a strategy” on page 54. Using the Tables strategy The selected table strategy reads the structure of database tables. Depending on the strategy, the strategy could determine what sort of information is shown in the table browser. For example column data types and descriptions. Using the automatic creation functions of a strategy The automatic creation and insertion functions of strategies are not activated by default. To use these functions, you must select the Default Creation check box that corresponds to the strategy that you want to apply at object or join creation. These are listed on the Database page of the Options dialog box (Tools > Options > database) shown below. Select check box to activate automatic create function for a strategyDoing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 Designer’s Guide 55 Each default creation option on the Database page is described as follows: To select default creation options for strategies: 1. Select Tools > Options The Options dialog box appears. 2. Click the Database Tab. The Database page appears. 3. Select the check box that corresponds to the default creation function for which you want to use the strategy. 4. Click OK. Option When cleared When selected Extract joins with tables Joins must be created manually. If you select Tools > Automated Detection > Detect Joins, then Designer uses the strategy to detect joins and proposes candidate joins. You can choose to implement the candidate joins or not. Retrieves tables with the joins that link them according to the selected Join strategy. Detect cardinalities in joins Cardinalities must be manually defined. If you select Tools > Automated Detection > Detect Cardinalities, then Designer uses the strategy to detect and implement cardinalities for selected joins. Detects and implements the cardinalities inherent in the joins at join creation. Create default classes and objects from tables Classes and objects must be created manually, either by creating directly in the Universe pane, or by dragging a table or column from the Structure pane to the Universe pane. Default classes and objects are created in the Universe pane automatically when a table is added to the Structure pane. A class corresponds to the table name, and objects correspond to column names. It replaces all underscore characters (_) with spacesDoing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 56 Designer’s Guide Setting the number of rows to be retrieved From the Database Options dialog box, you can also indicate the maximum number of rows to be retrieved from each table of the database. This only applies to the rows returned in Designer, and not for queries run in Web Intelligence. To set the number of rows retrieved: • Enter a value in the text box of the Maximum Number of Rows Fetched option. You can also click one or more times on the up or down arrow to increase or decrease the default value (100). Using external strategies An external strategy is a user defined SQL script that follows a defined output structure to perform customized automatic universe creation tasks. External strategies are stored in an external XML strategy file (.STG). SQL scripts in this file appear in the drop down list on the Strategies page with the other strategies. External strategies contain the same type of information as the built-in strategies, but are often customized to allow Designer to retrieve a specific type of database information, or to optimize how information is retrieved from the database. For complete information on defining external strategies, see the section “Using external strategies to customize universe creation” on page 413. Indicating resource controls Designer offers a number of options that let you control the use of system resources. Doing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 Designer’s Guide 57 You can specify the following limitations on system resources: Entering resource control information To enter resource control information: 1. Select File > Parameters. or Click the Parameters tool. The Universe parameters dialog box appears. 2. Click the Controls tab. Query Limits Description Limit size of result set to a specified value The number of rows that are returned in a query are limited to the number that you specify. This limits the number of rows returned to Web Intelligence, but does not restrict the RDBMS from processing all rows in the query. It only limits the number once the RDBMS has started to send rows. Limit execution time to a specified value Query execution time is limited to the number of minutes that you specify. See the section “Limiting execution time for queries generating more than one SQL statement” on page 58 for more details on this option. This limits the time that data is sent to Web Intelligence, but does not stop the process on the database. Limit size of long text objects to a specified value You specify the maximum number of characters for long text objects. Note: When this check box is not selected, the parameter is not activated. It is automatically set to the default maximum value (1000). To ensure that you allow results larger than the default, the check box must be selected, and a value entered.Doing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 58 Designer’s GuideThe Controls page appears. 3. Select a check box in the Query Limits group box. 4. Type a value in the text box that corresponds to the selected Query Limit option. You can click the up and down arrows at the end of the text boxes to increase or decrease the value entered. 5. Click OK. Limiting execution time for queries generating more than one SQL statement The time limit that you specify for query execution is the total execution time for a query. If the query contains multiple SQL statements, then each statement is given an execution time equal to the total query execution time divided by the number of statements, so each statement in the query has the same execution time. If one statement requires a lot more time than others to run, it may not complete, as its execution time will not correspond to its allotted execution time within the query. When you specify an execution time limit for multiple SQL statements, you need to take into account the normal execution time of the single statement that takes the longest time to run, and multiply this value by the number of statements in the query.Doing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 Designer’s Guide 59 Indicating SQL restrictions You can set controls on the types of queries that end users can formulate from the Query pane in Web Intelligence. You can indicate controls for the following areas of query generation: • Use of subqueries, operators, and complex operands in individual queries. • Generation of multiple SQL statements. • Prevent or warn about the occurrence of a cartesian product. Each of these sets of controls is described in the following sections: Query controlsYou can set the following controls for individual queries: Multiple SQL statements controls You can set the following controls to determine how multiple SQL statements are handled: Option Description Allow use of union, intersect and minus operators Enables end users to combine queries using data set operators (union, intersect, and minus) to obtain one set of results. Option Description Multiple SQL statements for each context Enables end users to create queries that contain multiple SQL statements when using a context. Select this option if you have any contexts in the universe.Doing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 60 Designer’s Guide Cartesian product controls A Cartesian product is a result set which contains all the possible combinations of each row in each table included in a query. A Cartesian product is almost always an incorrect result. You can set the following controls for the production of a Cartesian product. Entering SQL restriction options To enter SQL restriction options: 1. Select File > Parameters. Or Click the Parameters tool. The Universe parameters dialog box appears. 2. Click the SQL tab. Multiple SQL statements for each measure Splits SQL into several statements whenever a query includes measure objects derived from columns in different tables. See the section Using Multiple SQL Statements for Each Measure for more information on using this option. If the measure objects are based on columns in the same table, then the SQL is not split, even if this option is checked. Allow selection of multiple contexts Enables end users to create queries on objects in more than one context and to generate one set of results from multiple contexts. If you are using contexts to resolve loops, chasm traps, fan traps, or any other join path problems, then you should clear this check box. Option Description Option Description Prevent When selected, no query that results in a cartesian product is executed. Warn When selected, a warning message informs the end user that the query would result in a Cartesian product.Doing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 Designer’s Guide 61 The SQL page appears. 3. Select or clear options in the Query and Multiple Paths group boxes. 4. Select a radio button in the Cartesian Product group box. 5. Click OK. Indicating options for linked universes The Links tab is used with dynamically linked universes, a subject covered in the Managing universes chapter. Setting SQL generation parameters In Designer, you can dynamically configure certain SQL parameters that are common to most RDBMS to optimize the SQL generated in Web Intelligence products using the universe. Using parameter (PRM) files in previous versions of Designer In versions prior to Designer 6.5, the SQL generation parameters used by a universe were maintained and edited in a separate file called a parameters (PRM) file. The values set in the PRM file applied to all universes using the associated data access driver defined for a connection. Many of the SQL parameters that are used to optimize query generation are now controlled within an individual universe file. The PRM file is now no longer used for the query generation parameters that you can set in Designer. PRM files are still used for parameters that are database specific.Doing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 62 Designer’s Guide Note: See the Data Access Guide for more information on the PRM file for your data access driver. You can access this guide by selecting Help > Data Access Guide. Setting the SQL parameters dynamically in Designer Many of the parameters common to most supported RDBMS middleware are available for editing in the Parameters tab in the universe parameters dialog box (File > Parameters > Parameter). These parameters apply only to the active universe, and are saved in the UNV file. When you modify an SQL parameter for a universe in Designer, the value defined in Designer is used, and not the value defined in the PRM file associated with the data access driver for the connection. Editing SQL generation parameters You can modify the values for SQL parameters that determine SQL generation in products using the universe. To edit SQL generation parameters: 1. Select File > Parameters. The Parameters dialog box appears. 2. Click the Parameter tab. The Parameter page appears.Doing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 Designer’s Guide 63 3. Edit, add, or remove parameters as follows: 4. Click OK. Note: The SQL generation parameter values that you set in a universe, are only available to products using that universe. Universe SQL parameters reference This section provides an alphabetical reference for the SQL generation parameters listed in the Parameter page of the Universe Parameters dialog box in Designer. These are SQL parameters that are common to most data access drivers. Each parameter is valid for the universe in which it is set. Other RDBMS specific and connection parameters are listed in the data access parameter (PRM) file for the target data access driver. Refer to the Data Access guide for a reference to the parameters in the PRM file. ANSI92 ANSI92 = Yes|No To... then do the following: Add a new parameter 1. Click any parameter in the list. 2. Type a name in the Name box 3. Type a value in the Value box. 4. Click Add. 5. The new value appears at the bottom of the list Change name or value 1. Click a parameter in the list. 2. Type a new name in the Name box 3. Type a new value in the Value box. 4. Click Replace. The value is replaced by the new definition. Delete a parameter 1. Click the parameter that you want to remove from the list. 2. Click Delete. Values Yes|No Default No Description Specifies whether the SQL generated complies to the ANSI92 standard. Yes: Enables the SQL generation compliant to ANSI92 standard. No: SQL generation behaves according to the PRM parameter OUTER_JOIN_GENERATION.Doing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 64 Designer’s Guide AUTO_UPDATE_QUERY AUTO_UPDATE_QUERY = Yes|No BLOB_COMPARISON BLOB_COMPARISON = Yes|No Values Yes|No Default Yes Description Determines what happens when an object in a query is not available to a user profile. Yes: Query is updated and the object is removed from the query. No: Object is kept in the query. Values Yes|No Default No Can be edited? No Description Species if a query can be generated with a DISTINCT statement when a BLOB file is used in the SELECT statement. It is related to the setting No Duplicate Row in the query properties. Yes: The DISTINCT statement can be used within the query. No: The DISTINCT statement cannot be used within the query even if the query setting No Duplicate Row is on. Doing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 Designer’s Guide 65 BOUNDARY_WEIGHT_TABLE BOUNDARY_WEIGHT_TABLE = Integer 32bits [0-9] COLUMNS_SORT COLUMNS_SORT = Yes|No COMBINE_WITHOUT_PARENTHESIS COMBINE_WITHOUT_PARENTHESIS=No Values Integer 32bits [0-9] Default -1 Description Allows you to optimize the FROM clause when tables have many rows. If the table size is greater than the entered value, the table is declared as a subquery: FROM (SELECT col1, col2,...., coln FROM Table_Name WHERE simple condition). A simple condition is defined as not having a subquery, and not having EXCEPT or BOTH operators. Limitations Optimization is not implemented when: • the operator OR is in the query condition • only one table is involved in the SQL • the query contains an outer join • no condition is defined on the table that is being optimized • the table being optimized is a derived table. Values YES Columns are displayed in alphabetical order NO Columns are displayed in the order they were retrieved from the database Default No Description Determines the order that columns are displayed in tables in the Structure pane. Values YES Removes the parentheses. NO Leaves the parentheses. Default No Description Specifies whether or not to encapsulate a query with parentheses when it contains UNION, INTERSECT or MINUS operators. Used with RedBrick.Doing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 66 Designer’s Guide COMBINED_WITH_SYNCHRO COMBINED_WITH_SYNCHRO = Y|N CORE_ORDER_PRIORITY CORE_ORDER_PRIORITY = Yes|No Values Yes|No Default No Description Specifies whether to allow a query to execute that contains UNION, INTERSECTION, or EXCEPT operators, and whose objects in each subquery are incompatible. Yes: Specifies that you do allow a query to execute that contains UNION, INTERSECTION and EXCEPT operators, and whose objects in each subquery are incompatible. This type of query generates synchronization (two blocks in the report). No: Specifies that you do not allow a query to execute that contains UNION, INTERSECTION and EXCEPT operators, and whose objects in each subquery are incompatible. When the query is executed the following error message is displayed: “This query is too complex. One of the subqueries contains incompatible objects.” This is the default value. Values Yes|No Default Yes Description Specifies in which order you want classes and objects to be organized once two or more universes are linked in Designer. Yes: Specifies that classes and objects follow the order defined in the kernel universe. No: Specifies that classes and objects follow the order defined in the derived universe. This is the default value.Doing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 Designer’s Guide 67 CORRECT_AGGREGATED_CONDITIONS_IF_DRILL CORRECT_AGGREGATED_CONDITIONS_IF_DRILL = Yes|No CUMULATIVE_OBJECT_WHERE CUMULATIVE_OBJECT_WHERE = Y|N Values Yes|No Default No Description Specifies whether Web Intelligence can aggregate measures in queries and conditions. Yes: Web Intelligence can aggregate measures separately in the main query and the condition, if the query is drill enabled. No: Web Intelligence cannot aggregate measures separately in the main query and the condition, if the query is drill enabled. Values Yes|No Default No Description Specifies the order of WHERE clauses that have the AND connective. Yes: Specifies that WHERE clauses that have the AND connective are set at the end of the condition. No: Specifies that WHERE clauses follow standard SQL syntax. Example: If the condition is find all French clients different from John or American cities different from New York, the SQL is then: WHERE (customer.first_name <> ‘John’) OR (city.city <> ‘New York’) AND customer_country.country = ‘France’ AND city_country.country = ‘USA’Doing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 68 Designer’s Guide DECIMAL_COMMA DECIMAL_COMMA = Yes|No DISTINCT_VALUES DISTINCT_VALUES = GROUPBY|DISTINCT Values Yes|No Default Yes Description Specifies that Business Objects products insert a comma as a decimal separator when necessary. Yes: Business Objects products insert a comma as a decimal separator when necessary. No: Business Objects products do not insert a comma as a decimal separator. This is the default value. Values GROUPBY|DISTINCT Default DISTINCT Description Specifies whether SQL is generated with a DISTINCT or GROUPBY clause in a list of values and Query pane when the option “Do not retrieve duplicate rows” is active. DISTINCT: The SQL is generated with a DISTINCT clause, for example; SELECT DISTINCT cust_name FROM Customers GROUPBY: The SQL is generated with a GROUP BY clause, for example; SELECT cust_name FROM Customers GROUPBY cust_nameDoing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 Designer’s Guide 69 END_SQL END_SQL = String EVAL_WITHOUT_PARENTHESIS EVAL_WITHOUT_PARENTHESIS = Yes|No Values String Default Description The statement specified in this parameter is added at the end of each SQL statement. Example For IBM DB2 databases, you can use the following: END_SQL=FOR SELECT ONLY The server will read blocks of data much faster. Values Yes|No Default No Description By default, the function @Select(Class\object) is replaced by the Select statement for the object enclosed within brackets. For example, when combining two @Select statements, @select(objet1) *@select(objet2). If the SQL(objet1) = A-B and SQL(objet2) =C, then the operation is (A-B) * (C). You avoid the default adding of brackets by setting EVAL_WITHOUT_PARENTHESIS = Yes. The operation is then A -B * C. Yes: Brackets are removed from the Select statement for a function @Select(Class\object) No: Brackets are added around the Select statement for the function @Select(Class\object).Doing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 70 Designer’s Guide FILTER_IN_FROM FILTER_IN_FROM = Yes|No FIRST_LOCAL_CLASS_PRIORITY FIRST_LOCAL_CLASS_PRIORITY = Yes|No FORCE_SORTED_LOV FORCE_SORTED_LOV = Yes|No Values Yes|No Default No Description Determines if query conditions are included in the FROM Clause. This setting is only applicable if the other universe parameter setting ANSI92 is set to Yes. Yes: When editing an outer join, the default behavior property selected in the drop down list box of the Advanced Join properties dialog box in Designer, is set to "All objects in FROM". No: When editing an outer join, the default behavior property selected in the drop down list box of the Advanced Join properties dialog box in Designer is set to "No object in FROM". Values Yes|No Default No Description Only taken into account when CORE_ORDER_PRIORITY=Yes. Yes: Classes in derived universe are placed first. No: Objects and sub classes from derived universe appear after those of the core universe. Values Yes|No Default No Description Retrieves a list of values that is sorted. Yes: Specifies that the list of values is sorted. No: Specifies that the list of values is not sorted.Doing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 Designer’s Guide 71 MAX_INLIST_VALUES MAX_INLIST_VALUES = 99] PATH_FINDER_OFF Parameter is not listed by default. You must add the parameter manually to the lust and set a value. See “Editing SQL generation parameters” on page 62. PATH_FINDER_OFF= Y|N Values Integer: min 0, max 256 Default 99 Description Allows you to increase to 256 the number of values you may enter in a condition when you use the IN LIST operator. 99: Specifies that you may enter up to 99 values when you create a condition using the IN LIST operator. This is the default value. 256: Specifies that you may enter up to 256 values when you create a condition using the IN LIST operator. 256 is the maximum authorized value you may enter. Values Y|N Default No default. You must manually enter the parameter. Description Used for HPIW because the join generation is done by the database. Y: Joins are NOT generated in the query. N: Joins are generated in the query. This is the default behavior.Doing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 72 Designer’s Guide REPLACE_COMMA_BY_CONCAT REPLACE_COMMA_BY_SEPARATOR= Yes|No SHORTCUT_BEHAVIOR SHORTCUT_BEHAVIOR = Global|Successive Values Yes|No Default Yes Description In previous versions of Designer, a comma could be used to separate multiple fields in an object Select statement. The comma was treated as a concatenation operator. For universes that already use the comma in this way you can set REPLACE_COMMA_BY_SEPARATOR to No to keep this behavior. In the current version of Designer, this parameter is set to Yes by default, so that a expressions using a comma in this way are automatically changed to use concatenation syntax. Yes: Comma is replaced by the concatenation expression when multi field object is found. No: Keep the comma as it is. Values Global|Successive Default Successive Description Specifies how shortcut joins are applied. This parameter was formerly listed as GLOBAL_SHORTCUTS in the PRM files. The values have been changed to Global for Yes, and Successive for No. Global: Specifies that shortcut joins are considered one by one. A shortcut join is applied only if it really bypasses one or more tables, and if it does not remove a table from the join path used by a following shortcut join. Successive: Specifies that all shortcut joins are applied. Note: If it generates a Cartesian product, no shortcut joins are applied.Doing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 Designer’s Guide 73 THOROUGH_PARSE THOROUGH_PARSE = Yes|No TRUST_CARDINALITIES TRUST_CARDINALITIES = Yes|No UNICODE_STRINGS UNICODE_STRINGS = Yes|No Values Yes|No Default No Description Specifies the methodology used for default Parsing in the Query pane and individual object parsing. Yes: PREPARE, DESCRIBE, and EXECUTE statements are used to parse SQL for objects. Prepare+DescribeCol+Execute No: PREPARE and DESCRIBE statements are used to parse SQL for objects. Values Yes|No Default No Description Allows you to optimize the SQL in case of inflated results. Yes: For queries that include a measure, all conditions that inflate the measure and do not appear in the Result Objects, are transformed to sub queries to ensure that tables that may return false results for the measure are not included in the query. No: No optimization is implemented. Values Yes|NoDoing basic operations Setting universe parameters 2 74 Designer’s Guide Default No Description Specifies whether the current universe can manipulate Unicode strings or not. Only applies to Microsoft SQL Server and Oracle 9. If the database character set in the SBO file is set as Unicode, then it is necessary to modify the SQL generation to handle specific Unicode column types like NCHAR and NVARCHAR. Yes: Conditions based on strings are formatted in the SQL according to the value for a parameter UNICODE_PATTERN in the PRM file, for example for MS SQL Server (sqlsrv.prm): UNICODE_PATTERN=N$ The condition Customer_name='Arai ' becomes Customer_name=N'Arai'. Note: When you create a prompt with @Prompt syntax based on Unicode value, the datatype should be 'U' not 'C' No: All conditions based on strings are formatted in the standard SQL. For example the condition Customer_name='Arai ' remains Customer_name='Arai' Doing basic operations Using the Designer user interface 2 Designer’s Guide 75 Using the Designer user interface The Designer interface user interface complies with Microsoft Windows standards. It features windows, menus, toolbars, shortcut keys, and online help. The main components of the user interface Each universe is contained within a single universe window, which is contained within the Designer main window. You also use an independent window called a Table browser which shows all the tables available in the connected database. Universe window The universe window is divided into two panes: Table browserThe Table browser is a window that displays the tables available in the connected database. You can insert tables into the Structure pane by selecting the table and dragging it into the Structure pane, or by doubleclicking the appropriate table in the Table browser. You can display the Table browser by any of the following methods: • Double-click the Structure pane background. • Right-click the Structure pane background and select Insert Table from the contextual menu. • Select Insert > Tables. Note: Using the table browser is described fully in the Designing a Schema chapter. Pane Displays Structure Graphical representation of the underlying target database of the universe. It includes the tables and joins to which you map objects that end users use to run their queries. Universe Classes and objects defined in the universe. These are the components of the universe that Web Intelligence users see and use to create their queries.Doing basic operations Using the Designer user interface 2 76 Designer’s Guide the Designer user interface The main components of the interface are labeled below: Manipulating windows You can use the windows in the Designer user interface in the following ways: • In a work session, you can work on more than one universe at a time. Designer displays each universe in one Structure pane and in one Universe pane. • Recently opened universes are listed at the bottom of the File menu. You can modify the number of universes listed by selecting Tools > Options > General, and indicating the number of universes in the Recent File List. • You can move, resize, or minimize any window within the Designer window. • You can position these windows in the way you find most convenient by Selecting Window > Arrange, and selecting Cascade, Tile Horizontally, or Tile Vertically. • You can line up all windows that were minimized in the Designer window by selecting Window > Arrange Icons. Structure pane Universe pane Formula bar Editing toolbar Standard toolbar Menu Minimized window Status bar Table BrowserDoing basic operations Using the Designer user interface 2 Designer’s Guide 77 Using toolbars The Designer window contains two sets of toolbars: the Standard toolbar and the Editing toolbar. By default, these toolbars are positioned within the Designer window as shown below: For either toolbar, the buttons that you can select depend on which pane is active the Universe pane or the Structure pane. Buttons that are not available are displayed as dimmed. The toolbars are dockable. You can drag a toolbar and position it anywhere in the universe window. Moving a toolbar To move a toolbar: 1. Click in an area within the rectangle containing the toolbar. The area is shown for both toolbars in the illustration above. 2. While keeping the left mouse button pressed, drag the toolbar to the desired location. 3. Release the mouse button. The toolbar is displayed independently. Hiding and showing toolbars To display or hide either toolbar alternately: 1. Select View > Toolbars. Standard toolbar Editing toolbarDoing basic operations Using the Designer user interface 2 78 Designer’s GuideThe Toolbars dialog box appears. 2. Select or clear check boxes corresponding to toolbars. 3. Select or clear options for the display of the toolbar buttons, tooltips, and shortcut keys listed at the bottom of the dialog box. 4. Click OK. Performing an action or operation in Designer In Designer, you perform an action or operation in the following ways: • Select a command from a menu • Press the Alt key and enter a shortcut key from the keyboard • Click a button on the toolbar. Using the mouse in Designer In Designer, you can use single and double mouse clicks as follows: Single click You use a single click for the following actions: • performing a standard action (selecting a command or clicking a button) • selecting an element from the Universe pane, the Structure pane, or the Table Browser. • If you select one or more components within the Designer window, a single-click with the right mouse button causes a pop-up menu to be displayed. It contains commands related to the components you selected.Doing basic operations Using Find and Replace 2 Designer’s Guide 79 Double click You can double click the following universe structures to affect display changes or modify properties: Undoing an Action You can undo a previously performed action in two ways: • Select Edit > Undo. • Click the Undo button. Using Find and Replace You can use Find to locate characters or a text string in both the universe and structure panes. You can use Find and Replace to locate and replace characters or text in the names and descriptions for any structure in the universe. Using FindYou can search for text contained in universe structures in the universe and structure panes. Double click... Result... An empty space in the Structure pane Table Browser appears. A table in the Structure pane Modifies table display. A table and its columns can be displayed in one of three views. Refer to the section “Changing table display” on page 86 for more information. A join in the Structure pane Edit Join dialog box for the join appears. You can modify join properties from this dialog box. A class in the Universe pane Edit Properties dialog box for the class appears. You can modify class properties from this dialog box. An object in Universe pane. Edit Properties dialog box for the object appears. You can modify object properties from this dialog box. A Condition object in the Condition view of Universe pane Edit Properties dialog box for the condition object appears. You can modify object properties from this dialog box. UndoDoing basic operations Using Find and Replace 2 80 Designer’s Guide Setting Find options The Find options available are dependant on whether the Universe pane or the Structure pane is active. You can set the following search options to locate a string: Searching in a universe To search in a universe: 1. Click in the Universe or Structure pane. You want to find a string in this pane. 2. Select Edit > Find. Option Option is available... Description Find What When Universe or Structure pane is active Text string to search. Match Case When Universe or Structure pane is active Include upper and lower case character match in search. Match whole word only When Universe or Structure pane is active Match on entire string. Look also in names When Universe pane is active When selected, searches class and object names or predefined condition names only. When cleared, class, object or predefined condition names are not included in search. Look also in descriptions When Universe pane is active When selected, includes all descriptions of universe structures in search. Look also in SQL When Universe pane is active When selected, includes SQL definitions of objects, joins, and other universe structures in search.Doing basic operations Using Find and Replace 2 Designer’s Guide 81 The Find and Replace box appears. The box for an active Universe pane is below. The box for an active Structure pane appears below. 3. Type a character or a string in the Find What text box. 4. Select or clear search option text boxes. 5. Click Find Next. When a character or string is found in the universe pane, the object is highlighted. When an instance is found in an object description, or SQL definition, the object properties box is opened automatically, and the character or string highlighted. 6. Click Find Next to search for another instance of the search string. 7. Click Cancel to close the Find box. Searching and replacing in a universe To search and replace a character or string in a universe: 1. Select Edit > Replace Next. The Find and Replace box appears.Doing basic operations Using Find and Replace 2 82 Designer’s Guide 2. Type a character or a string in the Find What text box. 3. Type a character or a string in the Replace box. This is the text item that you want to replace an instance of the contents of the Find What box. 4. Select or clear search option text boxes. 5. Click Replace if you want to replace a text item each time an instance is found. Or Click Replace All to automatically replace all instances in the universe. If you replace found items individually, the object properties box automatically opens and becomes the active box when an item appears in an object description. You need to click the Find and Replace box to continue the search. Using Quick Find You can search the active pane by typing the first letter of the search string in a search box at the bottom of the Universe pane. Quick Find text boxDoing basic operations Organizing the table display 2 Designer’s Guide 83 If the Universe pane is active, the search is performed on class and object names. If the Structure pane is active, the search is performed on table names. Organizing the table display This section describes the graphic features that you can use to organize and manipulate tables in the structure pane. The design methodology that you use to design the schema, and what you need to know to create a successful schema in the Structure pane, is described in the chapter Creating a schema with tables and joins. How are tables represented? In the Structure pane, tables are represented graphically as rectangular symbols. The name of the table appears within a strip in the upper part of the rectangle. The list of items within the rectangle represents the columns of the table. The lines connecting the tables are the joins. Manipulating tables You can perform the following actions to manipulate tables in the Structure pane:Doing basic operations Organizing the table display 2 84 Designer’s Guide Selecting tables You can select tables as follows: To undo a selection, place the pointer away from the tables and click again. Deleting tablesTo delete a table: 1. Select a table. 2. Do one of the following actions: • Click the Cut button on the Standard toolbar. • Select Edit > Cut. • Press the Delete key. To select... Do the following... One table Click the table. Several tables • Hold left mouse button down while drawing a selection border around the tables. • Click multiple tables while holding down the SHIFT key. All tables at once Select Edit > Select All. CutDoing basic operations Organizing the table display 2 Designer’s Guide 85 Using List mode You can use List Mode to list the tables, joins, and contexts used in the active universe. In List Mode Designer adds three panes above the display of the Structure pane. These panes are labeled Tables, Joins, and Contexts as shown below: You can use List Mode in the following ways: Action Result Click a listed component in any of the List mode panes. Component is highlighted in Structure pane. Select a table, join, or context in the Structure pane. Corresponding listed component in List pane is highlighted. Double click a table name in the Table pane. Rename Table box appears. You can rename the table and depending on the database, edit table owner and qualifier. Double click a join name in the Joins pane. Edit Join box for the join appears. You can edit join properties. Double click a context name in the Contexts pane. Edit Context box appears. You can add joins to the selected context by pressing CTRL and clicking joins in the list. Table pane Joins pane Contexts paneDoing basic operations Organizing the table display 2 86 Designer’s Guide Using the triangles between panes to filter listed components The small triangles that appear between the panes act as filters on the display of the components. For example: • You click a table name in the Tables pane, and then click the triangle pointing to the Joins pane. The Joins pane now shows only the joins of the selected table. • You click a join name in the Joins pane, and then click the triangle pointing to the Tables pane. The Tables pane now only shows the tables linked by the join. Returning to normal view from List Mode You can remove List view and return to normal view in two ways: • When in List Mode, select View > List Mode. • When in List Mode, click the List Mode button. Arranging tables automatically You can automatically arrange the tables in the structure pane in two ways: • Select View > Arrange tables. • Click the Arrange button. Changing table display You can display three different views of a table. Each type of view acts as a filter on the amount of information shown in the table symbol. Click a component then click a triangle between two List panes. Components in neighboring list pane related to original component are displayed. All nonrelated components are filtered out. Click on separator line between List pane and Structure pane, then drag line up or down. List pane enlarges or decreases size depending on drag direction. Action Result List Mode ArrangeDoing basic operations Organizing the table display 2 Designer’s Guide 87 Each view is described as follows: Each table view is shown as follows: Default table view A table symbol with the first eight columns is shown below. The ellipsis (...) appears after the last column when there are more then the default number of columns in a table. The scroll bar appears when you click the table once. You can enlarge a table by dragging the lower border of the table downward. Table name only view You can display only table names in a table symbol as follows: • Double click a table. Table view Description Default Each table is displayed with up to eight columns. You can modify this value. Refer to the section “Selecting schema display options” on page 89 for more information. Name only Only table names are displayed in the table symbols. This reduces potential clutter in the Structure pane when you have many tables. Join columns Only columns involved in joins between tables are shown in each table symbol. These are usually key columns.Doing basic operations Organizing the table display 2 88 Designer’s Guide The tables to the left of the Structure pane below are table name only views. Join columns table view You can display only join columns in a table symbol as follows: • Double click a table that is already in name only view. The tables to the left of the Structure pane below show only the join columns. Changing the display for all tables To change the view of all selected tables simultaneously: • Select View > Change Table Display. Tables only show join columns Tables show default number of columnsDoing basic operations Selecting schema display options 2 Designer’s Guide 89 Selecting schema display options You can customize the shape or appearance of the tables, columns, joins, and cardinalities in the Structure pane. You have the following graphical options for the display of components in the structure pane: Setting graphic options for the Structure pane display You can set graphic options for the components of the Structure pane as follows: 1. Select Tools > Options. The Options dialog box appears. 2. Click the Graphics tab. The Graphics page appears. It lists graphic options for components in the structure pane. Option Description Join shape Joins can be represented as different types of simple lines, or as lines that include cardinality indicators such as crows feet ends, or cardinality ratios. Best Side When selected the join linking two tables is automatically evaluated as being better displayed on the left or right side of one table, ending on the left or right side of another table, and having the shortest length. Tables Tables can have 3D effect, show an aliased name, or show the number of rows. To display the number of rows in each table, you also need to refresh the row count by selecting View > Number of Rows in Table. This is described in the section “Viewing the number of rows in database tables” on page 94. Columns A column data type can be displayed next to the column. Key columns can be underlined, and columns can also be shown left justified in the table symbol, or centered. Default number of columns You can type the default number of columns that are shown in a table symbol. If a table has more than the default number, the table symbol appears with an ellipsis (...) at the end of the column list. When you click the table once, a scroll bar appears at the side of the table. Center on selection The view of the Structure pane based on a calculated center point.Doing basic operations Selecting schema display options 2 90 Designer’s Guide 3. Select or type graphic display options. 4. Click OK. Examples of graphical options The following are some examples of the possible graphical representations of components in the structure pane using the graphical options available in the Options dialog box (Tools > Options > Graphics). Aliased name When selected an aliased table in the Structure pane is displayed both with its name and the name of the table from which it is derived, in parentheses, as shown below. Show Row Count and Show Format When Show Row Count is selected the number of rows in each table appears at the bottom of each table symbol. You need to select View > Number of rows in Table to refresh row numbers for all tables before the row count is displayed. When Show Format is selected, a letter representing the column type appears beside the column name. The column type can be: • C for character • D for date • N for number • T for long text • L for blob (binary large object).Doing basic operations Selecting schema display options 2 Designer’s Guide 91 In the Structure pane shown below, the numbers appear below the lower left corner of the tables, the data types next to the columns. Viewing table and column values You can view the data values of a particular table or column. The default number of rows that you can view for any table is 100. You can change this value to return more or less rows depending on your needs. Viewing the values of a table To view the values in a table: 1. Click the table in the Structure pane. 2. Select View > Table Values.Doing basic operations Selecting schema display options 2 92 Designer’s GuideA content dialog box for the table appears listing the values for each column in the table. 3. Select the Distinct Values check box if you want to show only distinct values. 4. Click Close. Viewing the values of a column When viewing column values you can enlarge the view of the columns by selecting View > Zoom In. This makes it easier to select a column. You can view the values for an individual column as follows: 1. Place the pointer over a table column in the Structure pane. The pointer is transformed into a hand symbol. 2. Right click the column and select View Column Values from the contextual menu.Doing basic operations Selecting schema display options 2 Designer’s Guide 93 A content dialog box for the column appears listing the column values. 3. Select the Distinct Values check box if you want to show only distinct values. 4. Click Close. Modifying the default value for number of returned rows You can modify the default value for the number of rows returned when you view table or column values. This can be useful if you only want to view a small sample of the values in a table, so you can restrict the returned values to a smaller number. To modify the number of rows fetched for a table: 1. Select Tools > Options. The Options dialog box appears. 2. Click the Database tab. The Database page appears. 3. Type or select a number using the up and down arrows from the Table and Column Values list box.Doing basic operations Selecting schema display options 2 94 Designer’s GuideThe Database page below has 20 rows specified to be returned when values are viewed for a table or column. 4. Click OK. Viewing the number of rows in database tables You can display the number of rows in each table. You do this in two stages: • Activate the graphic option Show Row Count (Tools > Options > Graphics), • Refresh the row count for all tables by selecting View > Number of Rows in Table. You can display the number of rows in each table in the database, or you can set a fixed number of rows for a selected table to optimize query performance. This allows you to control the order of tables in a From clause, which is based on table weight. This is described in the section “Modifying the row count of a table” on page 96. Note: Displaying the number of rows in a table is not the same as setting the number of rows that are returned to view table or column values. Displaying number of rows in tables To display the number of rows in each table: 1. Select Tools > Options.Doing basic operations Selecting schema display options 2 Designer’s Guide 95 The Options dialog box appears. 2. Click the Graphics tab. The Graphics page appears. 3. Select the Show Row Count check box. 4. Click OK. 5. Select one or more tables. Or Click anywhere in the Structure pane and select Edit > Select All to select all the tables in the structure pane. Note: When you click in the Structure pane, you activate the menu items that relate to the components in the Structure pane. If you do not click in the Structure pane before selecting a menu item, only the menu items that apply to the Universe pane are available. 6. Select View > Number of rows in Table. The Table Row count box appears. The options in this dialog box are described below: Option Description Refresh row count for all tables Refreshes the display of the row count for selected tables, or all the tables in the Structure pane. Refresh undefined table row count only Displays the row count of tables that were previously not selected. As a result, all the tables in the Structure pane appear with their row count. Modify manually tables row count Lets you modify the row count for either selected tables or all the tables in the Structure pane. Enter the new value in the text box beside the option. This option is used for optimizing queries, a topic covered in the next section.Doing basic operations Selecting schema display options 2 96 Designer’s Guide 7. Select the Refresh Row Count for All Tables radio button. 8. Click OK. The row count for each selected table appears under the bottom left corner of each table symbol in the Structure pane. Modifying the row count of a table You can modify the row count of tables. Two reasons for doing this are as follows: To modify row count of one or more tables: 1. Select Tools > Options. The Options dialog box appears. 2. Click the Graphics tab. The Graphics page appears. 3. Select the Show Row Count check box. 4. Click OK. 5. Select one or more tables. Or Click anywhere in the Structure pane and select Edit > Select All to select all the tables in the structure pane. 6. Select View > Number of rows in Table. The Table Row count box appears. 7. Select the Modify Manually Tables Row Count radio button. Modify row count to... Description Optimize queries Query optimization is based on the order of the tables in the FROM clause of the generated SQL. Tables with many rows appear before tables with fewer rows. This order can be important especially for RDBMS that lack an optimizer feature. By modifying the row count of tables, you can change their order in the FROM clause. Adapt row count to a subsequent change in data capacity You can modify the row count of a table when the row count does not reflect the number of rows a table is to hold. For example, you can work with a test table having a row count of 100 even though the table will contain 50,000 rows.Doing basic operations Printing a universe 2 Designer’s Guide 97 8. Type the number of rows that you want to display for the table. 9. Click OK. The row count for each selected table appears under the bottom left corner of each table symbol in the Structure pane. Printing a universe Designer provides all standard Windows print facilities. You can print out the schema, as well as lists of the tables, columns, and joins in the Structure pane. You can also control the way the components and information appear on a printed page. Note: You can print out a PDF version of the universe definition and schema by saving the universe as a PDF> file, then printing the PDF file. See the section “Saving a universe definition as PDF” on page 34 for more information.Doing basic operations Printing a universe 2 98 Designer’s Guide Setting print options You can select print options from the Print page of the Options dialog box (Tools > Options > Print). The Print options that you set, also apply to the options that are saved to a PDF file when you save the universe definition as PDF. You can select the following print and PDF options: To set print options for a universe: 1. Select Tools > Options. The Options dialog box appears. 2. Click the Print/PDF tab. Print option Prints out... General information Information on the following: • Universe parameters • Linked universes The graphical structure of the schema in the Structural pane. You can select the scale for this graphic. Component lists Lists of components in the universe grouped by one or more of the following types: objects, conditions, hierarchies, tables, joins, and contexts. Component descriptions Descriptions for the following components: objects, conditions, hierarchies, tables, joins, and contexts. The description includes detailed information on the properties of the component. For an object, this information can include the SQL definition, qualification and security access level.Doing basic operations Printing a universe 2 Designer’s Guide 99 The Print page appears. 3. Select print option check boxes as required. 4. Click OK. Specifying Page Setup To specify page setup options: 1. Select File > Page Setup. The Page Setup sheet appears. 2. Select or type page setup options. 3. Click OK. Using Print Preview You can preview your universe before printing in two ways: • Select File > print Preview. • Click the Print Preview button. Print PreviewDoing basic operations Printing a universe 2 100 Designer’s Guide Printing the Universe You can print your universe in two ways: • Select file > Print. • Click the Print button. Printchapter Creating a schema with tables and joinsCreating a schema with tables and joins Overview 3 102 Designer’s Guide OverviewThis chapter describes how you can create a schema that contains all the SQL structures necessary to build the objects that Web Intelligence users use to build reports. These SQL structures include tables, columns, joins, and database functions. Building a correct schema is the basis for building a universe that meets all its end user reporting requirements. Note: $INSTALLDIR variable in this guide In this guide the variable $INSTALLDIR is the install root path for the data access files used by Designer and Web Intelligence. This is the Business Objects installation path with the operating system sub directory that contains the Designer executable and the data access drivers. Under Windows$INSTALLDIR = \\...\Business Objects\BusinessObjects Enterprise 11.5\win32_x86. For example C:\Program Files\Business Objects\BusinessObjects Enterprise 11.5\win32_x86. What is a schema? A schema is a graphical representation of database structures. In Designer you create a schema for the part of the database that your universe represents. The schema contains tables and joins. The tables contain columns that you eventually map to objects that end users use to create reports. The joins link the tables so that the correct data is returned for queries that are run on more than one table. You design the schema in the Structure pane by selecting tables from the target database using the Table Browser. You create joins to link the tables. When you have designed the schema for your universe, you can verify the schema using an automatic integrity check.Creating a schema with tables and joins What is a schema? 3 Designer’s Guide 103 A schema for the example Beach universe appears as follows: Schema design is the basis for a successful universe Good schema design is essential to good universe design. You populate the schema with tables based on the columns that correspond to the objects that end users need to create reports. These objects should be defined from a user needs analysis. You should be looking at the database for tables that allow you to create these necessary objects. Schema design and the universe creation process Creating a schema is the first phase of the implementation stage of the universe development cycle. The user analysis and planning phases can all be done without using Designer; however, creating your schema is the first step using Designer to build your universe. Table Join Cardinality indicator ColumnCreating a schema with tables and joins Inserting tables 3 104 Designer’s Guide The following diagram indicates where the schema design phase appears in a typical universe development cycle: What are the stages of schema design? This chapter covers the following stages of schema design: • Inserting and organizing tables. • Creating joins and setting cardinalities • Resolving join problems such as loops, chasm traps, and fan traps. • Testing the integrity of your schema. Inserting tables You start designing a schema by selecting tables from the target database and inserting symbols that represent the tables in the Structure pane. In Designer, the table symbols are referred to simply as tables. You use the Table Browser to select insert tables into your schema. The Table Browser is an independent window that shows a tree view of the tables available in the target database. Note: Before selecting tables, you can indicate strategies that you wish to use to help create your universe. For more information on this topic, see “Selecting strategies” on page 51.Creating a schema with tables and joins Inserting tables 3 Designer’s Guide 105 Using the Table Browser The Table Browser is an independent window that shows a tree view of the tables and columns in your target database. You use the Table Browser to view and select tables in your database that you want to insert into your schema. The Table Browser is shown below. You expand the node next to a table name to display the columns for the table. Activating the Table Browser The Table Browser is not visible by default. You must activate the Table Browser when you want to add tables to the Structure pane. You can activate the Table Browser using any of the methods listed below. To activate the Table Browser: • Select Insert > Tables. Or • Double click an empty space in the Structure pane. Or • Click the Table Browser button. The Table Browser window appears in the Structure pane. tables Click to add table(s) Refreshes the display of tables Table BrowserCreating a schema with tables and joins Inserting tables 3 106 Designer’s Guide Inserting Tables From the Table Browser You can use any one of the following methods to insert one or multiple tables using the Table Browser: Inserting a single table To insert a single table: • Click a table and click the Insert button. Or • Right click a table and select Insert from the contextual menu. Or • Double click a table. Or • Click a table and drag it into the Structure pane. The table appears in the Structure pane. Inserting multiple tables To insert multiple tables: 1. Hold down CTRL while you click individual tables. Or 2. Hold down SHIFT while you click the first table and last table in a continuous block of tables. Multiple tables are selected. 