Create a Metric Package

Before users can use Metric Studio, you must create at least one metric package using the New Metric Package wizard. A metric package is an IBM Cognos Connection representation of a Metric Studio application. A metric package contains connection information, reports, and metric management tasks for that application. The metric package content is stored in a metric store.

You open the New Metric Package wizard from the toolbar in IBM Cognos Connection. Use the wizard to define the metric package name and the data source connection to the metric store. For a new metric store, you also provide the information necessary to initialize the database, including the start and end dates of the fiscal year.

When you create a metric package, it contains several default reports. If Report Studio is installed, you can open these reports in Report Studio. If not, you can open them in Cognos Viewer. For more information about IBM Cognos reports, see Reports and Cubes.

To create metric packages, you must have execute permissions for the Metric Studio Administration secured feature and traverse permission for the Administration secured function.

Steps

1. Start IBM Cognos Connection.

2. Click the New metric package button .

3. Type a name and description for the Metric Studio application to represent this metric package, and click Next.

4. Click New data source.

5. Type a name and description for the data source connection for the metric store that contains the content for this metric package, and click Next.

6. In the Type box, click the database type.

7. Select the isolation level, and click Next.

8. Specify the information required for your database type:

   • For a Microsoft SQL Server database, type the name of the database server and the database. Under Signons, select the Password and Create a signon that the Everyone group can use check boxes, and type the user ID and password of the user account with access to the database.

   • For an Oracle database, type the connection string. Select User ID, select the Password and Create a signon that the Everyone group can use check boxes, and type the user ID and password of the user account with access to the database.

   • For a DB2 database, type the name of the database, the connection string, and the collattion sequence. Select User ID, select the Password and Create a signon that the Everyone group can use check boxes, and type the user ID and password of the user account with access to the database.

   Tip: To test whether the parameters are correct, click Test.

9. Click Next and then click Finish.

10. Click the new data source and click Next.

11. Click Next and follow the prompts to provide the information necessary to initialize the database. When you see the page that summarizes the data source details and the metric store settings, click Initialize.

12. Select Open this package with Metric Studio after closing the wizard and then click Finish.

Metric Studio opens, and the new metric package appears in IBM Cognos Connection.

Change the Default Action for Packages

The default action when you click a package name is shown by the icon to the left of the package name in the portal.

If the view metric package contents icon  is visible, the package contents appear.

If the open with Metric Studio icon is visible , the package opens in Metric Studio. This is the default.

To change the default action of the package, do the following:

• In the Actions column, click the Set properties button for the package and select the default action you want.