.After a PowerCube is rebuilt or updated, several methods are available for making the newer version of the published cube available. You can
copy the newer version of the cube to the deployment location(s) of the existing version, and then activate the newer version.
This is the recommended method for making newer versions of published cubes available. This method is fully automated, which reduces the risk of errors that may cause connection problems when users attempt to access the cubes.
update the data source connection information to point to the newer version of the cube using the IBM Cognos 8 PowerCube Connection Utility. This command line utility is located in the installation_location/c8/webapps/utilities/PCConn directory.
Note: The IBM Cognos 8 PowerCube Connection Utility will be deprecated in the next release of IBM Cognos 8 Transformer.
disable the published PowerCube using the IBM Cognos 8 PowerCube Connection Utility so that the existing cube can be overwritten with a newer version.
To use the IBM Cognos 8 PowerCube Connection Utility to update a data source or to disable a cube, you must first connect to a dispatcher. You can connect to multiple dispatchers if your IBM Cognos 8 environment requires it.
If your IBM Cognos 8 environment is secured, you are prompted to provide authentication information when you connect to the dispatcher. If your environment has multiple namespaces, you can log on to any or all namespaces.
After rebuilding or updating a PowerCube that has already been published, you can make the newer version of the PowerCube available without interruption to IBM Cognos 8 users. Transformer can copy the newer version to one or more deployment locations that you specify, and then activate the newer version in each location. Reports continue to run using the new cube data.
You can initiate the copy and activate process using Transformer
commands or from the command line.
Tip: You can also use pcactivate to activate updated Transformer
7.x PowerCubes already copied to the production environment .
To copy and activate a PowerCube, Transformer does the following for each deployment location:
If this is the first time the cube has been copied and activated, Transformer creates a small file named cube_name.mdc that represents the PowerCube.
Transformer creates a folder named cube_name__UTCdate_time and copies the new version of the cube to this folder.
UTCdate_time represents the date and time that the copy process started, in Coordinated Universal Time. For example, the following represents March 12, 2008 at 5:58:39 p.m. in UTC format: 20080312175839. This time format ensures that folder names represent a standard global time, regardless of the time zone in which cubes were copied and activated.
For time-based cubes, this folder contains additional contents, including a control cube, time-based control file (.vcd), and member cubes.
If a cube_name__UTCdate_time.ver file exists, Transformer deletes this file. Only one cube_name__UTCdate_time.ver file can exist in each deployment location.
Transformer creates a file named cube_name__UTCdate_time.ver. The prefix of this file name (cube_name__UTCdate_time) is the same as the folder in this directory that contains the newest version of the cube.
Transformer writes messages about this process to a log file, which is stored in the location specified on the Directories tab of the Preferences property sheet.
For a cube named MyCube.mdc, where one version was copied and activated on February 1, 2008 and a newer version was copied and activated on March 1, 2008, a deployment location contains contents similar to the following:
a file named MyCube.mdc
a file named MyCube__20080301175839.ver
a folder named MyCube__20080301175839 that contains the version of MyCube.mdc that was copied and activated on March 1
a folder named MyCube__20080201125819 that contains the version of MyCube.mdc that was copied and activated on February 1
Assume that the report server needs to process a query using MyCube.mdc. When attempting to access MyCube.mdc, the report server recognizes that the file is not a valid PowerCube. The report server looks for a file named MyCube__UTCdate_time.ver file. In the previous example, this file is named MyCube__20080301175839.ver. Using the prefix of this .ver file, the report server goes to the MyCube_20080312175839 folder and processes the query using the version of MyCube.mdc in this folder.
You can use a different value than UTCdate_time if you manually change this value in the deployment location. Ensure that you change the value in both the prefix of the .ver file and the folder that contains the newest version of the cube. The format for both the prefix and the folder name must include two values that are separated by a two underscores (__), as follows: value__value. For example, for the .ver file, you can use the following: MyCube__1v2.ver. You cannot use MyCube_1v2.ver (single underscore) or MyCube##1v2.ver (two hash symbols).
Copying and activating newer versions of cubes should be used only when updated data is available.
In the PowerCubes list, right-click the PowerCube and click Copy and Activate Selected PowerCube.
Tip: If you created new versions of more than one PowerCube, you can copy and activate them at the same time using Copy and Activate PowerCubes from the Run menu.
In the PowerCubes list, right-click a PowerCube and click Properties.
Click the Deployment tab.
From the Deployment Strategy list, select the deployment method:
Select Copy to available locations, then activate to copy and activate the PowerCube in all specified deployment locations.
Select Copy only if all locations are available, then activate to copy and activate the PowerCube only if all deployment locations are available.
If one or more of the deployment locations are unavailable, the deployment action is aborted for all specified locations.
Tip: If the cube is a child cube belonging to a cube group and you want the child to inherit the same deployment strategy as its parent cube, click Use Strategy from Parent Cube and go to Step 6. This option is not available for standalone cubes or for member cubes of time-based partitioned cubes.