3. Click the Insert button. Or Drag the tables into the Structure pane. Or Right click the selected tables and select Insert form the contextual menu. Each table including all of its columns appears in the Structure pane. In the Table Browser any table that you insert in the universe is displayed with a check mark beside its name.Creating a schema with tables and joins Inserting tables 3 Designer’s Guide 107 Viewing data from the Table Browser You can use the Table Browser to view the data contained in a table, or in an individual column. To view data from the Table Browser: 1. Right click a table in the Table Browser Or Expand a table node in the Table Browser and right click a column for the table. 2. Select View Table Values from the contextual menu. Or Select View Column Values from the contextual menu. A box appears listing the data contained in the table or column. Tip: If columns are to narrow to see complete row values, you can widen columns by pressing the key combination CTRL-SHIFT and the ’+’ key on the numeric keypad.Creating a schema with tables and joins Inserting tables 3 108 Designer’s Guide Optimizing Table Browser Performance The time taken for a table to be inserted in the Structure pane from the Table Browser can vary depending on the following factors: Arranging Tables in the Structure Pane You can automatically arrange your tables in the Structure pane to tidy up your initial schema before you start manually rearranging the tables to create your joins. Automatically arranging tables in the Structure pane To automatically arrange tables: • Select View > Arrange Tables Table insertion slow because... Optimize table insertion by... There are a large number of tables in your database. Designer queries the system catalog, so when the catalog is very large, retrieving tables can be slow. Building a data warehouse using the tables that you want to insert in a separate database account. Create a connection to the new warehouse. You are automatically inserting joins and checking cardinalities with the tables that you are inserting. Inserting tables only. You do this as follows: 1. Select Tools > Options. The Options dialog box appears. 2. Click the database tab. The Database page appears. 3. Clear the following check boxes: • Extract Joins With Tables • Detect Cardinalities in Joins 4. Click OK.Creating a schema with tables and joins Using derived tables 3 Designer’s Guide 109 The tables are arranged in an orderly manner. Using derived tables Derived tables are tables that you define in the universe schema. You create objects on them as you do with any other table. A derived table is defined by an SQL query at the universe level that can be used as a logical table in Designer. Derived tables have the following advantages: • Reduced amount of data returned to the document for analysis. You can include complex calculations and functions in a derived table. These operations are performed before the result set is returned to a document, which saves time and reduces the need for complex analysis of large amounts of data at the report level. • Reduced maintenance of database summary tables. Derived tables can, in some cases, replace statistical tables that hold results for complex calculations that are incorporated into the universe using aggregate awareness. These aggregate tables are costly to maintain and refresh frequently. Derived tables can return the same data and provide real time data analysis. Derived tables are similar to database views, with the advantage that the SQL for a derived table can include prompts.Creating a schema with tables and joins Using derived tables 3 110 Designer’s Guide Adding, editing, and deleting derived tables Derived tables appear in your Designer schema in exactly the same way as normal database tables, but the workflow for creating them is different. Adding, editing, and deleting derived tables is described in the following sections. Adding a derived table To add a derived table: 1. Click Derived Tables on the Insert menu. The Derived Tables dialog box appears. 2. Type the table name in the Table Name box. 3. Build the table SQL in the box beneath the Table Name box. You can type the SQL directly or use the Tables and Columns, Operators and Functions boxes to build it. 4. Click OK. The derived table appears in the schema with the physical database tables. 5. Build objects based on the derived table columns in exactly the same way you do with regular tables.Creating a schema with tables and joins Using derived tables 3 Designer’s Guide 111 Editing a derived table To edit a derived table: 1. Right-click the table in the Designer schema and select Edit Derived Table from the shortcut menu. 2. Edit the derived table, then click OK. Deleting a derived table 1. Select the derived table in the Designer schema. 2. Press the Delete key. Example: Creating a derived table to return server information In this example you want to create objects that allow the user to add information about the database server to their reports. You create two objects, servername and version, that return the values of the in-built variables @@SERVERNAME and @VERSION in a universe running on an SQL Server database. You do this as follows: 1. Select Derived Tables on the Insert menu. The Derived Tables dialog box appears. 2. Type serverinfo in the Table Name box. 3. Type the SQL Select @@SERVERNAME as servername, @@VERSION as version in the SQL box. Note: You must provide aliases in the SQL for all derived columns. Designer uses these aliases to name the columns of the derived tables. 4. Click OK. The derived table serverinfo appears in the Designer schema.Creating a schema with tables and joins Using derived tables 3 112 Designer’s Guide 5. Create a class called Server Info and add two dimension objects beneath the class, based on the servername and version columns of the serverinfo derived table. Note that the serverinfo table appears in the list of tables like any ordinary database table, and its columns appear in the list of columns like ordinary table columns. The user can now place the servername and version objects on a report. Example: Showing the number of regions in each country In this example you create a table that shows the number of regions in each country. The SQL is as follows: select country, count (r.region_id) as number_of_regions from country c, region r where r.country_id = c.country_id group by country It is important in this case to alias the column that contains the calculation. Designer uses these aliases as the column names in the derived table. In this case the table has two columns: country and number_of_regions.Creating a schema with tables and joins Defining joins 3 Designer’s Guide 113 Defining joins Once you have inserted more than one table in the schema, you need to create joins between related tables. Joins are as important as the tables in a schema, as they allow you to combine data from multiple tables in a meaningful way. What is a join? A join is a condition that links the data in separate but related tables. The tables usually have a parent-child relationship. If a query does not contain a join, the database returns a result set that contains all possible combinations of the rows in the query tables. Such a result set is known as a Cartesian product and is rarely useful. For example, the Cartesian product of a query referencing two tables with 100 and 50 rows respectively has 5000 rows. In large databases or queries involving many tables, Cartesian products quickly become unmanageable. In Designer, joins are represented as lines linking tables in a schema. Why use joins in a schema? You use joins to ensure that queries returning data from multiple tables do not return incorrect results. A join between two tables defines how data is returned when both tables are included in a query. Each table in a schema contains data in one or more columns that correspond to user requirements. In a production universe, Web Intelligence users may want to run queries that combine a number of different objects (each inferring a column) returning data from any combination of tables. Linking all tables in the schema with joins ensures that you restrict the number of ways that data from columns in different tables can be combined in a query. Joins limit column combinations between tables to matching or common columns. This prevents result data being returned that contains information from columns that have no sense being matched. Note: You should always create joins in the Structure pane. Joins that are not created from the Structure pane, for example a join manually defined in the Where clause for an object, are created at run time, so are not considered by Creating a schema with tables and joins Defining joins 3 114 Designer’s Guide Designer for integrity checks and context detection. The information for these processes is required at design time. Contexts and universe integrity are covered later in this chapter. What SQL does a join Infer? By default Designer specifies a join implicitly in a WHERE clause through a reference to the matching or common columns of the tables. Normally there is one WHERE clause for each pair of tables being joined. So, if four tables are being combined, three WHERE conditions are necessary. The result of a query run including two tables linked by a join is a single table with columns from all the combined tables. Each row in this table contains data from the rows in the different input tables with matching values for the common columns. ANSI 92 support If the target RDBMS supports ANSI 92, then you can set a universe parameter (File > Parameters > Parameter) ANSI92 to Yes to activate ANSI 92 support for joins created in your schema. When a universe supports the ANSI 92 standard for joins, newly created joins are specified in the FROM clause. You can also select the objects that are inferred by columns to be included in the FROM clause. ANSI 92 support is described in the section “ANSI 92 support for joins in a universe” on page 129.Creating a schema with tables and joins Defining joins 3 Designer’s Guide 115 An example of a join operation on two tables is shown below: What tables do not have to be joined? You should join all tables in the schema that are inferred in the SQL generated by objects in Web Intelligence queries run against the universe. The only exceptions to these are the following types of tables: • Base tables from the schema that have been aliased for each use. These are the original tables for which you have created aliases either for renaming, or join problem resolution reasons. These base tables are typically not used in any object definition. • Tables that are the target of table mapping for Supervisor. PATIENT_NO. DATE_DISCHARGED 123 456 789 05/20/01 06/05/01 07/18/01 PATIENT_NO. BILL_CHARGED 123 123 456 50.00 500.00 30.00 456 750.00 789 825.00 PATIENT_NO. DATE_DISCHARGED 123 123 456 05/20/01 05/20/01 06/05/01 456 06/05/01 789 07/18/01 BILL_CHARGED 50.00 500.00 30.00 750.00 825.00 PATIENT BILLED RESULT OF JOIN PATIENT.DATE_DISCHARGED,BILLED.BILL_CHARGED PATIENT,BILLED PATIENT.PATIENT_NO=BILLED.PATIENT.NO SELECT FROM WHERECreating a schema with tables and joins Defining joins 3 116 Designer’s Guide • Tables that are the target of aggregate awareness syntax (although this has to be taken on a case-by-case basis). For example the two aggregate tables in the sample efashion universe shown below are not joined to any table in the schema: Joining primary and foreign keys You normally create a join between the primary key in one table and the foreign key of another table. You can also create a join between two primary keys. It is very unusual for at least one side of a join to not include the primary key of the table. You need to understand how each key is constructed in your database. Multi column keys can affect how you set cardinalities for joins, and this can affect how you set up contexts in your schema. Detecting and Using contexts is described in “Detecting and Solving Join Problems” on page 170 Displaying keys You can display primary and foreign keys in all tables in the Structure pane. The key columns appear underlined in each table that contains keys. When you select the option to display keys, you must refresh the structure before keys appear underlined. The ability to display key columns as underlined depends on primary keys being defined in the target database. aggregate tablesCreating a schema with tables and joins Defining joins 3 Designer’s Guide 117 Note: When you display underlined key columns, the information is stored in the .UNV file. This information is lost when you export a universe to the Central Management Server (CMS) repository. You have to re-display keys for a universe, each time it is imported. To display keys: 1. Select Tools > Options. The Options dialog box opens to the General page. 2. Click the Graphics tab. The Graphics page appears. 3. Select the Underline Keys check box in the Columns group box. 4. Click OK. You need to refresh the structure before key columns appear underlined. 5. Select View > Refresh Structure. The database structure is refreshed. The key columns in your schema are underlined as shown below: Underline KeysCreating a schema with tables and joins Defining joins 3 118 Designer’s Guide Understanding the cardinaltity of a join Cardinalities further describe a join between 2 tables by stating how many rows in one table will match rows in another. This is very important for detecting join problems and creating contexts to correct the limitations of a target RDBMS structure. You should set cardinalities for each join in the schema. Designer can automatically detect and set cardinalities, but you should always manually check the cardinalities, taking into account the nature of the keys that are joined. Setting and using cardinalities is described in the section “Using cardinalities” on page 150. Creating joins You have several approaches to creating joins in Designer: • Tracing joins manually in the schema. • Defining join properties directly. • Selecting automatically detected joins. • Automatically creating joins on table insertion. Each of these approaches is described in detail below. Tracing joins manually in the schema You can graphically create individual joins between tables by using the mouse to trace a line from a column in one table to a matching column in another table. To create a join by tracing manually: 1. Position the pointer over a column that you want to be one end of a join. The pointer appears as a hand symbol. 2. Click and hold down the left mouse button. The column is highlighted. 3. Drag the mouse to the column in another table that you want to be the other end of the join.Creating a schema with tables and joins Defining joins 3 Designer’s Guide 119 As you drag, the pointer is transformed into a pencil symbol. 4. Position the pencil symbol over the target column. The target column is highlighted. 5. Release the mouse button. The join between the two tables is created. 6. Double click the new join. The Edit Join dialog box appears. It lists join properties. The properties that you can set for a join, including cardinality and join type, are described in the section “Join properties” on page 124. 7. Enter and select properties for the join. 8. Click OK.Creating a schema with tables and joins Defining joins 3 120 Designer’s Guide Defining join properties directly You create a join by directly defining join properties in the Edit Join dialog box. To create a join directly: 1. Select Insert > Join. Or Click the Insert Join button. The Edit Join dialog box appears. 2. Select a table from the Table1 drop-down list. The columns for the selected table appear in the list box under the table name. 3. Click the name of the column that you want to be at one end of the new join. 4. Select a table from the Table2 drop-down list box. The columns for the selected table appear in the list box under the table name. 5. Click the name of the column that you want to be at the other end of the new join. Insert JoinCreating a schema with tables and joins Defining joins 3 Designer’s Guide 121 The properties that you can set for a join, including the join operator, cardinality, and join type are described in the section “Join properties” on page 124 6. Enter and select properties for the join. 7. Click OK. The new join appears in the schema linking the two tables defined in the Edit Join dialog box. Selecting automatically detected joins You can use the Designer feature Detect Joins to automatically detect selected joins in the schema. Designer identifies column names across tables in the target database and proposes candidate joins for the tables in your schema. You can then select which, or accept all, proposed joins you want to be created. How are joins automatically detected? The joins are detected based on the Joins strategy that appears in the Strategies page of the Parameters dialog box (File > Parameters > Strategies tab). A strategy is a script file that automatically extracts structural information from the database. There are a number of inbuilt strategies that are shipped with Designer. These are listed in drop-down list boxes on the Strategies page of the Parameters dialog box. The default automatic join detection strategy detects joins based on matching column names, excluding key information. You can select which join strategy you want to apply when you use automatic join detection. Note: Refer to“Selecting strategies” on page 51 for more information on using strategies. Using automatic join detection appropriately Detecting joins automatically is useful to help you quickly create joins in your schema. However, you need to be aware of the limitations of automatic join detection when designing your schema. Join strategies used to detect candidate joins match column names from the database. There may be instances in the target database when primary, foreign keys, and other join columns do not have the same name across different tables. Designer will not pick up these columns. You should always verify manually each join that you accept to be created that has been automatically detected. You should be aware that there may be other joins necessary that have not been detected.Creating a schema with tables and joins Defining joins 3 122 Designer’s Guide To create a join using automatic detection: 1. Verify that the join strategy that you want to use to detect joins is selected in the Joins drop down list box on the Parameters dialog box. You can verify this as follows: • Select File > Parameters and click the Strategies tab. • Select the strategy that you want to use to detect joins from the Joins drop-down list box and click OK. 2. Select multiple tables in the Structure pane. You can select multiple tables by pressing SHIFT while clicking each table, or you can select all tables in a zone by clicking in an empty space, and dragging the cursor to define a rectangular zone that includes any number of tables. 3. Select Tools > Automated Detection >Detect Joins. Or Click the Detect Joins button. The Candidate Joins dialog box appears. It lists candidate or proposed joins for the selected tables. The candidate joins also appear as blue lines between selected tables in the Structure pane. 4. Click Insert to create all candidate joins. 5. Or Select one or more joins and click Insert. You can select one or more joins by holding down CTRL and clicking individual tables, or holding down SHIFT and clicking the first and last join in a continuous block. The joins are inserted in you schema. 6. Click Close. Detect JoinsCreating a schema with tables and joins Defining joins 3 Designer’s Guide 123 Inserting joins automatically with associated tables You can choose to insert joins automatically in the schema at the same time as the tables that use the joins are inserted into the structure pane. Automatic join creation is determined by two processes: • The active join strategy determines the column information used to detect the join. • The default creation option Extract Joins With Tables must be selected to allow the automatic creation of joins with their associated tables. This option is on the Database page of the Options dialog box. Limitations when inserting joins automatically Inserting joins automatically into your schema with associated tables is a quick way to get joins into your schema, but it can lead to serious design faults with your schema. The joins are inserted based on the database structure, so columns common to more than one table that have been renamed in the database will not be picked up. You should not use this technique to create joins in a production universe. Instead, use it for demonstration purposes, or as a quick way to build a universe, in which you will then carefully validate each join after insertion. To create a join automatically with an associated table: 1. Verify that the join strategy that you want to use to detect joins is selected on the Strategies page of the Parameters dialog box. 2. Select Tools > Options. The Options dialog box appears. 3. Click the Database tab. The Database page appears. 4. Select the Extract Joins With Tables check box. 5. Click OK. Now when you insert a table that has columns referencing other columns in tables that have already been inserted into the Structure pane, the references between tables are automatically inserted as joins between appropriate tables.Creating a schema with tables and joins Defining joins 3 124 Designer’s Guide Join properties You define join properties in the Edit Join dialog box. You can define the following properties for a join: Join OperatorsYou can select an operator for a join from the drop-down list box between the Table1 and Table2 boxes. The operator allows you to define the restriction that the join uses to match data between the joined columns. Property Description Table1 Table at the left end of the join. Columns are listed for the table selected in the drop-down list box. Table2 Table at the right side of the join. Columns are listed for the table selected in the drop-down list box. Operator Operator that defines how the tables are joined. The operators available to a join are described in the section “Join Operators” on page 124. Outer Join When selected, determines which table contains unmatched data in an outer join relationship. Outer joins are described fully in the section “Outer joins” on page 141. Cardinality When selected, allows you to define the cardinality for the join. Defining and using cardinalities is described in the section “Using cardinalities” on page 150. Shortcut Join Defines the join as a shortcut join. Shortcut joins are described in the section “Shortcut joins” on page 146. Expression WHERE clause that is used to restrict the data that is returned when the two joined tables are included in a query. Advanced Available when ANSI 92 support is activated for the universe. When clicked, opens a second join properties box that lists the objects built on columns for the two tables in the join. You can select the objects to be included in the FROM clause. See the section “ANSI 92 support for joins in a universe” on page 129 for information on activating ANSI 92 support for join syntax.Creating a schema with tables and joins Defining joins 3 Designer’s Guide 125 You can select the following operators for a join: Edit and ParseThe Edit Join dialog box also has two features available that allow you to edit and verify the join syntax: Edit The Edit button opens an SQL editor. You can use this graphic editor to modify the syntax for tables, columns, operators, and functions used in the join. For more information on using this editor, refer to the section “Using the Join SQL Editor” on page 127. Parse The Parse button starts a parsing function that verifies the SQL syntax of the join expression. If the parse is successful, you receive a result is OK message. If Designer encounters an error, you receive an error message indicating the source of the problem. Editing a join You can use any of the following methods to edit a join: • Modify join properties from the Edit Join dialog box. • Modify join SQL syntax directly using the Join SQL Editor. • Modify join SQL syntax directly using the formula bar. Each of these methods is discussed in this section. Operator Description = is equal to != is not equal to > is greater than < is less than >= is greater than or equal to <= is less than or equal to Between is between (theta joins) Complex complex relationshipCreating a schema with tables and joins Defining joins 3 126 Designer’s Guide Using the Edit Join dialog box You can use the Edit Join dialog box to define and edit join properties. You can also access the Join SQL Editor to edit join syntax directly from this dialog box. Join properties are described in the section “Join properties” on page 124. To edit a join using the Edit Join dialog box: 1. Double click a join in the Structure pane. Or Click a join and select Edit > Join. The Edit Join dialog box appears. 2. Select an operator from the drop-down list box between the tables. 3. Select other properties as required. 4. If you are defining a join with ANSI 92 syntax, then click the Advanced button. 5. Click OK. Tip: You can edit the SQL directly for the join by clicking the Edit button and using the Join SQL editor. See “Using the Join SQL Editor” on page 127 for more information.Creating a schema with tables and joins Defining joins 3 Designer’s Guide 127 Using the Join SQL Editor You can use a graphical editor to directly modify the SQL expression for a join. You access this editor from the Edit Joins dialog box. To modify a join using the Join SQL Editor: 1. Double click a join in the Structure pane. Or Click a join and select Edit > Join. The Edit Join dialog box appears. 2. Click the Edit button. The Join SQL Definition box appears. The SQL expression for the join appears in the text box. 3. Click the join expression in the edit box at the place where you want to add or modify the SQL syntax. You can use the editing features to modify or add SQL syntax as follows: You want to... Then do the following... Change a column at either join end • Expand a table node in the Tables and Columns box. • Double click a column name.Creating a schema with tables and joins Defining joins 3 128 Designer’s GuideThe column, operator, or function appears in the join definition. 4. Click OK. Using the Formula bar The Formula bar is a text box above the Universe window that shows the formula or expression of any selected join in the Structure pane, or selected object in the Universe pane. You can use three editing buttons placed to the left of the Formula bar: To display the Formula bar: • Select View > Formula Bar The Formula Bar appears above the Universe window. To modify a join using the Formula Bar: 1. Click a join that you want to edit. Change an operator used by the join Double click an operator in the Operators box. Use a function in the join • Expand a function family node. • Double click a function. You want to... Then do the following... Edit button Description Cancel last modification that has not been validated. If you make several changes to a join expression without validating the changes, clicking the Cancel button returns the expression to its original state. If you want to undo any individual modifications, you should use the Edit > Undo, or click the Undo button. Validate expression. This applies any changes to the join expression. You can undo changes after validation by using Edit > Undo, or clicking the Undo button. Open Edit Join dialog box for selected join.Creating a schema with tables and joins Defining joins 3 Designer’s Guide 129 The formula for the join appears in the Formula Bar. 2. Click the join expression in the Formula Bar at the place you want to modify the syntax. 3. Modify the expression as required. 4. Click the Validate button to apply the changes. 5. Press the Return key to quit the formula bar. Or Click anywhere outside of the Formula bar. ANSI 92 support for joins in a universe Designer supports ANSI 92 syntax for joins. ANSI 92 is not supported by default. You must activate support by setting the SQL universe parameter ANSI92 to YES. This parameter is listed on the Parameter page of the universe parameters dialog box (File > Parameters > Parameter). Once activated, you can choose to use ANSI 92 syntax for joins in the universe. Ensure that you verify that the target RDBMS supports ANSI 92 before using the syntax in joins. Activating ANSI 92 support in the universe and defining a join using ANSI 92 syntax are described below. Editing buttons Selected join Join expression Formula BarCreating a schema with tables and joins Defining joins 3 130 Designer’s Guide Example: Comparing default join syntax and ANSI 92 syntax Join syntax for two joins is shown below. The first shows the default behavior where the join is defined in the WHERE clause, the second shows the same join in the FROM clause using the ANSI 92 standard. Default join syntax SELECT Resort.resort, 'FY'+Format(Sales.invoice_date,'YYYY'), sum(Invoice_Line.days * Invoice_Line.nb_guests * Service.price) FROM Resort, Sales, Invoice_Line, Service, Service_Line WHERE ( Sales.inv_id=Invoice_Line.inv_id ) AND ( Invoice_Line.service_id=Service.service_id ) AND ( Resort.resort_id=Service_Line.resort_id ) AND ( Service.sl_id=Service_Line.sl_id ) GROUP BY Resort.resort, 'FY'+Format(Sales.invoice_date,'YYYY') Same join using the ANSI 92 standard SELECT Resort.resort, 'FY'+Format(Sales.invoice_date,'YYYY'), sum(Invoice_Line.days * Invoice_Line.nb_guests * Service.price) FROM Resort INNER JOIN Service_Line ON (Resort.resort_id=Service_Line.resort_id) INNER JOIN Service ON (Service.sl_id=Service_Line.sl_id) INNER JOIN Invoice_Line ON (Invoice_Line.service_id=Service.service_id) INNER JOIN Sales ON (Sales.inv_id=Invoice_Line.inv_id) GROUP BY Resort.resort, 'FY'+Format(Sales.invoice_date,'YYYY') Activating ANSI 92 support in a universe To activate ANSI 92 support for joins: 1. Select File > Parameters. The Universe Parameters dialog box appears.Creating a schema with tables and joins Defining joins 3 Designer’s Guide 131 2. Click the Parameter tab. The Parameters page appears. It lists certain SQL generation parameters that you can set at the universe level to optimize SQL generation for the current universe. These are parameters that were included in the PRM file for the target RDBMS in previous versions of Business Objects products. Certain RDBMS specific parameters are still contained in the PRM files, but many standard SQL parameters are now listed in the Parameter page. See the chapter “Setting SQL generation parameters” on page 61 for a complete list of the available parameters. 3. Click the ANSI92 parameter in the list. 4. Type YES in the value box. 5. Click Replace. 6. Click OK. The ANSI 92 standard can now be applied to join definitions for the current universe. When you click the Advanced button on the Edit Join dialog box, the Advanced Join box appears. You can define a filter to determine which dimensions you want to include in the FROM clause for a join. Defining a join with ANSI 92 syntax You can use ANSI 92 syntax to define a join from the Edit Join properties dialog box. You can do this by using an advanced editing box that allows you to select objects to be included in a join definition. To define a join using ANSI 92 syntax: 1. Activate ANSI 92 support for the universe. See the section “Activating ANSI 92 support in a universe” on page 130 for information. 2. Double click a join in the schema. The Edit Join box for the join appears. 3. Click the Advanced button.Creating a schema with tables and joins Defining joins 3 132 Designer’s GuideThe Advanced Joins Properties dialog box appears. 4. Select one of the following FROM clause filters from the drop down list. 5. Select objects to be included in the FROM clause if you selected the Selected objects in FROM filter. 6. Click OK. 7. Enter any other join parameters in the Edit Join box. 8. Click OK. FROM option Description Default behavior Default syntax for joins is applied. Joins are defined in the WHERE clause. All objects in FROM All objects defined on columns in the tables on the right and left side of the join are included in the FROM clause. No objects in FROM No objects are included in the FROM clause. Selected objects in FROM Only objects selected in the Advanced Join Properties tree view of the join tables are included in the FROM clause.Creating a schema with tables and joins Defining specific types of joins 3 Designer’s Guide 133 Deleting joins To delete a join: 1. Click a join. The join is selected 2. Do any of the following: • Press the backspace key on your keyboard • Press the Delete button on your keyboard • Right click the join and select Clear from the contextual menu. A confirmation box appears asking to you to confirm the join deletion. 3. Click Yes. The join is deleted. Note: Ensure that you are aware of all the consequences in both the schema and universe when you delete a join. Verify that deleting the join does not affect a context. If you try to delete a join, Designer warns you if the join is used in one or more contexts. You need to manually verify which context, and access the effect on the universe if the context is affected by the join deletion. Defining specific types of joins You can define the following types of joins in Designer: Join type Description Equi-Joins (includes complex equijoins) Link tables based on the equality between the values in the column of one table and the values in the column of another. Because the same column is present in both tables, the join synchronizes the two tables. You can also create complex equi-joins, where one join links multiple columns between two tables. Theta Joins (conditional joins) Link tables based on a relationship other than equality between two columns. Outer Joins Link two tables, one of which has rows that do not match those in the common column of the other table. Creating a schema with tables and joins Defining specific types of joins 3 134 Designer’s Guide Each join type is described fully in its respective section in this chapter. You use the same method to create each type of join; however, you must define different properties for each join in the Edit Join box at join creation. Creating Equi-joins An equi-join links two tables on common values in a column in table 1 with a column in table 2. The restriction conforms to the following syntax: Table1.column_a = Table2.column_a In a normalized database the columns used in an equi-join are usually the primary key from one table and the foreign key in the other. For information on keys, see the section “Joining primary and foreign keys” on page 116. When you create a new join, it is an equi-join by default. Most joins in your schema should be equi-joins. Shortcut Joins Join providing an alternative path between two tables, bypassing intermediate tables, leading to the same result, regardless of direction. Optimizes query time by cutting long join paths as short as possible. Self restricting joins Single table join used to set a restriction on the table. Join type DescriptionCreating a schema with tables and joins Defining specific types of joins 3 Designer’s Guide 135 Example: Equi-join restricts data When a Select statement is run in the example below, the Select and From clauses create a Cartesian product. However, before any data is returned, the Where clause applies a restriction so that only rows where there is a match between the Country ID column in both the tables are returned. Creating a new equi-join To create a new equi-join: • Create a join between two tables. The default new join is an equi-join. Tip: The different methods you can use to create joins are described in the section “Creating joins” on page 118. Creating an equi-join from an existing join To create an equi-join from an existing join: 1. Double click an existing join. The Edit Join box appears. 2. Select a column in the Table1 list box. 3. Select the matching column in the Table2 list box 4. Select = from the Operator drop-down list box.Creating a schema with tables and joins Defining specific types of joins 3 136 Designer’s GuideThe Edit Join box below shows an equi-join between the tables Customer and Reservations. Note: Common columns do not always have the same name. You need to verify primary and foreign key column names in the database. Different tables may use the same key columns, but have them renamed for each table depending on the table role in the database. 5. Click the Parse button to check the join syntax. If you receive an error message, check to see that the column is common to both tables. 6. Click OK. Creating complex equi-joins You can also create a complex equi-join. This is a single join that links multiple columns between two tables. You can create complex equi-joins by using the Complex operator for a join in the Edit Properties sheet for a join.Creating a schema with tables and joins Defining specific types of joins 3 Designer’s Guide 137 The sample eFashion universe contains a complex join shown below. Using a complex equi-join instead of multiple single equi-joins between joined columns has the following advantages: • Only one cardinality to detect. This can save time when detecting cardinalities, and also keeps the schema uncluttered and easier to read. • You can view the SQL for all the joins between two tables in the Expression text box in the Edit Properties box for the join. When you use multiple single equi-joins between two tables, you have a one expression for each join. To create a complex equi-join: 1. Double click an existing join. The Edit Join box appears. 2. Select multiple columns in the Table1 list box. 3. Select the matching columns in the Table2 list box 4. Select "Complex" from the Operator drop-down list box.Creating a schema with tables and joins Defining specific types of joins 3 138 Designer’s GuideThe Edit Join box below shows a complex equi-join between the tables Article_Color_Lookup and Shop_facts. 5. Click the Parse button to check the join syntax. If you receive an error message, check to see that the column is common to both tables. 6. Click OK. Theta joinsA theta join is a join that links tables based on a relationship other than equality between two columns. A theta join could use any operator other than the “equal” operator. The following example and procedure show you how to create a theta join that uses the “Between” operator.Creating a schema with tables and joins Defining specific types of joins 3 Designer’s Guide 139 Example: Theta join The Age_Group table below contains age range information that can be used to analyze data on the age of customers. You need to include this table in the universe, but there is no common column between the Customer table and the Age_Group table, so you cannot use an equi-join. You create a theta join using the operator “Between” for maximum age range and minimum age ranges. By using a theta join, you infer that a join exists where the value in a row of the Age column in the Customer table is between the values in a row for the Age_Min and Age_Max columns of the Age_Group table. The join is defined by the following expression: Customer.age between Age_group.age_min and Age_group.age_max The diagram below shows the joins between Age max, Age min, and Age, and the result set that is returned when the theta join is used in a query run on both Age_Group and Customer tables.Creating a schema with tables and joins Defining specific types of joins 3 140 Designer’s Guide Creating a theta join To create a theta join using range columns: 1. Create a join between two tables. An equi-join is created by default. 2. Double click the join. The Edit Join dialog box appears. 3. Click a column in the Table1 column list box. 4. Press and hold down the CTRL key and click two columns from the Table2 column list box. The example below shows the two columns age_min and age_max selected. The Between operator automatically appears in the operator drop-down list. 5. Click the Parse button to test for the validity of the join. If you receive an error message, check to see that you have correctly selected the columns. 6. Click OK.Creating a schema with tables and joins Defining specific types of joins 3 Designer’s Guide 141 The join is created in the Structure pane. Outer joinsAn outer join is a join that links two tables, one of which has rows that do not match those in the common column of the other table. You define an outer join by specifying which table is the outer table in the original equi-join. The outer table contains the column for which you want to return all values, even if they are unmatched. You specify the outer table from the Edit Join dialog box for the selected join. Full outer joinsBy default you can create either a left outer, or a right outer join depending on which side of the join the outer table is designated. You can also create a full outer join by activating ANSI 92 support for joins in the universe. This is achieved by setting a universe SQL parameter ANSI 92 to YES (File > Parameters > Parameter). This allows the universe to support ANSI 92 syntax for joins, and you can select the tables on either side of a join to be outer tables. Refer to the section “Defining a full outer join” on page 144 for information on creating full outer joins. Example: Outer join The tables Resort_Country and Resort below are linked by an equi-join.Creating a schema with tables and joins Defining specific types of joins 3 142 Designer’s Guide Each resort belongs to a country, but each country may not have a resort. If you use an equi-join, the result set of a query would only show information on the countries that have a resort; Australia, France, and the US. However, you may wish to show all countries irrespective of an equivalent value in the foreign key of the Resort table. To achieve this you define an outer join so that all counties are returned, despite having no match in the Resort column, as shown below: The syntax (Microsoft Access) for the outer join is as follows: SELECT Resort_Country.country, Resort.resort FROM Country Resort_Country, Resort, { oj Resort_Country LEFT OUTER JOIN Resort ON Resort_Country.country_id=Resort.country_id } Note: The example above uses Microsoft Access, so any one-to-many joins following the table Resort, would also have to have to use outer joins. If not, then a NULL returned by the original outer join, will not be taken into account if there is no matching NULL returned by following joins. The treatment of outer joins is RDBMS specific, so refer to your RDBMS documentation for information. See also the section “Restrictions for the use of outer joins” on page 145 for more information on restrictions using outer joins.Creating a schema with tables and joins Defining specific types of joins 3 Designer’s Guide 143 Creating an outer join To create an outer join: 1. Double click an existing equi-join. The Edit Join dialog box appears. 2. Select the Outer Join check box for the table that returns all values in a query. In the example below, you want to return all values for Resort_Country. 3. Click the Parse button to validate the join syntax. If you receive an error message, check to see that you selected the columns correctly. 4. Click OK. Designer displays the join in the Structure pane. The outer join is indicated by a small circle on the opposite side of the join to the table that returns unmatched values.Creating a schema with tables and joins Defining specific types of joins 3 144 Designer’s Guide Defining a full outer join You can define an outer join using the ANSI 92 standard for defining outer joins. This allows you to specify a full outer join. To use the ANSI 92 standard for outer joins, you must set the ANSI 92 parameter to YES. This parameter is available on the Parameter page (File > Parameters > Parameter). Note: For information on setting this parameter and other SQL generation parameters for the universe, refer to the section “Setting SQL generation parameters” on page 61. When the ANSI 92 parameter has been set to YES, you can select the tables on both sides of the join to be outer tables. Before setting this parameter, you must ensure that your target RDBMS supports the ANSI 92 syntax for outer joins. You define a full outer join in two phases: • Activate ANSI 92 support for outer joins for the universe. See the section “Activating ANSI 92 support in a universe” on page 130 for information. • Use the Edit join dialog box to define the full outer join. To define a full outer join: 1. Activate ANSI 92 support for the universe. 2. Double click a join in the schema. The Edit Join dialog box appears. 3. Select the Outer Join check box for both tables included in the join as shown below. 4. Click OK. Designer displays the join in the Structure pane. The full outer join is indicated by two circles on the join link between two tables. Both Outer join check boxes selectedCreating a schema with tables and joins Defining specific types of joins 3 Designer’s Guide 145 Restrictions for the use of outer joins Using outer joins can be very useful, but you should be aware of the following performance and implementation issues: Issue Description Performance can be slower More rows are returned and some databases will not use indexes when outer joins are involved, so large amounts of data could slow query performance. Incomplete query hierarchy path for tables after the outer join (RDBMS dependent) You should verify how your target RDBMS processes outer joins to avoid incomplete query paths after the original outer join. For example, in the Microsoft Access sample Club.mdb database, all one-to-many joins following the outer join in the join path must also be defined as outer joins. If not, the original outer join will be ignored by the resulting query. In the example above, the join between Resort and Service_Line ignores the NULL values returned by the outer join between Resort_Country and Resort. When you run a query with the three tables, a database error is returned advising the user to create a separate query that performs the first join, and then include that query in the SQL statement. This type of error could be confusing to many users, so it is preferable in such cases to either not use outer joins, or to complete the path with outer joins. Database limitations on the use of outer joins. Not all databases allow control over outer joins in the WHERE clause. This is necessary when using a self restricting join. For example, a self restricting join ‘TYPE_CODE=10’, could return all rows where TYPE=10 or Type is NULL, as TYPE=10 will never be true when the type code is NULL, whereas NULL values are generated by the outer join.Creating a schema with tables and joins Defining specific types of joins 3 146 Designer’s Guide Shortcut joins A shortcut join is a join that provides an alternative path between two tables. shortcut joins improve the performance of a query by not taking into account intermediate tables, and so shortening a normally longer join path. A common use of shortcut joins is to link a shared lookup table to another table further along a join path. The join path comprises several different tables in the same context. In such a case, the shortcut join is only effective when the value being looked up has been denormalized to lower levels in a hierarchy of tables, so the same value exists at all the levels being joined. Example: Shortcut join In the following example the column Article_code appears in both the tables Product_Promotion_Facts and Shop_Facts. The value of Article_code is the same for both tables. The normal path for a query using Article_code from Product_Promotion_Facts and Shop_Facts, is to pass through the intermediary table Article_Lookup. The shortcut join directly linking Product_Promotion_Facts and Shop_Facts allows the query to ignore the intermediary table Article_Lookup, optimizing the query. Note: Designer does not consider shortcut joins during automatic loop and context detection. However, if you set the cardinality for a shortcut join you avoid receiving the message 'Not all cardinalities are set' when detecting contexts. Shortcut joinCreating a schema with tables and joins Defining specific types of joins 3 Designer’s Guide 147 Creating a shortcut join To create a shortcut join: 1. Identify the two tables in a join path that can be linked directly. 2. Create a join between the two tables. 3. Double click the new join. The Edit Join dialog box appears. 4. Select the Shortcut join check box. 5. Select or type other join properties as required. 6. Click OK. The shortcut join appears joining the two tables. A shortcut join is shown as dotted line in the Structure pane. Note: You should set the cardinality of a shortcut join to the same cardinality as the join path it replaces. Self restricting joins A self restricting join is not really a join at all, but a self restriction on a single table. You can use a self restricting join to restrict the results returned by a table values using a fixed value. Shortcut join check boxCreating a schema with tables and joins Defining specific types of joins 3 148 Designer’s Guide Example: Self restricting join The Sales table shown below contains rows of data for cars both sold and rented. The Sale_Type column is used as a flag to indicate the type of transaction (S = car sale, R = car rental). The self restricting join restricts the data returned from Sales to Sale_Type = S. This ensures that any object based on the Sales table, or joins passing through that table, would produce query results covering only car sales. Without the self restricting join, the results set of the query would produce rows where the Sale_Type column is equal to either 'S' or 'R'. Tip: Setting the cardinality for a self restricting join helps to prevent receiving the message 'Not all cardinalities are set' when detecting contexts. You should set cardinality as one-to-one consistently, although the actual setting is not important, as long as it is set. Creating a self restricting join To create a self restricting join: 1. Select Insert > Join. The Edit Join dialog box appears. 2. Select the table that you want to set the self restricting join against from the Table1 drop-down list box. The columns for the selected table appear in the table column list. 3. Click the column that you want to use to define the restriction from the column drop-down list box.Creating a schema with tables and joins Defining specific types of joins 3 Designer’s Guide 149 4. Select the same table that you selected from the Table1 drop-down list box. 5. Click the same column that you selected in the Table1 column list box. The expression for the join appears in the Expression text box. 6. Replace the operand value in the join expression with the restriction value that you want to set on the join column.Creating a schema with tables and joins Using cardinalities 3 150 Designer’s GuideFor example, if you want to restrict the returned values from the Family_code column to ’F3’, you replace Article_lookup.Family_code after the = sign with ’F3’ as shown below: 7. Click the Parse button to verify the syntax. 8. Click OK. The self restricting join appears as a short line displayed against the column on which the self restricting join is defined. Using cardinalities Cardinality is a property of a join that describes how many rows in one table match rows in another table.Creating a schema with tables and joins Using cardinalities 3 Designer’s Guide 151 Cardinality is expressed as the minimum and maximum number of rows in a column at one end of a join, that have matching rows in the column at the other end of the join. The minimum and the maximum number of row matches can be equal to 0, 1, or N. A join represents a bidirectional relationship, so it must always have two cardinalities, one for each end of the join. Example: Cardinality of a join The two tables Customer and Reservations are linked by a join. The cardinalities in the above join can be expressed as follows: How are cardinalities used In Designer? The cardinality of a join does not have a role in the SQL generated when you run a query. However, Designer uses cardinalities to determine contexts and valid query paths. A context is a collection of joins which provide a valid query path. You use contexts to resolve join problems that can return too many or too few rows because of the way that tables are linked in the target database. Contexts are described in “Detecting and Solving Join Problems” on page 170. Description Notation For each customer, there can be one or more reservations (1,N) For each reservation, there can be one and only one customer (1,1)Creating a schema with tables and joins Using cardinalities 3 152 Designer’s Guide Contexts affect the SQL generated for a query as they either direct the end user to take a particular join path, or solve a join path problem.: Setting cardinalities can also help you understand how tables are related in the database, and to graphically identify potential join path problems in your schema. Displaying cardinalities You can display cardinalities in the Structure pane using the following symbols: To display cardinalities: 1. Select Tools > Options. The Options dialog box opens to the General page. 2. Click the Graphics tab. The Graphics page appears. 3. Click the Arrow, Arity, or 1,n radio button. 4. Click OK. You need to verify that cardinalities are correctly set for all joins in your schema to ensure that you have the correct contexts, and that you have valid join paths. Cardinality symbol Example Description Arrow Arrow indicates the “one” direction of the join. If cardinality is 1,1 then an arrow head is shown at each join end. Parity Crow’s foot indicates the “many” end of the join. If cardinality is 1,1, then a straight line is shown. 1,N Cardinality is shown as a ratio at each end of the join.Creating a schema with tables and joins Using cardinalities 3 Designer’s Guide 153 What cardinalities can be set for a join? You can set the following cardinalities for a join: You can set cardinalities manually, or use the automatic cardinality detection tool in Designer. Both methods are described in the following sections. Setting cardinalities manually You can manually set cardinalities for joins by defining cardinality for a join in the Edit Join box for a join. Why set cardinalities manually? When you set cardinalities manually, you must consider each individual join. This helps you to become aware of potential join path problems in your schema. You may not find these problems if you only select automatically detected cardinalities; for example, isolated one-to-one joins at the end of a join path, or excessive primary keys where not all columns are required to ensure uniqueness. Cardinality Description one-to-one (1,1) For every row in table 1, expect one and only one row in table 2 one-to-many (1,N) For every row in table 1, expect one or many rows in table 2 many-to-one (N,1) Same as for one-to-many (1,N), but the direction for the row match is opposite. many-to-many (N,N) For each one or multiple rows in table 1, expect one or multiple rows in table 2. Many-to-many cardinalities are rare in relational databases and will return duplicate rows, causing slower performance and potentially inaccurate results. If you have (N,N) cardinalities, you should re-check the concerned joins, and ensure that you understand the relationship between the tables.Creating a schema with tables and joins Using cardinalities 3 154 Designer’s Guide Understanding keys You determine cardinalities for most join cases by evaluating the primary and foreign keys in each table. Primary and foreign keys are described as follows: Example: What are the criteria for setting cardinalities? You evaluate the relationship between primary and foreign keys to determine the cardinality for a join as follows: Key Description Primary Single or combination of columns in a table whose values identify each row in the table. The primary key guarantees row uniqueness in a table. Each table has only one primary key. Foreign Column or combination of columns whose values are required to match a primary or another unique key in another table. Foreign keys implement constraints such as 'you cannot create a sale for a customer if that customer hasn't yet been created'. Each table can have multiple foreign keys. If join links... Cardinality is likely to be... Complete primary key of Table 1 with complete primary key of Table 2. For example: One-to-one (1,1). Only one row from each table will be returned for each primary key value.Creating a schema with tables and joins Using cardinalities 3 Designer’s Guide 155 To set cardinalities manually: 1. Double click a join. Or Click a join and select Edit > Properties. The Edit Join dialog box appears. 2. Select the Cardinality check box. 3. Select the 1 or N radio button for Table1. Complete primary key of one Table 1 with corresponding foreign key of Table 2. For example: One-to-many (1,N). Foreign key values of a table are not guaranteed to be unique and so can return many matching values for a single value of the primary key on the original table. Complete primary key of Table 1 with part of primary key of Table 2. For example: One-to-many (1,N). The incomplete primary key match can return many matching values for a single value of the primary key on the original table. If join links... Cardinality is likely to be...Creating a schema with tables and joins Using cardinalities 3 156 Designer’s Guide 4. Select the 1 or N radio button for Table2. 5. Click OK. Detecting cardinalities automatically You can use the Designer feature Detect Cardinalities to automatically detect cardinalities for the following situations: • Selected joins • All joins • At join creation • From the Edit Join box When using automatic cardinality detection, cardinalities are implemented automatically on detection. Note: You should use automatic cardinality detection appropriately. It can be very useful to quickly get all the cardinalities detected in the schema, however, there are a number of structural problems inherent in many relational databases which can lead to incorrect cardinality detection. These include incomplete primary joins, and over engineered primary keys. These are discussed in the section “Using cardinalities to resolve database limitations” on page 160.Creating a schema with tables and joins Using cardinalities 3 Designer’s Guide 157 Detecting cardinalities automatically for selected joins To automatically detect cardinalities for a selected join: • Click a join and select Tools > Detect Cardinalities. • Right click a join and select Detect Cardinalities from the contextual menu. The cardinality is displayed with the crow’s foot at the many end. If you select Tools > Detect Cardinalities directly without selecting a join, you receive a message indicating that no join is selected, and asking if you want to detect cardinalities for all joins. Detecting cardinalities automatically for all joins To automatically detect cardinalities for all joins: 1. Select Tools > Automated Detection >Detect Cardinalities. Or Click the Detect Cardinalities button. A message box appears asking if you want to detect cardinalities for all joins. 2. Click Yes. All joins in the Structure pane are shown with cardinalities. Automatically detecting cardinalities on join creation To automatically detect cardinalities on join creation: 1. Select Tools > Options. The Options dialog box opens to the General page. 2. Click the Database tab. The Database page appears. Detect CardinalitiesCreating a schema with tables and joins Using cardinalities 3 158 Designer’s Guide 3. Select the Detect Cardinalities in Joins check box. 4. Click OK. 5. When you create a new join, the cardinality is automatically detected and displayed on the join. Automatically detecting cardinality from the Edit Join box To automatically detect cardinality from the Edit Join box: 1. Double click a join. The Edit Join dialog box appears. 2. Select the Cardinality check box. 3. Click the Detect button. The cardinality radio buttons are automatically selected for the detected cardinality. The two cardinalities are also expressed in sentence form. 4. Click OK. Optimizing automatic cardinality detection You can improve the response time of cardinality detection by modifying a parameter in the PRM file of the target RDBMS. This directs the detection algorithm to read two instead of three SQL statements, improving the performance of the algorithm. The PRM file is a text file that lists parameters used to configure universe creation and SQL query generation in Web Intelligence. There is a PRM file for each supported RDBMS. PRM files are located in the database folders under \win32_x86\dataAccess\ConnectionServer\Creating a schema with tables and joins Using cardinalities 3 Designer’s Guide 159 Verifying which PRM file is used by a connection To verify which PRM file is used by a universe connection: 1. Select File > Parameters. The Parameters dialog box appears. 2. Click the Test button. The Test Connection message box appears. 3. Click the Details button. The details of your connection appear in a drop down message box. 4. Scroll down the message box to the line that starts with PRM. This line indicates the file path and name of the PRM file currently used by the active universe. 5. Click OK. You return to the Parameters dialog box. 6. Click Cancel. Optimizing cardinality detection using the PRM file To optimize cardinality detection using the PRM file: 1. Open the PRM file for your target database in a text editor. The PRM files are stored in the Data Access folder in the Business Objects path. 2. Set the LIGHT_DETECT_CARDINALITY parameter to YES. 3. Save and close the PRM file. The next time you open the universe, automatic cardinality detection is optimized.Creating a schema with tables and joins Checking the universe 3 160 Designer’s Guide Using cardinalities to resolve database limitations You can use the following criteria for determining cardinalities in special join situations, which if untreated, could lead to errors in your schema design: Checking the universe As you design your universe, you should test its integrity periodically. You can verify universe integrity as follows: Problem Solution Primary key of a lookup table has two columns. Each column is joined to a different fact table. Joins with each fact table are many-to-many as the primary key in both joins is incomplete. Change a “many” end to a “one” for join at lookup table end. Do this as follows: Add a self restricting join (one-to-one) on the lookup table of the type; lookup.pk_column = pk_column value. This ensures the uniqueness of values in the primary key of the lookup table. The cardinality of the join at the lookup table is now one. Primary key is excessive, so not all columns in a primary key are needed to guarantee uniqueness. If you are the DBA for the target database, you can change the multi column primary key to a single column alpha numeric identifier. This would allow the table to take a “one” side of a join, which is much more difficult with a multi column primary key. If you are not the DBA, you could raise this point with your administrator. Check universe Description Automatically You can set Designer options to check the SQL syntax of universe structures at creation, universe export, or when a universe is opened. Manually You run Check Integrity to check selected universe structures.Creating a schema with tables and joins Checking the universe 3 Designer’s Guide 161 Checking universe integrity automatically You can set the following integrity check options in Designer to parse SQL structures at creation, universe export, and universe opening: Setting automatic universe check options To set automatic universe check options: 1. Select Tools > Options. The Options dialog box opens to the General page. 2. Select or clear check boxes for appropriate universe automatic check options in the Integrity group box. 3. Click OK. Checking universe integrity manually You can use Check Integrity to test to verify if the design of your active universe is accurate and up-to-date. Check Integrity detects the following: • Errors in the objects, joins, conditions, and cardinalities of your universe. • Loops in join paths. • Any necessary contexts. • Changes to the target database. Automatic check option Description Automatic parse upon definition Designer automatically checks the SQL definition of all objects, conditions, and joins at creation. It is applied when you click OK to validate structure creation. Send check integrity Designer displays a warning each time you attempt to export an unchecked universe. Check universe integrity at opening All universes are checked automatically when opened.Creating a schema with tables and joins Checking the universe 3 162 Designer’s Guide Before examining the elements of the universe against those of the database, the function checks whether the connection to the database is valid. If the connection is not valid, the function stops and returns an error message. Types of errors detected by Check Integrity Check Integrity can detect: • Invalid syntax in the SQL definition of an object, condition, or join. • Loops • Isolated tables • Isolated joins • Loops within contexts • Missing or incorrect cardinalities How does Check Integrity determine changes in a connected database? The Check Integrity function sends a request to the database for a list of tables. It then compares this list with the tables in the universe. It carries out the same action for columns. In the Structure pane, Check Integrity marks any tables or columns not matching those in the list as not available. These are tables or columns that may have been deleted or renamed in the database. See the section “Refreshing the Universe Structure” on page 165. Note: The option Check Cardinalities can be slow to run with large amounts of data. If there is ambiguous or missing data, results can also be inaccurate. If your database is large, and may have incomplete data entries, then you should not select the option Check Cardinalities. If you do use this option, then you can optimize the cardinality detection by modifying the PRM file. For more information, refer to the section “Optimizing automatic cardinality detection” on page 158. Verifying universe integrity with Check Integrity To verify universe integrity: 1. Select Tools > Check Integrity. Or Click the Check Integrity button. Check IntegrityCreating a schema with tables and joins Checking the universe 3 Designer’s Guide 163 2. The Integrity Check dialog box appears. 3. Select check boxes for components to be verified. Note: You can select Check Cardinalities independently of the Check All option. This allows you to verify the universe structure without checking cardinalities which may take a long time depending on the database. 4. Clear check boxes for components not to be verified. 5. Select the Quick Parsing check box to verify only the syntax of components. Or Select Thorough Parsing check box to verify both the syntax and semantics of components. 6. Click OK.Creating a schema with tables and joins Checking the universe 3 164 Designer’s GuideA message box displays the universe check progress. If Check Integrity encounters no errors, it displays “OK” beside each error type. 7. Click the plus sign (+) beside the error type to view the list of components in which the error occurred. You can double click an item in the list to highlight the corresponding components in the Structure pane.Creating a schema with tables and joins Checking the universe 3 Designer’s Guide 165 8. Click the Print button to print the window contents. 9. Click OK. Note: Before selecting the Check for Loops check box, ensure that the cardinalities of joins have already been detected. Otherwise, the function erroneously identifies loops in the joins. Refreshing the Universe Structure If Check Integrity indicates that the database of your universe connection has been modified, you can use Refresh Structure to update the contents of the Structure pane. Refresh Structure can modify the universe structure to comply with changes in the database as follows: To refresh the universe structure: • Select View > Refresh Structure. • A message box appears informing you of a change in the database, or that no update is needed if no changes have been made. If Then Designer does the following Columns were added to tables Adds the columns to the corresponding tables in the universe. Columns were removed from tables Displays a warning message indicating the columns and associated joins you should delete. Tables were removed from the database Displays a warning message indicating the tables and associated joins you should delete. Tables were renamed in the database Displays a message that says it no longer recognizes the corresponding tables in the universe. You should rename these tables to match those in the database. If the names still do not match, Designer returns a message stating that the renamed tables do not exist in the database. No changes were made to the database Displays a message informing you that no update is needed.Creating a schema with tables and joins Checking the universe 3 166 Designer’s Guidechapter Resolving join problems in a schemaResolving join problems in a schema Overview 4 168 Designer’s Guide OverviewThis chapter describes the types of problems that can arise as you create joins between the tables in your schema. It explains how you can detect and resolve these join problems to ensure that the join paths taken by queries run on the universe return correct results Note: $INSTALLDIR variable in this guide In this guide the variable $INSTALLDIR is the install root path for the data access files used by Designer and Web Intelligence. This is the Business Objects installation path with the operating system sub directory that contains the Designer executable and the data access drivers. Under Windows$INSTALLDIR = \\...\Business Objects\BusinessObjects Enterprise 11.5\win32_x86. For example C:\Program Files\Business Objects\BusinessObjects Enterprise 11.5\win32_x86. What is a join path problem? A join path is a series of joins that a query can use to access data in the tables linked by the joins. Join path problems can arise from the limited way that lookup and fact tables are related in a relational database. The three major join path problems that you encounter when designing a schema are the following: • loops • chasm traps • fan traps You can solve all these problems by creating aliases (a copy of a base table), contexts (a defined join path), and using features available in Designer to separate queries on measures or contexts. This section briefly defines lookup and fact tables, and describes the types of join path problems that you can encounter using these tables. It explains how you can use aliases, contexts, and other Designer features to resolve join path problems in your universe schema. In Designer, you typically create joins between lookup tables and fact tables.Resolving join problems in a schema What is a join path problem? 4 Designer’s Guide 169 What is a Lookup Table A lookup (or dimension) table contains information associated with a particular entity or subject. For example, a lookup table can hold geographical information on customers such as their names, telephone numbers as well as the cities and countries in which they reside. In Designer, dimension and detail objects are typically derived from lookup tables. A lookup table has the following join cardinality structure: What is a Fact Table A fact table contains statistical information about transactions. For example, it may contain figures such as Sales Revenue or Profit. In a universe, most but not all, measures are defined from fact tables. A fact table is characterized by the following join cardinality structure: What Types of Join Paths Return Incorrect Results? Queries can return incorrect results due to the limitations in the way that joins are performed in relational databases. Depending on how the lookup and fact tables in your table schema are related, join paths can produce instances where a query returns too few, or too many rows. DIMENSION FACTResolving join problems in a schema What is a join path problem? 4 170 Designer’s Guide The following types of join paths can produce incorrect results: Detecting and Solving Join Problems Designer provides a number of methods for detecting and solving join problems. Each of these methods is fully described in its corresponding section. You can use the following methods to detect and solve join path problems: Type of Join Path Returns Description Loop Too few rows Joins form multiple paths between lookup tables. Converging many to one joins Too many rows Many to one joins from two fact tables converge on a single lookup table. This type of join convergence can lead to a join path problem called a chasm trap. Serial many to one joins Too many rows A one to many join links a table which is in turn linked by a one to many join. This type of fanning out of one to many joins can lead to a join path problem called a fan trap. Join Problem Detected by Solved by Loop • Detect Aliases • Detect Contexts • Detect Loops • Check Integrity • Visual analysis of schema Creating aliases and contexts to break loops.Resolving join problems in a schema Defining aliases 4 Designer’s Guide 171 Most join path problems can be solved by creating an alias or implementing a context. You can use the automatic loop detection tools in Designer to identify loops in the schema, and automatic context detection to identify where Chasm traps occur. However, to resolve fan traps, you have to be able to visually analyze the schema and create aliases and if necessary contexts manually. Defining aliases Aliases are references to existing tables in a schema. An Alias is a table that is an exact duplicate of the original table (base table), with a different name. The data in the table is exactly the same as the original table, but the different name "tricks" the SQL of a query to accept that you are using two different tables. Chasm trap (converging many to one joins) Visual analysis of table schema. • Creating a context. • Using the feature Multiple SQL statements for each measure. • Creating multiple universes (Web Intelligence only). Fan trap (serial many to one joins) Visual analysis of table schema. • Creating an alias, creating a context using the alias, then building affected measure objects on the alias. • Using Multiple SQL Statements for Each Measure. Join Problem Detected by Solved byResolving join problems in a schema Defining aliases 4 172 Designer’s Guide The Beach universe schema appears below. It contains two alias tables; Resort_Country and Sponsor: How are Aliases Used in a Schema? You use aliases for two main reasons: • To use the table more than once in a query. This is the main reason for using aliases, and includes using aliases to solve loops and fan traps. The example Beach universe contains 2 aliases; Resort_Country for Country, and Sponsor for Customer. • To abbreviate the table name to save typing when writing freehand SQL. Tip: Another possible use of aliases is to create an alias for each table as it is inserted into the schema. You then build the schema using the alias tables, not the original base tables. You place the base tables together away from the main universe structure. This allows you to give meaningful names to tables, and prevents the need to rebuild major sections of a universe structure should a base table need to be aliased at a later stage. Using aliases to solve loops The most common use of aliases in universe development is to solve potential loops in the use of common tables. A loop is a set of joins that defines a closed path through a set of tables in a schema. Loops occur when joins form multiple paths between lookup tables Resort_Country is an alias for Country Sponsor is an alias for CustomerResolving join problems in a schema Defining aliases 4 Designer’s Guide 173 You use an alias to break a loop by providing alternative table for an original lookup table that is being used for multiple query paths. This use of aliases is discussed in the section “Resolving loops” on page 187. Using aliases to solve fan traps Aliases are also used to solve potential fan traps. These can occur in a serial one-to-many join path that can return inflated results when aggregates are summed at the "many" end of the joins. This use of aliases is discussed in the section “Resolving Chasm Traps” on page 214. Creating Aliases You can create aliases manually, or let Designer automatically detect potential aliases that will solve a join path loop. You need to create an alias manually to solve a fan trap. You also create aliases manually if you are creating a schema using only aliases and not the base tables. The automatic detection and creation of aliases to solve loops is described in the section “Detecting and creating an alias” on page 198. Creating an alias manually To create an alias manually: 1. Click the table that you want to use to create an alias. 2. Select Insert > Alias Or Click the Insert Alias button. The Creating an Alias box appears. It prompts you to enter a name for the new alias. 3. Enter a new name for the aliased table, or keep the one proposed. Insert AliasResolving join problems in a schema Defining aliases 4 174 Designer’s GuideNote: The name that you give to an alias should be relevant to the role of the alias to distinguish it from the base table. For example, Resort country is an alias for Country. Resort Country is used for queries returning data for resort countries, the base table Country is used in queries returning data for customer countries. 4. Click OK. The aliased table appears in the Structure pane. 5. Create any joins necessary between the alias and other tables in the schema. Tip: To avoid confusing base tables with aliases, you can display the alias with the name of the base table it represents in the table title as follows: Select Tools > Options > Graphics, and then select the Aliased Name check box. Renaming an alias You can rename an alias at any time. Alias and table naming conventions are RDBMS dependent. You can rename an alias directly by renaming the table, or from a list of aliases in the universe. Renaming an alias directly To rename an alias directly: 1. Click a table and select Edit > Rename Table. Or Right click a table and select Rename table from the contextual menu. Alias Base tableResolving join problems in a schema Defining aliases 4 Designer’s Guide 175 The Rename Table dialog box appears. 2. Type a new name in the Table Name box. The availability of the Owner and Qualification fields is database specific. If they are active, then you can modify these as necessary. 3. Select the Upper case check box if you want the alias name to be shown as all uppercase. Or Select the Lower case check box if you want the alias name to be shown as all lowercase. 4. Click OK. Renaming an alias from a list To rename an alias from a list: 1. Select Tools > List of Aliases. 2. The List of Aliases appears. It lists all the aliases in the active universe. 3. Click an alias name in the list. 4. Type a new name for the selected alias in the New Name text box. 5. Click Apply. 6. Click OK. Deleting an alias You delete an alias in the same way that you delete a table. If you have defined objects using the alias, you must modify these objects before you delete the alias, so that they use another table, or delete the objects if they are no longer necessary.Resolving join problems in a schema Defining contexts 4 176 Designer’s Guide If you do not modify or remove the objects using a deleted alias, queries using those objects will generate errors in Web Intelligence. To delete an alias: 1. Click an alias and select Edit > Clear. Or Right click an alias and select Clear from the contextual menu. Or Click an alias and press the DELETE key. If any objects use the alias, the following message appears: If no objects use the alias, you do not receive a confirmation box. The alias is deleted immediately. 2. Click Yes. The alias is deleted from the Structure pane. Defining contexts Contexts are a collection of joins which provide a valid query path for Web Intelligence to generate SQL. How are Contexts Used in a Schema? You can use contexts in a universe schema for the following purposes: • Solving loops. • Solving chasm traps. • Assisting in some solutions for fan traps. • Assisting in detecting incompatibility for objects using aggregate awareness.Resolving join problems in a schema Defining contexts 4 Designer’s Guide 177 Using contexts to solve loops The most common use of contexts is to separate two query paths, so that one query returns data for one fact table, and the other query returns data for another fact table. You use contexts to direct join paths in a schema which contains multiple fact tables. Aliases are not appropriate in such schema. This use of contexts is covered in the section “Resolving loops” on page 187. Using contexts to solve chasm and fan traps Contexts are also used to solve potential chasm traps. These can occur when two many-to-one join paths converge on a single table. Multiple rows can be returned for a single dimension causing inflated results. Contexts can split out the query so that the correct number of rows are returned for the dimension. Contexts can also be used with aliases to solve fan traps. These uses of contexts are discussed in the section “Resolving Chasm Traps” on page 214. Using contexts to determine AggregateAwareness incompatibility You can use contexts to exclude objects that are not compatible with an object using the @AggregateAware function in its definition, from being used in a query with the aggregate aware object. This use of contexts is discussed in“Generating OLAP universes” on page 317. Creating a Context You can let Designer automatically detect contexts, or you can create contexts manually. If you are using a context to resolve a loop or a chasm trap, you should always let Designer detect the contexts. However, for solving a fan trap (another join path problem), you may have to manually build a context. The automatic detection of contexts for loop resolution is described in the section “Resolving loops” on page 187. Note: When you create one or more contexts, all joins must be included in one or multiple contexts. If a table is linked by a join that is not included in a context, the join will not be considered when a query is run. The following procedures describe how you can create a context automatically and manually. Creating a context automatically To create a context automatically 1. Select Tools > Automated Detection >Detect Contexts.Resolving join problems in a schema Defining contexts 4 178 Designer’s GuideThe Candidate Contexts box appears. It proposes candidate contexts for your schema. These candidate contexts may be necessary to solve either loops or a chasm trap, as chasm traps exist at the branch where two contexts meet. 2. Click a context in the Candidate Contexts list and click the Add button. 3. Repeat step 2 for each candidate context in the list. Note: Once you have added the candidate context to the Accepted Contexts list, you can rename a context as follows: Click a context and click the Rename button. An edit box appears. Type the new name and click OK. 4. Click OK. The contexts are listed in the Contexts pane when List mode (View > List Mode) is active. The context for invoice Line is shown below. Contexts appear here in List Mode Context join path for Reservation_LineResolving join problems in a schema Defining contexts 4 Designer’s Guide 179 5. The context for Invoice_Line is shown below. Creating a context manually To create a context manually: 1. Select Insert > Context. Or Click the Insert Context button. The New Context box appears. Context join path for Reservation_Line Insert ContextResolving join problems in a schema Defining contexts 4 180 Designer’s Guide 2. Type a name for the context in the Context Name text box. 3. Select all the joins defining the context in the Current Context Joins list. You have the following options when creating the context: 4. Click the Detect button to show the joins making up a suggested context with context name. 5. Select the Show Selected Only check box to see only selected joins. 6. Click the Check button. Designer checks the selected joins for any loops. 7. Type a description of the data the context returns. This is the help text that a Web Intelligence user sees when they run a query that takes the context path. This text should be useful to the end user. 8. Click OK. The context is created. Editing a context You can use a context editor to modify the following properties of a context: • Name • Joins included in the context • Description You can also check the context for any unresolved loops. Editing context properties To edit context properties: 1. Select View > List Mode. The List pane appears above the Structure pane. It contains list boxes for all the tables, joins, and contexts in the Structure pane. 2. Double click a context name in the Contexts list pane.Resolving join problems in a schema Defining contexts 4 Designer’s Guide 181 The Edit Context box appears. 3. Type a new name in the Context Name box if you want to change the context name. 4. Click a highlighted join to remove it from the context. Or Click a join that is not highlighted to add it to the context. 5. Type a description for the context. 6. Click OK. The modifications appear in the context. Deleting a context You can delete a context at any time from the Context list in the List pane. If you are adding or deleting a table or join within a context, you should delete the context before making the modification to the table or join. Once the modification is complete, you can either manually recreate the context if it is being used to solve a chasm trap, or use Detect Contexts to automatically detect a new context if it is being used to resolve a loop. Refer to the section“Detecting and creating a context” on page 200 for information on detecting contexts. Deleting a context from the Context list To delete a context from the context list: 1. Ensure that List mode is active (Select View > List Mode).Resolving join problems in a schema Defining contexts 4 182 Designer’s Guide 2. Right click a context name in the Contexts list box and select Clear from the contextual menu. Or Click a context name in the Context list box and select Edit > Clear. The context is removed from the list. Updating contexts Contexts are not updated automatically when the universe structure is changed. If you add or remove any tables to the structure, or if you add or remove any joins, you must update all the contexts. If you have made only a simple change to the structure, you can update the joins that are included in each context manually using either the Edit Context box or the List pane. However, if you have made significant changes to the universe structure, you should delete the current contexts and re-create them. Join Paths that Prevent Context Detection A one-to one-cardinality positioned at the end of a join path can prevent Context Detection in Designer from detecting a context. You resolve this problem by changing the cardinality of the table at the end of the join path to one-to-many. Example: One-to-one cardinality preventing context detection The schema below shows a table Sales_Extra_Info that contains particular information about each sale. It is joined by a one-to-one join to the Sales table.Resolving join problems in a schema Defining contexts 4 Designer’s Guide 183 When you visually examine the join paths, there are clearly two contexts in this schema; a reservations context, and a sales context. However, when you automatically detect contexts on this type of join path (Tools > Automated Detection >Detect Contexts), you receive the following message: Designer has not considered the one-to-one join at the end of the join path in the context detection, so does not consider that there are two contexts. Changing cardinality to allow the context detection You solve this problem by setting the cardinality of the join linking Sale_Extra_Info to Sales to one-to-many. It can also be many-to-one, the important factor is not to have the one-to-one join at the end of the join path. The schema below now has a one-to-many join at the end of the join path. When you run Detect Contexts, the two contexts are detected as shown below:Resolving join problems in a schema Defining contexts 4 184 Designer’s Guide How do Contexts Affect Queries? Depending on how you allow Web Intelligence users to use the objects defined on schema structures, contexts can lead to three types of queries being run: • Ambiguous queries • Inferred queries • Incompatible queries You can run these types of queries in Web Intelligence to test the SQL generated by the contexts. If any of these query types produces an error, or returns incorrect data, you need to analyze the concerned join paths. Ambiguous queries An end user is prompted to choose between one query path or another. This occurs when a query includes objects that when used together do not give enough information to determine one context or the other. When a query is ambiguous, Web Intelligence displays a dialog box that prompts the user to select one of two contexts. When the user selects a context, the corresponding tables and joins are inserted into the SQL query. Example: Running an ambiguous query A Web Intelligence user runs the following query: Give me the services used by each age group of visitors for each resort: When the query is run, a dialog box appears asking the user to choose a context, in this case either the Reservations or Sales context: The user must choose if they want information for services reserved by age group, or services paid by age group. If they select the Reservations context, the following SQL is generated: SELECT Service.service, Age_group.age_range, Resort.resort FROM Service, Age_group, Resort, Customer,Resolving join problems in a schema Defining contexts 4 Designer’s Guide 185 Reservations, Reservation_Line, Service_Line WHERE ( Resort.resort_id=Service_Line.resort_id ) AND ( Service.sl_id=Service_Line.sl_id ) AND ( Customer.age between Age_group.age_min and Age_group.age_max ) AND ( Customer.cust_id=Reservations.cust_id ) AND ( Reservation_Line.res_id=Reservations.res_id ) AND ( Reservation_Line.service_id=Service.service_id ) The joins referenced by the other context (Sales) do not appear in the SQL. Inferred queries A Web Intelligence query is run without prompting an end user to choose a context. The query contains enough information for the correct context to be inferred. For example, a user runs the following query: Give me the number of future guests by age group for each available service: When the query is run, the data is returned without prompting the user to select a context. The Future Guests object is a sum on the Reservation_Line table, which is part of the Reservations context. Web Intelligence infers that the Reservation context is the one to use for the query. Incompatible queries Objects from two different contexts are combined in a query. The two Select statements are synchronized to display returned data in separate tables. Example: Running an incompatible query A Web Intelligence user runs the following query: Give me the total number of guests company wide by age group and the months that reservations were made.Resolving join problems in a schema Defining contexts 4 186 Designer’s Guide When the query is run, no prompt appears as Web Intelligence infers the use of both the Sales and Reservations contexts. The Select statements for both contexts are synchronized as follows: The query is split into two parts: • Age Group and Number of Guests • Reservation Month When retrieving the results of the two queries, Web Intelligence combines the results (using Age Group). It then displays the results in two tables in the same report as followst. To allow incompatible queries to be run in Web Intelligence, you must select the Multiple SQL statements in Designer for each context option. This is described in the following section.Resolving join problems in a schema Resolving loops 4 Designer’s Guide 187 Selecting Multiple SQL statements for each context To select Multiple SQL statements for each context: 1. Select File > Parameters. The Universe Parameters dialog box appears. 2. Click the SQL tab. The SQL page appears. 3. Select the Multiple SQL statements for each context check box. 4. Click OK. Resolving loops In a relational database schema, a common type of join path that returns too few rows is called a loop. What is a Loop? A loop is a set of joins that defines a closed path through a set of tables in a schema. Loops occur when joins form multiple paths between lookup tables. An example of a loop is shown below.Resolving join problems in a schema Resolving loops 4 188 Designer’s Guide The schema contains two linked sets of information: These two sets of information are linked in a common join path forming a loop. The lookup table Country can be the country where a resort is situated, or the country in which a customer lives. Why loops in a universe schema and not in the database? In a database, multiple paths between tables may be valid and implemented to meet specific user requirements. When each path is included individually in a query it returns a distinct set of results. However, the schema that you design in Designer often needs to allow queries that include more than one path, which a relational database may not be designed to handle, so the information returned can be incorrect. The rows that are returned are an intersection of the results for each path, so fewer rows are returned than expected. It is also often difficult to determine the problem when you examine the results. How Does a Loop Affect Queries? If you created a universe based on the above structure, any query run against the tables in the loop would return only results where the country values for resorts and the country values for customer origin are equivalent. This double restriction on the shared lookup Country table returns fewer rows than expected. For each... the following information is linked Resort Available service lines, services for each service line, invoice information for each service, and the country where the resort is situated. Customer The city, region, and country where the customer lives, the sales for the customer, and the invoice information for each sale.Resolving join problems in a schema Resolving loops 4 Designer’s Guide 189 Example: Loop returns incorrect results You create the following objects using the schema that contains the above loop: You run the following query in Web Intelligence: For each resort country, give me the number of guests from each country that stay at each resort. You would expect the following type of result: For the resorts in France and the US, you have the number of German, Japanese, and US visitors staying in resorts in those countries. However, when you run the query using the universe containing the loop, you receive the following results:Resolving join problems in a schema Resolving loops 4 190 Designer’s Guide This suggests that only visitors from the US stayed in resorts in the US. No other visitors came from any other country. What is the loop doing to the query? The joins in the Structure are used to create the Where clause in the inferred SQL of a query. The purpose of the joins is to restrict the data that is returned by the query. In a loop, the joins apply more restrictions than you anticipate, and the data returned is incorrect. The Where clause created by the loop is shown below: WHERE ( Country.country_id=Resort.country_id ) AND ( Resort.resort_id=Service_Line.resort_id ) AND ( Service_Line.sl_id=Service.sl_id ) AND ( Service.service_id=Invoice_Line.service_id ) AND ( Sales.inv_id=Invoice_Line.inv_id ) AND ( Customer.cust_id=Sales.cust_id ) AND ( City.city_id=Customer.city_id ) AND ( Region.region_id=City.region_id ) AND ( Country.country_id=Region.country_id ) AND ( Service_Line.service_line = 'Accommodation' ) The following two joins are both applying a restriction to the Country table: • Country.country_id=Resort.country_id • Country.country_id=Region.country_id Country is serving two purposes: • Lookup for the resort country. • Lookup for the customer country of origin. This creates a restriction so that data is returned only when the resort country is the same as the customer country. The resulting report shows only the number of visitors from the US who visited resorts in the US. Depending on the nature of the loop, you can resolve the loop in Designer using either an alias to break the join path, or a context to separate the two join paths so that a query can only take one path or the other. How does an alias break a loop? An alias breaks a loop by using the same table twice in the same query for a different purpose. The alias is identical to the base table with a different name. The data in the alias is exactly the same as the original table, but the different name “tricks” SQL into accepting that you are using two different tables.Resolving join problems in a schema Resolving loops 4 Designer’s Guide 191 Note: You can resolve the loop satisfactorily by creating only one alias table in the example we have been using. The Region join uses the original Country table, while the Showroom join uses the alias table. However, you could create a separate alias table for each join in the original table. In some relational database systems, this is necessary. Example: Breaking a loop with an alias The schema below is the same schema that contained the loop in the previous section. It shows a join path in which the Country lookup table receives only the "one" ends of two joins, so it can be used for the following two purposes in the join path: • Countries for resorts • Countries for customers You create an alias for Country and rename it Country_Region. The two "one" ended joins are now separated as follows: • Country keeps a join to the Resort table. • Country_Region is joined to the Region table.Resolving join problems in a schema Resolving loops 4 192 Designer’s Guide The schema now appears as shown below: When you run the same query that produced too few rows in the previous example: For each resort country, give me the number of guests from each country that stay at each resort. The Where clause for this query is now: WHERE ( City.city_id=Customer.city_id ) AND ( City.region_id=Region.region_id ) AND ( Country.country_id=Region.country_id ) AND ( Resort_Country.country_id=Resort.country_id ) AND ( Customer.cust_id=Sales.cust_id ) AND ( Invoice_Line.inv_id=Sales.inv_id ) AND ( Invoice_Line.service_id=Service.service_id ) AND ( Resort.resort_id=Service_Line.resort_id ) AND ( Service.sl_id=Service_Line.sl_id ) AND ( Service_Line.service_line = 'Accommodation' ) There is now one join applying a restriction on the Country table and another join applying a restriction on the Resort_Country table. The loop has been broken.Resolving join problems in a schema Resolving loops 4 Designer’s Guide 193 When the query is run, the following table is returned: How does a context resolve a loop? A context resolves a loop by defining a set of joins that specify one specific path through tables in a loop. It ensures that joins are not included from different paths within the same SQL query. You often use contexts in schema that contain multiple fact tables (“multiple stars”) that share lookup tables. Example: Resolving a loop with a context The schema below contains statistical information about sales and reservations. The statistics relating to each type of transaction are stored in the fact tables Sales and Reservations. The schema contains a loop as a join path can follow the sales path or the reservations path to get service information.Resolving join problems in a schema Resolving loops 4 194 Designer’s Guide If you created an alias for the Customer so that you had a Customer to Reservation join and a Customer_Sales to Sales join, you break the loop, but if you want to add a City table to the schema, you end up with a loop again as shown below: You must continue creating aliases for each new table you add to the schema. This is difficult to maintain, and also ends up proliferating the number of similar objects using each table in the universe. The only way to resolve this loop is to leave the loop in place, and create a context that specifies one or the other path around the schema. This ensures that queries answer questions for one transaction or the other, such as: Is the customer information needed from the perspective of sales or reservations? In the example, you can follow two different paths from the Customer table to the Service table: For this path... Designer detects these contexts... Reservations and Reservation_Line Reservation_Line Sales and Invoice_Line Sales_LineResolving join problems in a schema Resolving loops 4 Designer’s Guide 195 The Reservation_Line context appears below: The Sales_Line context appears below: These two tables are the source of the two contexts. Both are arranged at the end of the one to many join paths. Resolving join problems in a schema Resolving loops 4 196 Designer’s Guide You then create different sets of objects from the tables in the different contexts. Users can then run either Reservation queries or Sales queries, depending on the objects they select. Visually Identifying Loops You can use the following guidelines to help you analyze your schema to determine whether an alias or context is appropriate for resolving loops. These can be useful to understand your schema, but you should use Detect Aliases and Detect Contexts to formally identify and resolve loops. See the section “Detecting and creating an alias” on page 198 and “Detecting and creating a context” on page 200 for more information. Automatically Identifying and Resolving Loops You can use Designer to automatically detect loops and propose candidate aliases and contexts that you can insert in your schema to resolve the loops. Cardinalities must be set before detecting loops Before using the automatic loop detection and resolution features, all cardinalities must be set for all joins in the schema. It is good design practise to either define cardinalities manually, or manually validate each cardinality that Designer proposes when using the automatic routine. You can set cardinalities in two ways: • Manually. Refer to the section “Using cardinalities” on page 150 for more information. • Use Detect Cardinalities. Refer to the section “Using cardinalities” on page 150 for more information. If loop contains... then loop can be resolved by... Only one lookup table Alias A look up table that receives only "one" ends of joins Alias Two or more fact tables ContextResolving join problems in a schema Resolving loops 4 Designer’s Guide 197 Designer Features to Detect and Resolve loops You can use the following features in Designer to identify and resolve loops: General method for identifying and resolving loops A general procedure for detecting and resolving loops is given below. The sections that describe the step in detail are also given. 1. Verify that all cardinalities are set. See the section “Using cardinalities” on page 150. 2. Run Detect Aliases to identify if your schema needs an alias to solve any loops. Identify and resolve loop using... Description Detect Aliases Detects tables that can be aliased to solve a loop in the structure and proposes a candidate alias for each table. You can insert and rename the alias directly from the box. You should run Detect Aliases before Detect Contexts to ensure that aliases that you create are included in any contexts that you implement. It does not detect the need for an alias to resolve a fan trap. Detect Contexts Detects contexts that can be used to solve a loop in the structure and proposes candidate contexts. You can implement and rename each context directly from the box. Run Detect Contexts after Detect Aliases to ensure that any contexts that you implement include any new aliases. It does not always detect the need for a context to resolve a chasm trap. If not, you need to identify the context manually. Detect Loops Detects and highlights loops in the structure It proposes to insert an alias or context to resolve each loop. You can implement the proposed alias or context directly from the Detect Loops box. Use Detect Loops to run a quick check on the schema, or to visualize the loop. Do not use it to identify and then resolve loops as you cannot edit or see the candidate alias before insertion.Resolving join problems in a schema Resolving loops 4 198 Designer’s GuideSee the section “Detecting and creating an alias” on page 198 for more information. 3. Insert the candidate aliases proposed by Detect Aliases. 4. Run Detect Contexts to identify if your schema needs a context to solve a loop that could not be solved with an alias only. See the section “Detecting and creating a context” on page 200 for more information. 5. Implement the candidate contexts proposed by Detect Contexts. 6. Test the resolved loop by creating objects and running queries. See the chapter “Building universes” on page 235 for information on creating objects and testing the universe structures. Note: If you are resolving loops for a schema that already has objects defined on the tables, then you must redefine any objects that now use an alias and not the base table. Detecting and creating an alias You can use Detect Aliases, to automatically detect and indicate the tables causing loops in the active universe. Detect Aliases proposes candidate tables that you can edit, and insert in the schema. Note: Before using Detect Aliases, verify that all the tables in schema are linked by joins, and that all cardinalities are set. To detect and create an alias: 1. Select Tools > Automated Detection > Detect Aliases. Or Click the Detect Aliases button. Detect AliasesResolving join problems in a schema Resolving loops 4 Designer’s Guide 199 The Detect Aliases dialog box appears. The left pane lists the table or tables that need an alias. The right pane lists proposed aliases that can be inserted to break the loop. 2. Select a table in the left pane. A suggested name for the candidate alias is listed in the right pane. 3. If you want to rename the proposed alias, click the Rename button and enter a new name in the Rename box. 4. Click the Create button. A message box prompts you to confirm the creation of the alias. 5. Click the OK button. The alias appear in the Structure pane/6. Repeat steps 2 to 4 for any remaining tables. 7. Click Close.Resolving join problems in a schema Resolving loops 4 200 Designer’s Guide Detecting and creating multiple aliases Sometimes when you create an alias, you need to create additional aliases to accommodate new join paths. When using Detect Alias, if Designer detects the need for further aliases, the following dialog box appears when you click the Create button. In such a situation, two options are available to you: • You can accept that only the first table proposed will be aliased. • You can alias all the tables listed. Detecting and creating a context You can use Detect Contexts to automatically detect the need for a context. Detect Contexts also proposes a candidate context. You can edit the candidate context before it is implemented. To detect and create a context: 1. Select Tools > Automated Detection > Detect Contexts. Or Click the Detect Contexts button. The Candidate Contexts dialog box appears. The proposed contexts appear in the left pane. Detect ContextsResolving join problems in a schema Resolving loops 4 Designer’s Guide 201 2. Click a context name. The tables included in the candidate context are highlighted in the schema. 3. Click the Add button. The context name appears in the Accepted Contexts pane. You can remove any context from the right pane by selecting it, and then clicking the Remove button. 4. Repeat steps 3 and 4, if applicable, to add the other contexts. 5. If you want to rename a context, select it from the right pane, and then click the Rename button. The Rename Context dialog box appears. Type a new name. 6. Click the OK button. The contexts are listed in the Contexts box in the Universe window. Note: If your universe contains a loop that could be ambiguous for a user, you should always give a name to the context resolving the loop that is easy for users to understand. It should be clear to a Web Intelligence user what information path is represented by a context. Automatically detecting loops You can detect loops in your universe using Detect Loops. This is a feature that automatically checks for loops in the schema, and proposes either an alias or context to solve the loop. Detect Loops is useful to run quick checks for loops in the schema. It also proposes aliases and contexts to resolve detected loops; however, you have less control over the order that the alias and contexts are created than if you used Detect Aliases and Detect Contexts to resolve a loop. The recommended process for resolving loops is described in the section “General method for identifying and resolving loops” on page 197.Resolving join problems in a schema Resolving loops 4 202 Designer’s Guide Note: You can also use Check Integrity to automatically check for errors in universe structures, including joins, cardinalities, and loops. Check Integrity proposes solutions to any errors it discovers. See the section “Checking Universe Integrity Manually” on page 230 for more information. To detect loops in a schema: 1. Verify that you have set cardinalities for all joins in the schema. 