From the After building the cube list, choose the copy and activation strategy to be applied each time the cube is rebuilt:
Select Prompt to copy and activate to have Transformer prompt for confirmation before deploying and activating the rebuilt cube.
Select Automatically copy and activate to have Transformer copy and activate the cube automatically each time it is rebuilt.
When you select Do not deploy, Transformer performs no other action when the cube is rebuilt.
Click Add, in the Folder box, enter the path to the cube, and then click OK.
Tip: To enter the path to the cube, you can go to the location where the cube is deployed in the Deployment Location pane; type the path to the cube in the Folder box; or copy the path to the cube and paste it in the Folder box.
If this PowerCube is available from multiple locations, add each location to the Deployment locations list.
To enable automatic deletion of previous versions of the deployed PowerCube, select the Enable automatic PowerCube deletion check box and then, in the Maximum number of old cubes to keep box, type the number of previous versions to be retained.
Click OK.
A message confirms that the deployment was successful. View the message details for the name of the folder in which the newer version of the PowerCube is stored.
The newer version of the PowerCube has been copied to all deployment locations and activated. In each location, the .ver file is updated to identify the name of the folder in this directory that contains the activated PowerCube.
Use the pcactivate command to activate PowerCubes that are rebuilt or updated in the production environment. This is the recommended method for making newer versions of the published cube available. This method is fully automated, which reduces the risk of errors that may cause connection problems when users attempt to access the cubes. You can use the pcactivate command with updated Transformer version 7.x cubes and updated Transformer version 8.x cubes.
The pcactivate command:
renames the directory in which the updated PowerCube is located to include a version reference number
creates a version (.ver) file that directs the Web studios to access the updated version of the cube
deletes all other .ver files for the cube
The next time the published cube is accessed, the newer version is accessed automatically.
Before you can use the pcactivate command, the cube must be
copied to a directory in the production environment with the same name as the cube
If the cube is in multiple parts or is a time-based partitioned cube, all parts must be copied to destinations that are in the same location relative to the base cube.
properly located relative to where the cube appears to be, as defined in the data source definition in Content Manager
It must be in the same directory where IBM Cognos 8 will look when opening the PowerCube.
For example, if the data source definition indicates that the access path for the cube is c:\Cubes\Product.mdc, you must copy the cube as indicated below before you can use the pcactivate command:
c:\Cubes\Product\Product.mdc
The syntax for using the pcactivate command is as follows:
pcactivate cube_name.mdc [destination_location] [destination_location]
If you type a path in the cube_name.mdc parameter, it is ignored.
Note:You cannot run the pcactivate executable, pcactivate.exe, outside the bin directory.
Copy the Transformer cube to the production environment.
The name of the destination directory must be the same as the Transformer cube name. For example, if the cube is named cube_name.mdc, the destination directory must be named cube_name.
The location of the destination directory must be the same as where the cube is found when opened by IBM Cognos 8. For example, if the data source definition for the PowerCube in Content Manager indicates that the cube is found at d:\Cubes\Product.mdc, then the destination directory must be d:\Cubes\Product.
Open the Pcativate utility.
The pcactivate.exe file is located in the installation_location\cognos\c8\bin folder.
At the command line prompt, type the following:
pcactivate cube_name.mdccube location
For example, type
pcactivate product.mdc c:\cubes\product
You can update the data source connection information, with little to no impact on your IBM Cognos 8 users, using the IBM Cognos 8 PowerCube Connection Utility. When data source connection strings are changed, reports that reference the updated data source connection continue to run and end users begin seeing new cube data.
You can run the IBM Cognos 8 PowerCube Connection Utility to update PowerCube data source connections interactively, or as part of a batch script. Use the utility with cubes supported in IBM Cognos 8 version 8.3: IBM Cognos Series 7 and IBM Cognos 8 cubes, and on any platform supported by IBM Cognos 8 version 8.3.
Before you use the IBM Cognos 8 PowerCube Connection Utility to update published cube connections, ensure that your published PowerCube data source appears in the Administration tool.
Tip: When you use the IBM Cognos 8 PowerCube Connection Utility, you must press the Enter key at each prompt, even those prompts for which you enter values.
Open a command line window and go to the installation_location/c8/webapps/PCConn directory.
At the command line, type PCConn to launch the IBM Cognos 8 PowerCube Connection Utility.
Tip: To view a list of available IBM Cognos 8 PowerCube Connection Utility commands, at the command prompt, type help.
To connect to a dispatcher, at the command prompt, type
connect server:port
where server and port represent the IBM Cognos 8 server and port number.
To connect to multiple dispatchers, repeat step 3 for each dispatcher to which you want to connect.
Tip: To view a list of dispatchers that you are currently connected to in the IBM Cognos 8 PowerCube Connection Utility, at the command prompt, type connections.