2. Select Tools > Automated Detection > Detect Loops. Or Click the Detect Loops button. The Loop Detection box appears. It indicates how many loops have been detected and proposes a possible solution. The detected join path that forms a loop is simultaneously highlighted in the Structure pane as follows: Detect LoopResolving join problems in a schema Resolving loops 4 Designer’s Guide 203 3. Click the forward button to display the next loop and proposed solution. For each loop that Designer detects, the join path is highlighted in the structure pane. 4. Click Close. Creating aliases and contexts automatically Designer proposes a candidate alias or a context to resolve a loop when you run Detect Loop. You can choose to insert the candidate alias or implement the candidate context directly from the Detect Loops box. To create an alias using Detect Loop: 1. Select Tools > Automated Detection > Detect Loops. The Detect Loops box appears. It indicates one or more loops detected in the schema, and proposes a candidate alias or context for each loop. 2. Click the forward arrow button until the following message appears for a detected loop: This loop can be resolved with an alias. 3. Click the Insert Alias button. An alias is automatically inserted in the Structure pane. It is joined to the table that table that is causing the loop in the schema. Creating a context using Detect Loop To create a context using Detect Loops: 1. Select Tools > Automated Detection > Detect Loops. The Detect Loops box appears. It indicates one or more loops detected in the schema, and proposes a candidate alias or context for each loop. 2. Click the forward arrow button until the following message appears for a detected loop:Resolving join problems in a schema Resolving loops 4 204 Designer’s GuideThis loop is not covered by any context. 3. Click the Candidate context button. The Candidate Contexts dialog box appears. 4. Click a context name. The tables included in the candidate context are highlighted in the schema. 5. Click the Add button. The context name appears in the Accepted Contexts pane. You can remove any context from the right pane by selecting it, and then clicking the Remove button. 6. Repeat steps 3 and 4, if applicable, to add the other contexts. 7. Click OK. A context confirmation box appears. 8. Click Close. The contexts are listed in the Contexts box in the Universe window.Resolving join problems in a schema Resolving loops 4 Designer’s Guide 205 Examples of Resolving Loops The following are worked examples showing you how to do the following: • Create an alias to break a loop caused by shared lookup tables • Create an alias to break a loop caused by shared lookup tables • Determining when an alias is not appropriate to break a loop • Creating a context to resolve a loop • Using an alias and context together to resolve a loop These schemas are not based on the Beach universe. They use a schema based on a Shipping company and show another perspective of certain loop resolution examples already shown in this chapter with the Beach universe. Example: Create an alias to break a loop caused by shared lookup tables. A sales database holds information about products sold to customers on a worldwide basis. These customers can: • Reside anywhere in the world • Order products from the company • Request that these products be shipped to a destination in any country For example, a customer residing in the UK can order a vehicle and then ask for it to be shipped to Brazil. The schema for this type of database is as follows: You can interpret this schema as follows: • Each customer comes from one country. • Each customer can place one or more orders for a product. • The company ships each product ordered to a destination country, which may not necessarily be the same as the customer’s country of residence. Resolving join problems in a schema Resolving loops 4 206 Designer’s Guide The tables and their columns are shown below: You run a query to obtain the following information: • Names of customers • Customer’s country of residence • Dates of each order • Destination country of the shipment The SQL to extract this data is as follows: SELECT CUSTOMERS.LAST_NAME, COUNTRY.COUNTRY, ORDERS.ORDER_ID, ORDERS.ORDER_DATE, COUNTRY.COUNTRY FROM CUSTOMERS, ORDERS, COUNTRY WHERE (CUSTOMERS.CUST_ID=ORDERS.CUST_ID) AND (ORDERS.SHIP_COUNTRY=COUNTRY.COUNTRY_ID) AND (CUSTOMER.LOC_COUNTRY=COUNTRY.COUNTRY_ID) When executed, this SQL returns incomplete results; only those customers who requested a shipment to their country of residence are returned. The customers who chose another country for shipment are not returned. Resolving join problems in a schema Resolving loops 4 Designer’s Guide 207 The returned rows are an intersection of both the customer’s country of residence and the destination country of the shipment. Instead of generating the full results shown below The SQL returns only these results: You can break the loop by inserting an alias. The first step in creating an alias is to identify the lookup table having more than one purpose in the database structure. This is described in the following section. Example: Identifying multi-purpose lookup tables The COUNTRY table is used to look up both the customer’s country of residence and the shipment destination. This type of table is called a shared lookup table. You create an alias in the schema called DESTINATION. The three original joins still exist but the loop has been broken by the DESTINATION alias so there is no longer a closed join path. Referencing the shared lookup table and alias in the FROM clause You now need to reference the table name twice in the From clause, the first time with its ordinary name and the second time with an alias; so the original name is suffixed with an alternative name.Resolving join problems in a schema Resolving loops 4 208 Designer’s Guide The resulting SQL is as follows: SELECT CUSTOMER.NAME, COUNTRY.NAME, ORDERS.ORDER_DATE DESTINATION.NAME FROM CUSTOMER, ORDERS, COUNTRY, COUNTRY DESTINATION WHERE (CUSTOMER.CUST_ID=ORDERS.CUST_ID) AND (ORDERS.SHIP_DEST_ID= DESTINATION.COUNTRY_ID) AND (CUSTOMER.CUST_LOC_ID=COUNTRY.COUNTRY_ID) Example: Create an alias to break a loop caused by shared lookup tables A sales database holds information about customers living in different countries. These customers can place orders for goods that can be delivered by a number of couriers or shipping companies. In this database, the names of the countries and shippers have been normalized into lookup tables. Normalization is a process that refines the relationships of tables by removing redundancies. For structural reasons, rather than two lookup tables, only one lookup table (SYSLOOKUPS) was created with a code, description and type field. The type field indicates the particular type of information the record holds; for example, country or shipper. Referred to as a “flexible lookup,” this type of table often appears in schemas automatically generated by CASE tools.Resolving join problems in a schema Resolving loops 4 Designer’s Guide 209 The schema and table layout are shown below: The SYSLOOKUPS table serves more than one purpose so you have to create as many aliases as the table has domains (distinct values for the type field). Based on the two purposes that are represented in the SYSLOOKUPS table, you can create two aliases, COUNTRY and SHIPPERS. The resulting schema is shown below: Resolving join problems in a schema Resolving loops 4 210 Designer’s Guide In Designer, you create the object Customer’s Country defined as COUNTRY.DESCRIPTION and the object Shipper defined as SHIPPERS.DESCRIPTION. The corresponding joins would be: CUSTOMERS.LOC_COUNTRY=COUNTRY.CODE ORDERS.SHIP_ID=SHIPPERS.CODE Using self restricting joins to restrict results Once you have defined the objects, you now need to restrict each alias so that it returns only its own domain information and not that of the others. For more information on creating self restricting joins, see the section “Self restricting joins” on page 147. For example, if you wanted to know the names of the shippers who dispatched two orders to customer 101, you would expect two rows to be returned. However, the following SQL SELECT ORDERS.ORDER_ID, ORDERS.CUST_ID, ORDERS.ORDER_DATE, SHIPPERS.DESCRIPTION SHIPPER FROM ORDERS, SYSLOOKUPS SHIPPERS WHERE (ORDERS.SHIP_ID=SHIPPERS.CODE) would produce the results below: The query has returned the names of countries and shippers. Both “Man With a Van” and “USA” share code 1 while “France” and “Parcel Fun” share code 3. You can correct the error as follows: • Apply a new self restricting join to the SHIPPERS alias. In the Edit Join dialog box, you set both Table1 and Table2 to SHIPPERS and enter the SQL expression SHIPPERS.TYPE=’SHIP’. • Apply a new self restricting join to the COUNTRY alias. In the Edit Join dialog box, you set both Table1 and Table2 to COUNTRY and enter the SQL expression COUNTRY.TYPE=’CTRY’.Resolving join problems in a schema Resolving loops 4 Designer’s Guide 211 Problems using restrictions When you add the restriction to either the object’s Where clause or to the existing join between the alias and the CUSTOMERS/ORDERS table, this can produce the following problems: • When you add the restriction to the Where clause of an object, you must also add the same restriction to every object built from the alias. If you are creating a number of objects on an alias that has many columns, you could have problems maintaining the universe. • The restriction to the join between the alias and another table only takes effect when the join is invoked. If you run a simple query containing only the Shipper object, every row in the SHIPPERS alias (including the unwanted Country rows) is returned as there is no reason to include the ORDERS table. As the join is not seen as necessary, the restriction is not applied. Summary In this example, we considered a schema with a shared lookup table. The actions carried out can be summarized as follows: 1. Create a COUNTRY and SHIPPERS alias for the shared lookup table. 2. Create self restricting joins for the aliases as restrictions. The aliases in this example resolve a loop by using one combined lookup table as two different lookup tables. These aliases also required the setting of restrictions (self-joins), so in some structures aliases may lead to the need for additional adjustments or restrictions. Example: Determining when an alias is not appropriate to break a loop Creating an alias to resolve the loop described above is not the optimal solution. In this case, the use of contexts is a better solution. The following example describes why aliases are not appropriate, and why contexts are a better solution in this case. If you try to identify the lookup table used for more than one purpose, it is not clear if it is the PRODUCTS table, or the CUSTOMERS table.Resolving join problems in a schema Resolving loops 4 212 Designer’s Guide If you decide to create two aliases for the PRODUCTS table as shown below: The two aliases are ORDERED_PRODUCTS and LOANED_PRODUCTS. This could be confusing for users as they are more likely to understand products, and not ordered products or loaned products. If you also decide to add a COUNTRY table to indicate that the products are manufactured in several different countries you would have to join it directly to the PRODUCTS table. The resulting schema would be as follows: In the schema above, it was necessary to create two new aliases, ORDERED_PRODUCTS_COUNTRY and LOANED_PRODUCTS_COUNTRY. The use of aliases is obviously an unsatisfactory and complicated solution for this particular schema. In this case, you should create contexts. Example: Creating a context to resolve a loop A database contains information about customers who can either buy or rent products. In this database, there are two different ways to present the relationship between the customers and the products: • By products that have been ordered by (or sold to) customers. • By products that have been rented to customers. Resolving join problems in a schema Resolving loops 4 Designer’s Guide 213 This database has the following type of schema: If we wanted to run a query that returns only a list of customer names and a list of products, we could use the ORDER and ORDER_LINES table. The result would be a list of products ordered by each customer. By using the LOANS and LOAN_LINES tables, we would obtain a list of products rented by each customer. This schema contains a loop that causes any query involving all six joins simultaneously to result in a list made up of both products sold and rented to customers. If a product has been sold, but never rented to a customer or viceversa, it would not appear in the list of results. Example: Using an alias and context together to resolve a loop You can use contexts and aliases to resolve loops in a universe. The following example shows how to use both aliases and contexts together in a loop resolution. A universe has the following schema: You can use aliases and contexts to resolve the loops as follows: • Create two aliases for the COUNTRY table: CUST_COUNTRY and PROD_COUNTRY • Define two contexts to resolve the CUSTOMERS to PRODUCTS loops (Orders and Loans)Resolving join problems in a schema Resolving Chasm Traps 4 214 Designer’s Guide • Ensure that the two joins between CUSTOMERS and CUST_COUNTRY and PRODUCTS and PROD_COUNTRY appear in both contexts. The resulting schema appears as follows: Resolving Chasm Traps A chasm trap is a common problem in relational database schemas in which a join path returns more data than expected. What is a Chasm Trap? A chasm trap is a type of join path between three tables when two “many-toone” joins converge on a single table, and there is no context in place that separates the converging join paths. The example below shows a part of the Beach universe schema. The three tables have been separated from the rest of the schema to illustrate the chasm trap. It uses the same Club connection for data. The Service table receives the one ends of two one-to-many joins.Resolving join problems in a schema Resolving Chasm Traps 4 Designer’s Guide 215 You will get incorrect results only when all the following conditions exist: The following is an example that shows how queries that are run when all the above conditions exist return a Cartesian product. Example: A chasm trap inflates results without warning Using the schema above, a Web Intelligence user runs the following separate queries: Condition Example A “many to one to many relationship” exists among three tables in the universe structure. The query includes objects based on two tables both at the “many” end of their respective joins. There are multiple rows returned for a single dimension. Query Returned results many-to-one one-to-manyResolving join problems in a schema Resolving Chasm Traps 4 216 Designer’s Guide The user now runs a query that includes both paid guests and future guests: The following results are returned: The number of guests that have used, and future guests who have reserved to use the Sports service has increased considerably. A Cartesian product has been returned and the results are incorrect. This can be a serious problem if undetected. The above example could lead a manager at Island Resorts to think that sporting activities at the resorts are a more attractive service to guests, than the actual figures would indicate. How does a chasm trap inflate results? The chasm trap causes a query to return every possible combination of rows for one measure with every possible combination of rows for the other measure. In the example above, the following has occurred: • Number of guests transactions *Number of future guest transactions • Number of future guest transactions*Number of guests transactions The following example examines in detail how a chasm trap returns a Cartesian product: Example: Examining the Cartesian product of a chasm trap We need to examine the rows that are returned by the queries to make the aggregated figures. In our example, we can do this by adding the dimensions Days Billed and Days Reserved to the queries to return individual transaction details. The Number of Guests report appears as follows:Resolving join problems in a schema Resolving Chasm Traps 4 Designer’s Guide 217 The Number of Future Guests report appears as follows: The two reports show the following number of transactions: • Number of Guests = 3 transactions • Number of Future Guests = 2 transactions When the two dimensions are both added to the query, the following results are returned: The query returns every possible combination of Number of Guests rows with every possible combination of Number of Future Guests rows: the Number of Guests transactions each appears twice, and the Number of Future Guests transactions each appears three times. When a sum is made on the returned data, the summed results are incorrect. Unlike loops, chasm traps are not detected automatically by Designer, however, you can use Detect Contexts (Tools > Detect Contexts) to automatically detect and propose candidate contexts in your schema. Detect Contexts examines the many to one joins in the schema. It picks up the table that receives converging many to one joins and proposes contexts to separate the queries run on the table. This is the most effective way to ensure that your schema does not have a chasm trap. You can also detect chasm traps graphically by analyzing the one-to-many join paths in your schema. If you do not run Detect Contexts, nor spot the chasm trap in the schema, the only way to see the problem is to look at the detail rows. Otherwise there is nothing to alert you to the situation.Resolving join problems in a schema Resolving Chasm Traps 4 218 Designer’s Guide Detecting a Chasm Trap You can find chasm traps by using Detect Contexts to detect and propose candidate contexts, and then examining the table where any two contexts diverge. This point where two contexts intersect is the source of a chasm trap. If you have two fact tables with many to one joins converging to a single lookup table, then you have a potential chasm trap. Tip: For information on organizing the table schema to detect join problems, refer to “Detecting join problems graphically” on page 227. Resolving a Chasm Trap To resolve a chasm trap you need to make two separate queries and then combine the results. Depending on the type of objects defined for the fact tables, and the type of end user environment, you can use the following methods to resolve a chasm trap: • Create a context for each fact table. This solution works in all cases. • Modify the SQL parameters for the universe so you can generate separate SQL queries for each measure. This solution only works for measure objects. It does not generate separate queries for dimension or detail objects. Each of these methods is described in the following sections. Using contexts to resolve chasm traps You can define a context for each table at the “many” end of the joins. In our example you could define a context from SERVICE to RESERVATION_LINE and from SERVICE to INVOICE_LINE. When you run a query which includes objects from both contexts, this creates two Select statements that are synchronized to produce two separate tables in Web Intelligence, avoiding the creation of a Cartesian product. When do you use contexts? Creating contexts will always solve a chasm trap in a universe. When you have dimension objects in one or both fact tables, you should always use a context.Resolving join problems in a schema Resolving Chasm Traps 4 Designer’s Guide 219 Using contexts to solve a chasm trap To use contexts to resolve a chasm trap: 1. Identify the potential chasm trap by analyzing the “one-to-many-to-one” join path relations in the schema. 2. Select Tools > Detect Contexts. The Candidate Contexts box appears. 3. Select a proposed context in the Candidate Contexts list box and click the Add button to add it to the Accept Contexts list box. 4. Repeat for other listed contexts. The new contexts are listed in the Contexts pane of the List View bar. 5. Select File > Parameters. The Universe Parameters dialog box appears. 6. Click the SQL tab. The SQL page appears. 7. Select the Multiple SQL statements for each Context check box. 8. Click OK. When you run queries on the tables in the chasm trap, the query is separated for measures and dimensions defined on the affected tables. Using Multiple SQL Statements for Each Measure If you have only measure objects defined for both fact tables, then you can use the Universe Parameters option Multiple SQL statements for each measure. This forces the generation of separate SQL queries for each measure that appears in the Query pane. This solution does not work for dimension and detail objects.Resolving join problems in a schema Resolving Fan Traps 4 220 Designer’s Guide The following table describes when you can use Multiple SQL Statements for Each Measure and when you should avoid its use: To activate Multiple SQL Statements for Each Measure: 1. Select File > Parameters from the menu bar. The Universe Parameters dialog box appears. 2. Click the SQL tab. 3. Select the Multiple SQL Statements for Each Measure check box in the Multiple Paths group box. 4. Click OK. Resolving Fan Traps A fan trap is a less common problem than chasm traps in a relational database schema. It has the same effect of returning more data than expected. What is a Fan Trap? A fan trap is a type of join path between three tables when a “one-to-many” join links a table which is in turn linked by another “one-to-many” join. The fanning out effect of “one-to-many” joins can cause incorrect results to be returned when a query includes objects based on both tables. You... In these situations... Use Multiple SQL Statements for Each Measure In universes that contain only measure objects defined for both fact tables. The advantage of using multiple SQL statements is that you can avoid using contexts that you need to maintain later. Do not use Multiple SQL Statements for Each Measure When you have dimension or detail objects defined for one or both of the fact tables. If a dimension or detail object is included in a query based on a universe using this solution, a Cartesian product will be returned. As this solution can slow query response time and produce incorrect results, than you should consider creating contexts to resolve the chasm trap.Resolving join problems in a schema Resolving Fan Traps 4 Designer’s Guide 221 A simple example of a fan trap is shown below: When you run a query that asks for the total number of car models sold by each model line, for a particular customer, an incorrect result is returned as you are performing an aggregate function on the table at the “one” end of the join, while still joining to the “many” end. Example: A fan trap inflates results without warning Using the schema above, a Web Intelligence user runs the following query: The following results are returned: This result is correct. However, the end user adds the dimension Model ID to the query as follows: The following report is created with the returned results:Resolving join problems in a schema Resolving Fan Traps 4 222 Designer’s Guide The Sale Value aggregate appears twice. Once for each instance of Model_ID. When these results are aggregated in a report, the sum is incorrect. The fan trap has returned a Cartesian product. Wendy bought two cars for a total of $57,092.00, and not 114,184.00 as summed in the report. The inclusion of Model_ID in the query, caused the SaleValue to be aggregated for as many rows as Model_ID. The fan trap using dimension objects in the query is solved by using an alias and contexts. The following schema is the solution to the fan trap schema: The original query which returned the Cartesian product for Wendy Craig, now returns the following table when run with the above solution: How Do You Detect a Fan Trap? You cannot automatically detect fan traps. You need to visually examine the direction of the cardinalities displayed in the table schema. If you have two tables that are referenced by measure objects and are joined in a series of many to one joins, then you may have a potential fan trap. Contexts to separate the query Alias for SaleResolving join problems in a schema Resolving Fan Traps 4 Designer’s Guide 223 For a description to organize the table schema to detect join problems, see the section “Detecting join problems graphically” on page 227. How Do You Resolve a Fan Trap? There are two ways to solve a fan trap problem. • Create an alias for the table containing the initial aggregation, then use Detect Contexts (Tools > Detect Contexts) to detect and propose a context for the alias table and a context for the original table. This is the most effective way to solve the fan trap problem. • Altering the SQL parameters for the universe. This only works for measure objects. Both of these methods are described below. Using aliases and contexts to resolve fan traps You create an alias table for the table producing the aggregation and then detect and implement contexts to separate the query. You can do this as follows: To use aliases and contexts to resolve a fan trap: 1. Identify the potential fan trap by analyzing the “one-to-many-to-one-tomany” join path relations in the schema. 2. Create an alias for the table that is producing the multiplied aggregation. For example, SaleValue in the previous example is an aggregate of the Sale_Total column in the Sales table. You create an alias called Sale_Total for Sale. 3. Create a join between the original table and the alias table. Sale_Total is an alias for SaleResolving join problems in a schema Resolving Fan Traps 4 224 Designer’s GuideIf you create a one-to-one join, Designer does not detect the context, and you must build the context manually. In most cases you can use a one-tomany which allows automatic detection and implementation of contexts. For example you create a one-to-many join between Sale and Sale_Total. 4. Build the object that is causing the aggregation on the alias tables. For example the original SaleValue object was defined as follows: sum(SALE.SALE_TOTAL). The new definition for SaleValue is: sum(Sale_Total.SALE_TOTAL). 5. Select Tools > Detect Contexts. The Candidate Contexts box appears. It proposes the candidate contexts for the join path for the base table and the new join path for the alias table. Note: If you have used a one-to-one join between the alias and the base table, then you need to create the context manually. 6. Click a candidate context and click Add. 7. Repeat for the other candidate context. 8. Click OK. one-to-many joinResolving join problems in a schema Resolving Fan Traps 4 Designer’s Guide 225 The contexts are created in the schema. You can view them in the Contexts pane when List Mode is active (View > List Mode). The context for the join path CLIENT>SALE>SALE_MODEL appears as follows: And a second context for the CLIENT>SALE>SALE_TOTAL join path: 9. Select File > Parameters. The Parameters dialog appears. 10. Click the SQL tab.SQL page. The SQL page appears.Resolving join problems in a schema Resolving Fan Traps 4 226 Designer’s Guide 11. Select the Multiple SQL Statements for Each Context check box. 12. Click OK. 13. Run queries to test the fan trap solution. Using Multiple SQL Statements for Each Measure If you have only measure objects defined for both tables at the many end of the serial one-to-many joins, then you can use the Universe Parameters option Multiple SQL Statements for Each Measure. This forces the generation of separate SQL queries for each measure that appears in the Query pane. You cannot use this method to generate multiple queries for dimensions. If an end user can include dimensions from any of the tables that reference the measure objects in the query, then you must use an alias and context to resolve the fan trap. See the section “Using Multiple SQL Statements for Each Measure” on page 226 for more information and procedure to activate this option.Resolving join problems in a schema Detecting join problems graphically 4 Designer’s Guide 227 Detecting join problems graphically You can visually detect potential chasm and fan traps in your table schema by arranging the tables in the Structure pane so that the “many” ends of the joins are to one side of the pane, and the “one” ends to the other. The example below shows the Beach universe schema arranged with a one to many flow from left to right.Resolving join problems in a schema Detecting join problems graphically 4 228 Designer’s Guide Potential chasm trap The potential chasm traps are shown below: Both of these join paths have been separated using the contexts Sales and Reservations. Potential fan trap A universe schema for a car sales database is shown below:Resolving join problems in a schema Checking the universe 4 Designer’s Guide 229 The potential fan traps involve the following tables • CUSTOMER, LOAN, and LOANLINE • CUSTOMER, SALES, and SALELINE • VARIETY, PRODUCT, and SALELINE Tip: Once you have populated your schema with the necessary tables, don’t start defining objects immediately. Allow some time to move tables around so that you have the all the one-to-many joins in the same direction. Designer is a graphic tool, so use the visual capabilities of the product to help you design universes. An hour or so moving tables around could save you a lot of time later in the design process. Checking the universe As you design your universe, you should test its integrity periodically. You can verify universe integrity as follows: Check universe Description Automatically You can set Designer options to check the SQL syntax of universe structures at creation, universe export, or when a universe is opened. Manually You run Check Integrity to check selected universe structures.Resolving join problems in a schema Checking the universe 4 230 Designer’s Guide Checking Universe Integrity Automatically You can set the following integrity check options in Designer to parse SQL structures at creation, universe export, and universe opening: Setting automatic universe check options To set automatic universe check options: 1. Select Tools > Options. The Options dialog box opens to the General page. 2. Select or clear check boxes for appropriate universe automatic check options in the Integrity group box. 3. Click OK. Checking Universe Integrity Manually You can use Check Integrity to test to verify if the design of your active universe is accurate and up-to-date. Check Integrity detects the following: • Errors in the objects, joins, conditions, and cardinalities of your universe. • Loops in join paths. • Any necessary contexts. • Changes to the target database. Automatic check option Description Automatic parse upon definition Designer automatically checks the SQL definition of all objects, conditions, and joins at creation. It is applied when you click OK to validate structure creation. Send check integrity Designer displays a warning each time you attempt to export an unchecked universe. Check universe integrity at opening All universes are checked automatically when opened.Resolving join problems in a schema Checking the universe 4 Designer’s Guide 231 Before examining the elements of the universe against those of the database, the function checks whether the connection to the database is valid. If the connection is not valid, the function stops and returns an error message. Types of errors detected by Check Integrity Check Integrity can detect: • Invalid syntax in the SQL definition of an object, condition, or join. • Loops • Isolated tables • Isolated joins • Loops within contexts • Missing or incorrect cardinalities How does Check Integrity determine changes in a connected database? The Check Integrity function sends a request to the database for a list of tables. It then compares this list with the tables in the universe. It carries out the same action for columns. In the Structure pane, Check Integrity marks any tables or columns not matching those in the list as not available. These are tables or columns that may have been deleted or renamed in the database. See the section “Refreshing the Universe Structure” on page 233. Note: The option Check Cardinalities can be slow to run with large amounts of data. If there is ambiguous or missing data, results can also be inaccurate. If your database is large, and may have incomplete data entries, then you should not select the option Check Cardinalities. If you do use this option, then you can optimize the cardinality detection by modifying the PRM file. For more information, refer to the section “Optimizing automatic cardinality detection” on page 158. Verifying universe integrity with Check Integrity To verify universe integrity: 1. Select Tools > Check Integrity. Or Click the Check Integrity button. The Integrity Check dialog box appears. 2. Select check boxes for components to be verified. 3. Clear check boxes for components not to be verified. Check IntegrityResolving join problems in a schema Checking the universe 4 232 Designer’s Guide 4. Select the Quick Parsing check box to verify only the syntax of components. Or Select Thorough Parsing check box to verify both the syntax and semantics of components. 5. Click OK. A message box displays the universe check progress. If Check Integrity encounters no errors, it displays “OK” beside each error type.Resolving join problems in a schema Checking the universe 4 Designer’s Guide 233 6. Click the plus sign (+) beside the error type to view the list of components in which the error occurred. You can double click an item in the list to highlight the corresponding components in the Structure pane. 7. Click the Print button to print the window contents. 8. Click OK. Note: Before selecting the Check for Loops check box, ensure that the cardinalities of joins have already been detected. Otherwise, the function erroneously identifies loops in the joins. Refreshing the Universe Structure If Check Integrity indicates that the database of your universe connection has been modified, you can use Refresh Structure to update the contents of the Structure pane.Resolving join problems in a schema Checking the universe 4 234 Designer’s Guide Refresh Structure can modify the universe structure to comply with changes in the database as follows: Refreshing a universe To refresh the universe structure: • Select View > Refresh Structure. A message box appears informing you of a change in the database, or that no update is needed if no changes have been made. If Then Designer does the following Columns were added to tables Adds the columns to the corresponding tables in the universe. Columns were removed from tables Displays a warning message indicating the columns and associated joins you should delete. Tables were removed from the database Displays a warning message indicating the tables and associated joins you should delete. Tables were renamed in the database Displays a message that says it no longer recognizes the corresponding tables in the universe. You should rename these tables to match those in the database. If the names still do not match, Designer returns a message stating that the renamed tables do not exist in the database. No changes were made to the database Displays a message informing you that no update is needed.chapter Building universesBuilding universes Overview 5 236 Designer’s Guide OverviewThis chapter describes how you can create the classes and objects that are used by Web Intelligence users to run queries and create reports. it also covers optimizing object definitions to enhance end user reporting, and universe optimization. The previous chapters have described how you plan a universe, create a table schema which contains the database structure of a universe: the tables, columns, and joins, and also how to resolve loops in join paths. The schema that you have created is not visible by Web Intelligence users. Once this database structure is complete, you can now build the classes and objects that users see in the Universe pane, and will use to run queries on the databases structure to generate documents and reports. Note: $INSTALLDIR variable in this guide In this guide the variable $INSTALLDIR is the install root path for the data access files used by Designer and Web Intelligence. This is the Business Objects installation path with the operating system sub directory that contains the Designer executable and the data access drivers. Under Windows$INSTALLDIR = \\...\Business Objects\BusinessObjects Enterprise 11.5\win32_x86. For example C:\Program Files\Business Objects\BusinessObjects Enterprise 11.5\win32_x86. Introduction to universe building Building a universe is the object creation phase of the universe development cycle. The objects that you create must be based on a user needs study and use a sound schema design that has been tested for join path problems.Building universes Introduction to universe building 5 Designer’s Guide 237 The following diagram indicates where the building phase appears in a typical universe development cycle: What is an object? In Business Objects products an object is a named component in a universe that represents a column or function in a database. Objects appear as icons in the Universe pane. Each object represents a meaningful entity, fact, or calculation used in an end users business environment. The objects that you create in the Universe pane in Designer are the objects that end users see and use in the reporting tools. You can also create objects for use only in Designer, which you can hide in the Universe pane seen by Web Intelligence users. Web Intelligence users drag objects from the Universe pane across into the Query pane to run queries and create reports with the returned data. Each object maps to a column or function in a target database, and when used in the Query pane, infers a Select statement. When multiple objects are combined, a Select statement is run on the database including the SQL inferred by each object and applying a default Where clause.Building universes Introduction to universe building 5 238 Designer’s Guide The diagram below shows objects in the universe pane and the same objects in the Designer universe pane. Each object in the Designer universe pane maps to a column in the universe schema, and infers a Select statement when used in a query. As the universe designer, you use Designer to create the objects that Web Intelligence users include in the Query pane to run their queries. What types of objects are used in a universe? In Designer, you can qualify an object as being one of three types: Designer universe pane SELECT run against database tables WebIntelligence universe pane Universe Schema Query objects Object qualification Examples Description Dimension Focus of analysis in a query. A dimension maps to one or more columns or functions in the database that are key to a query.Building universes Using the Universe pane 5 Designer’s Guide 239 When you create an object, you assign it a qualification based on the role that you want that object to have in a query. This role determines the Select statement that the object infers when used in the Query pane. What is a class? A class is a container of objects. A class is the equivalent of a folder in the Windows environment. You create classes to house objects that have a common purpose in the universe. Using classes and objects You organize classes and objects together in the universe pane to correspond to the way that Web Intelligence users are accustomed to work with the information represented by the objects. Using the Universe pane You create the classes and objects in a universe using the Universe pane. The Universe pane presents a hierarchical view of the classes and objects in the active universe. You use the Universe pane to view, create, edit, and organize classes and objects Detail Provides descriptive data about a dimension. A detail is always attached to a dimension. It maps to one or more columns or functions in the database that provide detailed information related to a dimension. Measure Contains aggregate functions that map to statistics in the database. Object qualification Examples Description DetailsBuilding universes Using the Universe pane 5 240 Designer’s Guide The universe pane is shown below. Class names appear beside a folder icon, and object names beside their qualification symbols. Displaying classes and objects or conditions You can use the two radio buttons at the bottom of the window to display classes and objects, or condition objects in the Universe Pane. Condition objects are predefined Where clauses that can be used within one or more Select statements. For more information on creating and using condition objects, see the section“Defining restrictions for objects” on page 269. You can display two views of the universe pane: Classes/Conditions filter Classes/Objects filter KEY Classes: Open (All objects of the class are displayed.) Closed (Only the class name is visible.) Object Qualification: Dimension Measure Detail View To display the view... What it shows Classes/Objects Select left radio button All classes and objects Classes/Conditions Select right radio button All classes and conditions applied on objects contained within each classBuilding universes Basic operations on classes, objects, and conditions 5 Designer’s Guide 241 The two views of the universe pane are shown below: For more information on creating and using condition objects, see the section “Defining restrictions for objects” on page 269. Basic operations on classes, objects, and conditions You can perform the following operations in the Universe Pane that are common to classes, objects and conditions: Cut, copy, paste You can cut, copy, and paste a selected component with the usual standard commands used in a Windows environment. Moving classes, objects, or conditions You can move a component to another position in the window by dragging and dropping it at the desired location. Classes and Objects radio button Classes and Conditions radio button Classes and Objects view Condition objects viewBuilding universes Defining classes 5 242 Designer’s Guide Showing or hiding classes, objects and conditions You can hide one or more components in the Universe Pane. These are hidden from Web Intelligence users, but remain visible in Designer. Hiding objects from end users can be useful for any of the following reasons: • Components are from linked universes and are not needed in the active universe. • Objects are used only to optimize SQL syntax and should be hidden from end users. • You are in the process of developing a component that you do not want end users to view from the Query pane. • You want to disable components temporarily without deleting them. Hiding a class, object, or condition To hide a class, object, or condition: 1. Click the component in the Universe pane. 2. Select Edit > Hide Item(s). Or Click the Show/Hide button on the Editing toolbar. The component name is displayed in italics in the Universe pane. Showing a hidden class, object, or condition The name of hidden components appears in italics. To show a hidden class, object, or condition: 1. Click the hidden component in the Universe pane. 2. Select Edit > Show Item(s). The name of the component is no longer in italics. It is now visible to end users. Defining classes A class is a container of one or more objects. Each object in a universe must be contained within a class. You use classes to group related objects. Classes make it easier for end users to find particular objects. You can create new classes and edit the properties of existing classes. Classes are represented as folders on a tree hierarchy in the Universe pane. Show/HideBuilding universes Defining classes 5 Designer’s Guide 243 Tip: A useful way to use classes is to group related dimension and detail objects into a class, and place measure objects in a separate class. The grouping of related objects can be further organized by using subclasses to break objects down into subsets. Subclasses are described in the section “Using subclasses” on page 245 Creating a class There are two ways to create a class in the Universe pane: • Manually defining a class. • Automatically by dragging a table from the table schema into the Universe pane. Both methods are described as follows: Creating a class manually You can create classes manually within the Universe pane. If you have analyzed user needs and have listed and grouped the potential objects into classes, then creating classes manually from your list is the best way to ensure that your universe structure corresponds to the needs of end users. To create a class in an empty Universe pane: 1. Select Insert > Class. Or Click the Insert Class button. A class properties box appears. 2. Type a name in the Class Name text box. 3. Type a description for the class in the Description text box. 4. Click OK. The new named class folder appears in the Universe pane. Tip: If you click Apply instead of OK, the name and description for a class are applied, but the properties box stays open. If you create another class, you can type properties for the new class in the same box. This allows you to create a series of classes using a single properties box. As you avoid a new properties box appearing with the creation of each class, you can save time and unnecessary clicking. Insert classBuilding universes Defining classes 5 244 Designer’s Guide Creating a class in the universe pane with existing classes To create a class with existing classes: 1. Click the class that you want to precede the new class in the tree view and select Insert > Class. Or Click the class that you want to precede the new class in the tree view and click the Insert Class button. A class properties box appears. 2. Type a name and description for the new class. 3. Click OK. The new named class folder appears in the Universe pane. Creating a class automatically from the table schema You can create classes automatically by selecting a table in the table schema and dragging it into the Universe pane. The table name is the class name by default. New objects are also automatically created under the class. Each new object corresponds to a column in the table. You should edit the new class and object properties to ensure that they are appropriately named, and are relevant to end user needs. Editing object properties is described in the section “Defining objects” on page 246. The Objects strategy selected on the Strategies page in the Universe Parameters dialog box determines how the classes and objects are created automatically (File>Parameters>Strategies tab). This strategy can be modified. You can also create strategies to customize the class and object creation process. See the section “Using external strategies to customize universe creation” on page 413, and the section “Selecting strategies” on page 51 for more information on strategies. Note: When you create class and objects automatically, you are creating the universe components directly from the database structure. The class and objects that you create should be the result of a user needs analysis, and not be directed by the columns and tables available in the database. Designing the universe from user needs is described in the section “Universe design methodology” on page 18. To create a class automatically from the table schema: 1. Select a table in the table schema. 2. Drag the table across to the Universe pane and drop the table at the desired position in the class hierarchy. Insert classBuilding universes Defining classes 5 Designer’s Guide 245 A new class appears in the hierarchy. It contains an object for each column in the table dragged into the Universe pane. By default, the class name is the same as the table name, and each object name is the same as its corresponding column name. Class properties You can define the following properties for a class: Modifying a class You can modify the name and description of a class from the class properties dialog box at any time. You can access a class properties dialog box by any of the following methods: • Double click a class folder. • Right click a class folder, and select Edit > Class Properties. • Click a class folder, and select Edit > Class Properties. Note: You can perform any of the above click operations on either the class folder or the class name to access the class properties dialog box. Using subclasses A subclass is a class within a class. You can use subclasses to help organize groups of objects that are related. A subclass can itself contain other subclasses or objects. Creating a subclass To create a subclass: • Click a class folder or a class name, then select Insert > Subclass. Property Description Name Can contain up to 35 characters including special characters. Must be unique in universe. A class name is case sensitive. You can rename a class at any time. Description Comment that describes a class. This description can be viewed by users in the Query pane. Information in this field should be expressed in the business language of the user, and be relevant to their query needs. You create a line break by pressing CTRL + Return.Building universes Defining objects 5 246 Designer’s Guide • Right click a class folder or name, then select Insert Subclass from the contextual menu. The Universe pane below shows a subclass Sponsor listed under the class Customer. Defining objects An object is a universe component that maps to one or more columns in one or more tables in the universe database schema. An object can also map to a function defined on one or more columns. Each object infers a Select statement for the column or function to which it maps. When a Web Intelligence user builds a query using one or more objects in the Query pane the content of the Select clause line in the Select statement is inferred using the column(s) or function represented by each object. Creating an object You create objects in the Universe pane. Web Intelligence users identify an object by its name and qualification. You can create objects manually in the Universe pane, or automatically by dragging the appropriate database structure from the Structure pane to the Universe pane. Creating an Object Manually You create an object manually by inserting an object in the Universe pane, and then defining the properties for the object. An object must belong to a class.Building universes Defining objects 5 Designer’s Guide 247 To create an object manually 1. Right click a class in the Universe pane and select Insert Object from the contextual menu. Or Click a class and click the Insert Object tool. An object is inserted under the selected class and the Edit Properties box for the object appears. 2. Type a name in the Name box. Ensure that object names are always expressed in the end user business vocabulary. This name may be different from the actual column names that the object is associated with in the database schema. 3. Click the Properties tab and select object properties. 4. Type a Select statement in the Select box, or click the Select button to use the SQL editor. Note: For information on object properties see the section “Object properties” on page 248. For information on using the SQL editor to define Select statements and Where clauses, see the section “Using the SQL editor to define an object” on page 260. 5. Click OK. Creating an object automatically You can create an object automatically by selecting a column in a table in the Structure pane and dragging it to the Universe pane. An object is created under the nearest class to the point where you drop the column. The default name for the object is the column name. All underscores are replaced with spaces. The default object datatype is derived from the column datatype. You can change this value by selecting a new datatype from the drop down list box in the Edit Properties sheet for the object. You should edit the new object properties to ensure that it is appropriately named, and is relevant to end user needs. Editing object properties is described in the section “Defining objects” on page 246. The Objects strategy selected on the Strategies page in the Universe Parameters dialog box determines how the classes and objects are created automatically (File>Parameters>Strategies tab). This strategy can be modified. You can also create strategies to customize the class and object creation process. Insert ObjectBuilding universes Defining objects 5 248 Designer’s Guide Refer to “Using external strategies to customize universe creation” on page 413, and “Selecting strategies” on page 51 for more information on using strategies. Note: When you create class and objects automatically, you are creating the universe components directly from the database structure. The classes and objects that you create should be the result of a user needs analysis, and not be directed by the columns and tables available in the database. Designing the universe from user needs is described in the section “Universe design methodology” on page 18. To create an object automatically: 1. Click a table column in the Structure pane. 2. Drag the column across to the Universe pane and drop the table at the desired position in the class hierarchy. The column must be dropped under an existing class. A new object appears in the hierarchy. By default, the object name is the same as the column name. Note: You should ensure that object names are always expressed in the end user business vocabulary. This name may be different from the actual column names that the object is associated with in the database schema. Object properties You define the following object properties from the Edit Properties dialog box for a selected object: Edit Properties page Properties Definition See “Definition” on page 250 for full information on available object definition properties. • Name • Datatype • Description • Select statement • Where clause You can access the SQL editor from this page to define SELECT and WHERE syntax. Properties See “Properties” on page 252 for full information on available object properties. • Object qualification • Associated list of valuesBuilding universes Defining objects 5 Designer’s Guide 249 You can modify object properties at any time. Each object property listed above is fully described for each Edit Properties page in the section “Modifying an object” on page 249. Modifying an object You can define object properties at object creation, or modify them at any time. You define object properties from the Edit Properties dialog box for the object (right-click object > Object Properties). The properties you can define on each page of the Edit Properties dialog box are described as follows. Advanced See “Advanced” on page 253 for full information on available advanced object properties. • Security • User rights on object • Date formats Keys See “Keys” on page 255 for information on defining index awareness for an object. • Key type • Select • Where • Enable Source Information See “Source Information” on page 259 for information on using this tab. • Technical information • Mapping • Lineage Edit Properties page PropertiesBuilding universes Defining objects 5 250 Designer’s Guide DefinitionThe Definition page is shown below: You can define the following properties from the Definition page of the Edit Properties dialog box. Property Description Required/Optional Name Object name. It can consist of up to 35 alphanumeric characters including special characters and spaces. Name is casesensitive. Object names must be unique within a class. Objects in different classes can have the same name. Required Type Object datatype. It can be one of four types: • Character • Date • Long text • Number Blobs are not supported in the current version of Designer. Required Description Comments for object. This field can be viewed from the Query pane, so you can include information about the object that may be useful to an end user. Press Ctrl+Return to move the pointer to the next line. OptionalBuilding universes Defining objects 5 Designer’s Guide 251 Tables button When you click the Tables button a list of tables used in the schema appears. From this list you can select other columns in other tables to be included in the object definition. This allows an object to infer columns from several tables in a the Select statement. Refer to the section “Applying a restriction by inferring multiple tables” on page 278 for more information. Parse button When you click the Parse button, the Select statement for an object is parsed. If there are syntax errors detected, a message box appears describing the error. Editing an object definition To edit an object definition: 1. Double click an object. The Edit Properties dialog box opens to the Definition page. 2. Type or select object definitions and properties as required. 3. Click OK. Select Select statement inferred by the object. You can use the SQL Editor to create the Select statement. See the section “Properties” on page 252. Required Where Where clause of the Select statement inferred by the object. The Where clause restricts the number of rows returned in a query. You can use the SQL Editor to create the Where clause. See the section “Properties” on page 252 Optional Property Description Required/OptionalBuilding universes Defining objects 5 252 Designer’s Guide Properties The Properties page is shown below: You can specify the following object qualifications and properties for a list of values from the Properties page of the Edit Properties dialog box: Property Description Qualification Defined role that object takes when used in the Query pane. You can qualify an object as being one of three types: • Dimension • Detail • Measure Refer to the section “What types of objects are used in a universe?” on page 238 for a more detailed description of object qualifications. Associate a List of Values When selected, associates a file containing data values with an object. Activated by default. Refer to the section “Using lists of values” on page 290 for more information. List Name Name of list of values file (LOV) associated with object. Can be up to 8 alphanumeric characters. Allow users to edit this list of values When selected, enables end users to edit the list of values. Export with universe When selected, the list of values is exported with the universe.Building universes Defining objects 5 Designer’s Guide 253 Specifying object qualification and list of values properties To specify qualification and list of values properties for an object: 1. Double click an object. The Edit Properties box for the object appears. 2. Click the Properties tab. The Properties page appears. 3. Click a qualification radio button to determine whether the object is a dimension, detail, or measure. If you want to associate a list of returned values with the object, select the Associate a List of Values check box. For information on creating and using lists of values, see the section “Using lists of values” on page 290. 4. Click OK. Advanced The Advanced page is shown below.Building universes Defining objects 5 254 Designer’s Guide You can define the following properties from the Advanced page of the Edit Properties dialog box: Defining object security and user rights To define security and user rights for an object: 1. Double click an object. The Edit Properties box for the object appears. 2. Click the Advanced tab. The Advanced page appears. Property Description Security Access Level Defines the security access level of the object.You can select a security level which restricts use of the object to users with the appropriate security level. You can assign the following security access levels: • Public • Controlled • Restricted • Confidential • Private If you assign Public then all users can see and use the object. If you assign Restricted, then only users with the user profile of Restricted or higher can see and use the object. Can be used in Result When selected, the object can be used in a query. Can be used in Condition When selected, the object can be used to set in a condition. Can be used in Sort When selected, returned values can be sorted. Database Format Option only available for date objects. By default, the date format for the object is defined in the Regional Settings Properties dialog box of the MSWindows Control Panel. You can modify this to use the target database format for storing dates. For example, the date format could be US format, or European format. For information on modifying this value, see the section “Defining an object format” on page 262.Building universes Defining objects 5 Designer’s Guide 255 3. Select a security access level from the Security Access Level drop down list box. 4. Select one or more check boxes in the Can Be Used In group box. 5. Type a date format in the database Format text box, if you want to modify the default date format. 6. Click OK. Keys The Keys tab allows you to define index awareness for an object. Index awareness is the ability to take advantage of the indexes on key columns to speed data retrieval. The objects that you create in Designer are based on database columns that are meaningful to an end user. For example, a Customer object retrieves the field that contains the customer name. In this situation the customer table typically has a primary key (for example an integer) that is not meaningful to the end user, but which is very important for database performance. When you set up index awareness in Designer you tell Designer which database columns are primary and foreign keys. This can have a dramatic effect on query performance in the following ways: • Designer can take advantage of the indexes on key columns to speed data retrieval. • Designer can generate SQL that filters in the most efficient way. This is particularly important in a star schema database. If you build a query that involves filtering on a value in a dimension table, Designer can apply the filter directly on the fact table by using the dimension table foreign key. This eliminates unnecessary and costly joins to dimension tables. Designer does not ignore duplicates with index awareness. If two customers have the same name, Designer will retrieve one only unless it is aware that each customer has a separate primary key. Example: Finding customers in a list of cities In this example you build a report on the Island Resorts Marketing Universe that returns revenue by customer for customers in Houston, Dallas, San Francisco, San Diego or Los Angeles. To do this you drag the Customer and Sales Revenue objects into the Result Objects pane in the Query pane, then drag the City object to the Conditions pane and restrict the city to the list above. Without index awareness, Designer generates the following SQL: SELECT Customer.last_name,Building universes Defining objects 5 256 Designer’s Guide sum(Invoice_Line.days * Invoice_Line.nb_guests * Service.price) FROM Customer, Invoice_Line, Service, City, Sales WHERE ( City.city_id=Customer.city_id ) AND ( Customer.cust_id=Sales.cust_id ) AND ( Sales.inv_id=Invoice_Line.inv_id ) AND ( Invoice_Line.service_id=Service.service_id ) AND ( City.city IN ('Houston', 'Dallas', 'San Francisco', 'Los Angeles', 'San Diego') ) GROUP BY Customer.last_name In this case Designer has created a join to the City table in order to restrict the cities retrieved. With index awareness, you tell Designer that city_id is the primary key of the City table and that it also appears in the Customer table as a foreign key. Using this information, Designer can restrict the cities without joining to the City table. The SQL is as follows: SELECT Customer.last_name, sum(Invoice_Line.days * Invoice_Line.nb_guests * Service.price) FROM Customer, Invoice_Line, Service, Sales WHERE ( Customer.cust_id=Sales.cust_id ) AND ( Sales.inv_id=Invoice_Line.inv_id ) AND ( Invoice_Line.service_id=Service.service_id ) AND ( Customer.city_id IN (10, 11, 12, 13, 14) ) GROUP BY Customer.last_name In this case Designer is able to generate SQL that restricts the cities simply by filtering the values of the city_id foreign key.Building universes Defining objects 5 Designer’s Guide 257 Setting up primary key index awareness To set up primary key index awareness: 1. Right-click the object on which you want to set up index awareness and select Object Properties from the menu. The Edit Properties Of dialog box appears. 2. Click the Keys tab. 3. Click Insert. A Primary Key line is inserted as shown below in the Keys page. 4. Do the following actions in to create key awareness for the primary key: • Select Primary in the Key Type list. • Click the ... button in the Select field to open the SQL editing dialog box. The SQL Editor appears. • Use the SQL Editor to build the primary key SQL SELECT clause or type it directly. For example, for the City object above, the primary key SQL is City.city_id For more information on the SQL Editor, see “Using the SQL Editor” on page 261. • Select the primary key data type from the drop-down list of key types. 5. Repeat steps 3 and 4 for all columns that make up the primary key. 6. If you want to add a WHERE clause, do the following: • Click within the line, under the Where column as shown below:Building universes Defining objects 5 258 Designer’s Guide• Click the ... button in the Where field to open the SQL editing dialog box. The SQL Editor appears. • Use the SQL Editor to build the primary key SQL WHERE clause or type it directly. There is no Where clause in the example above. • Select Number from the drop-down list of key types. 7. Select Enabled. 8. Click OK. Setting up foreign key awareness To set up foreign key awareness: 1. Right-click the object on which you want to set up index awareness Select Object Properties from the menu. The Edit Properties Of dialog box appears. 2. Click the Keys tab. 3. Click Insert. A key line is inserted in the Keys page. 4. Do the following to create key awareness for the foreign key: • Select Foreign Key in the Key Type list. • Click the ... button in the Select field to open the SQL editing dialog box. The SQL Editor appears. • Use the SQL Editor to build the foreign key SQL SELECT clause or type it directly. • Select the foreign key data type from the drop-down list of key types. 5. Repeat steps 3 and 4 for all columns that make up the foreign key. 6. If you want to add a WHERE clause, do the following: • Click in the highlighted line, under the Where column. • Click the ... button in the Where field to open the SQL edit dialog box. The SQL Editor appears. • Use the SQL Editor to build the foreign key SQL WHERE clause, or type it directly. • Select Number from the drop-down list of key types. 7. Select Enabled. 8. Repeat the steps above for all columns in the foreign key.Building universes Defining objects 5 Designer’s Guide 259 For the example “Finding customers in a list of cities” on page 255 the Keys tab should look like this: Source Information The Source Information page is used by universes generated from Data Integrator. The Sources Information tab is shown below: For universes generated from Data Integrator, Technical descriptions and formulas used to calculate target tables from source tables are displayed in this tab. This information is available to Web Intelligence users. You can specify the following types of information in the Source Information tab: • Technical description: Technical descriptions that are available in universes generated from Data Integrator.Building universes Defining objects 5 260 Designer’s Guide • Mapping information: The mapping applied within Data Integrator between the source tables and the target tables. The goal is not to provide the expression of the mapping, but to display it as a descriptive comment to inform the user of the source columns used in the object definition. • Data Lineage information: List of source columns involved in a target column. This information facilitates the impact analysis through DataIntegrator and WebIntelligence reports. Using the SQL editor to define an object You can use an SQL editor to help you define the Select statement or a Where clause for an object. The SQL Editor is a graphical editor that lists tables, columns, objects, operators, and functions in tree views. You can double click any listed structure to insert it into the Select or Where boxes. You have the following editing options available in the SQL Editor: Edit options Description Tables and columns All tables and their respective columns that appear in the Structure pane. Classes and objects All classes and their respective objects that appear in the Universe pane. Operators Operators available to combine SQL structures in a Select statement, or to set conditions in a Where clause. Functions • Database functions, for example number, character, and date functions. • @Functions specific to Business Objects products. Available functions are listed under the Functions entry in the parameters (.PRM) file for the target database. There is a .PRM file for each supported database. They are stored in the Data Access folder in the BusinessObjects path. You can add or modify the available functions by editing the .PRM file. Editing .PRM files is described in the Data Access Guide. Show object SQL When selected, the SQL syntax is displayed for the objects that appear in the Select, or Where boxes. Parse When clicked, parses the syntax. If the syntax is not valid, a message box appears describing the problem. Description Displays a description of a selected object or function.Building universes Defining objects 5 Designer’s Guide 261 Using the SQL Editor To use the SQL Editor: 1. Double click an object. The Edit Properties dialog box for the object appears. 2. Click the >> button next to the Select or Where box. The Edit Select Statement or Edit Where Clause dialog box appears. 3. Click in the Select statement or Where clause at the position where you want to add syntax for a structure. If the box is empty, click anywhere in the box. The cursor automatically appears at the top left corner of the box. 4. Expand table nodes to display columns. 5. Double click a column to insert the column definition in the Select statement or Where clause. Tip: To select one or more values from a list of values for a selected column, right click the column and select List of Values. 6. Expand class nodes to display objects.Building universes Defining objects 5 262 Designer’s Guide 7. Double click an object to insert a @Select or @Where function in the Select statement or Where clause. These functions direct the current object to use the Select statement or Where clause of a selected object. For more information on using @Functions, see the section “Using @Functions” on page 404. 8. Double click an operator to insert the operator in the edit box. 9. Expand function nodes to display available functions. 10. Double click a function to insert the function in the edit box. 11. Click the Parse button to validate the syntax. 12. Click OK. Defining an object format You can define a format for the data values of a selected object. The format applies to the related data values displayed in the cells of Web Intelligence reports. The tabs of the Object Format dialog box include settings for numbers, alignment, font, border, and shading. For example, you can display an integer in a format such as $1,000 rather than the default 1,000.00. Or you can apply a color, such as red, to critical data values. Number, Currency, Scientific and Percentage categories apply only to objects and variables with a numeric type, and the Date/Time category applies only to those with a date type. Information about formats is exported and imported with the universe. You can use the Remove Object Format command to remove any format you defined. Modifying an object format To modify an object format: 1. Right click an object 2. Select Object Format from the contextual menu. The Object Format sheet appears. 3. Click a format tab and select or type a format for the object. 4. Click OK.Building universes Defining objects 5 Designer’s Guide 263 Removing an object format You can remove a format for an object at any time. To remove an object format: • Select an object and then select File > Remove Format. Or • Right click an object and select Remove Format from the contextual menu. Viewing the table used in an object definition You can view the table in the Structure pane that is used in an object definition from the Universe pane. This can be useful to quickly identify a table used by an object when object names do not easily indicate a specific table. Viewing the table used by an object To view the table used by an object: 1. Right click an object in the Universe pane. A contextual menu appears. 2. Select View Associated table from the contextual menu. The associated table is highlighted in the Structure pane. Defining a dimension A dimension is an object that is a focus of analysis in a query. A dimension maps to one or more columns or functions in the database that are key to a query. For example Country, Sales Person, Products, or Sales Line. Dimension is the default qualification at object creation. You can change the qualification to dimension at any time. To define a dimension object: 1. Double click an object. The Edit Properties dialog box for the object appears. 2. Click the Properties tab. The Properties page appears. 3. Select the Dimension radio button in the Qualification group box. 4. Click OK.Building universes Defining objects 5 264 Designer’s Guide Defining a detail A detail provides descriptive data about a dimension. A detail is always attached to a dimension. It maps to one or more columns or functions in the database that provide detailed information related to a dimension. You define a detail object by selecting Detail as the qualification for an object, and specifying the dimension attached to the detail. To define a detail object: 1. Double click an object. The Edit Properties dialog box for the object appears. 2. Click the Properties tab. The Properties page appears. 3. Select the Detail radio button in the Qualification group box. An Associated Dimension drop down list box appears listing all the dimension objects in the universe. 4. Select a dimension from the drop-down list box. The detail describes a quality or property of this dimension. 5. Click OK. Defining a measure You can define a measure object by selecting Measure as the qualification for an object. Measures are very flexible objects as they are dynamic. The returned values for a measure object vary depending on the dimension and detail objects used with it in the query. For example; a measure Sales Revenue returns different values when used with a Country object in one query, and then with Region and Country objects in a separate query. As measure objects are more complex and powerful than dimensions and details, they are discussed in more depth in the following sections.Building universes Defining objects 5 Designer’s Guide 265 What type of information does a measure return? A measure object returns numeric information. You create a measure by using aggregate functions. The five most common aggregate functions are the following: • Sum • Count • Average • Minimum • Maximum How are measures different from dimensions and details? Measures differ from dimensions and details in the following ways: • Measures are dynamic • Measures can project aggregates Both these properties are described as follows: How do measures behave dynamically? Returned values for a measure object vary depending on the dimension and detail objects used with the measure object in a query.Building universes Defining objects 5 266 Designer’s Guide The following example shows the same Revenue measure object used in two separate queries with different dimensions, resulting in the measure returning different values. Measures infer a Group By clause When you run a query that includes a measure object with other types of objects, a Group By clause is automatically inferred in the Select statement. The inference of the Group By clause depends on the following SQL rule: Based on this rule, any dimension or detail used in the same query as a measure object will always be included in an automatically inferred Group By clause. To ensure that the query returns correct results, dimension and detail objects must NOT contain aggregates. Same measure returns different results If the Select clause line contains an aggregate, everything outside of that aggregate in the clause must also appear in the Group By clause.Building universes Defining objects 5 Designer’s Guide 267 The following example shows that the Resort, Service Line, and Year dimension objects are all inferred in the Select clause and in the Group By clause. Note: If a query contains only measure objects, no Group By clause is inferred. Setting aggregate projection for a measure When you create a measure you must specify the way the aggregate function will be projected onto a report. Returned values for a measure object are aggregated at two levels of the query process: • Query level. Data is aggregated using the inferred Select statement. • Microcube to block level. When data is projected from the microcube to the block in a report. This projection function of measures allows local aggregation in the microcube. Note: A microcube is a conceptual way to present the data returned by a query before it is projected onto a report. It represents the returned values held in memory by a Business Objects reporting product. The block level is the 2 dimensional report that a user creates with the returned data. A user Results aggregated to lowest level Resort, then by Service Line and Year Dimensions inferred in GROUP BYBuilding universes Defining objects 5 268 Designer’s Guide can choose to use all, or only some of the data held in the microcube to create a report. A user can also do aggregate functions on the returned values in the microcube (local aggregation) to create new values on a report. The two levels of aggregation fit into the query process as follows: The diagram shows the following processes in a query: • User creates a query in Web Intelligence. • Web Intelligence infers the SQL from the query and sends a Select statement to the target database. • The data is returned to the microcube. This is the first aggregation level. • The microcube projects the aggregated data onto the report. Data is split out in the Query pane requiring aggregation to lower levels. This is the second aggregation level. When you initially make a query the result set of the Select statement is stored in the microcube, and all data then held in the microcube is projected into a block. As data is projected from the lowest level held in the microcube no projection aggregation is taking place. However, when you use the Query pane to project only partial data from the microcube, aggregation is required to show measure values at a higher level. For example, in the previous example, if you do not project the year data into the block, the three rows related to Year need to be reduced to one row to show the overall Sales Revenue for that resort, so a sum aggregation is used. You set projection aggregation on the Properties page of the Edit Properties sheet for a measure (right-click object > Object Properties > Properties). Projection aggregation is different from Select aggregation.Building universes Defining objects 5 Designer’s Guide 269 Choosing how a measure is projected when aggregated You define what aggregate function is used to aggregate the returned results for the second level of aggregation (locally in the microcube) for a measure in the properties for the measure. You can so this at object creation or modify this parameter at any time. Creating a measure To create a measure: 1. Double click an object. The Edit Properties dialog box for the object appears. 2. Click the Properties tab. The Properties page appears. 3. Select the Measure radio button in the Qualification group box. A Function drop down list box appears listing aggregate functions. 4. Select a function. 5. Click OK. Defining restrictions for objects A restriction is a condition in SQL that sets criteria to limit the data returned by a query. You define restrictions on objects to limit the data available to users. Your reasons for limiting user access to data should be based on the data requirements of the target user. A user may not need to have access to all the values returned by an object. You might also want to restrict user access to certain values for security reasons. You can define two types of restrictions in a universe: Restriction type Description Forced Restriction defined in the Where clause for an object. It cannot be accessed by users and so cannot be overridden in Web Intelligence. Optional Restriction defined in special condition objects that users can choose to use or not use in a query. A condition object is a predefined Where clause that can be inserted into the Select statement inferred by objects in the Query pane.Building universes Defining objects 5 270 Designer’s Guide Note: In Web Intelligence, users can apply conditions in the Query pane. As the universe designer, you should avoid creating optional restrictions that are simple to apply at the user level. Users can create these conditions themselves when necessary. Defining a Where clause for an object You apply a further restriction on an object by adding a condition in the Where box from the Definition page of the Edit Properties dialog box for an object. You can define the condition at object creation, or add it to the object definition at any time. In a universe, the Where clause in an SQL statement can be used in two ways to restrict the number of rows that are returned by a query. • A Where clause is automatically inferred in the Select statement for an object by joins linking tables in the schema. Joins are usually based on equality between tables. They prevent Cartesian products being created by restricting the data returned from joined tables. • You add a condition in the Where clause for an object. This is an additional condition to the existing Where clause inferred by joins. You define a Where clause to further restrict the data that is returned in a query, for example when you want to limit users to queries on a sub-set of the data. Example: Modifying the default (join only) Where clause for an object The report below is an unrestricted block containing data for sales people from all countries: The SQL for this query appears below. The Where clause contains only restrictions inferred by the joins between the tables Customer, City, Region, and Sales_Person.Building universes Defining objects 5 Designer’s Guide 271 SELECT Sales_Person.sales_person, Country.country FROM Sales_Person, Country, Region, City, Customer WHERE ( City.city_id=Customer.city_id ) AND ( City.region_id=Region.region_id ) AND ( Country.country_id=Region.country_id ) AND ( Sales_Person.sales_id=Customer.sales_id ) If you want to restrict users to see only returned values specific to France, you can add a condition to the Where clause of the Country object. The following report shows sales people for France only: The SQL for the query is as follows: SELECT Sales_Person.sales_person, Country.country FROM Sales_Person, Country, Region, City, Customer WHERE ( City.city_id=Customer.city_id ) AND ( City.region_id=Region.region_id ) AND ( Country.country_id=Region.country_id ) AND ( Sales_Person.sales_id=Customer.sales_id ) AND ( Country.country = 'France' ) The Where clause has an additional line. This is the restriction that you have added to the Where clause of the Country object. Note: Apart from self restricting joins, you should not create a join in a Where clause. A join in a Where clause is not considered by Detect Contexts (automatic context detection) or aggregate aware incompatibility detection. You should ensure that all joins are visible in the Structure pane. This ensures that all joins are available to the Designer automatic detection tools.Building universes Defining objects 5 272 Designer’s Guide Defining a Where clause To define a Where clause: 1. Double click an object. The Edit Properties dialog box opens to the Definition page. 2. Type the syntax directly into the Where clause text box. Or Click the >> Button next to the Where box to open the Where clause editor. 3. Double click columns, objects, operators, or functions that appear in the SQL structures and features lists. Tip: You can select values for a Where clause as follows: Right click a column in the Tables and Columns list. Select View Values. A list of all values for the column appear. You can select one or more values to insert in the Where clause, for example when using the In operator. 4. Click OK to close the editor. The Where clause for the Country object is shown below. It restricts the values for Country to France only. 5. Click OK.Building universes Defining objects 5 Designer’s Guide 273 Problems using Where clauses Where clauses are a useful way to restrict data, but they must be used carefully in a universe to avoid the following problems: Creating condition objects will solve the multiple objects, hierarchy difficulties, and object name confusion problems. The conflict between Where clauses can be solved by creating condition objects and ensuring that users know that they must join the queries using a UNION or SYNCHRONIZE operator at the report level. Problem Description Solution Proliferation of similar objects. If you restrict data for an object by creating several objects, each inferring a Where clause for one part of the data, you can end up with multiple objects with similar names. For example, French clients, US clients, and Japanese clients. This can be confusing for users to see multiple objects that appear similar. Create condition objects for each restriction. Difficulty creating hierarchies. If you have multiple objects inferring Where clauses on the same data, it will be difficult for users to construct a logical default hierarchy to use for drill down. Create condition objects for each restriction. Confusion between object name and applied restriction. Unless your objects are very precisely named, then a restriction may not be obvious to the user simply from the name of the object. A user can see the Where clause by viewing the SQL for a query, but not all users will view the SQL before running a query. • Create condition objects for each restriction. • Name each object appropriately. Conflict between Where clauses. If two or more similarly restricted objects are included in the same query, the conflict between the Where clauses will result in no data being returned. Create condition objects for each restriction, and ensure that users do a union or synchronization of the queries at the report level.Building universes Defining objects 5 274 Designer’s Guide Given the potential problems with Where clauses defined in an object definition, you should avoid using them, and where possible create condition objects which, when used correctly can avoid the problems with hard coded Where clauses. Note: Apart from self restricting joins, you should not create a join in a condition object. A join in a condition object is the equivalent to creating a join in a reusable Where clause, and so is not considered by Detect Contexts (automatic context detection) or aggregate aware incompatibility detection. You should ensure that all joins are visible in the Structure pane. This ensures that all joins are available to the Designer automatic detection tools. Defining condition objects A condition object is a predefined Where clause that can be inserted into the Select statement inferred by objects in the Query pane. Condition objects are stored in the Conditions view of the Universe pane. You access the conditions view by clicking the Conditions radio button at the right bottom of the universe pane. The condition objects for the Beach universe and the Where clause that the Young American condition infers are shown below. Advantages and restrictions for using condition objects Using condition objects has the following advantages: • Useful for complex or frequently used conditions. • Gives users the choice of applying the condition. Where clause for Young American condition objects Conditions radio buttonBuilding universes Defining objects 5 Designer’s Guide 275 • No need for multiple objects. • Condition objects do not change the view of the classes and objects in the Universe pane. Note: You may need to direct users to use the condition objects view of the Universe pane. The only disadvantages for using condition objects is that you may want to force a condition on users to restrict their access to part of the data set. In this case you need to define a Where clause in the object definition. Condition objects do not solve conflicting Where clauses Using condition objects does not solve the problem of conflicting Where clauses returning an empty data set. If a user runs a query that includes two condition objects that access the same data, the two conditions are combined with the AND operator, so the two conditions are not met, and no data is returned. This problem can be solved at the report level by users creating two queries, one for each condition object and then combining the queries. Creating a condition object To create a condition object: 1. Click the Conditions radio button at the bottom right of the Universe pane. The Conditions view of the Universe pane appears. It contains a tree view of all the classes in the universe. 2. Right click a class and select Insert Condition from the contextual menu. Or Click a class and click the Insert Condition button. An Edit Properties dialog box appears. A default name appears in the Name box. The Where box is empty. 3. Type a name for the condition. 4. Type the Where clause syntax directly into the Where clause box. Or Click the >> Button next to the Where clause box to open the Where clause editor. 5. Double click columns, objects, operators, or functions that appear in the SQL structures and features lists. 6. Click OK to close the editor. Insert conditionBuilding universes Defining objects 5 276 Designer’s GuideThe definition for a condition called Young American is shown below. It restricts the returned values to American customers less than or equal to thirty years old. 7. Click the Parse button to verify the syntax. 8. Click OK. The new condition object appears in the condition view of the Universe pane. Using condition objects in the same query If you have two condition objects defined for the same object, and both are used in the same query, no data is returned, as the two Where clauses create a false condition. Where possible you should avoid hard coding Where clauses in the definition of an object, but also when you use condition objects, users need to be aware of the potential problems. Users can solve the problem of returning an empty data set by joining two queries, one query for each condition object. Note: To avoid Web Intelligence users combining two condition objects in the same query, you can include in the description for a condition object ’X’ that it should not be used with object ’Y’. Why do multiple Where clauses return an empty data set? When you add a Where clause to the definition of an object, the restriction is added to the restrictions set by the joins using the AND operator. If you combine two objects in a query, both applying a restriction on the same data Building universes Defining objects 5 Designer’s Guide 277 set, then the two Where clauses are combined in successive AND clauses. The result of such a query is that no data will satisfy both conditions, and no data is returned. For example, a user wants to know the services that are available at the Bahamas and Hawaiian Club hotel resorts. The following query is run using the condition objects for Bahamas resort and Hawaiian Resort: The SQL for this query is as follows: SELECT Service.service, Resort.resort FROM Service, Resort, Service_Line WHERE ( Resort.resort_id=Service_Line.resort_id ) AND ( Service.sl_id=Service_Line.sl_id ) AND ( ( Resort.resort = 'Bahamas Beach' ) AND ( Resort.resort = 'Hawaiian Club' )) The two Where clause restrictions are combined in AND clauses at the end of the Where clause. When the query is run, the two restrictions on country cannot be met in the same query, so no data is returned. A message box appears informing you that there is no data to fetch. Creating two queries to combine restrictions Users can solve the problem of using two condition objects in the same query by running two queries, one for each Where clause, and using the UNION operator to combine the results. Using self restricting joins to apply restrictions You can use self restricting joins to restrict data to one or another column in a table, based on a flag which is used to switch between the two columns. A flag is a third column whose values determine which one of the two alternate columns is used in a query. See the section “Self restricting joins” on page 147 for more information on creating and using self restricting joins.Building universes Defining objects 5 278 Designer’s Guide Applying a restriction by inferring multiple tables You can limit the data returned for an object to values from the table inferred by the object that also match values in another table. For example, an object called Country of Origin infers the table Country. The object Country of Origin returns the following data: If you want to use the object Country origin under a class Sales_Person, so that it only returns the countries where sales people are based, you can rename the object to Sales people countries and restrict the table Country to return only values for countries of Sales people from the Sales_Person table. The Sales people countries object has the following SQL: SELECT Country.country FROM Country, Sales_Person, Customer, City, Region WHERE ( City.city_id=Customer.city_id ) AND ( City.region_id=Region.region_id ) AND ( Country.country_id=Region.country_id ) AND ( Sales_Person.sales_id=Customer.sales_id ) The Sales people countries object returns the following data: You apply the restriction by specifying that when the Country object is used in a query, the Sales_Person table must also be inferred in the From clause of the Select statement.Building universes Defining objects 5 Designer’s Guide 279 Country under the Sales_Person class then only returns countries in which sales people are based. You apply the restriction by using the Tables button in the object definition sheet. The Country table must be joined to the Sales_Person table by intermediary joins using only equi-joins. Note: If you make any changes to the SQL for an object that has a table restriction defined in its Select statement, then Designer automatically redetermines which tables are needed by the object’s Select statement and Where clause. You are not notified if the table restriction is over ridden in the tables inferred by the object. Inferring multiple tables to apply a condition To infer multiple tables that apply a condition for an object: 1. Double click an object. The Edit Properties dialog box for the object appears. 2. Click the Tables button. A list of tables in the universe appears. Tables buttonBuilding universes Defining objects 5 280 Designer’s Guide 3. Select one or more tables that you want the object to infer in addition to the current table. You can select multiple tables by holding down CTRL and clicking table names in the list. The tables Country and Sales_Person are selected below: 4. Click OK in each dialog box. 5. Run queries in Web Intelligence to test the table restriction. When do you use each method to apply a restriction? You can use the following guidelines to set restrictions in a universe: • Avoid using Where clauses in object definitions. If you need to use a Where clause, you should be aware of the potential problems using multiple objects, and conflicting Where clauses. • Use Condition Objects when you want to assist users by providing optional pre-defined Conditions, avoiding multiple objects and changes to the classes and objects view of the Universe pane. • Use Self-Restricting Joins to apply restrictions to tables when you want the restriction to apply irrespective of where the table is used in the SQL. This method is ideal when a table uses a flag to switch between two or more domains. • Use Additional Joins when a lookup table serves more than one purpose in the universe.Building universes Defining objects 5 Designer’s Guide 281 Concatenating objects A concatenated object is a combination of two existing objects. For example, you create an object Full Name, which is a concatenation of the objects Last Name and First Name in the Customer class. Creating a concatenated object To create a concatenated object: 1. Create an object. For example, you create a new object Full Name in the Customer class. You should also type a description for the object such as “This object is a concatenation of the customer’s first and last name.” 2. Double click the object. The Edit Properties dialog box appears. 3. Type the syntax for the concatenated object in the Select box. For example you type the following syntax for the Full Name object (MS Access syntax): rtrim (Customer.first_name + ‘ ‘ + Customer.last_name)Building universes Defining objects 5 282 Designer’s GuideWhere rtrim is a function that removes the blank space at the end of a character string, and the two quotes are used to insert a space between the first and last name. Note: You can also click the Edit button to open the SQL Editor. You can use the graphic tools in the editor to help you specify the SQL syntax for the object. For more information on this editor, refer to the Designing a Schema chapter. 4. Click OK in each of the dialog boxes. When you run a query on the Full Name object, the following results are returned: Building universes Defining hierarchies 5 Designer’s Guide 283 Defining hierarchies You create object hierarchies to allow users to perform multidimensional analysis. What is multidimensional analysis? Multidimensional analysis is the analysis of dimension objects organized in meaningful hierarchies. Multidimensional analysis allows users to observe data from various viewpoints. This enables them to spot trends or exceptions in the data. A hierarchy is an ordered series of related dimensions. An example of a hierarchy is Geography, which may group dimensions such as Country, Region, and City. In Web Intelligence you can use drill up or down to perform multi dimensional analysis. Drill A user can use drill to navigate through hierarchical levels of detail. Users can “drill up” or “drill down” on a hierarchy. For example, a manager wants to track reservation data over time. As the universe designer, you could set up a Reservation Time hierarchy to include the dimensions Reservation Year, Reservation Quarter, Reservation Month, and Reservation Date. From a higher level of aggregation for example Reservation Quarter, the manager can drill down to a more detailed level such as Reservation Month or Reservation Date. He or she could also drill up from Reservation Quarter to Reservation Year to see a more summarized view of the data. How to identify a hierarchy Hierarchies can take different forms. Examples of classic hierarchies include: • Geography: Continent ➨ Country ➨ Region ➨ City • Products: Category ➨ Brand ➨ Product • Time: Year ➨ Quarter ➨ Month ➨ Week ➨ Day It is also possible for a hierarchy to be “mixed” such as the following: Geography/Products: Continent ➨ Country ➨ Category ➨ Brand ➨ ProductBuilding universes Defining hierarchies 5 284 Designer’s Guide The hierarchies implicit in the data are dependant on the nature of the data and the way it has been stored in the database. You may need to analyze the data very carefully in order to find the hierarchies in your specific system that are best suited to the analysis requirements of your user group. While there are no precise rules for determining where the hierarchies in the data lie, the one-to-many (1-N) relationships inherent in the database structure can indicate the existence of hierarchies. In the schema below, the one-to-many relationships between the tables imply a geographical hierarchy. Setting up hierarchies By default, Designer provides a set of default hierarchies for multidimensional analysis. These are the classes and the objects arranged in the order that they appear in the Universe pane. When you create objects, you should organize them hierarchically, to ensure that default hierarchies have a sense to users. You often need to create customized hierarchies that include objects from different classes. In these cases you need to create a new hierarchy. You can view default, and create new hierarchies from the Hierarchies editor. This is a graphic editor that allows you to manage the hierarchies in the universe. Viewing hierarchies You can view hierarchies as follows: 􀁘 To view hierarchies in the universe 1. Select Tools > Hierarchies. Or Less detailed More detailedBuilding universes Defining hierarchies 5 Designer’s Guide 285 Click the Hierarchies button. The Hierarchies editor appears. Designer represents hierarchies with a folder symbol, and dimensions with a cube symbol. The left pane lists all the classes that contain dimension objects in the active universe. The right pane shows all the customized hierarchies that you create. 2. Click a hierarchy node (the + sign) to see the dimensions organized hierarchically. 3. Click Cancel. Setting up the hierarchies You create a new hierarchy by creating a new folder in the Custom Hierarchies pane, then adding the appropriate dimensions in a hierarchical order. You can delete a hierarchy or a dimension in a hierarchy by selecting the hierarchy or dimension and clicking the Remove button. 􀁘 To create a new hierarchy 1. From the Hierarchies editor, click the New button. Or From the Hierarchies editor, select a class in the left pane and drag it over to the right pane. A folder representing the hierarchy appears in the right pane. Hierarchies EditorBuilding universes Defining hierarchies 5 286 Designer’s Guide 2. Type a name for the hierarchy. 3. Press RETURN to apply the name. 4. Select the new hierarchy. The hierarchy is highlighted. 5. Expand a default hierarchy node in the left pane. This is the hierarchy that contains dimensions that you want to add to the new custom hierarchy. 6. Click a dimension. To select a series of dimensions, hold down CTRL and click each dimension. One or more dimensions are highlighted. 7. Click the Add button. One or more dimensions appear in the right pane, under the selected hierarchy. Note: The Unused objects only check box is a useful way to view only the dimension objects that you have not yet selected for inclusion in a hierarchy. Rearranging the order of dimensions and hierarchies You can rearrange the order in which the dimension objects appear within a hierarchy. To move an object, click it, and then click the Move Up or Move Down button. You can also re-arrange the order of hierarchies in the same way. You can also move a dimension object or a hierarchy by drag and drop.Building universes Using cascading lists of values for hierarchies 5 Designer’s Guide 287 Examples of hierarchies and dimension objects are shown below: Table 5-1 :In the Hierarchies Editor above, three customized hierarchies have been set up: Time Period, Store and Products. The Products Hierarchy consists of the following dimensions: Lines, Category, SKU desc, Color and Unit Price MSRP. Using cascading lists of values for hierarchies You can associate a default or custom hierarchy with lists of values, called Cascading lists of values. Note: A list of values (LOV) is a list that contains the data values associated with an object. Lists of values are fully described in the section “Using lists of values” on page 290. A cascading list of values is a sequence of lists of values associated with a hierarchy in a universe. Prompts are defined for each hierarchy level to return a list of values for the level. When a report containing a hierarchy associated with a cascading list of values is refreshed, the hierarchy is displayed, and you are prompted to choose a level, and select one or more values from the list of values, before the query is run. For example; Reservation quarter is associated with a Year hierarchy. When Reservation quarter month is used in a query, the Year hierarchy is displayed, and the user is prompted to select a year for the quarter before running the query.Building universes Using cascading lists of values for hierarchies 5 288 Designer’s Guide Creating a cascading list of values You can create a cascading list of values for a default hierarchy or a custom hierarchy. A .LOV file is created for each level. When a query is run, only the LOV for a prompted hierarchy level is returned. Note: This iterative use of lists of values for a hierarchy is different from creating a hierarchy for a list of values, where all the lists of values for all levels of hierarchy are returned in the microcube. When cascading lists of values are used, no LOV is returned in the microcube until the prompt for the level is filled, and only the LOV for the level is returned. 􀁘 To create a cascading list of values 1. Select Tools > Lists of Values > Create cascading lists of values. The Create Cascading List of Values dialog box appears.Building universes Using cascading lists of values for hierarchies 5 Designer’s Guide 289 You have the following options: 2. Click the Default Hierarchies or Custom Hierarchies radio button. The corresponding list of hierarchies available in the universe appears. 3. Click a class or expand a class and select one or more objects. 4. Click the right head arrow. All the objects in the class appear in the Object list. Or The selected objects appear in the Object list. 5. Type a prompt text for each object. 6. If you want to change the position of an object in the Cascading list of values list, click the object and use the up and down arrows to move it up or down the list. Cascading LOV option Description Default Hierarchies Custom Hierarchies When one is selected, the corresponding default or custom hierarchies defined in the universe appear in the Available pane. See the section “Setting up hierarchies” on page 284 for more information on these hierarchy types. Hierarchical View When selected, the hierarchy is displayed in a tree view in the Query Panel. This facilitates navigation through a hierarchy. When a level is clicked, the list of values appears in a pane to the right of the query panel. Object The hierarchy level for a dimension. Prompt text The text that appears in the prompt for the level list of values.Building universes Using lists of values 5 290 Designer’s GuideIf you want to remove an object, click the object and click the left arrow. 