If your IBM Cognos 8 environment is secured and you are prompted for your logon credentials, enter the following authentication information:
namespace
user ID
password
If you want to review the current data source connection information, at the command prompt, type
get data_source_name
where data_source_name is the name of your PowerCube data source connection.
The IBM Cognos 8 PowerCube Connection Utility returns the connection information for the data source, and allows you to see the connection string without opening the Administration tool.
At the command prompt, type
set data_source_name
You are prompted to type the new Windows or UNIX/Linux path.
Tips:
To skip a Windows or UNIX/Linux path, press Enter.
To confirm the new data source connection information, repeat step 6.
Open IBM Cognos Connection, and go to the Administration tool.
Click the Configuration tab and click the data source.
Click the Set properties link.
On the Connection tab, review the new Connection string for the data source.
You can also use the IBM Cognos 8 PowerCube Connection Utility to enable, disable, or view the current state of a data source. To update the data source by overwriting it, disable it first. Use this approach when your process for updating published PowerCubes includes a staging folder. When a data source is disabled, end users cannot use any package that references the data source. When users attempt to use a package that references a disabled data source, they receive an error indicating that the data source cannot be found.
If a data source is in use when you attempt to disable it, you will receive a file lock error. To avoid this situation, we recommend that when you disable a data source, you also stop the Report and Report Batch services. Stopping the Report and Report Batch services affects not only the data source that is disabled, but all the data sources in the IBM Cognos 8 configuration. As a result, use this approach only during periods when your end users will not require access to the data sources.
Tip: When you use the IBM Cognos 8 PowerCube Connection Utility, you must press the Enter key at each prompt, even those prompts for which you enter values.
Open a command line window and go to the installation_location/c8/webapps/PCConn directory.
At the command line, type PCConn to launch the IBM Cognos 8 PowerCube Connection Utility.
Tip: To view a list of available IBM Cognos 8 PowerCube Connection Utility commands, at the command prompt, type help, and press Enter.
To connect to a dispatcher, at the command prompt, type
connect server:port
where server and port represent the IBM Cognos 8 server and port number.
To connect to multiple dispatchers, repeat step 3 for each dispatcher to which you want to connect.
Tip: To view a list of dispatchers that you are currently connected to in the IBM Cognos 8 PowerCube Connection Utility, at the command prompt, type connections.
If your IBM Cognos 8 environment is secured and you are prompted for your logon credentials, enter the following authentication information:
namespace
user ID
password
At the command prompt, type
disable data_source_name
Tip: To confirm that the PowerCube is disabled, at the command prompt, type
state data_source_name.
To stop the Report and Report Batch services, at the command prompt, type
stop reportService, batchReportService.
In your server environment, overwrite the PowerCube with the updated version.
To restart the Report and Batch Report services, at the command prompt, type
start reportService, batchReportService.
At the command prompt, type
enable data_source_name
You can automate the process of rebuilding and updating your published cubes with the IBM Cognos 8 PowerCube Connection Utility using batch processes and scripts. PowerCube update scripts can be combined with your cube build scripts, as well as with any ELT (extract, load, and transform) batch processes that you might have in place.
In large production environments, you may want to build PowerCubes on a server running Transformer that is separate from the server where the cubes are deployed. This allows you to optimize system resources for your cube builds and for your consumers, without the two environments competing for resources.
You can use commands in a text file to carry out the cube update process, and combine those commands with your Transformer cube building scripts to produce a fully automated cube build and update process.
The IBM Cognos 8 PowerCube Connection Utility takes commands from a text file using the -f command:
% PCConn -f commands.txt
Unless you add the -q command, the utility prints to stdout:
% PCConn -q -f commands.txt
Using batch processes to update published cubes with the IBM Cognos 8 PowerCube Connection Utility involves the following workflow:
Build cubes on a separate server running Transformer using a staging folder.
Rename the cube.
One option when renaming the cube is to append a date to the end of the cube name.
Use FTP to transfer the cube to the IBM Cognos 8 server location referenced by the data source connection.
If you choose not to rename the cube as part of the batch process, consider deploying the cubes to folders named to allow for easy tracking.
Use the set command to change the connection to point to the updated published PowerCube.
The IBM Cognos 8 Web studios will immediately recognize the new data source connection information without any further action by the modeler or administrator. Reports that reference the updated data source connection continue to run and end users begin seeing the new cube data, for example, during
subsequent report runs
active sessions during drill up/down or page up/down actions
Here are examples of a script using the set command. In these examples, the cube was already updated in Transformer.
connect <servername>:9300 logon -ns <namespace_ID> -uid <user_ID> -pwd <password> set <data_source_name> C:\cube_name1.mdc
exit
The empty return in the script indicates that there is no UNIX/Linux deployment path for the cube.
connect <servername>:9300 -ns <namespace_ID> -uid <user_ID> -pwd <password> set <data_source_name> C:\cube_name1.mdc
exit
The empty return in the script indicates that there is no UNIX/Linux deployment path for the cube.