7. Select or clear the Hierarchical View check box. 8. Click Generate LOVs. The Create Cascading List of Values dialog box is removed. A LOV is created for each level of the cascading lists of values. Each .LOV file is saved in the universe sub folder on the file system, for example; C:\Documents and Settings\\Application Data\Business Objects\Business Objects 11.5\Universes\\beachXI2\. Note: For information on editing, exporting to the CMS, and creating mists of values for individual objects, see the section “Using lists of values” on page 290. Using lists of values A list of values is a list that contains the data values associated with an object. A list of values can contain data from two types of data source: List of values data source Description Database file When you create an object, Designer automatically associates a list of values with the object. The list of values is not created until a user, or you the designer, choose to display a list of values for the object in the Query pane. A SELECT DISTINCT query is then run against the column or columns inferred by the object. The returned data is stored in a file with a.LOV extension in the universe sub folder created under the same folder that stores the universe file.The.LOV file is then used as the source for values for the list. External file Personal data, for example a text file, or an Excel file can be associated with a list of values. A list of values that is based on an external file is fixed. You cannot have a dynamic link with an external file. You must refresh the.LOV file if your external file has changed.Building universes Using lists of values 5 Designer’s Guide 291 How is a list of values used? In Web Intelligence, a user can create a query in the Query pane using the operand “Show list of values” to apply to an object when applying a condition. Note: A.LOV file is also created whenever any condition is applied to an object in the Query pane that requires a restriction on the column values inferred by the object. The List of Values for an object appears showing values available for the object, allowing the user to choose the terms for the condition. The first time a list of values is used, it is saved as a.LOV file in the universe sub folder on the file system. This allows the SELECT DISTINCT query to be run only once for an object. This folder also stores the.LOV files created in Designer which are used to restrict the list of values returned for objects for which the designer wants to control access to the data. Example: Using a list of values for Country An object called Country has the following Select clause definition: COUNTRY.COUNTRY_NAME. The default list of values associated with the object contains all the distinct country names in the COUNTRY_NAME column. This list is returned when the object Country is used in a condition in a query. A user that wants to limit the values in a query to France only, can select France from the following list that shows all country values in the Country table for the condition:Building universes Using lists of values 5 292 Designer’s Guide When France is selected from the list, the condition appears as follows in the Conditions pane of the Query pane: The query only returns values for France. Defining how a list of values is used with an object When you create a dimension or detail object in Designer, it is automatically assigned an associated list of values. This list does not physically exist when you create an object, but by default, the object has the ability to query the database to return a list of its values when used in the Query pane. Note: No default list of values is assigned to measure objects. When a condition is first placed on an object in the Query pane that requires a list of values to be displayed in Designer, a SELECT DISTINCT statement is run against the appropriate columns inferred by the object, and the list of values is returned. A.LOV file is automatically created in the universe subfolder to hold the list values. The next time that the list of values is required for the object in Designer, the values are returned from the.LOV file and not from the database. The designer’s role in controlling lists of values As the universe designer, you can define how the data is presented in the list, and define restrictions on the amount and type of data returned to the list. You can set the properties for an object to determine the following actions for a list of values: • If a list of values is associated with an object. • When the list is refreshed. • Define a query that sets conditions on the SELECT DISTINCT query that an object uses to return a list of values. You save this query in the properties of an object. • Display list values either as a simple list, or as an object hierarchy. • If the list is based on column values, or values from an external file, for example an Excel spreadsheet.Building universes Using lists of values 5 Designer’s Guide 293 You can also create a permanent list for values for an object and export this list to the repository. This.LOV file is then always used as the list of values for that object. It is not updated. List of values properties and options You can define the following object properties which allow you to control how a list of values for an object is used in Web Intelligence. Property Description Associate a List of Values • When selected, allows a list of values to be associated with the object. It is selected by default. • When cleared, no list of values is associated with the object. • Selected by default for dimensions and details. Not selected for measures. List name Name of the.LOV file that stores the returned list data. Limited to 8 characters. Allow users to edit this List of Values • When selected, users can edit the list of values file in Web Intelligence. • When cleared, the user cannot edit the list. Note: This does not apply to personal data files such as Excel spreadsheets. These are not exported to the repository. They remain on a local machine. A user can edit a local file, or change the target list of values for another local data file. The purpose of a list of values is usually to limit the set of available values to a user. If they can edit a list, you no longer have control over the values they choose. Normally, if you are not using a personal data file as a list of values source, you clear this option to ensure that users do not edit lists of values.Building universes Using lists of values 5 294 Designer’s Guide You can edit, display, or assign the default name to a list of values by clicking the following buttons: Automatic refresh before use (BusinessObjects only) • When selected, the list data is refreshed each time the list of values for an object is displayed in the Query pane. This can have an effect on performance each time the .LOV is refreshed. This option does not apply to Web Intelligence reports. • When cleared, the list is refreshed only once at the start of a user logon session. If the list contains values that regularly change, then you can select this option, but you should take into account the effect on performance. If the list contents are stable, then you should clear this option. Export with universe • When selected, the.LOV file associated with the object is exported with the universe to the repository. The universe domain and document domain must exist on the same data account. A list of values is stored in the document domain. The document domain does not have to be visible to the a user’s profile in Supervisor. • You must create the list of values that is associated with the object for it to be exported. This list is saved as a.LOV file. • When cleared, a.LOV file for the object is not exported to the repository. Select this option if you customize this list regularly. This allows your modifications to be exported and imported with the universe. Option Description Restore Default Restores default name assigned to the.LOV file at object creation. Edit Allows you to edit the values displayed in the list. You can use the editor to restrict the values displayed in the list when used in the Query pane. Display Displays the list of values for the object. When you want to create a permanent list to be exported with the universe to the repository, you must click Display to create the.LOV file. You can then edit the file. Property DescriptionBuilding universes Using lists of values 5 Designer’s Guide 295 Defining properties and options for a lost of values To define properties and options for a list of values (.LOV) file: 1. Double click an object. The Edit Properties dialog box opens to the Definition page. 2. Click the Properties tab. The Properties page appears. 3. Select or clear check boxes in the list of values group box at the bottom of the page. 4. Type a name for the associated.LOV file in the List Name box. 5. Click the Edit button if you want to define restrictions on the list values 6. Use the Query pane to create a query on the list data. 7. Click the Display button to see the list of values. When you click this button, a SELECT DISTINCT query is run against the columns inferred by the object in the database. This is the same method used in the reporting products to create the.LOV file for the object. 8. Click OK. Viewing a list of values associated with an object In Designer, you can view the list of values associated with an object. When you view a list of values, a default.LOV file is automatically created in the User Docs directory to hold the returned data. By default, when you view a list of values you automatically create a.LOV file. You can view a list of values in a list format, or as an object hierarchy. To view a list of values: 1. Double click an object. The Edit Properties dialog box opens to the Definition page. 2. Click the Properties tab. The Properties page appears. 3. Click the Display button.Building universes Using lists of values 5 296 Designer’s GuideThe List of Values dialog box displays all the possible data values associated with the object. 4. Click Cancel. Creating a list of values You create a list of values as follows: 1. View the list of values for an object. 2. Click OK. Designer stores list of values (.LOV) files in a universe subfolder in the same folder that contains the universe file. The name of the subfolder is the same as the universe that contains the object used to create the.LOV. Once you have created the.LOV file, you can edit the list to restrict the data that is returned to the.LOV file, or modify how the data is presented in the list. Editing a list of values You can modify the contents of a list of values in two ways: • Apply a condition to the SELECT DISTINCT query that generates the list. For example, you restrict the resorts in the list of values for the Resort object to those resorts that have more than a minimum number of reserved guests. displays a hierarchical view of the values Creates the list of values file filters the display to selected items only refreshes the view of the values The list of values displays a tabular view of the valuesBuilding universes Using lists of values 5 Designer’s Guide 297 • Create a hierarchy to simplify for users the process of choosing a value from the list. This can be very useful if a list contains a lot of values. Applying a condition to a list of values To apply a condition to a list of values: 1. Double click an object. The object Edit Properties sheet appears. 2. Click the Properties tab. The Properties page appears. 3. Select the Associate a List of Values check box. 4. If you want to rename the list, then type a name for the.LOV file in the List Name box. 5. Click the Edit button. The Query pane appears. The active object is listed in the Result Objects pane. 6. Drag an object that you want to serve as a condition on the list of values for the active object over to the Conditions pane. 7. Double click an operator in the Operators pane. 8. Double click an operand in the Operand pane. 9. Select or type values as required.Building universes Using lists of values 5 298 Designer’s GuideFor example the following query returns customers only from France. 10. Click OK. 11. Click Display to view the restricted list of values. A blank list appears. 12. Click Refresh. 13. The values appear in the list. 14. Click OK in each of the dialog boxes.Building universes Using lists of values 5 Designer’s Guide 299 Creating a hierarchy for a list of values To create a hierarchy for a list of values: 1. Double click an object. The object Edit Properties sheet appears. 2. Click the Properties tab. The Properties page appears. 3. Select the Associate a List of Values check box. 4. If you want to rename the list, then type a name for the.LOV file in the List Name box. 5. Click the Edit button. The Query pane appears. The active object is listed in the Result Objects pane. 6. Drag the objects that you want to place in the hierarchy into the Result Objects box to the right of the existing object, as shown below: 7. Click OK. 8. Click Display to view the restricted list of values. A blank list appears. 9. Click Refresh.Building universes Using lists of values 5 300 Designer’s GuideThe values appear in the list. 10. Click OK in each of the dialog boxes. Exporting a list of values You can export a list of values with the universe to the CMS. On the file system, the associated .LOV file is copied to a universe sub directory in the same folder that stores the universe file. How is an exported .LOV used in Web Intelligence? When a user runs a query in Web Intelligence using an object that is associated with a .LOV file exported from Designer, the list of values that is returned for the object is determined by one of the following: • The data contained in the .LOV file. • The SQL for the SELECT DISTINCT query defined in the .LOV file. If you have created a condition in Designer to restrict the data values returned for an object, the restricted list appears, and not the default list of all the data values. The list retains all conditions and formatting implemented in Designer. If you had not exported the .LOV file with the universe, then the object would simply return the default list with no conditions and formatting. A default .LOV file would then be created to hold the data.Building universes Using lists of values 5 Designer’s Guide 301 Exporting a list with or without data You can export a list of values to the Central Management Server (CMS) repository in two ways: Exporting a list of values definition To export a list of values definition (no data): 1. Create a list of values for an object. 2. Select the Export with Universe check box on the Properties page for the object. Below, a list of values Cust_FR is associated with the Customer to return only values for customers in France. 3. Select Tools > Lists of Values. The Lists of Values dialog box appears. It lists the classes and objects in the current universe and contains options to manage the list of values for each object. Export .LOV... Description With query definition only (no data) The .LOV file is exported with the definition of the SELECT DISTINCT query to return values to the list. All conditions that you set for the .LOV in the Designer Query pane are retained. The .LOV file contains no data, and is populated the first time the object is used to return values in the Query pane. You should use this method for data that is updated regularly, or if the list of values can be very large. With data The .LOV file is exported or imported with all the data that is returned when you display or edit a list of values in Designer. This can be useful if the data in the .LOV does not change. However, if the data is regularly updated, or if the list contains a lot of values, then you should not export the data with the .LOV as it can slow the export process.Building universes Using lists of values 5 302 Designer’s Guide 4. Expand a class and select the object with an associated .LOV file that you want to export to the repository. 5. Click the Purge button. The data is deleted from the .LOV file for the object. The .LOV file now only contains the query definition for the list of values. 6. Click OK. 7. Select File > Export. The Export Universe box appears. 8. Select the universe filename from the list of universes. 9. Click OK. A message box appears telling you that the universe was successfully exported. Exporting a list of values with data To export a list of values with data: 1. Create a list of values for an object. 2. Select the Export with Universe check box on the Properties page for the object. 3. Click the Display button. The list of values appears. 4. If the list is empty, click the Refresh button to populate the list.Building universes Using lists of values 5 Designer’s Guide 303 5. Click OK in each of the dialog boxes. 6. Select File > Export. The Export Universe box appears. 7. Select the universe filename from the list of universes. 8. Click OK. A message box appears telling you that the universe was successfully exported. Refreshing values in a list of values You can refresh the data in a list of values in Designer using two methods: • Display the list of values for an object, and click the Refresh button. • Select Tools > Lists of Values to display the Lists of Values management box, select an object and click the Refresh button. Using data from a personal data file You can assign a list of values to an object that contains personal rather than corporate data retrieved from a database server. Personal data is data stored in a flat file such as a text file or data from one of the following applications: Microsoft Excel, Lotus 1-2-3, or dBASE. Using a personal data file as a list of values has the following advantages: • Retrieving data from a personal data file can be quicker than accessing your corporate database. • Users need these values which do not exist in the database. • You control the values that users see when they work with lists of values. The disadvantage using a personal data file, is that the data is fixed. You must update the data manually if the values need to be changed. Creating a list of values from a personal data file To create a list of values from personal data file: 1. Select Tools > Lists of Values. The List of Values dialog box appears. 2. Expand a class and click an object. 3. Click the Personal Data radio button in the Properties group box. A message box tells you that you are about to change the list of values type from corporate to personal.Building universes Using lists of values 5 304 Designer’s Guide 4. Click OK. The Access Personal Data dialog box appears. The available options depend on the file type you select. 5. Click the Browse button and select the file that you want to use as the list of values. Or Type the file name in the Name text box. 6. Select the file format from the Format list box. 7. You can select one of the following file formats: • Text Files (*.asc; *.prn; *.txt; *.csv) • Microsoft Excel Files • dBASE • Microsoft Excel 97. Note: If your file was created in Excel 97, you must use the Microsoft Excel 97 option, not the Microsoft Excel Files option. 8. Specify the remaining options, as necessary. In a text file, one line is equivalent to one row. For a text file, indicate the type of column delimiter: a tabulation, space, or character. If you select character as the type, enter the character in the text box. 9. Click OK.Building universes Using lists of values 5 Designer’s Guide 305 Administering lists of values in the universe You can manage all the lists of values in the active universe from the Lists of Values dialog box (Tools > Lists of Values). All the classes and objects are presented in a tree view. You can select any object, and access its list of values. You can perform the following actions from the Lists of Values dialog box: Accessing the Lists of Values administration tool To access the Lists of Values administration tool: 1. Select Tools > Lists of Values > Edit a list of values. The Lists of Values dialog box appears. 2. Expand a class and select an object. 3. Click a button or select an option to perform an administrative task. 4. Click OK. Option Description Edit Displays the Query pane used to define a query for the selected object. You can define and edit existing queries for a list of values. Display Displays the current list of values for the selected object. Purge Clears the contents of the list of values currently assigned to the selected object. Refresh Refreshes the display of the list of values.Building universes Creating a basic universe automatically 5 306 Designer’s Guide Optimizing and customizing LOV files Some common methods used to optimize and customize LOVs are as follows: Creating a basic universe automatically For a demonstration or quick test universe based on a simple relational schema, Designer provides Quick Design, a wizard for creating a basic yet complete universe. You can use the resulting universe immediately, or you can modify the objects and create complex new ones. In this way, you can gradually refine the quality and structure of your universe. If you are designing a production universe, you should create the universe manually. All chapters of the Designer’s Guide are based on showing you how to manually create a universe. This is the only section that deals with automatic universe creation. Why use the Quick Design wizard? The Quick Design wizard assists you throughout the creation of a universe. It guides you in establishing a connection to the database and then lets you create simple classes and objects. The wizard also provides built-in strategies for the automatic creation of objects, joins, and tables. Using Quick Design has the following benefits: • If you are new to Designer, it can help you get familiar with the user interface and basic universe design. Method Description Point LOV to a smaller table By default LOV point to the same object as the object they are attached to. But if this object points to a large table (number of rows) then refreshing the LOV may be slow. If there is an alternative smaller or faster table that returns the same values, then the LOV should be edited to point to that alternative table. Combining code and description A typical customization of a .LOV is to combine a 'code' and 'description'. An object returns a 'sales type code' which may not have a meaningful value to some users. Editing the LOV to display the 'sales type description' will help them when viewing the LOV. The opposite can be done for the 'sales type description' object to display the code along with the description.Building universes Creating a basic universe automatically 5 Designer’s Guide 307 • If you are creating a demonstration universe, it saves you time by automating much of the design process. With the wizard, you can quickly set up a working model of your universe, and then you can customize the universe to suit the needs of your target audience. Using the Quick Design Wizard Quick Design is the name of the wizard that you use to automatically create a universe. Each step in the wizard is described in each of the following sections. Starting the Quick Design wizard To start the Quick Design wizard: 1. Start Designer. The User Identification dialog box is displayed. 2. In the User Identification dialog box, enter your user name and password. 3. Click the OK button. The welcome screen of the Quick Design wizard appears. Note: If you do not want the wizard to appear the next time you launch a Designer session, clear the check box Run this Wizard at Startup. In addition, you can find two options relating to the display of the wizard in the General tab of the Options dialog box: Show Welcome Wizard and File/New Starts Quick Design wizard (Tools menu, Options command).Building universes Creating a basic universe automatically 5 308 Designer’s Guide The welcome screen The welcome screen displays an overview of the four steps necessary to create a basic universe. It also provides a check box: Click here to choose strategies. If you click this check box, you will be able to select the strategies for creating the universe; otherwise, Designer applies the default built-in strategies. In each dialog box that follows, Quick Design prompts you for the information needed to carry out the action. To move from one dialog box to the next, click the Next button. You can return to the previous dialog box by clicking the Back button. You may end the process and quit Quick Design at any time by clicking the Cancel button. When you select the Click here to choose strategies check box, a dialog box appears listing strategies. This dialog box is described in “Choosing the strategies” on page 310. You can select a strategy, or accept the default strategies. Click the Begin button to start the creation process.Building universes Creating a basic universe automatically 5 Designer’s Guide 309 Defining the universe parameters In this step, you define the universe parameters: the universe name and a database connection. You can enter a long name of up to 35 alphanumeric characters for the universe. You can either create the connection, or select an existing one. To create a connection, click the New button, and specify the necessary parameters in the dialog boxes that follow. For more instructions on these dialog boxes, refer to the section “Defining and editing connections” on page 41. To check whether your connection is valid, click the Test button. The Edit button lets you modify the parameters of the connection. Click the Next button to proceed to the next step.Building universes Creating a basic universe automatically 5 310 Designer’s Guide Choosing the strategies If you clicked the check box for strategies in the welcome screen, Quick Design prompts you to specify strategies for the creation of objects, joins, and tables. A strategy is a script that reads structural information from a database or flat file. Designer uses these scripts to create objects, joins, and tables automatically. From a list box, you can select another strategy, or none at all. Brief descriptions of the current strategies appear just below the list boxes. In addition to the built-in internal strategies provided by Designer, you can also create your own external strategies. Refer to the section “Using external strategies to customize universe creation” on page 413. Click the Next button to proceed to the next step.Building universes Creating a basic universe automatically 5 Designer’s Guide 311 Creating the initial classes and objects Based on the parameters of your database connection, the wizard presents you with a list of database tables and columns. You create the initial classes and objects by selecting tables and columns from the left pane, and adding them to the Universe classes and objects pane on the right. By default, the left pane shows only the names of the tables.You can use the following methods to navigate through the file trees, and add classes and objects to the right pane: • To view the columns of any table, click the plus sign (+) to the left of the table name. • To view the data values of any table or column, click it and then click the View Values button. • To select one table, click the table, and then click the Add button. • To select several contiguous tables, hold down the Shift key, then click the first table and last table. All the tables between the selected tables will be highlighted. Then click the Add button. • To select several tables that are not contiguous, click each table while holding down the Ctrl key. Click the Add button. • Another way to select tables is to drag and drop them from the left pane to the right pane. When you insert a table, Designer includes all of its columns.Building universes Creating a basic universe automatically 5 312 Designer’s Guide In the right pane, the names of classes are displayed beside a folder icon. Click the plus sign (+) beside the class name to view the objects. You can rename a class or object by double-clicking it and entering a new name in the dialog box. By default, an object is qualified as a dimension object, which is indicated by the cube symbol that precedes the object’s name. To remove a class or object, click it and then click the Remove button. Click the Next button to move to the next step. Creating measure objects A measure object is derived from an aggregate function: Count, Sum, Minimum, or Maximum. This type of object provides numeric information. Examples of measure objects are shown in the right pane of the dialog box below: If you wish to view the data values associated with an object, click it and then click the View Values button. To create a measure object, click the appropriate object in the left pane, and then click the aggregate button. You can rename any measure object you create. Grouping measure objects in one or more measures classes improves the organization of the universe. It also facilitates the end user’s ease of navigation. For more information on measure objects, refer to the section “Defining a measure” on page 264. When you click the Next button, Quick Design begins creating your universe.Building universes Creating a basic universe automatically 5 Designer’s Guide 313 Generating the universe Quick Design automatically generates your new universe based on the parameters you specified. It indicates the number of classes, objects, and joins created in your universe. In the dialog box above, a message states that loops exist within the joins of the universe. Designer enables you to resolve loops with aliases and contexts. Refer to the Designing a Schema chapter for more information. When you click the Finish button, the Universe pane and the Structure pane of your new universe appear. Structure pane Universe paneBuilding universes Testing the universe 5 314 Designer’s Guide Ending a Work Session Select File > Save As to save the universe, then File > Close to close the universe. When you save the universe, Designer prompts you to enter a file name. A universe file name can contain the maximum number of characters allowed by your operating system. It has a .unv extension. By default, Designer stores these files in the Universe subfolder of the BusinessObjects folder. In Windows 2000, this folder appears under the Local Data folder for your user profile. To quit Designer, select File > Exit. Following up on a universe created with the Quick Design wizard Once you have created a basic universe with Quick Designer, you may find it necessary to edit joins, and to resolve all loops using aliases or contexts. In addition, you can choose to enhance your universe with more complex components using the various Designer features. For the appropriate information, you should refer to the relevant section in this manual. Testing the universe You can test the integrity of the objects and classes in your universe by running regular checks with Check Integrity (Tools > Check Integrity), and by testing objects in Web Intelligence. You can also view the SQL that objects generate in a query by using the Query Panel to create a query with universe objects and clicking the View SQL button. Testing objects in the Query Panel You can view the SQL for a query using the Query Panel as follows: 1. Select Tools > Query Panel. The Query Panel appears. 2. Drag objects to the Results pane on the right. 3. Click the SQL button . 4. The SQL for the query appears. 5. Click OK then Cancel to close the Query Panel.Building universes Testing the universe 5 Designer’s Guide 315 Testing the integrity of the universe As you create and modify classes and objects, you should use Check Integrity regularly to test the integrity of your universe regularly using Check Integrity. Refer to “Checking Universe Integrity Automatically” on page 230 for information on using Check Integrity. Testing the universe with Web Intelligence You can test objects by running test queries in Web Intelligence. When you test objects you can ask the following type of questions: • Do the objects exist? If not, did you save the universe after the last created? • Is the SQL correct? • Are the results of the query correct? You must also test the joins, by evaluating if returned results are correct, and by checking the schema components with Check Integrity.Building universes Testing the universe 5 316 Designer’s Guidechapter Generating OLAP universesGenerating OLAP universes Overview 6 318 Designer’s Guide OverviewA OLAP universe is a BusinessObjects universe that has been generated from a OLAP cube or query. The universe is created automatically from a selected connection to a OLAP data source using an OLAP query flattening driver that is installed as an add in to Designer XIR2. Once the universe has been created it can be exported to the Central Management System (CMS) as any other universe, and is then available to Web Intelligence users to run queries and create reports. Supplementary OLAP universe information You can find supplementary information for supported OLAP data sources in the guide Designer's Guide Supplement for OLAP Universes available on the Business Objects Customer Support Documentation web site: http://support.businessobjects.com/documentation What OLAP data sources can be used to create a universe? You can use Designer to create OLAP universes from the following OLAP data sources: OLAP data source Description OLAP cube sources • BW SAP • Microsoft Analysis Services • Essbase Designer creates universe automatically from a connection to a InfoCube or QueryCube. The cube elements are mapped directly to equivalent structures in the universe. A OLAP flattening driver is used to build a relational view from the cube. The universe is then generated from the view. Refer to “Generating OLAP universes from OLAP cube sources” on page 320 for general information on creating connections to OLAP cube data sources and creating OLAP universes.Generating OLAP universes Overview 6 Designer’s Guide 319 What does the universe look like? A universe generated from a BW cube is shown with the object properties box for a selected object: Once you have exported a OLAP universe to the CMS, it is available to Web Intelligence users to run queries against the target cube and create reports.Generating OLAP universes Generating OLAP universes from OLAP cube sources 6 320 Designer’s Guide Generating OLAP universes from OLAP cube sources You create OLAP universes from data sources contained in the following data warehouses: • BW SAP • Microsoft Analysis Services • Essbase You create a OLAP universe by selecting a OLAP connection to a QueryCube or InfoCube. The universe creation process is automatic once you have selected the connection. OLAP structures are mapped directly to classes, measures, dimensions, and details. The universe structure appears in the Universe pane. There is no table schema in the Structure pane. Once you have created the OLAP universe, you can modify any of the universe components as for any other universe. You save and export the universe to the Central Management System (CMS). Once exported to the CMS, the universe is then available to Web Intelligence users to create queries and reports. Overview of the universe creation process An overview of the OLAP universe creation process is as following: Universe creation stage Go here for information... 1. Create a new connection to a InfoCube or Query cube. Creating a OLAP connection 2. Create a new universe by selecting the new connection to the OLAP data source. The universe is created automatically once the connection is selected. Creating a OLAP universe 3. Save the new universe and export to the CMS. Saving and exporting a OLAP universeGenerating OLAP universes Creating a OLAP connection 6 Designer’s Guide 321 Creating a OLAP connection You create a connection to a BW Cube or Query Cube. Each connection maps the structures in the cube data source to a universe. One connection must be created for each cube that you want to use to create a universe. There are two ways to create a connection: • From the Connections list (Tools > Connections). This method is documented in the section To create a OLAP connection below. • From the Parameters dialog box. This box appears when you select File > Parameters or click the new universe icon. From the Parameters page, you click New, and the New Connection Wizard appears. The steps through the wizard are the same as documented below. 􀁘 To create a OLAP connection 1. Start Designer. If the Quick Designer Wizard appears, click Cancel. 2. Select Tools > Connections. The Connections list appears. All the connections available to the current Designer session are listed here. 3. Click Add. The New Connection wizard appears. The wizard guides you through the connection creation process. Click Next. The Database Middleware page appears. It lists the database and middleware that correspond to your Data Access driver key. 4. Expand the node for your target OLAP datasource. This is the target database for the connection. The node expands to the supported middleware. 5. Expand the middleware node. The OLAP data access driver appears. This is Business Objects data access driver for the OLAP middleware. 6. Click the data access driver. Click Next.Generating OLAP universes Creating a OLAP connection 6 322 Designer’s GuideThe Login Parameters page appears. For SAP BW, you have the following logon options: Note: User name and password stored in the connection string are only used to create the universe, and for end-users to create and run queries in the event the SSO option is not activated. 7. Type or select logon options and click Next. Logon options Description Type Security level for connection. You must use a secured connection to export the universe to the CMS. Name Connection name. This is the name that appears on the list of connection available to the universe. User name Your database user name Use Single Sign-on when viewing reports The user name and password used to access the CMS are automatically used as database login parameters. See the BusinessObjects Enterprise Administrator’s Guide for information on setting up Single Sign-On. Password Your database password. Server Name or IP address of the BW server that contains the target cubes. System Required SAP login information. For example 00. Client Required SAP client number. Language Connection language. For example EN for English.Generating OLAP universes Creating a OLAP connection 6 Designer’s Guide 323 The Cube browser appears. This shows all of the OLAP cubes available to the target server. You have the following features available to facilitate cube searching: 8. Expand cube nodes to display the cubes and query cubes available. Select the target cube. This is the cube that you want to use to create a universe. Click Next. The Advanced page appears. This lists connection parameters that you can set to manage the connection. See the Data Access Guide for information on setting Advanced parameters. You can accept the default settings when you create the connection and modify them at any time later. 9. Type or select Advanced options and click Next. The Custom page appears. There are no parameters listed on this page for OLAP connections. 10. Click Next. Cube browser tools Description Favorites Folder that holds links to cubes that you select for quick access. To add a cube to Favorites, right click a cube in the OLAP cube browser and select Add to Favorites from the contextual menu. Search Searches the names of available cubes for a text string. Type a string in the text box and click Search. Each found instance is highlighted. Click Search to continue searching.Generating OLAP universes Creating a OLAP universe 6 324 Designer’s GuideThe Connections list appears. The new connection appears in the list. 11. Click Finish to complete the connection creation. Creating a OLAP universe You create a OLAP universe using one of two ways: • Creating a OLAP universe by selecting a connection. Once the connection is selected, the universe is created automatically. • Creating a OLAP universe using the Quick Design Wizard. You can modify and customize the generated universe in the same way as you do for any other universe. Refer to the Designer’s Guide for information on universe design techniques. 􀁘 Creating a OLAP universe by selecting a connection 1. Click the New Universe icon. Or From an empty Designer session, select File > Parameters. The Parameters dialog box appears.Generating OLAP universes Creating a OLAP universe 6 Designer’s Guide 325 2. Type a name and description for the universe. 3. Select a connection from the Connections drop down list box. This connection must be a connection to a OLAP data source. If you do not have a connection, you can create a connection by clicking the New button. This starts the New Connection Wizard. See the section Creating a OLAP connection for information on creating a new connection. Once you have created a connection it becomes available in the Connections drop down list. 4. Click Test to validate the connection. 5. Click OK. The generated universe appears in the Universe pane. Note: The universe generation can take while to complete depending on the size of the target cube.Generating OLAP universes Creating a OLAP universe 6 326 Designer’s Guide 􀁘 Creating a OLAP universe using the Quick Design Wizard 1. Start Designer. The New Design Wizard starts. This is the default setting. If the wizard has been disabled, then do the following: • Select File > New Or • If the wizard does not start when you select File > New, then select Tools > Options. The Options dialog box appears. Click the General page and select File/New starts Quick Design wizard check box. Click OK and Select File > New. The wizard starts. 2. Click Next. The Universe Parameters page appears. 3. From the Universe Parameters page, do the following: • Type a universe name. • Select the OLAP cube connection from the database connection drop down list box. • If you want to define a new connection to a OLAP cube, click New. The New Connection wizard starts. See the section Creating a OLAP connection for information on using this wizard. A completed define universe parameters page is shown below. 4. Click Next.Generating OLAP universes Saving and exporting a OLAP universe 6 Designer’s Guide 327 The final page of the wizard appears. It lists the number of class and objects that the universe contains. 5. Click Finish. The generated universe appears in the Universe pane. Saving and exporting a OLAP universe Once you have generated the OLAP universe, you export the universe to the Central Management System (CMS) to make the universe available to other designers or Web Intelligence users. You can export the active universe to the CMS, or browse to a universe on the file system for export. 􀁘 To save and export a OLAP universe 1. Select File > Export. The Export universe box appears. 2. Select the repository folder from the Folder drop down list. 3. Click OK. The universe is exported to the CMS. When you want to update the universe, you import the universe, modify it, then export the updated version. For more information on importing and exporting universes, refer to the Designer’s Guide. Updating OLAP universes You use Designer to automatically generate a OLAP Universe. However, you can not automatically update a OLAP Universe. If a OLAP cube definition has changed, you need to manually update the universe with the new modifications. There are two ways to update a universe manually: • Update universe with modifications from a newly generated universe • Edit the current universe directly 􀁘 Update universe with modifications from a newly generated universe 1. Generate a new universe based on the existing OLAP connection. 2. Open the old universe and copy classes, objects, and measures from the new universe to the old universe.Generating OLAP universes Updating OLAP universes 6 328 Designer’s Guide 3. In the old universe, delete obsolete classes, objects, and measures, and classes or objects that don’t reference a level, dimension or attribute in the OLAP Cube. 􀁘 Edit the current universe directly 1. Delete obsolete classes, objects, measures, and classes or objects that don’t reference a level, dimension or attribute in the OLAP Cube. 2. Copy and paste classes, objects or measures within the same universe and change their definition.Generating OLAP universes OLAP to universe mapping 6 Designer’s Guide 329 OLAP to universe mapping This section describes how OLAP objects are mapped to universe components when a OLAP universe is created from a OLAP data source. Note: Mapping information for Microsoft Analysis Services and Essbase are not available in this guide. You can find OLAP to universe mapping information for supported OLAP data sources in the guide Designer's Guide Supplement for OLAP Universes available on the Business Objects Documentation web site: http://support.businessobjects.com/documentation. This information will be available in a future update of the Designer’s Guide. BW SAP This section describes how SAP BW structures are mapped to universe components when a OLAP universe is created from a SAP BW data source. How are BW OLAP structures mapped to universe components? Designer creates a universe from either a InfoCube or a QueryCube by mapping BW OLAP structures to equivalent classes and objects. You identify the cube data source type by the cube technical name shown in the Cube browser. The following table shows the universe structures mapped from the BW object: BW Object Universe object created from a QueryCube Universe object created from a InfoCube Dimensions No direct mapping. Classes are created for the characteristics and key figures attached to a dimension. No direct mapping. Classes are created for the characteristics and key figures attached to a dimension. Characteristics (+Time, Unit) Class (contains dimensions) Class (contains dimensions) Key Figure Measure Measure Formulas Measure Measure Multiple Structure Dimension Not applicableGenerating OLAP universes OLAP to universe mapping 6 330 Designer’s Guide Member properties Detail Detail Display Attribute Not Supported Not Supported Navigation Attribute Dimension Dimension BW variables @Prompt function defined in the WHERE clause of either object (for optional variable) or filter object (for mandatory variable). See the section “BW variables” on page 333 for more information. Not applicable Hierarchies One class containing dimensions. The class contains a dimension for each hierarchy level. One class containing as many sub-classes as defined hierarchies. Each sub-class contains a dimension for each hierarchy level. BW Object Universe object created from a QueryCube Universe object created from a InfoCubeGenerating OLAP universes OLAP to universe mapping 6 Designer’s Guide 331 Mapping QueryCube components to a universe The diagram shows how certain structures in a query cube are mapped to equivalent structure in a universe generated from the cube: Dimensions BW Dimensions hold Characteristics. Classes are created in the universe for the characteristics within each dimension as follows: Filtering Dimensions that share the same Description Members If you use Dimensions that share the same description members, the data set returned when you filter values (using a list of values, or a Members filter), corresponds to the first occurrence member found.Generated BusinessObjects universe Query created in BEx Analyzer Data source Mapped structures in universe QueryCube Only BW Dimensions for Time and Unit are processed. Two classes are created to store corresponding characteristic objects included in each of the two dimensions. A Key Figures class is created to hold BW Key Figures objects. InfoCube Key Figures, Time, and Unit classes are created respectively for the BW dimensions ‘Key Figure’, ‘Time’ and ‘Unit’.Generating OLAP universes OLAP to universe mapping 6 332 Designer’s Guide To ensure that you return data set for all description members, you should use different descriptions. CharacteristicsA class for each characteristic is created to contain a characteristic object and its related objects. Characteristics and the corresponding properties are mapped as follows: Hierarchies Multiple hierarchies can be defined for a characteristic. A hierarchy can be used, or not used, in the query definition. Hierarchies are treated as follows: Characteristic/property Mapping information Characteristic The SELECT clause is defined using the technical name of the characteristic. The Characteristic Key and Long Name are defined as Details objects of the characteristic Member The Characteristic Key and Long Name are defined as Detail objects of the characteristic Navigational Attribute A sub-class is created in the parent object class. The content of the class the same as that of a regular characteristic class, for example hierarchy/levels or Display Attributes. Hierarchies and Levels See the section “Hierarchies” on page 332. Compound objects Treated as a regular characteristic, but is mapped separately from the parent object. There is no link between a parent object and compound objects. Hierarchy case Treated as follows in universe InfoCube level All hierarchies defined for each Characteristic are created. Query Cube level Only one hierarchy is created: • Either the default one (flattened hierarchy) with two levels Or • The assigned hierarchy with n x levels.Generating OLAP universes OLAP to universe mapping 6 Designer’s Guide 333 Time dependant hierarchies When you have time dependant hierarchies, you must ensure that the universe is updated correctly to avoid creating non-valid hierarchies. Depending on the type of time dependant hierarchy, you can experience the following issues when a universe is not updated correctly: Ensuring that time dependant hierarchies are valid You can ensure that time dependant hierarchies in the universe are valid as follows: • Manually add or delete objects that no longer correspond to hierarchies in the target cube. • Create a dummy universe on the same cube with a new connection to get the updated objects, then update the SELECT of the original objects in the original universe with new definitions. • Generate a new universe based in the updated target cube. Note: If reports have already been created on the modified universe, ensure that the reports are also updated with the changes. If not, users may run queries on obsolete objects that return errors. Refer to the Designer’s Guide for information on creating and deleting objects in a universe. BW variables BW variables are query parameters defined in BEx that are populated with values when a query is executed. They can store characteristic values, hierarchies, hierarchy nodes, texts and formula elements. BW variables are mapped to objects in a universe using a @Prompt function defined in the WHERE clause of either a target query object (for optional variables) or a filter object (for mandatory variables). Variables can be mandatory or optional. These are discussed in the section Optional and Mandatory variables. Hierarchy type Result when universe not updated Entirely time-dependent hierarchy Hierarchy objects in the universe may be not valid. The universe must be updated to take into any modifications in the hierarchy or any newly created objects. Time-dependent Hierarchy Structure Instances of obsolete or missing objects may occur if the hierarchy structure changes, and the universe has not been updated with the changes.Generating OLAP universes OLAP to universe mapping 6 334 Designer’s Guide The following variables are supported: • Characteristic variables • Hierarchy variables • Hierarchy node variables • Formula variables • Currency variables • Keydate variables The mapping of each variable to universe object is discussed in the following sections. General points on using BW Variables You need to note the following points when dealing with BW Variables in Designer: • Only BW variables defined as ‘Ready for Input’ are processed. • Default values for BW variables are not supported. • Variables are only processed if there is at least one measure in the Web Intelligence Result Objects pane. To ensure that variables are processed correctly when a query is run, ensure that at least one measure is included in the Result Objects pane. • When using complex variables, the following capabilities are not available: • multiple operators • multiple intervals Complex variables are automatically transformed to simple interval variables. • The list of values (LOV) for Custom prompts and Variables is ordered differently from the LOV displayed for BW variables. The default sort order for Member Descriptions in a custom LOV is alphabetical. This is the default behavior for Designer. The sort order for a BW variable LOV is by Key. So note the following sort differences: • For custom prompts, the LOV displays Member Descriptions sorted in alphabetical order. • For BW variables, the LOV displays Member Descriptions sorted by Key value.Generating OLAP universes OLAP to universe mapping 6 Designer’s Guide 335 Variable type The supported types (single, multiple, interval, or selection option) for BW variables is shown below: (*) with limitations: A hierarchical list of values (LOV) is flattened Note: Selection Option (Complex variable that includes combinations of single, multiple, and Interval values) is turned into a Interval variable. Optional and Mandatory variables Mandatory and Optional BW variables are both mapped using a @Prompt function in a universe object. A @Prompt function is a BusinessObjects function that can be used in a SELECT or WHERE clause for an object. When a query is run using the object, a prompt box appears asking the user to enter or choose a value for the prompt. However, depending on whether a variable is optional or mandatory, the @Prompt is processed differently as described in the following sections Optional variables and Mandatory variables. Optional and mandatory variables use hidden objects in universe When processing BW variables, dimension objects are created for each variable, and appear as hidden objects in Designer.These objects are not visible to Web Intelligence users. Characteristic Hierarchy Hierarchy node Formula Currency Keydate Single Yes Yes Yes(*) Yes Yes Yes Multiple Yes N/A Yes(*) N/A N/A N/A Interval Yes N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A Selection Option Single interval N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A WARNING The hidden dimensions are used as reference objects for the @Prompt function used for each variable. The hidden objects are necessary for the correct functioning of the @Prompt function so must not be deleted, moved, or modified.Generating OLAP universes OLAP to universe mapping 6 336 Designer’s Guide For each variable, two objects are created; one for the caption and one for the description columns in the list of values (LOV) for the variable. An example of the two objects is shown below: For mandatory variables, a hidden filter object is also created as shown below: Optional variables An optional variable is a Variable that does not necessarily need to be populated. In the current version of Web Intelligence only mandatory prompts are supported. To ensure that prompts are processed only when the associated characteristic is selected in a query (included in Result Objects), a @Prompt function is specified in the WHERE clause for the target object. The restriction applies only when the object is selected in Result Objects. Note: This is not the case for Mandatory variables where the @Prompt is defined in the filter object (see below). Mandatory variables A mandatory variable is a variable that must be populated whether or not the associated characteristic is selected in the query (included in the Result Objects.) To ensure that the corresponding prompt is displayed each time the variable is used, the @Prompt function is specified in the WHERE clause of a filter object, and not in the WHERE clause of the target object. This ensures that the restriction always applies when the Web Intelligence query is run, and is independent of the object selection in Result Objects. Hidden objects referenced by @PromptGenerating OLAP universes OLAP to universe mapping 6 Designer’s Guide 337 Characteristic variables Variables for Characteristics are used to filter values for a characteristic. A @Prompt function is added in the WHERE clause definition of the object created in the universe for the characteristic variable. Multiple characteristic variables can be defined for a single characteristic. A @Prompt is generated for each variable defined for a characteristic. Hierarchy variables A single sub-class is created for hierarchy and for level objects. Level objects are defined with the same @Prompt definition in the WHERE clause. A single prompt is displayed if multiple levels are selected in a query. The number of level objects is the maximum level for all Hierarchies defined for the characteristic. Note: If a user selects a level object in a prompt that does not exist for a given hierarchy, a message appears advising that the level does not exist for the hierarchy. The user must then select another level that exists for the hierarchy to run the query. Hierarchy node variables The hierarchy must be associated to the variable in BEx to ensure that the hierarchy node values come from that hierarchy when the variable is mapped to the universe. Using lists of values for hierarchy node variables When a list of values (LOV) for a Hierarchy Node Variable is mapped to a universe, the hierarchical LOV is flattened. All the values appear at the same level in the prompt. Note: If a Hierarchy Node Variable uses a multiple column LOV, each column of values is concatenated as a mono-column LOV. This limitation only applies to the HTML panel of Web Intelligence. Formula variables Variable used to hold a dynamic parameter for formula computation. User manually enters a value for a number, amount, quantity, or price. A @Prompt function is used for each variable in the formula object.Generating OLAP universes OLAP to universe mapping 6 338 Designer’s Guide Currency variables Currency variables are processed in the same way as regular characteristic variables. The corresponding list of values is generated from the currency characteristic. Keydate variables The Keydate object holds the date value for time-dependent metadata (for example, hierarchy changing structure for given a time period) or timedependent masterdata (for example a List of Values (LOV) content may differ for a given time period.) The Keydate is a property of a query. By default the system uses the system time. The date can be a fixed date for the query so the query refresh always use the same date, or the date can be dynamically set at refresh using the keydate variable.chapter Creating universes from metadata sourcesCreating universes from metadata sources Overview 7 340 Designer’s Guide OverviewYou can use Designer to create a universe from a metadata source. Once the universe has been created it can be exported to the Central Management System (CMS) as any other universe, and is then available to Web Intelligence and Desktop Intelligence users to run queries and create reports. Note: The Metadata Exchange is also available in stand alone mode with this release. You can create a universe from a metadata source from within Designer, or by starting the Universe Builder from the start bar and selecting Universe Builder in the Business Objects group of products. Generating universes from metadata sources You can create universes from the following metadata sources: • XML metadata sources: Common Warehouse Model (CWM Relational 1.0) Common Warehouse Model OLAP (CWM OLAP) Oracle Warehouse Builder (Oracle WB) Data Integrator IBM DB2 Data Warehouse Center (IBM DB2 DWC) IBM DB2 Cube Views • Oracle Analytic Workspaces (Oracle OLAP) Universe creation overview You use the Metadata Exchange panel (File > Metadata Exchange) to select a metadata format. This is the format used by the target metadata source file. Refer to the section Selecting a metadata source for information. Once the format has been selected, you follow a universe builder wizard to choose a target database and select the structures that you want to use to build the universe. You then select the target connection, and generate the universe. The universe creation process is the same for all XML metadata sources. Creating universes from XML metadata sources is described in the section XML metadata sources.Creating universes from metadata sources Generating universes from metadata sources 7 Designer’s Guide 341 The universe creation process for a Oracle Analytical Workspaces datasource is different. Once you have selected your connection, a universe creation panel specific to Oracle Analytic Workspaces appears. You create a view on the database, then create a universe from the view. Once you have created the universe from a metadata source, you can modify any of the universe components as for any other universe. You save and export the universe to the Central Management System (CMS). Once exported to the CMS, the universe is then available to Web Intelligence users to create queries and reports.Creating universes from metadata sources Selecting a metadata source 7 342 Designer’s Guide Selecting a metadata source You select a metadata source to create, or update a universe from the Metadata Exchange panel (File > Metadata Exchange). You can also select a universe to export to the DB2CV XML format. You have the following options available from the Metadata Exchange panel: 􀁘 To select a metadata source option 1. Select File > Metadata Exchange. Metadata Exchange option Description Create a universe from You select a metadata source format from the drop down list. This is the source XML file or database view that you use to build a universe. A universe creation wizard takes you through steps to select a connection for the metadata source, selecting the metadata components that you want to be mapped to the universe, and finally the generation of the universe. Update a universe from You select a metadata source that has been updated. This is the metadata source that has been used to create a universe. The source has been updated, and now you want to update the universe with the same modification. A universe update wizard takes you through the steps needed to update the universe. Export a universe to You select a metadata format to which you can export a universe. For example, you can select the DB2CV XML standard, then save a universe in that format.Creating universes from metadata sources Selecting a metadata source 7 Designer’s Guide 343 The Metadata Exchange panel appears. 2. If you want to generate a new universe, select a metadata format from the Create a universe from drop down list box. If you want to update an existing universe, select the metadata source that was used from the Update a universe from drop down list box. If you want to export a universe to a metadata format, select the target metadata format from the Export a universe to drop down list box. 3. Click OK. A creation, update, or export wizard starts. 4. Follow the wizard steps. Information on the options available in each of the wizards is available in the Metadata Exchange column in the table above. If you selected a XML metadata source, refer to the section “XML metadata sources” on page 344 for information on using each of the creation, update, or export wizards. If you selected Oracle Analytic Workspaces (Oracle OLAP) then refer to the section “Oracle Analytic Workspaces” on page 356 for complete information.Creating universes from metadata sources XML metadata sources 7 344 Designer’s Guide XML metadata sources You can create a universe from XML files conforming to the following data source standards: • Common Warehouse Model (CWM Relational 1.0) • Common Warehouse Model OLAP (CWM OLAP) • Oracle Warehouse Builder (Oracle WB) • Data Integrator • IBM DB2 Data Warehouse Center (IBM DB2 DWC) • IBM DB2 Cube Views You follow the OLAP Universe Builder wizard available from Metadata Exchange (File > Metadata Exchange) to create universes from XML metadata sources. Creating a universe from a XML metadata source 􀁘 To generate a universe from a XML metadata source 1. Select File > Metadata Exchange. The Metadata Exchange panel appears. 2. Select a metadata format from the Create a universe from drop down list box. Click OK. The Universe Builder wizard starts. Click Next. The XML file source page appears. 3. Click the Browse button and select a XML source file. This is the file that you want to use to generate the universe. Click Next. The Select database page appears. 4. Click the source database. Click Next. The universe elements page appears. The available database tables and columns are listed in the left pane. 5. Select one or more tables and columns and click the right arrow to populate the right pane. The tables and columns in the right pane are those that appear in the generated universe. You can use the arrow buttons to add and remove tables from the universe pane as necessary. Click Next.Creating universes from metadata sources XML metadata sources 7 Designer’s Guide 345 A connection and universe properties page appears. It lists the connections available to Designer. These are described in the section “Choosing connection and universe options” on page 345 6. Click a connection in the connections list. This is the connection to the data source that the universe uses to retrieve data. Type a universe name. Select or clear options check boxes. Click the Advanced button to set trace log file and XML source file options. Click Next. The universe generation summary page appears. It lists a summary of the options that you have selected during the wizard. Click Finish. The generated universe appears in the universe and structure panes of Designer. Choosing connection and universe options You have the following options on the connection and universe build page of the metadata universe builder wizard: Wizard page Universe options Description Build universe settings Select a connection Listed connections are connections available to Designer. This is the connection to the target RDBMS. Universe name The name of the universe that will be generated. Save universe automatically When selected, the universe is saved on creation. Replace existing universe When selected, if a universe with the same name exists, and Save universe automatically is selected, the new universe replaces the existing universe. Advanced settings General tab Traces Path to the trace folder. This is the folder that holds the log files when universes are generated. You can browse to and select a folder.Creating universes from metadata sources XML metadata sources 7 346 Designer’s Guide Updating a universe 􀁘 To update a universe from a XML metadata source 1. Select File > Metadata Exchange. The Metadata Exchange panel appears. 2. Select a metadata format from the Update a universe from: drop down list box. Click OK. The Universe Builder wizard starts. Click Next. The XML file source page appears. 3. Click the Browse button and select a XML source file. This is the file that you want to use to update the universe. Click Next. The Select database page appears. 4. Click the source database. Click Next. The universe file page appears. Click the Browse button and select a universe. This is the universe that you want to update from the selected XML metadata source. Click Next. The universe elements page appears. The available database tables and columns are listed in the left pane. Tables that have been added or modified are indicated with a red check mark. File locations tab Default XML Source File Folder Path to the default folder that stores the XML files used to create universes. You can browse to and select a folder. File locations tab Parameter File Path to the default folder that stores the parameter files. These are files created when a universe is created. These files store and reference the selected metadata so that it can be reused for creating or updating other universes. The parameter file does not store the selected metadata. it is a filter that directs the bridge to the selected metadata through the original XML file. You can browse to and select a folder Wizard page Universe options DescriptionCreating universes from metadata sources XML metadata sources 7 Designer’s Guide 347 5. Select one or more tables and columns and click the right arrow to populate the right pane with the tables that have been modified. The tables and columns in the right pane are those that appear in the generated universe. You can use the arrow buttons to add and remove tables from the universe pane as necessary. Click Next. A connection and universe properties page appears. It lists the connections available to Designer. These are described in the section “Choosing connection and universe options” on page 345 6. Click a connection in the connections list. This is the connection to the data source that the universe uses to retrieve data. Type a universe name. Select or clear options check boxes. Click the Advanced button to set trace log file and XML source file options. Click Next. The universe generation summary page appears. It lists a summary of the options that you have selected during the wizard. Click Finish. The updated universe appears in the universe and structure panes of Designer. Exporting a universe to DB2CV You can export a universe to IBM DB2 cube View XML format file. The universe definition is exported to a XML file that complies with IBM DB2 Cube Views XML format. This file can then be loaded in IBM DB2 Cube Views using the API or OLAP Center tool. IBM DB2 Cube Views reads the metadata from the XML file, and recommends the appropriate Automatic Summary Table (AST) for future query optimization. The information in this section is organized as follows: • Oracle Analytic Workspaces • Universe pre-requisites for export • Identifying universe metadata • Universe to DBCV2 metadata mapping • Mapping specific SQL expressions Exporting a universe to a DBCV2 XML file You export a BusinessObjects universe to a IBM DB2 Cube Views XML file as follows:Creating universes from metadata sources XML metadata sources 7 348 Designer’s Guide 􀁘 To export a universe to DB2CV format 1. Select File > Metadata Exchange. The Metadata Exchange panel appears. 2. Select IBM DB2 Cube views from the Export a universe to drop down list box. Click OK. The export wizard starts. Click Next. A universe source file page appears. 3. Browse to and select a universe file. Click Next. An OLAP information page appears. 4. Enter a name for the fact table, or you can accept the fact table name by default. Enter a name for the schema. Click Next. The metadata is loaded. A page appears showing the structures that will be exported. Click Next. 5. Type a name for the XML file and click Next. A summary page appears. Verify that the export information is correct. Click Finish. The XML file is created in the universes folder of your user profile, for example, C:\Documents and Settings\\Application Data\Business Objects\Business Objects 11.5\Universes. Universe pre-requisites for export The following list describes the universe pre-requisites necessary for a successful universe export to the XML file: Universe level restrictions • Each universe is exported to a Cube Model. • A universe must match a single snowflake schema with a single fact table. • The universe must contain at least one measure • Links between universes are not supported. • Contexts are not taken into account, and not exported. • Custom hierarchies: the levels of a custom hierarchy must be grouped in the same class.Creating universes from metadata sources XML metadata sources 7 Designer’s Guide 349 Classes and objects • @Select function is the only supported @function. All other @functions are not mapped in the export. • Conditions in the Where field of an object definition are not exported. Note: Conditions are not supported in DB2 Cube Views objects, as they are not used for optimization. • Multi-parameter aggregation functions are not exported. • Each class must contain objects that are built on the same dimension tables. • All the objects (attributes in IBMDB2CV) that are referenced by the same dimension in IBMDB2CV, must be grouped in the same class in the universe. Any other measure in other classes are automatically added to the Fact object in IBMDB2CV. Joins If the left or right column of a join does not match an object in the universe, then an attribute for this column is automatically created and added to the dimension (or fact) that contains the column table. Identifying universe metadata This section describes how objects in a universe that do not have a multidimensional match in IBM DB2 Cube Views are identified and processed during the export of a universe definition to an XML file. A universe contains relational metadata A universe is based on relational metadata that does not have multidimensional design constraints. All the objects in a universe do not necessarily match equivalent IBM DB2 Cube Views objects, and do not respect IBM DB2 Cube Views multi-dimensional rules. To correctly match relational structures, the BusinessObjects UMB must run certain automatic detection processes to identify and define the required and appropriate metadata for IBM DB2 Cube Views. The affected multidimensional objects are described below. Fact The IBM DB2 Cube Views Fact object is automatically built from the set of measures found in the universe. Dimensions Tables that are not identified as Facts are assumed to be dimension tables. A IBM DB2 Cube Views dimension object is deduced directly from a BusinessObjects class.Creating universes from metadata sources XML metadata sources 7 350 Designer’s Guide All the objects within a class determine the attributes of the IBM DB2 Cube Views dimension. The tables inferred by BusinessObjects objects within the class, are detected by parsing the object’s Select field. Attributes Attributes are not directly deduced from the columns of tables in the universe. Candidate attributes are detected and identified from the following information: • BusinessObjects objects within a class. • BusinessObjects objects referenced in Select field of other BusinessObjects objects by the @Select statement. • Columns involved in a join. Attribute relationships The detail-dimension relationship in a universe is translated to an attribute relationship of type Functional Dependency in IBM DB2 Cube Views. Joins Joins and their properties are directly read from universe structure. Measures All classes are searched for measure objects. If a measure is not built on the same fact table, then it is ignored. Hierarchies A hierarchy in DB2 Cube Views is linked to a dimension object and all its levels are members of this same dimension. This is not the case in a universe, where a custom hierarchy can contain levels coming from different Business Objects classes. Hierarchies are treated as follows: • If a universe uses only default hierarchies, then the hierarchies for export to IBM DB2 Cube Views are deduced from the objects, using the object order within each class. • If the universe has custom hierarchies, then they are exported without any modification. Universe to DBCV2 metadata mapping This section describes in detail the mapping between universe structures and IBM DB2 Cube Views structures. The following sections give detailed descriptions for structures that are mapped from a universe to IBM DB2 Cube Views when a universe is exported to a XML file.Creating universes from metadata sources XML metadata sources 7 Designer’s Guide 351 Universe to cube model The following describes mapping for a universe to cube model Class to dimension The following table describes the mapping for a class to a dimension: Universe property Cube property Short name (file name) Cube file name Universe name (long name) Business name By default the name is the universe short name () Description Comments Fact table name factsRef List of classes dimensionRef List of joins involving the fact table. joinRef Class property Dimension property Name Name and Business name Description Comments List of dimension and detail objects. See “Measure to measure” on page 352 for measure mapping. attributeRef Joins between dimension tables inferred by the class. joinRef Hierarchy If hierarchy is a custom hierarchy, then the dimension is modified to get all hierarchy levels in the same dimension as required by IBM DB2 Cube Views. The hierarchies are put in the herarchyRef property.Creating universes from metadata sources XML metadata sources 7 352 Designer’s Guide Fact table to Fact The following table describes the mapping for a fact table to a Fact: Measure to measure The following table describes the mapping of measure to a measure: Dimension and detail object to attribute The following table describes the mapping of dimension and details to attributes: Fact table property Fact property Fact table name You enter this name manually in the Facts box in the Export universe panel. You can also accept the default name Facts_. Name and Business name Table description Comments List of all measures in the universe measureRef List of columns and objects referenced in measures attributeRef Measure properties Measure properties Name Name and Business name Description Comments Columns and objects inferred by Select statements. sqlExpression column Select statement formula sqlExpression template Aggregation function aggregation function Dimension and detail objects Attributes Name Name and Business name Description Comments Columns and objects referenced in Select statements sqlExpression column Select statement formula sqlExpression templateCreating universes from metadata sources XML metadata sources 7 Designer’s Guide 353 Dimension and detail relationship to attribute relationship The following table describes the mapping of Dimension/detail relationships to attribute relationships Default hierarchy to hierarchy The following table describes the mapping of default hierarchies to hierarchies: Note: If there are no custom hierarchies, a class is used as the hierarchy. Custom hierarchy to hierarchy The following table describes the mapping of a custom hierarchy to hierarchy: Join to join The following table describes the mapping of joins to joins: Dimension/detail relationship Attribute relationship Dimension name + detail name Concat character is “_” Name and Business name Dimension left attribute Detail Right attribute Default hierarchy Hierarchy Name Names and Business name List of objects. Detail objects must not be part of the hierarchy. AttributeRef Custom hierarchy Hierarchy Name Name and Business name List of objects attributeRef Join Join Left table name + right table name. Concat character is “_” Name and Business nameCreating universes from metadata sources XML metadata sources 7 354 Designer’s Guide Mapping specific SQL expressions Certain SQL expressions are mapped in particular ways by the export process. The following cases of SQL expressions are described in detail: • SELECT expression for a measure • @AggregateAware function • Complex join expressions • Theta joins • Shortcut joins SELECT expression for a measure The BusinessObjects UMB gets the following information from the SELECT of a measure: • Detect tables and columns involved in a measure and map them to sqlExpression:column • Identify the aggregation function • Determine the formula expression and map it to sqlExpression:template. @AggregateAware function When an object contains the @AggregateAware function, only the last parameter of the @AggregateAware function is taken into account. This is the expression that contains the lowest level of aggregation used by the function. For example: A @AggregateAware expression for a measure expression in the universe is as follows: @Aggregate_Aware( sum(AggregatedTable1.Sales_revenue), sum(AggregatedTable2.Sales_revenue), sum(Fact_Table.Amount_sold)) The expression that is mapped to IBM DB2 Cube Views is: sum(Fact_Table.Amount_sold)) Left column Left attribute Right column Right attribute Complex expression: For each simple expression the left and right columns are identified. Each simple expression maps to an attribute pair. Join JoinCreating universes from metadata sources XML metadata sources 7 Designer’s Guide 355 Complex join expressions The expression of a complex join in a universe can consist of expressions of type: LeftTable.Column=RightTable.Column In a complex join, these type of expressions can be linked together with the AND operator. The BusinessObjects UMB maps each expression in the complex join to an attribute pair of IBM DB2 Cube Views within the same join. Theta joins A theta join is split into two IBM DB2 Cube Views joins, where the operator BETWEEN is replaced by operators <= and >=. For example: A join in a universe has this expression: Customer.age between Age_group.age_min and Age_group.age_max This join will be split into two joins with the following expressions: Join1: Customer.age >= Age_group.age_min Join2: Customer.age <= Age_group.age_max Shortcut joins Not exported to IBM DB2 Cube Views. Shortcut joins in a universe represent an alternate path to improve performance of queries by not taking into account intermediate tables. As shortcut joins create loops within a cube model, they are not exported.Creating universes from metadata sources Oracle Analytic Workspaces 7 356 Designer’s Guide Oracle Analytic Workspaces You use the Oracle OLAP Universe Builder wizard to guide you through the steps of universe creation. You connect to the Oracle OLAP Universe Builder wizard from the Metadata Exchange panel (File > Metadata Exchange). An overview of how you create a universe with Oracle Universe Builder wizard is as follows: Start Metadata Exchange and select Oracle OLAP from the Create a universe from drop down list. Oracle OLAP Universe Builder wizard starts. You go through these stages: • Connect to the InfoProvider that you want to use to build a universe. • Select a database. • Select the cube that is the target metadata source. • Create a view based on the cube metadata. • Generate a universe based on the view. You can also create a universe from an existing view. Universe and view creation options You can create universes and views as follows: Universe creation option Description Generate a universe from an existing view You create a view, and then select which structures are mapped to create the universe. Create a view only You can create a view and save the view if you do not want to create a universe. The view is available in a view list and can be used to create a universe at any time. Generate a universe from an existing view You select an existing view, and generate a universe directly from this view.Creating universes from metadata sources Oracle Analytic Workspaces 7 Designer’s Guide 357 Create a view and generate a universe You generate an Oracle OLAP universe by first defining a view using Analytic Workspace Cube metadata, then you set universe creation options, and generate a new universe. 􀁘 To create a view and generate universe 1. Select File > Metadata Exchange. The Metadata Exchange panel appears. Select Oracle OLAP from the Create a universe from drop down list and click OK. Oracle OLAP Universe Builder starts. 2. Select Create View and Generate Universe and click Next. A connection parameters box appears. 3. Select a connection and enter user name and password, and click Next. The Cube panel appears showing the Analytic Workspace cubes available to the connection. 4. Click the Cubes node. The Analytic Workspaces (AW) available in the connection are displayed. 5. Expand a AW node to display the cubes available to the AW. Select a cube and click Next. A status box shows the progress of metadata being loaded from the selected cube. The View Creation page appears. It lists dimension and measures available to the cube. 6. If required, modify the datatype and length values. Do this as follows: • Double click a data type or length value. • Select a datatype from the drop down list box. • Click Next. The Hierarchy level page appears. This page lists the hierarchy levels with data types and values. 7. Edit hierarchy values if necessary, then click Next. The View and universe options page appears.Creating universes from metadata sources Oracle Analytic Workspaces 7 358 Designer’s Guide 8. Type a name for the view, and select view and universe options. The View properties and universe options are as follows: 9. Click Next. The SQL verification page appears. 10. Verify the SQL for the view and click Next. The universe information summary page appears. 11. Verify the universe information, and click Finish. Designer starts and opens to the newly generated universe. Create a view only You can create a view using Analytic Workspace Cube metadata. The saved view appears in a list of views. Once you have create the view, you can then select the view at a later time and generate a universe. To create a view only, Options Description View Name Name for the view. You can edit this field. Create Column for OLAP_EXPRESSION When selected, an extra column of type Raw(32) is created in the view to enable the use of OLAP_EXPRESSION function in the universe. Create Columns for Identifiers When selected, columns representing the dimension members (identifiers) are created. Replace existing database objects When selected existing Type and View structures are replaced in the database. Use derived tables When selected the universe is not built from a view physically created in the database, but is built by using a derived table to reference the cube structures. A derived table is a virtual table that exists only in the universe that references database structures. It is not created in the database. This is useful when the user does not have CREATE VIEW rights, or if you do not want to accumulate views in the database. Transform object IDs to details Only active when the Create columns for identifiers option for views is selected. When selected, object IDs are transformed into detail objects in the generated universe.Creating universes from metadata sources Oracle Analytic Workspaces 7 Designer’s Guide 359 follow the same procedure in the section “Create a view and generate a universe” on page 357, but at the start of the Oracle OLAP Universe Builder wizard, you select the Create View only radio button. The view is created in the target database. You can connect to this view at any time to create a universe. See the section “Generate a universe from an existing view” on page 359 for the procedure on using a view to create a universe. Generate a universe from an existing view You can generate a universe from an existing view. Existing views appear in a list. You select a view from the list and generate a universe. 􀁘 To generate a universe from an existing view 1. Select File > Metadata Exchange. The Metadata Exchange panel appears. Select Oracle OLAP from the Create a universe from drop down list and click OK. Oracle OLAP Universe Builder starts. 2. From the Oracle OLAP Universe Builder wizard start page, select the Generate universe from a view radio button. Click Next. A connection parameters box appears. 3. Select a connection and enter user name and password, and click Next. The Cube panel appears showing the Analytic Workspace cubes available to the connection. 4. Click the Cubes node. The Analytic Workspaces (AW) available in the connection are displayed.Creating universes from metadata sources Oracle Analytic Workspaces 7 360 Designer’s Guide 5. Expand a AW node to display the cubes available to the AW. Select a cube and click Next. A list of available views defined on the cube appears. 6. Click a view name in the list and click Next. A status box shows the progress of metadata being loaded from the selected cube. The Universe Creation page appears. It lists dimension, measures, and hierarchy levels defined in the view that can be used to create a universe. 7. If required, modify a column name or hierarchy level. Do this as follows: • Double click a column name or level value. • Select or type a name as appropriate. 8. Click Finish. Designer starts and opens to the newly generated universe. Mapping Oracle OLAP structures to universe components This section describes how a universe is created from Oracle OLAP cube structures. It explains the universe structure that is generated and answers some general questions about the mapping process.Creating universes from metadata sources Oracle Analytic Workspaces 7 Designer’s Guide 361 Oracle Analytic Workspace and Business Objects semantic layer technology Oracle 9i AW (Analytical Workspace) allows Oracle OLAP data to be queried using standard SQL. Business Objects’ patented semantic layer enables users to create complex SQL queries using visual objects. Business Objects users can benefit from the performance and calculation power of Oracle OLAP while staying in a BusinessObjects query-building environment. Oracle 9i AW exposes Oracle OLAP cubes as relational views, which can be queried using standard SQL. Oracle exposes dimensions and rollups in a relational view. The Oracle OLAP Universe Builder wizard generates a universe on the cube view. How is a universe generated from an OLAP cube? When you create a universe with the Oracle OLAP Universe Builder, it is automatically set up for SQL access to Oracle Analytic Workspaces. BusinessObjects Oracle OLAP Universe Builder performs the following main tasks: • Inserts the relational fact view in the universe as a real view or as Derived Table. • Add aliases to represent the dimension levels and hierarchies • Joins the relational view to the dimension tables with regular joins and shortcut joins. The expressions of the joins are specific to this solution. • Creates a class of objects for each Cube dimension and an object for each level of the dimension. • Creates a subclass for each hierarchy if a dimension has more than one hierarchy. Multi-hierarchy dimensions are supported in the view definition and in the universe. • Define aggregate navigation to resolve object incompatibility that results from the multi-hierarchy dimensions. • Defines object expressions using the AggregateAware function to handle the Aggregation Navigation • Transforms objects that map real dimension members (Identifiers) to Details of objects that represent the member descriptions. • Creates measure objectsCreating universes from metadata sources Oracle Analytic Workspaces 7 362 Designer’s Guide Analyzing the relational view BusinessObjects Oracle OLAP Universe Builder generates views that call the OLAP_TABLE function to map the view columns to the hierarchies of the dimensions and measures of the Cube. The generated script has the following form: CREATE VIEW BOBJ_FK_UNITS_CUBE_VIEW AS SELECT * FROM TABLE(OLAP_TABLE('GLOBAL_AW2.TEST DURATION session','','','&LIMIT_MAP' LIMIT_MAP is a variable that stores the text of the limit_map parameter of OLAP_TABLE. This text is generated by Oracle OLAP Universe Builder. Here is an example of limit_map parameter: DIMENSION GLOBAL_AW2.TEST!FK_TIME WITH HIERARCHY GLOBAL_AW2.TEST!FK_TIME_PARENTREL (FK_TIME_HIERLIST \''CALENDAR\'') LEVELREL FK_TIME_YEAR,FK_TIME_QUARTER,FK_TIME_MONTH FROM GLOBAL_AW2.TEST!FK_TIME_FAMILYREL USING GLOBAL_AW2.TEST!FK_TIME_LEVELLIST LEVELREL FK_TIME_YEAR_DESC,FK_TIME_QUARTER_DESC,FK_TIME_MONTH_DES C FROM GLOBAL_AW2.TEST!FK_TIME_FAMILYREL USING GLOBAL_AW2.TEST!FK_TIME_LEVELLIST LABEL GLOBAL_AW2.TEST!FK_TIME_LONG_DESCRIPTION ATTRIBUTE FK_TIME_LEVEL FROM GLOBAL_AW2.TEST!FK_TIME_LEVELREL DIMENSION GLOBAL_AW2.TEST!FK_CUSTOMER WITH HIERARCHY GLOBAL_AW2.TEST!FK_CUSTOMER_PARENTREL (FK_CUSTOMER_HIERLIST \''MARKET_SEGMENT\'') INHIERARCHY GLOBAL_AW2.TEST!FK_CUSTOMER_INHIER LEVELREL null,null,null,FK_CUSTOMER_TOTAL_MARKET,FK_CUSTOMER_MARK ET_SEGMENT, FK_CUSTOMER_ACCOUNT,FK_CUSTOMER_SHIP_TO FROM GLOBAL_AW2.TEST!FK_CUSTOMER_FAMILYREL USING GLOBAL_AW2.TEST!FK_CUSTOMER_LEVELLIST LEVELREL null,null,null,FK_CUSTOMER_TOTAL_MARKET_DESC,FK_CUSTOMER _MARKET_SEGMENT_D01, FK_CUSTOMER_ACCOUNT_DESC,FK_CUSTOMER_SHIP_TO_DESC FROM GLOBAL_AW2.TEST!FK_CUSTOMER_FAMILYREL USING GLOBAL_AW2.TEST!FK_CUSTOMER_LEVELLIST LABEL GLOBAL_AW2.TEST!FK_CUSTOMER_LONG_DESCRIPTION HIERARCHY GLOBAL_AW2.TEST!FK_CUSTOMER_PARENTREL (FK_CUSTOMER_HIERLIST \''SHIPMENTS\'') INHIERARCHY GLOBAL_AW2.TEST!FK_CUSTOMER_INHIER LEVELREL null,null,null,FK_CUSTOMER_ALL_CUSTOMERS, FK_CUSTOMER_REGION,FK_CUSTOMER_WAREHOUSE,null FROM GLOBAL_AW2.TEST!FK_CUSTOMER_FAMILYREL USING GLOBAL_AW2.TEST!FK_CUSTOMER_LEVELLIST LEVELREL null,null,null,FK_CUSTOMER_ALL_CUSTOMERS_DESC, FK_CUSTOMER_REGION_DESC,FK_CUSTOMER_WAREHOUSE_DESC,nullCreating universes from metadata sources Oracle Analytic Workspaces 7 Designer’s Guide 363 FROM GLOBAL_AW2.TEST!FK_CUSTOMER_FAMILYREL USING GLOBAL_AW2.TEST!FK_CUSTOMER_LEVELLIST LABEL GLOBAL_AW2.TEST!FK_CUSTOMER_LONG_DESCRIPTION ATTRIBUTE FK_CUSTOMER_LEVEL FROM GLOBAL_AW2.TEST!FK_CUSTOMER_LEVELREL MEASURE FK_UNITS_CUBE_UNITS AS NUMBER FROM GLOBAL_AW2.TEST!FK_UNITS_CUBE_UNITS ROW2CELL OLAP_CALC What are the shortcut joins in the universe used for? Shortcut joins ensure that BusinessObjects generates SQL for each object combination rather than for each object. BusinessObjects uses shortcut joins when it can omit tables from a query and take a ‘shortcut’ between two tables that are not directly linked in a hierarchy. For example, based on the following schema: if a shortcut join is defined between the QUARTER and OLAPCUBE tables, BusinessObjects does not need to join through the MONTH table to retrieve revenue by quarter.Creating universes from metadata sources Oracle Analytic Workspaces 7 364 Designer’s Guide Each table in the time hierarchy (except the lowest-level table) must be joined to OLAPCUBE.time_level by a shortcut join, as shown below: The join expression must include the expression that will restrict the rows returned from OLAPCUBE; in the case of QUARTER, this is OLAPCUBE.time_level = ‘QTR’. To ensure that Designer allows the join, the expression must also reference the MONTH table, which should appear inside comments (because it plays no part in the actual join expression that you are interested in generating). The full join expression is therefore: /* QUARTER.DUMMY */OLAPCUBE.time_level = ‘QTR’ The full list of shortcut join expressions for the example time hierarchy is as follows: Joined tables Expression MONTH, OLAPCUBE /* MONTH.DUMMY */OLAPCUBE.time_level = ‘MONTH’ QUARTER, OLAPCUBE /* QUARTER.DUMMY */OLAPCUBE.time_level = ‘QTR’ YEAR, OLAPCUBE /* YEAR.DUMMY */OLAPCUBE.time_level = ‘YEAR’ TIME_ALL, OLAPCUBE /* TIME_ALL.DUMMY */OLAPCUBE.time_level = ‘ALL’Creating universes from metadata sources Oracle Analytic Workspaces 7 Designer’s Guide 365 How are Oracle OLAP structures mapped to universe components? To obtain and set up the expected universe, the Oracle OLAP Universe Builder adds and configures universe objects as follows: View Oracle OLAP Universe Builder inserts the relational view as a table in the universe as well as the oracle table sys.dual. If you choose to use a derived table, a derived table is inserted with the definition of the view (select part with OLAP_TABLE function). Hierarchy tables For each hierarchy that is represented in the relational view, an alias of sys.dual is created for each level of the hierarchy. The name of the alias is the level name. For example: if we have a dimension TIME with 4 levels (ALL, YEAR, MONTH, QUARTER) then create 4 aliases ALL, YEAR, MONTH, QUARTER. Multi-hierarchy tables Note: Multi-Hierarchy is a special case. See the section “Multi-Hierarchy special case: (Multi-Hierarchy dimensions support)” on page 369 for more information. If a dimension has more than one hierarchy, then a different set of tables is created for each hierarchy even if some hierarchies share a same level. This means that for shared levels, as many aliases are created as hierarchies. The naming of such aliases is a concatenation of the level name and the hierarchy name. For example: Dimension time has two hierarchies: H1 (All_Time, Year, Month) and H2 (All_Time, Quarter, Month) All_Time and Month are shared by both hierarchies so we’ll have two aliases for All_Time: All_Time _H1 and All_Time_H2Creating universes from metadata sources Oracle Analytic Workspaces 7 366 Designer’s Guide And two aliases for Month: Month _H1 and Month _H2 Dimension joins • Each table representing a level is joined to its direct lower level in the same hierarchy. The join expression is: /* Alias1.DUMMY=Alias2.DUMMY */1=1 where Alias1 represents a level and Alias2 represents its direct upper level in the hierarchy. Example: /* Quarter.DUMMY=Year.DUMMY */1=1 • Each table is joined to the view using a shortcut join type except for the lowest level where the join is regular. The join expression defines a value to filter the rows returned from the view and is of the type: /* Alias.DUMMY */VIEW.levelColumn = ‘level_value’ Where Alias is the alias name, levelColumn is the column representing the level within the view and level_value is the value of that column that matches the level name. Example: Examples: MYVIEW is the view that represents the OLAP cube, the column that contains the levels is time_level, the level values are: ALL, YEAR, QTR, MONTHCreating universes from metadata sources Oracle Analytic Workspaces 7 Designer’s Guide 367 Joined tables expression MONTH, MYVIEW /* MONTH.DUMMY */MYVIEW.time_level = ‘MONTH’ QUARTER, MYVIEW /* QUARTER.DUMMY */MYVIEW.time_level = ‘QTR’ YEAR, MYVIEW/* YEAR.DUMMY */MYVIEW.time_level = ‘YEAR’ TIME_ALL, MYVIEW /* TIME_ALL.DUMMY */MYVIEW.time_level = ‘ALL’ Creating universes from metadata sources Oracle Analytic Workspaces 7 368 Designer’s Guide Classes and Objects The Bridge must create a class for each OLAP dimension and an object for each level. Class and object properties are mapped as follows: Universe item Property Mapped from OLAP item... Class See also Multi-Hierarchy special case: (Multi-Hierarchy dimensions support) below. Name Dimension name Objects Levels and attributes. Dimension Name Current level name identified by the field name in the view. Select View field, for example MYVIEW.YEAR. Tables Additional tables to ensure the use of appropriate joins: • Table of current view • View • Highest level table for all dimensions Detail (optional) Parent dimension Note: All other properties are the same as for dimension above. Dimension object created from the Description field that is related to the ID field. For example, ID field is YEAR, Description field it YEAR_DESC. The object YEAR is a detail of object YEAR_DESC. Measure Name Measure name in cube. Select (no drill through) View field, for example MYVIEW.SALES Tables Additional tables to ensure the use of appropriate joins: • View • Highest level table for all dimensions Aggregation function None.Creating universes from metadata sources Oracle Analytic Workspaces 7 Designer’s Guide 369 Multi-Hierarchy special case: (Multi-Hierarchy dimensions support) To support Multi-hierarchy dimensions of an Analytical Warehouse, the following actions are carried out in the universe: • A set of tables is created for each hierarchy as described in the section “Multi-hierarchy tables” on page 365. • A class is created for the dimension and a subclass for each hierarchy. The naming of subclasses is a concatenation of the dimension name and the hierarchy name. • For each object corresponding to a level within a hierarchy, the aggregate function is added to the Select expression. It references as comments, all the high level aliases, except the aliases of the current hierarchy. For example: • Aggregate Navigation is set to make the objects of a subclass (Hierarchy) incompatible with the tables corresponding to another hierarchy. This prevents the end user from using in a report objects representing levels that belong to different hierarchies. @Aggregate_Aware(glb_dnorm_fact_mktseg_view.YEAR/* Year_H1.DUMMY Channel_All.dummy Customer_All.dummy Product_All.dummy Time_All_H1.dummy glb_dnorm_fact_mktseg_view.dummy*/) @Aggregate_Aware(glb_dnorm_fact_mktseg_view.YEAR/* Year_H2.DUMMY Channel_All.dummy Customer_All.dummy Product_All.dummy Product_All2.dummy glb_dnorm_fact_mktseg_view.dummy*/)Creating universes from metadata sources Oracle Analytic Workspaces 7 370 Designer’s GuideFor example, the table Year_H1 (from Hierarchy H1) is incompatible with objects from H2 hierarchy: And the table Year_H2 (from Hierarchy H2) is incompatible with objects from H1 hierarchy:chapter Creating universes for use as metricsCreating universes for use as metrics Overview 8 372 Designer’s Guide OverviewThis chapter contains information specific to Performance Management products. Performance Management is a group of Business Objects products that provide Web Intelligence users with the capability to monitor and track time based data. Universes designed for performance management products are not used to analyze data and create reports, but to specify the SQL that is used to create a data monitoring tool called metrics. This chapter provides performance management administrators and advanced users with a brief introduction to the principles behind system universes. It covers standard practices for setting up a basic installation of performance management at both demonstration and deployment levels. Note: This chapter only applies to performance management administrators or advanced users of performance management products. If you do not have to create universes for metrics, or administer universes for performance management products, then this chapter is not for you.Creating universes for use as metrics Using universes to build metrics 8 Designer’s Guide 373 Using universes to build metrics You use Designer to build universes that specify the SQL used to define metrics. You then use Dashboard Manager to create a dashboard that uses the metric to track performance. Metrics Metrics are time based aggregate values based on sets, set behavior, or filters. You use metrics to track actual performance and compare it to a goal. A metric is typically composed of the following: Enterprise metric An enterprise metric is a metric that contains a data based filter defined on the entire population of entities limited by a simple WHERE restriction, for example, COUNTRY = 'England'. Building universes used for enterprise metrics is described in this chapter. Set based metric A set based metric is a metric that contains a filter defined on a set, or the behavior within a set, for example, Joiners of the Gold Set. This type of metric is set to automatically refresh with the set at set processing time, rather than an independent refresh. Set based metrics are built using metadata in tables generated by Set Analyzer. Note: This chapter introduces set based metrics and covers general design principles, but does not provide specific workflows and examples based on the use of Set Analyzer with Designer. Refer to the Performance Management Universe Documentation for information on using sets for metric creation. Metric component Example Measure object SUM(SALES) Date based self join or where clause DATEFIELD between START and END Set or data based filter • Set based: SETSTARTDATE = START (for example, Joiner) • Data based: COUNTRY = "England"Creating universes for use as metrics Using universes to build metrics 8 374 Designer’s Guide Multiple metric universes Performance Management supports the ability to build metrics from multiple universes. This simplifies a Performance Management system universe by breaking down the universe structure and creating a new universe for specific Set Analyzer subject areas. For enterprise-metrics, multiple universes in Performance Management can be used to select from multiple data sources. In the diagram below we define subject areas 1 and 2 as being enterprise, (for example, not set-based,) and subject 3 and 4 as set-based. The results of metric calculations on connections 1 and 2 are written into the Performance Management repository tables that are located in the same schema as Set Analyzer; for example, Connection 3 in the diagram below universe 1 universe 2 universe 3 subject 1 subject 2 subject 3 subject 4 connection universe 1 universe 2 universe 3 subject 1 subject 2 subject 3 subject 4 connection 1 connection 2 connection 3Creating universes for use as metrics Using universes to build metrics 8 Designer’s Guide 375 The following diagram shows a typical deployment using multiple universes and multiple connections. The Set Analyzer tables and Performance Management tables are located in the same database instance as the data mart providing the basis for sets. Other metric universes connecting to data marts outside of the focus instance can only be enterprise-based. AF and SA repository and Datamart 1 Analytics Data Mart 2 Data Mart 3 Data Mart 4 Multiple measure universes for any type of metric Multiple measure universes only for enterprise metricsCreating universes for use as metrics Enterprise metrics 8 376 Designer’s Guide Enterprise metrics An enterprise metric is calculated at a non-set level, so it is calculated without using the set meta-data tables. Design principles An enterprise metric is defined within a universe and is typically composed of the following: • a measure • a filter • a date restriction. The following sections provide an overview of how you use Designer to create the universe used as the basis for an enterprise metric. The process has the following stages: • Creating the universe on a target fact table • Creating a measure • Defining a self join and @prompt functions • Defining a filter • Exporting the universe to Performance Management • Creating the metric Creating the universe on a target fact table A sales table is used as the basis for a metric. The table contains a date field. You use Designer to create a universe and define a connection to the source database. You then load the Sales table into the structure pane. You create classes to organize the metrics into groups. This is then used as the subject area that is later used in Performance Management. the following sections outline the general process you follow to create a metric. For in depth descriptions of the procedures, refer to the appropriate section of this guide. Creating a measure To define the value for the basis of the metric calculation, you create a measure using a sales_actual field from the Sales table. The select statement for the object, unlike a typical universe, does not contain an aggregate function (sum, max, min, avg) as Performance Management allows the user to select the type of aggregate at time of metric definition. The metric generates the following SQL: SELECT agrfunc(SALES_ACTUAL) FROM SALESCreating universes for use as metrics Enterprise metrics 8 Designer’s Guide 377 Defining a self join and @prompt functions The next step is to limit the period of calculation. A metric is typically a value stored over time and requires a time-based restriction. A simple way of enforcing the restriction on time is to use a self-join on the date field within the source table (in this case Sales.) You create a self-join on the Sales table that generates following the SQL: sales.start_date between @Prompt('BEGIN_DATE','D',,mono,free) AND @Prompt('END_DATE','D',,mono,free) The definition includes the use of two @Prompts. Note: See the section “@Prompt” on page 408 for information on using the @Prompt function. The @Prompts are replaced by Performance Management at metric refresh time with the current period. For example, if you refresh the metric against a Monthly calendar in January, the SQL executed reads: sales.start_date between '01-JAN-2002' AND '31-JAN-2002' The Performance Management SQL generator does not see @Prompt as a function. Instead it looks for a pattern match to simply swap in the dates. The exact string of "@Prompt('BEGIN_DATE','D',,mono,free)" is replaced. The replacement is case-sensitive, so designers should be very careful to preserve the exact syntax. The SQL for the metric is as follows: SELECT agrfunc(SALES_ACTUAL) FROM SALES WHERE sales.start_date between @Prompt('BEGIN_DATE','D',,mono,free) AND @Prompt('END_DATE','D',,mono,free) Note: The Performance Management SQL generator is not the same as the one used in traditional Desktop Intelligence and Web Intelligence. However, the syntax for the @Prompts is valid within Desktop Intelligence and Web Intelligence for testing and integration purposes. Defining a filter The final element of this enterprise metric universe is the population restriction, or filter. Performance Management allows the user creating the enterprise metric a choice of filters with which to limit the metric. The following figure shows a filter object defined in the universe called All Orders. The SQL behind the restriction in this case is simply a true statement, which therefore does not limit the scope of the query. For example: SELECT agrfunc(SALES_ACTUAL) FROM SALES Creating universes for use as metrics Enterprise metrics 8 378 Designer’s GuideWHERE sales.start_date between @Prompt('BEGIN_DATE','D',,mono,free) AND @Prompt('END_DATE','D',,mono,free) AND 1=1 Exporting the universe to Performance Management Now that the universe is defined and saved, it needs to be made visible to Performance Management to be used as the basis for metric creation. You create an Performance Management connection for the metadata, then export the universe to the Performance Management meta-data tables. Creating the metric As the universe is available to Performance Management, you can now create a metric. Enterprise metrics are defined using a three step wizard in the Analytic Services/Metrics section of Performance Management. You select Sales Actual as the basis for the metric. At metric creation time an aggregation function is selected, for example Sum, which is then "wrapped around" the measure at time of SQL generation. You then select a filter. See the Performance Management documentation set for information on creating metrics using the wizard. Dimension table filters The creation of filter objects is not restricted to the fact table on which the metric is based. You can also use other lookup/dimension tables. When you modify a universe by building filters on other tables, the Performance Management metadata needs to be updated with the new structure and objects. This is done in system setup by selecting the saved universe and clicking Update. The changes and new objects should then be visible for metric creation. Refer to the Performance Management documentation set for information on updating metrics with changes in target universes. Complexities of the self join A self-join is used in any SQL generated that involves the table with the selfjoin. This may not always lead to the desired results. For example if you wish to calculated a rolling value (last three months volume) the date restriction needs to look over the last three months rather than the fixed one-month (if using a monthly calendar). To achieve this the self-join can be removed and placed in the measure object. It is also possible to place the date restriction in filter objects.Creating universes for use as metrics Enterprise metrics 8 Designer’s Guide 379 Date lookups A period table is highly likely to appear in a data warehouse, so it is probable that you will need to use one when you calculate metrics, as period tables are typically time based. A common scenario is the fact table not actual containing a true date field but rather a date/period id that provides the foreign key to a period/date dimension table. The problem is now making Performance Management aware that it must use the period (dates) table when generating metric SQL. The simplest way to do this is by modifying the tables associated with the measure objects to force use of the date table hence forcing use of the self-join. Dimensions and slicing metrics The principle of slicing or dimensioning a metric is to take a metric value (for example, Sales Actual) and break it down by a dimension object, for example by Promotion, by Country, by Category. At the SQL level this means employing a GROUP BY clause. To define what to "slice" on the universe needs modifying to include dimension objects. For example, you have a dimension called Promotion. Information about the promotion name is stored in the promotion table so this is loaded and joined to the fact on promotion_type. Standard dimension objects are then created for promotion_id and promo_description against the dimension table. When refreshed the metric can be viewed as normal in the interactive analytic. The user now gets a link under the legend that allows the value shown in the chart to be sliced. When selected the Sales Actual value is split into the distinct available values for promotion. Metrics on metrics As metric information is stored in the Performance Management system tables, it is possible to use the values held as the basis for further metric calculations. This is achieved by loading the metric meta-data tables into the system universe and creating measure objects against these tables. Using metrics based on metrics, a significant performance gain can be achieved. For example, if a metric for sales and a metric for number of transactions have been defined, rather than calculate average sales per transaction against the fact table, the metric of sales can be divided by the metric for transaction, thus calculating only against the very aggregated metric tables. Creating universes for use as metrics Enterprise metrics 8 380 Designer’s Guide Refreshing the metric that is based on another metric must take place only after the first metric has been refreshed. The simplest way to ensure this is to make the metric independent and, instead of scheduling a metric refresh, create a rule to refresh the metric when the first has been refreshed as shown below Metrics functions within the rules engine The Performance Management rules engine contains a function builder that allows access to metric values. This queries directly to the metric values and does not use the system universe. Refer to the Performance Management Documentation for more information on using the function builder.Creating universes for use as metrics Configuration of universes for Process Analysis charts 8 Designer’s Guide 381 Configuration of universes for Process Analysis charts This section explains the process of creating a universe for control chart analysis in Performance Management. It assumes a working knowledge of statistical process analysis control charts, Performance Management, and universe design. The Performance Management process analysis engine uses a Business Objects universe as metadata to access the underlying data source. The process analysis engine is capable of working with data at a transactional level, as well as at any level of aggregation. There are, however, a number of requirements that must be met by the data source to enable the process analysis engine. The process analysis engine in Performance Management uses a number of elements from a specially configured Business Objects universe to access the appropriate data for each control chart. To create a universe for the process analysis engine, start by inserting the appropriate fact tables that contain the transactions or aggregate values that you chart. Each fact table needs a self-join on its timestamp to allow Performance Management to select data by date. Measures are then organized into classes which are translated into subject areas by Performance Management. Dimension objects for breakdown variables are also included in the appropriate classes. Conditions are created that are combined to create filters for control charts. Any control chart that needs to draw data from two fact tables (p, np, or u charts) needs to include filters that are based on a common dimension that joins to both fact tables. Universe configuration Measures Measure objects in the universe are used by control charts to calculate the actual data points on the control chart. Each control chart uses either one or two measures to calculate its data points. During configuration, the user selects the measure object or objects that are used in the control chart calculation. These measure objects should be organized within Business Objects classes that are translated into subject areas by Performance Management.Creating universes for use as metrics Configuration of universes for Process Analysis charts 8 382 Designer’s Guide Each measure comes from a fact table that contains the raw data. This raw data may be at transactional level or aggregated. Depending on the nature of the data, it may or may not be necessary to include aggregate functions in the measure objects themselves. If the values in the table are already sufficiently aggregated that no further aggregation is necessary, then no aggregation function is included in the object. Self-joins Each fact table must include a self-join which is used by Performance Management to select values during sampling. The self-join is on the date stamp column of the fact table and follows this exact syntax (changes in case and spaces can cause this self-join to fail): between @Prompt('BEGIN_DT','D',,mono,free) AND @Prompt('END_DT','D',,mono,free) Breakdown variable Breakdown variables are used to automatically generate control charts for each value in a dimension. For each breakdown variable that is used, a dimension object needs to be created in the appropriate class in the universe. For example, in a manufacturing example, Reject Type is a breakdown variable in a class called Manufacturing Reject. The breakdown variable can come directly from the fact table, if appropriate, or may be an object that is based on a column in a joined table. Filters Filters are used to limit a particular control chart, or set of control charts for a breakdown variable, to a particular set of data. Control chart filters are based on combinations of conditions that are created in the universe. In a manufacturing example, the conditions include those that limit control charts to particular product type. The conditions can be based on columns directly on the fact table, or any table that is joined to the fact table. When designing conditions, you need to be aware that control chart filters that are configured in Performance Management can combine conditions together. For p, np, and u charts it is possible to draw the measures that are used in calculating control chart points from two different fact tables. In p charts, for example, the value on the control chart is calculated based on the number of rejects (which may come from one table) and the number of inspections Creating universes for use as metrics Configuration of universes for Process Analysis charts 8 Designer’s Guide 383 (which may come from another table). When two tables are involved they both need to be constrained by a common filter that is based on common conditions. In a manufacturing example, a Manufacturing Reject class uses measures from two different tables. For number of rejects the Nb Rejected object are used, which is based on the reject.nb_rejected column. For the number of inspections the Nb Inspections object is used, which is based on the inspection.nb_inspected column. The common filters are based on the name field in common dimension table item. Systematic sampling If systematic sampling is required within a particular subject area, a dimension object is needed within the appropriate class based on the timestamp column in the fact table. For the manufacturing example, the Measurement Time object in the Manufacturing Variable class is based on the individual_measuremt.measuremt_time column. Resolving loops in the universe The universe design to support the process analysis engine can often result in loops in the universe. There are two ways to deal with loops: table aliases and contexts. A table alias has been used in the manufacturing universe to resolve a loop. In this case the defect_type and item tables both need to be joined with the defect and reject tables creating a loop. This loop has been resolved by aliasing defect_type as reject_type for the join with the reject table. An alternative approach, which may be necessary in some cases, is to use contexts to resolve the loop. For example, the use of two fact tables for rejects and inspections may result in a loop if a number of filter and breakdown objects are required from different dimension tables. One context can be named for the tables included in the rejects query, and one context for the inspection query. Note: You must include the self-joins in the relevant context. Refer to the chapter “Resolving join problems in a schema” on page 167 for information on solving loop problems. Database requirements The database design must meet the following two requirements if it is to be used for process analysis control charts: • Each fact table must include a date stamp in the date/time format of that database.Creating universes for use as metrics Configuration of universes for Process Analysis charts 8 384 Designer’s Guide • If two tables are used in p, np, or u charts then they must have a common dimension table that can be used for a common filter.Creating universes for use as metrics Designing universes for set based metrics 8 Designer’s Guide 385 Designing universes for set based metrics You can use tables created in BusinessObjects Set Analyzer in a universe to create metrics based on sets. Design principles and SET_SET_DETAIL[C/D] When a set is built, depending on the subject, the set information is saved within one of the tables shown below. The tables allow different data types to be used in set creation. Using a set based on a list of customers, If customer_id is a character-based value, the set is stored in the SET_SET_DETAILC table where the ID field is character type. If the user created a set of, for example, products where the Product_Key field was a numeric, the SET_SET_DETAIL table can be used. This also holds true for date-based sets. If the user creates date-based segments the SET_SET_DETAILD table can be used in the same way. The structure of this table allows Set Analyzer and Performance Management to store membership details over time. Using this information we can section our set members/non members into various sub-sets. A static (non calendar-based) set does not store the history of a segment’s membership over time. This lack of history means we are able to show the membership of the set and not be able to break this into groups over time, for example those who join a group (Joiners), or those who leave a group (Leavers). Another way to view a static set is as a fixed view of a certain period in time, also known as a snap-shot. For example, such a set can show all the customers who purchased goods yesterday. This may change over time but we do not store who bought goods three days ago. A hybrid of this is a 'vintage set' that never changes membership, for example customers who purchased goods in January 2003. Unlike the time-based, dynamic segments, there are never Joiners or Leavers. We need only track Members for metrics based on such segments.Creating universes for use as metrics Designing universes for set based metrics 8 386 Designer’s Guide The universe for set-based metrics is similar to enterprise metric universes. The major difference is the inclusion in SET_SET_DETAIL[C/D] in the schema. A self-join can be used to limit the metric calculation to the period of metric observation. In a set-based universe, you use filter objects to define subsets , for example Members, Joiners, or Leavers. Once we save the universe can be made available to Performance Management in the same way as an enterprise universe. The universe loaded metrics can now be created against sets. Set-based metric creation follows a similar path to that of an enterprise metric. At the start, however, the user has the choice of what sets and subsets to base the metric on. Individual profiler requirements Performance Management Individual Profiler uses the metric universe as a basis for the available dimensions for a profile, as well as for individual metric analysis. The universe is set up with specific dimensions. Filters to be used in Individual Profiler for each subject are defined in Set Analyzer. Firstly, Individual Profiler needs to be made aware of the key field being used as the basis for sets in Set Analyzer. This is then used to locate and reference the individual entity in Individual Profiler. For example, a key Set Analyzer field is customer_id. A dimension object is created and a description given to pass a parameter to Performance Management to indicate this is the subject's key. The object is placed in the class that refers to this subject area, in this case the class is Customer. Now that a customer can be located, a method of restricting the period for metric and set membership calculations is needed. This is done with the use of one of the Performance Management period tables (CI_PERIOD). The table is loaded into the schema. It is joined to the fact table where metrics used at the individual level are based. For metric calculations, the join between the fact table and the CI_PERIOD table restricts the fact table rows date to be between a start and end date defined in a particular period. This period of observation/restriction is enforced by the use of the self-join on period type. This prompt is filled in the same way as the other prompts in the universe and so is case-sensitive. The second part of the date restriction is for set membership and requires a dimension object called IPDATE, in the case of the above example, against the begin date field.Creating universes for use as metrics Designing universes for set based metrics 8 Designer’s Guide 387 Note: The tag LIST=N is used to prevent the object being used in a list output. Performance Management Individual Profiler now needs a way of selecting which customer_id to view. This is done with the use of a filter called IPFILTER. The restriction is placed against the same field that was specified as the subject key described earlier. The IP=M tag allows Individual Profiler to know which metrics are available for individual analysis with Individual Profiler. For performance reasons it may not be of benefit to allow users to create individual metric analysis against all measures, because as the metric is calculated at an individual level, the query must be ad-hoc against, in this case, the fact table.Creating universes for use as metrics Designing universes for set based metrics 8 388 Designer’s Guidechapter Optimizing universesOptimizing universes Overview 9 390 Designer’s Guide OverviewYou can optimize universes by using the following techniques: • Using aggregate tables • Using @Functions • Using external strategies to customize universe creation • Using analytic functions Using aggregate tables You can use features in Designer to allow you to define the Select statement for an object to run a query against aggregate tables in the database instead of the base tables. You can set conditions so that a query will be run against aggregate tables when it optimizes the query, and if not, then the query will be run against the base tables. This ability of an object to use aggregate tables to optimize a query is called aggregate awareness. This chapter describes how you can set up aggregate awareness in your universe. Note: $INSTALLDIR variable in this guide In this guide the variable $INSTALLDIR is the install root path for the data access files used by Designer and Web Intelligence. This is the Business Objects installation path with the operating system sub directory that contains the Designer executable and the data access drivers. Under Windows$INSTALLDIR = \\...\Business Objects\BusinessObjects Enterprise 11.5\win32_x86. For example C:\Program Files\Business Objects\BusinessObjects Enterprise 11.5\win32_x86. What is aggregate awareness? Aggregate awareness is a term that describes the ability of a universe to make use of aggregate tables in a database. These are tables that contain pre-calculated data. You can use a function called @Aggregate_Aware in the Select statement for an object that directs a query to be run against aggregate tables rather than a table containing non aggregated data. Using aggregate tables speeds up the execution of queries, improving the performance of SQL transactions.Optimizing universes Using aggregate tables 9 Designer’s Guide 391 The reliability and usefulness of aggregate awareness in a universe depends on the accuracy of the aggregate tables. They must be refreshed at the same time as all fact tables. A universe that has one or more objects with alternative definitions based on aggregate tables is said to be “aggregate aware”. These definitions correspond to levels of aggregation. For example, an object called Profit can be aggregated by month, by quarter, or by year. These objects are called aggregate objects. Queries built from a universe using aggregate objects return information aggregated to the appropriate level at optimal speed. Applying aggregate awareness to data warehouses Aggregate awareness is particularly useful when working with data warehouses. For example, consider a data warehouse organized into three dimensions: time, geography, and product. At its lowest level, this data warehouse can store daily information about customers and products. There is one row for each customer’s daily product purchases; this can be expressed as follows: 365 days x 100 cities x 10 products = 365,000 rows. If you ask for information about yearly sales, the database engine must add up a large number of rows. However, the yearly sales of companies may actually involve fewer rows, as follows: 3 years x 3 countries x 3 companies = 27 rows So, in this example, 27 rows from a table are sufficient to answer the question. Based on this information, it would be far more efficient to presummarize these rows into aggregate tables. Time Dimension Year Quarter Month Day Geography Dimension Country Region State City Product Dimension Company Division Group Product Levels Optimizing universes Using aggregate tables 9 392 Designer’s Guide Setting up aggregate awareness Setting up aggregate awareness in a universe is a four-part process. The main steps of the methodology are summarized in the diagram below. Build the Objects 1. Identify all the possible definitions (table/column combinations) of the objects. 2. Arrange the objects by level of aggregation. 3. Build the objects using the @Aggregate_Awareness function. Specify the incompatible objects 1. Build an objects/aggregate tables matrix. 2. For the first aggregate table, decide whether each object is either: -at the same level of aggregation or higher (compatible) -at a lower level of aggregation (incompatible) 3. Check only the boxes of objects that are incompatible for that table. 4. Repeat the steps for the remaining aggregate tables. Define any necessary contexts Define one context per level of aggregation. Test the results 1. Run several queries. 2. Compare the results.Optimizing universes Using aggregate tables 9 Designer’s Guide 393 Each stage of the above process is described in detail in the following sections. The example schema shown below is used to illustrate each stage: The schema contains three predefined aggregate tables: AAMONTH, AAQTR, and AAYEAR. Note: The example schema is not representative of a typical schema. Use it as a way to follow the steps to set up aggregate awareness. In a production schema, an aggregate table would generally combine several dimensions rather than a single dimension based on time. The time dimension (Year, Quarter, and Month) would also normally be defined from within a master table, not an aggregate table. Building the objects The first step in setting up aggregate awareness in a universe is to determine which objects are to be aggregate aware. You can use either measure objects or dimension objects. An object Sales Revenue has the following definition based on the above schema: PRODUCTS.PRICE*ORDER_LINES.QUANT You want to redefine Sales_Revenue to use the aggregate tables where possible instead of performing a aggregation using the non aggregate tables. Each of the stages that you complete to redefine Sales Revenue as aggregate aware, you also need complete for any other objects that you want to use aggregate tables in their definitions. Optimizing universes Using aggregate tables 9 394 Designer’s Guide Identifying all combinations of the aggregate objects You need to identify all possible combinations of the objects in the various tables. The Sales Revenue object can be defined in the following ways: • AAMONTH.REVENUE • AAYEAR.REVENUE • AAQTR.REVENUE • PRODUCTS.PRICE*ORDER_LINES.QUANT Arranging objects in aggregate level order Once you have identified all combinations of the objects, you arrange them according to their level of aggregation as follows: • AAYEAR.REVENUE is the highest level of aggregation. • AAQTR.REVENUE is the next level. • AAMONTH.REVENUE is the next level. • PRODUCTS.PRICE*ODER_LINES.QUANT is the lowest level of aggregation. Defining aggregate objects with the @Aggregate_Aware function You then re-define the Select statement using the @Aggregate_Aware function for all aggregate aware objects. The @Aggregate_Aware function directs an object to query first of all the aggregate tables listed as its parameters. If the aggregate tables are not appropriate, then the query is run with the original aggregate based on the non-aggregated table. For more information about @Functions see the section “Using @Functions” on page 404.Optimizing universes Using aggregate tables 9 Designer’s Guide 395 The Select statement for Sales Revenue using the @Aggregate_Aware function appears below. The syntax of the @Aggregate_Aware function is as follows: where agg_table_1 is the aggregate with the highest level of aggregation, and agg_table_n the aggregate with the lowest level. You must enter the names of all aggregate tables as arguments. You place the names of tables from left to right in descending order of aggregation. To define an object using @Aggregate_Aware To re-define an object using @Aggregate_Aware: 1. Double click an object. The Edit Properties dialog box for the object appears. 2. Click the >> button next to the Select box. The Edit Select Statement dialog box appears. 3. Click at the beginning of the Select statement. Or Click anywhere in the select box if the object does not yet have a Select statement. The cursor appears at the top left corner of the box. @Aggregate_Aware(sum(agg_table_1), ... sum(agg_table_n))Optimizing universes Using aggregate tables 9 396 Designer’s Guide 4. Click the @Functions node in the Functions pane. The list of available @functions appears. 5. Double click @Aggregate_Aware. The syntax for @Aggregate_Aware is inserted in the Select statement. A description of the syntax appears in the Description box at the bottom of the dialog box. You can use this to help you type the parameters for the @function. 6. Insert the aggregates within the brackets of the @AggregateAware function in order (highest to lowest level of aggregation data). 7. Separate each aggregate with a comma. For the example, the syntax for the Sales Revenue is: 8. Click the Parse button to verify the syntax. @Aggregate_Aware(sum (AAYEAR.REVENUE), sum(AAQTR.REVENUE), sum (AAMONTH.REVENUE), sum(PRODUCTS.PRICE*ORDER_LINES.QUANT))Optimizing universes Using aggregate tables 9 Designer’s Guide 397 The Edit Select page of the SQL editor for Sales Revenue is shown below. 9. Click OK in each of the dialog boxes. In the example, you also re-define the dimension objects Year and Quarter with the @Aggregate_Aware function. Specifying the incompatible objects You must now specify the incompatible objects for each aggregate table in the universe. The set of incompatible objects you specify determines which aggregate tables are disregarded during the generation of SQL. With respect to an aggregate table, an object is either compatible or incompatible. The rules for compatibility are as follows: syntax is displayed here for selected function. • When an object is at the same or higher level of aggregation as the table, it is compatible with the table. • When an object is at a lower level of aggregation than the table (or if it is not at all related to the table), it is incompatible with the table.Optimizing universes Using aggregate tables 9 398 Designer’s Guide Using a matrix to analyze the objects You may find it useful to build a matrix in order to analyze the compatibility of objects and aggregate tables. In the first two columns of this matrix, you can list the names of classes and objects. Then you can create a column heading for each aggregate table in your universe. A blank matrix based on the schema of the example would look like this: For each table, enter a check (✓) if the object is incompatible. Class Object AAYEAR AAQTR AAMONTH Customers Customer Code (CUSTOMER.CUST_ID) Customer Name (CUSTOMER.LAST_NAME) Customer City (CUSTOMER.CITY) Customer Nationality (COUNTRIES.COUNT_NAME) Products Product Code (PRODUCT.PROD_ID) Product Name (PRODUCT.PROD_NAME) Orders Order Year (AAYEAR.PROD_NAME) Order Quarter (AAQTR.QTR) Order Month (AAMONTH.MONTH) Order Date (ORDERS.ORDER_DATE) Sales Measure Sales Revenue (@Aggregate_Aware(...))Optimizing universes Using aggregate tables 9 Designer’s Guide 399 A completed matrix based on the example is given below. Class Object AAYEAR AAQTR AAMONTH Customers Customer Code (CUSTOMER.CUST_ID) ✓ (n) ✓ (n) ✓ (n) Customer Name (CUSTOMER.LAST_NAME) ✓ (n) ✓ (n) ✓ (n) Customer City (CUSTOMER.CITY) ✓ (n) ✓ (n) ✓ (n) Customer Nationality (COUNTRIES.COUNT_NAME) ✓ (n) ✓ (n) ✓ (n) Products Product Code (PRODUCT.PROD_ID) ✓ (n) ✓ (n) ✓ (n) Product Name (PRODUCT.PROD_NAME) ✓ (n) ✓ (n) ✓ (n) Orders Order Year (AAYEAR.PROD_NAME) ✘ (s) ✘ (h) ✘ (h) Order Quarter (AAQTR.QTR) ✓ (l) ✘ (s) ✘ (h) Order Month (AAMONTH.MONTH) ✓ (l) ✓ (l) ✘ (s) Order Date (ORDERS.ORDER_DATE) ✓ (l) ✓ (l) ✓ (l) Sales Measure Sales Revenue (@Aggregate_Aware(...)) ✘ ✘ ✘ ✓ (n) This object has nothing to do with the aggregate table. It is therefore incompatible. ✓ (l) This object is at a lower level of aggregation than this aggregate table; it cannot be used to derive information. It is therefore incompatible. ✘ (s) This object is at the same level of aggregation than this aggregate table; it can be used to derive information. It is therefore compatible. ✘ (h) This object is at a higher level of aggregation than this aggregate table; it can be used to derive information. It is therefore compatible.Optimizing universes Using aggregate tables 9 400 Designer’s Guide Specifying incompatible objects You now specify the incompatible objects. You use the Aggregate Navigation dialog box (Tools > Aggregate Navigation) to specify the incompatible objects. You specify incompatible objects using the Aggregate Navigation as follows: 1. Select Tools > Aggregate Navigation. The Aggregate Navigation box appears. It consists of two panes: • Universe Tables, which lists all the tables of the universe. • Associated Incompatible Objects, which lists all the objects of the universe. 2. Click an aggregate table in the left pane. 3. In the right pane, select the check box for each incompatible object. For example, based on the matrix, for the AAYEAR table all the objects in the Customers class are incompatible. You select the check box beside the class name as follows: 4. Repeat the above steps for each aggregate table in your universe.Optimizing universes Using aggregate tables 9 Designer’s Guide 401 For example, the incompatible objects for the AAQTR table are shown below. For the AAMONTH table, only one object is incompatible. 5. Click OK, when all incompatible objects for all the tables are specified.Optimizing universes Using aggregate tables 9 402 Designer’s Guide Note: The dialog box also features a Detect Incompatibility button that can guide you in the process of specifying incompatible objects. When you click a table and then click this button, Designer automatically checks those objects it considers as incompatible. You should view the incompatible objects proposed by Detect Incompatibility as suggestions, not final choices. Resolving loops involving aggregate tables When a database contains one or more aggregate tables, you should resolve any loops using contexts. Example: Resolving a loop involving an aggregate table A simple schema containing aggregate tables is shown below: Note the following points in the schema: • FACT_AGG1 is an aggregate table that is nearly identical to the FACT table. It contains the (Customer) City Key, the Product Key, and the Month key in addition to a number of measures aggregated to Customer City, Product and Month. • FACT_AGG2 is also an aggregate table similar to the FACT table. Its measures are aggregated to Customer State, Product and Year. • The measures (the key performance indicators) are stored in all the fact tables. Sales Revenue is stored in FACT_AGG1, FACT_AGG2 and FACT, but is aggregated to the respective levels of each table. For a query with sales Revenue and Customer State, you want to use the join between CUST_STATE and FACT_AGG2 rather than the join between CUST_STATE and CUST_CITY. However, before you can run this query, you need to define three contexts, for example FACT, FACT_AGG1 and FACT_AGG2. You do not need to rename the context with more meaningful labels as they are transparent to the users. The joins included in the three contexts are illustrated on the next page. In each schema, the darker set of joins represents the given context. Optimizing universes Using aggregate tables 9 Designer’s Guide 403 The FACT context The FACT_AGG1 context The FACT_AGG2 context Optimizing universes Using @Functions 9 404 Designer’s Guide Testing aggregate awareness The final step in setting up aggregate awareness is to test the results in Web Intelligence. Based on the first example, we can run the following queries and then compare the different results. Using @Functions @Functions are special functions that provide more flexible methods for specifying the SQL for an object. @Functions are available in the Functions pane of the Edit Select box for an object. @Functions are very flexible. Depending on what you want to achieve, you can use any @function in either a Select statement, or a Where clause. Example: Using the @Prompt function to restrict returned values to entered prompt value The @Prompt function is one of the @functions available in Designer. You can use the @Prompt function to display a message box when an object is used in a Web Intelligence query. BusinessObjectsOptimizing universes Using @Functions 9 Designer’s Guide 405 The message box prompts a user to enter a value for the object. The query returns values for the entered prompt value as shown below: You can incorporate one or more @functions in the Select statement or the Where clause of an object. The following @functions are available: You can insert @functions in the Select statement or Where clause for an object as follows: Inserting an @function in an object To insert an @function in the SQL definition for an object: 1. Double click an object. The edit properties dialog box for the object appears. 2. Click the >> button next to the Select box. Or @Function Description Usually used in object @Aggregate_Aware Incorporates columns containing aggregated and dimension data into objects. Select statement @Prompt Prompts user to enter a value for a restriction each time the object using the @Prompt function is included in a query. • Select statement • Where clause @Select Allows you to use the Select statement of another object. Select statement @Where Allows you to use the Where clause of another object. Where clause @Prompt function for Resort object Query using Resort (@Prompt) User types in value Resort definition in DesignerOptimizing universes Using @Functions 9 406 Designer’s GuideClick the >> button next to the Where box. The Edit Select statement or Edit Where clause dialog box appears. The Edit Where clause dialog box for Resort is shown below. 3. Click in the Select statement or Where clause at the position where you want to add the @function. If the box is empty as above, click anywhere in the box. The cursor automatically appears at the top left corner of the box. 4. Click the @functions node in the Functions pane. The list of available @functions appears. 5. Double click a @function. Click and enter function hereOptimizing universes Using @Functions 9 Designer’s Guide 407 The syntax for the @function is added to the Select statement or Where clause. A description of the syntax appears in the Description box at the bottom of the dialog box. You can use this to help you type the parameters for the @function. 6. Type the necessary parameters. 7. Click the Parse button to verify the syntax. 8. Click OK in each of the dialog boxes. @Aggregate_Aware The @Aggregate_Aware function allows an object to take advantage of tables containing summary data in the database. If your database contains summary tables and you are running queries that return aggregate data, it is quicker to run a Select statement on the columns that contain summary data rather than on the columns that contain fact or event data. You can use the @Aggregate_Aware function to set up aggregate awareness in a universe. This process includes a number of other steps which are associated with the use of the @Aggregate_Aware function. Description of @function syntaxOptimizing universes Using @Functions 9 408 Designer’s Guide Aggregate awareness and the use of the @Aggregate_Aware function are both covered in chapter 6, “Using Aggregate Awareness.” @Prompt You can use the @Prompt function to create an interactive object. You use a @Prompt function in the Where clause for an object. It forces a user to enter a value for a restriction when that object is used in a query. When the user runs the query, a prompt box appears asking for a value to be entered. @Prompts are useful when you want to force a restriction in the inferred SQL but do not want to preset the value of the condition. Syntax The syntax of the function is as follows: The syntax is described in the following table: @Prompt(‘message’,‘type’,[lov],[MONO|MULTI],[FREE|CONSTRAINED]) Syntax Description ’message’ Text of the prompt message. The text must be enclosed between single quotes, for example, ‘Choose a Region’, ‘Pick a time period’, or ’Choose a showroom’. The text appears in the prompt box when the query is run. ’type’ Data type returned by the function. It can be one of the following: • ’A’ for alphanumeric • ‘N’ for number • D’ for date The specified data type must be enclosed in single quotes.Optimizing universes Using @Functions 9 Designer’s Guide 409 Note: For each of the optional parameters, if you omit an argument, you must still enter the commas as separators. Example: Using @Prompt to restrict countries The object Country returns values for the countries of resorts. If you want to restrict the returned values to resorts for only one country, you would need a separate object for each resort country in the universe. However, using the @Prompt, you need only one object as follows: lov List of values (optional). You can specify two types of list of values: • Hard coded list. Each value is separately enclosed in single quotes and separated by a comma. The whole list is enclosed in curly brackets. For example, {'Australia', 'France', 'Japan', 'United Kingdom', 'USA'}. • Pointer to a List of Values from an existing object. You invoke the target lov by double clicking on the object containing the lov that you want to use in the Classes and Objects panel. This gives the Class name and the Object name, separated by a backslash. It must be enclosed in single quotes. For example: 'Client\Country'. MONO User can only select only one value from the list of values (optional). MULTI User can select multiple values from the list of values (optional). FREE User can enter a value of their choice, or select one from the list of values. CONSTRAI NED User must select a value from the list of values. Syntax DescriptionOptimizing universes Using @Functions 9 410 Designer’s Guide The user is prompted to enter the name of the country, and the returned values are the resorts from that particular country, as shown below: When a query is run in Web Intelligence, the following prompt box appears: @Select You can use the @Select function to re-use the Select statement of another object. When the @Select function is used in the Select statement of an object, it specifies the path of another object in the universe as a parameter of the @Select function, in the form Class_Name\Object_Name. This then acts as a pointer to the Select statement of the referenced object. Using the @Select function allows you to use existing code, which has the following advantages: • You have to maintain only one instance of the SQL code. • Ensures consistency of the code. Note: When you use @Select and @Where functions, one object now depends on another in the universe. You have created a new object dependency. When one object is deleted, the other object using the @Select or @Where function needs to be manually updated. Syntax The @Select function has the following syntax: • Classname is the name of the class that contains the referenced object. • Objectname is the name of the referenced object. Example: Using @Select to re-use the Service_line Select statement You create an object called Promotional Service Line which is used to return service lines used in promotional campaigns for different resorts in the Club database. This object is in a new class called Promotions. You can use @Select to reference the existing Select statement for the Service_lines object. @Select(Classname\Objectname)Optimizing universes Using @Functions 9 Designer’s Guide 411 The Select statement for Promotional Service Line appears below: @Where You can use the @Where function to re-use the Where clause of another object. When the @Where function is used in the Where clause of an object, it specifies the path of another object in the universe as a parameter of the @Where function, in the form Class_Name\Object_Name. This then acts as a pointer to the Where clause of the referenced object. Using the Where clause creates a dynamic link between two objects. When the Where clause of the original object is modified, the Where clause of the referencing object is automatically updated. Using the @Where function allows you to use existing code. This has the following advantages: • You have to maintain only one instance of the SQL code. • Ensures consistency of the code. When you use @Select and @Where functions, one object now depends on another in the universe. You have created a new object dependency. When one object is deleted, the other object using the @Select or @Where function needs to be manually updated. Note: When you use @Select and @Where functions, one object now depends on another in the universe. You have created a new object dependency. When one object is deleted, the other object using the @Select or @Where function needs to be manually updated.Optimizing universes Using @Functions 9 412 Designer’s Guide Syntax The syntax of this function is the following: • Classname is the name of a class. • Objectname is the name of the referenced object. Example: Using @Where to re-use the Resort Where clause You create an object called Resort Service Lines which is used to return service lines available at each resort. You want to reuse the @Prompt function defined in the Resort object, so that users are prompted to enter a resort name when they query the services available at that particular resort. The SQL for the Resort object (the object that you want to reference) appears as follows: The new object Resort Service Lines uses the @Prompt function in the Where clause for Resort as follows: When you run a query with Resort Service Line, you are prompted to type the name of a resort. When you modify the Where clause for Resort, the change is automatically made in the Resort Service Line object. @Where(Classname\Objectname)Optimizing universes Using external strategies to customize universe creation 9 Designer’s Guide 413 Using external strategies to customize universe creation Designer uses built-in automated routines to automatically create universe components based on the database structure. These routines are called strategies and are available from the Strategies page of the Parameters dialog box (Files > Parameters > Strategies). These strategies are built-in to Designer. You cannot access or modify them. The use and activation of strategies is described in the section “Selecting strategies” on page 51. You can also create SQL scripts that follow a defined output structure to perform customized automatic universe creation tasks. You can select these from the Strategies page with the other strategies. These user defined and customized scripts are called External strategies. This section describes external strategies and their use. Migrating external strategies to Designer XI External strategies in Designer versions previous to Designer 6.5 were defined in an external text file called the st.txt file.This file is no longer supported in Designer XI. Note: If you are migrating from Designer 6.5, external strategies are treated in the same way in Designer XI. To ensure that your customized and user defined external strategies used in previous versions are available from Designer XI, you must do the following: • Edit the new external strategy file (.STG) as follows: • Open the external strategy file for your target RDBMS in a XML editor. • Create a new entry for each strategy. • For each strategy, copy the SQL script directly into the STG file using the SQL tag. Or • Enter a file path to reference the data in an external text file using the FILE tag. Both methods are described fully in the section “Creating an external strategy” on page 423. • Copy the Help text to a second XML file (.STG). This is described in the section “Creating Help text for external strategies” on page 415.Optimizing universes Using external strategies to customize universe creation 9 414 Designer’s Guide • Verify that the external strategy file is declared in the general parameters file (SBO), not the parameters file (PRM), as was the case for previous versions of Designer. This is described in the section “Verifying that the external strategy file is declared” on page 417. External strategies in Designer XI overview The table below provides an overview of the files used and their role in the creation and management of external strategies in Designer XI. Roles and files in external strategies management process Description External strategies stored and created in External strategy file (.STG). XML file contains external strategy name, type, SQL script, or file reference to external text file containing data. File is stored here: $INSTALLDIR/dataAccess/RDBMS/connectionServer//.stg. One file for each RDBMS. Uses the strategy.dtd file here: $INSTALLDIR/dataAccess/RDBMS/connectionServer/strategy.dtd Related sections: • “How is the strategy file (STG) structured?” on page 418 • “Creating an external strategy” on page 423 Help text for external strategies stored and created in External strategy language file (.STG) XML file contains Help text for each external strategy in the external strategy file. This is the text that appears under an external strategy when it is selected on the Strategies page. File is stored here: $INSTALLDIR/dataAccess/RDBMS/connectionServer//.stg. Uses the strategy_localization.dtd file located here: $INSTALLDIR/dataAccess/RDBMS/connectionServer/strategy_localization.dtd. Related section: “Creating Help text for external strategies” on page 415. External strategy file is declared in the general data access file (SBO) for the target RDBMS. XML file contains the general data access parameters for a target RDBMS. The name of the external strategy file is set as the value for the parameter External Strategies by default. Related section: “Verifying that the external strategy file is declared” on page 417Optimizing universes Using external strategies to customize universe creation 9 Designer’s Guide 415 What is an external strategy? An external strategy is an SQL script stored externally to the .UNV file, and structured so that it can be used by Designer to automate object or join creation, and table detection tasks in a universe. External strategies are stored in an external strategy file with the extension STG. External strategy files are in XML format. There is one for each supported RDBMS. External strategy files are stored in the following directory: Note: You should use an XML editor to edit the external strategy file. Accessing external strategies in Designer External strategies appear in the drop down list boxes that also list the built-in strategies on the Strategies page. Each drop down list box corresponds to a strategy type category in the XML file. An external strategy appears in the list with External Strategy prefixing the strategy name as follows: For example, an external strategy for join creation called Constraints in the Strategy file, appears as External Strategy:Constaints in the Joins drop down list on the Strategies page. Creating Help text for external strategies On the Strategies page, a commentary note appears under each selected strategy. This is the Help text for the strategy. For built-in strategies the Help text cannot be accessed or edited. However, you can access and edit the Help text for external strategies. Note: In previous versions of Designer the Help text was included in the strategy text file in the section [HELP]. The text in this section is now stored in a separate file, the external strategy language file described below. External strategy Help text is stored in a separate file The Help text for external strategies is stored in a separate external strategy language file called .stg. For example, oaracleen.stg is the Help text file for the strategies in the oracle.stg file. $INSTALLDIR/dataAccess/RDBMS/connectionServer//.stg External Strategy:Optimizing universes Using external strategies to customize universe creation 9 416 Designer’s Guide You can edit and customize Help text entries. The Help text should describe briefly what the strategy does to help designers who may not be familiar with the strategy. For each external strategy that appears in the external strategy file, you should ensure that a corresponding entry with Help text appears in the external strategy language file. There is a strategy language file for each language version of Designer that you have installed. The external strategy language file is in the same directory as the external strategy file. For example, if you have a French version of Designer, the external strategy language file for Oracle is oraclefr.stg. The English version is oracleen.stg. When you create a new external strategy in the external strategy file, you also create an entry for the Help text in the external strategy language file. This provides information about the external strategy to other designers using the universe. Example: Help text entry for the strategy shipped with Oracle data access driver The Help text for the strategy Classes and Objects listed in the oracleen.stg file is shown below. This is the Help text for the Classes and Strategies external strategy defined in the file oracle.stg. This strategy reads the database structure. It associates tables with classes, and columns with objects. External Strategy: Classes and Objects Creating a Help entry for an external strategy To create a Help entry for an external strategy: 1. Open the external strategy language file for the target RDBMS in an XML editor. The external strategy language file for a target RDBMS is located here: $INSTALLDIR/dataAccess/RDBMS/connectionServer//.stg. For example: $INSTALLDIR/dataAccess/RDBMS/connectionServer/oracle/oracleen.stg. 2. Create a new Name element.Optimizing universes Using external strategies to customize universe creation 9 Designer’s Guide 417 3. Enter the name of the strategy. This is the strategy for which you are creating Help text. 4. Create a Message ID called Help. This tag contains the Help text. 5. Enter the Help text. 6. Create a Message ID called Name. This tag contains the name that you want to appear in the strategy drop down list when the external strategy is selected. 7. Enter a strategy name. Validate, save, and close the file. When you next start up Designer, the Help text appears under the selected external strategy. Tip: An easy way to create and set parameters for a new Name element is to copy an existing Name element and fill in the new values for the new strategy. Verifying that the external strategy file is declared An external strategy file is declared in the Parameter section of the general parameter (SBO) file for the target RDBMS. For example, the external strategy file for Oracle is oracle.stg. It has the value oracle in the oracle.sbo file as shown below: Verifying that the strategy file is declared in the SBO file To verify that an external strategy file is declared correctly: 1. Open the SBO file for the target RDBMS. 2. Ensure that the parameter Strategies Name is set to the name of the external strategies file. This is the default setting. 3. If the name is not set correctly, enter the correct name of the external strategies file. 4. If you have made modifications, save and close the file. oracle is the name of the external strategy file for Oracle. This is declared in the oracle.sbo file.Optimizing universes Using external strategies to customize universe creation 9 418 Designer’s GuideOr 5. If you have not made any modifications, close the file without saving. Note: External strategies in previous version of Designer were declared in the PRM file. This is no longer the case for Designer 6.5. The Strategies File parameter in the SBO file is set to the name of the external strategies file for the target RDBMS by default. Refer to the section “What is an external strategy?” on page 415 for full information on migrating external strategies to Designer 6.5. Using example external strategies All external strategy files contain a number of existing strategies delivered with Business Objects products. For example, a file may contain one object strategy, one join strategy, and one table browser strategy, or multiple strategies of each type. You can customize an example file, or use it as the basis to create a new external strategy. You can customize an existing strategy or create your own. Save a copy of each file before modifying it. How is the strategy file (STG) structured? There is an external strategy file (STG) file in XML format for each supported RDBMS. You migrate existing or create new external strategies to this file. All external strategy files use the strategy dtd (.dtd) file in the following directory: The elements in the external strategy XML file are defined in the external strategy DTD file. If you are using certain XML editors, for example XML SPY, the available parameters are listed in a drop down list when you create a new strategy element. $INSTALLDIR/dataAccess/RDBMS/connectionServerOptimizing universes Using external strategies to customize universe creation 9 Designer’s Guide 419 The external strategy file contains one main section called Strategies. All the external strategies are defined in this section. The Strategies section has the following elements and parameters: Example: Classes and Objects external strategy in oracle.stg The external strategy file for Oracle is oracle.stg. It is stored in the directory $INSTALLDIR/dataAccess/RDBMS/connectionServer/oracle/oracle.stg. This file contains a number of example external strategies shipped with Designer. You can customize these strategies, or use them as templates for new ones. An external strategy from the oracle.stg file that automatically associates tables with classes, and columns with objects is shown below: OBJECT File element Description Strategy Main element. All external strategies are created within this element. Name Name of the external strategy. This name appears in the drop down list on the Strategies page. Default element. Type The list that the external strategy appears in on the Strategy page. There are 3 values: • JOIN: Join strategy appears in the Joins list. • OBJECT: Classes and objects strategy appears in the Classes and Objects list. • STRUCT: Table detection strategy appears in the Tables list. SQL The SQL code for the script. This is the SQL script that Designer runs when the strategy is selected. The SQL script must follow a specific output format for object and join creation, and table detection routines to run correctly. See the section “The output format of object strategies (OBJECT)” on page 421 for information on structuring the SQL for an external strategy. Connection Specify a database connection. The connection type must be personal. SkipMeasures When set to Y, it skips the screen in the Quick Design wizard that deals with the creation of measures: File File path of an external text file that contains data organized in a specific output format that creates a universe automatically. See the section “Creating a text file for data” on page 425 for more information.Optimizing universes Using external strategies to customize universe creation 9 420 Designer’s Guide SELECT U1.table_name,'|', U1.column_name,'|', translate(initcap(U1.table_name),'_',' '),'|', translate(initcap(U1.column_name),'_',' '),'|', U1.table_name||'.'||U1.column_name,'|', ' ','|', decode(SUBSTR(U1.DATA_TYPE,1,1),'N','N','F','N','D','D','C') ,'|', SUBSTR(U2.comments,1,474),'|', 'O','|' FROM USER_TAB_COLUMNS U1,USER_COL_COMMENTS U2 WHERE U1.table_name=U2.table_name and U1.column_name=U2.column_name UNION SELECT S.SYNONYM_NAME,'|', U1.column_name,'|', translate(initcap(S.SYNONYM_NAME),'_',' '),'|', translate(initcap(U1.column_name),'_',' '),'|', S.SYNONYM_NAME||'.'||U1.column_name,'|', ' ','|', decode(SUBSTR(U1.DATA_TYPE,1,1),'N','N','F','N','D','D','C') ,'|', SUBSTR(U2.comments,1,474),'|', 'O','|' FROM ALL_TAB_COLUMNS U1, ALL_COL_COMMENTS U2, ALL_OBJECTS O, USER_SYNONYMS S WHERE S.table_owner=O.owner AND S.table_name=O.object_name AND (O.OBJECT_TYPE='TABLE' OR O.OBJECT_TYPE='VIEW') AND O.owner=U1.owner AND O.object_name=U1.table_name AND U1.owner=U2.owner AND U1.table_name=U2.table_name AND U1.column_name=U2.column_name The output formats of strategies You write or copy the SQL script within the tag in the external strategies file. The order and type of information returned by the SQL script depends on whether you are creating an object, join, or table strategy. Designer has different information needs for each of the different types of strategies. When you create the SQL script for a strategy, you must ensure that the generated output for the script matches the output formats described below. Optimizing universes Using external strategies to customize universe creation 9 Designer’s Guide 421 The script output is formatted as a series of columns. Each column corresponds to a unit of generated information used to create the object, join, or table components. This section presents the output formats for: • Object strategies • Join strategies • Table browser strategies. The output format of object strategies (OBJECT) The output format of an object strategy contains nine columns. You must ensure that your output includes all these columns even if they contain null values. Column number Column contains... Description 1 Table Table name format is [Qualifier.][Owner.]Table where each name can have up to 35 characters. If you leave this column empty, then the tables are obtained from the Select (fifth column) and Where (sixth column). 2 Column Name Name of the column. 3 Class Name Name of a class. Subclasses are written as follows: Class\Subclass format. 4 Object Name Name of the object or condition. If the object name is empty, then a class and its description are created. 5 Select Select statement. 6 Where: If you leave the Select column empty, but include a Where clause, then a predefined condition and its description are created. 7 Type C (Character), N (Numeric), D (Date), T (Long Text). If the column is left empty, the default is N. 8 Description Description of the object. 9 Qualification D (Dimension), M (Measure), or I (Detail). If the column is left empty, the default is D.Optimizing universes Using external strategies to customize universe creation 9 422 Designer’s Guide Example: External object strategy that copies column comments to object descriptions The example below does not contain a Where clause. The output column for the Where clause is empty.

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