Xir2 Report Conversion Tool En

Report Conversion Tool Guide

BusinessObjects XI R2 Migration Pack 2

Windows

Patents Business Objects owns the following U.S. patents, which may cover products that are offered and sold by Business Objects: 5,555,403, 6,247,008 B1, 6,578,027 B2, 6,490,593 and 6,289,352.

Trademarks Business Objects, the Business Objects logo, Crystal Reports, and Crystal Enterprise are trademarks or registered trademarks of Business Objects SA or its affiliated companies in the United States and other countries. All other names mentioned herein may be trademarks of their respective owners.

Copyright Copyright © 2006 Business Objects. All rights reserved.Last update: October 2006

Contents
Chapter 1 Using the Report Conversion Tool 5
Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8Using the Report Conversion Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9Logging on . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10Selecting and converting reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10Exploring the repository . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11Auditing the conversion session . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15Publishing converted reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Chapter 2 Desktop Intelligence feature conversion 21Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22Report features and conversion status . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23Customizing the feature conversion status . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25Features and their conversion status . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28More on feature conversions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Chapter 3 Calculations in Desktop Intelligence and Web Intelligence XI R2 43Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44Detail objects and non-aggregative measures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46Extended dimension values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47Formula language differences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49Filtering differences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54Placing of dimensions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

Appendix A Audit table structure and data 59The audit table . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60Not converted documents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

Report Conversion Tool Guide 3

Contents

Appendix B Business Objects Information Resources 63Documentation and information services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64Documentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64Customer support, consulting and training . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65Useful addresses at a glance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

Index 69

4 Report Conversion Tool Guide

Using the Report Conversion Tool

chapter

Using the Report Conversion ToolOverview1
Overview
This guide explains how to use the Report Conversion Tool to convert Desktop Intelligence reports to Web Intelligence format on the BusinessObjects Enterprise XI R2 platform. The guide also describes the issues involved in report conversion.You use the Report Conversion Tool to convert the following types of report to Web Intelligence XI R2 (WID) format:• Legacy BusinessObjects (REP) reports migrated to Desktop Intelligence

(REP) format with the Import Wizard• Desktop Intelligence reports created directly in Desktop IntelligenceNote: Desktop Intelligence is the new name of the BusinessObjects product. It was first shipped under this new name in BusinessObjects Enterprise XI R2.

What is the Report Conversion Tool?The Report Conversion Tool converts Desktop Intelligence XI R2 reports to Web Intelligence XI R2 format and publishes the converted reports to the CMS. The original Desktop Intelligence XI R2 report must also be in the same CMS.The tool does not convert all Desktop Intelligence reports, and it does not convert all Desktop Intelligence features. The level of conversion depends on the features in the original report. Some features prevent the report from being converted. Others features are modified, reimplemented or removed by the tool during conversion.


Using the Report Conversion ToolOverview 1

Report statusesThe tool assigns one of three statuses to each report: Fully Converted, Partly Converted, or Not Converted. The table below explains each status:

To help you understand which reports were not fully converted and why, the Report Conversion Tool can write audit data to a database of your choosing. You can examine this data directly in the database to understand the details of the conversion, or use the audit universe to generate reports on the data.Note: Designer must be installed to allow you to create the database connection that the Report Conversion Tool uses to write audit data.For more information on report features and conversion statuses, see “Report features and conversion status” on page 23.

Status Description

Fully Converted The structure and format of the converted Web Intelligence report are identical to the structure and format of the original Desktop Intelligence report.Note: Although the source report and converted reports are structurally identical, the converted report might still return different values in certain circumstances. This is because the Web Intelligence calculation engine does not always interpret this structure in the same way as the Desktop Intelligence calculation engine. For more information, see Chapter 3: Calculations in Desktop Intelligence and Web Intelligence XI R2

Partly converted Some report features were converted to Web Intelligence, but not all. The unconverted features did not prevent the report as a whole from being converted.For more information, see Chapter 2: Desktop Intelligence feature conversion.Partly converted reports can also return different values due to calculation engine changes.

Not converted The Desktop Intelligence report was not converted because it contains critical features that have no Web Intelligence equivalent.


Using the Report Conversion ToolInstallation1
Determining which reports are fully or partly converted
The Report Conversion Tool has an initialization file that allows you to determine which reports are flagged as Fully Converted and which are flagged as Partly Converted. This file allows you to customize the conversion process according to your particular needs. If, for example, you have numerous reports containing a feature that generates a default status of Partly Converted, but you do not consider conversion of this feature essential, you can edit the initialization file so that the feature no longer generates a Partly Converted status.For more information on the initialization file, see “Customizing the feature conversion status” on page 25.

InstallationThe Report Conversion Tool runs on Microsoft Windows platforms. It is installed by default when you run a Client or Server installation of BusinessObjects XI Release 2. When you run a Custom installation, you must select Report Conversion Tool to install it. You must also install Designer if either of the following apply:• You want to write audit data about the conversion session to a database

log.In this case you use Designer to define the connection to the audit database. For more information on auditing, see “Auditing the conversion session” on page 15.

• You want to convert free-hand SQL reports.In this case the Report Conversion Tool needs to access Designer to create free-hand SQL universes. For more information on free-hand SQL conversion, see “Free-hand SQL” on page 34.

User settingsBy default, users in the Administrators group or the Report Conversion Tool Users group have the rights to use the Report Conversion Tool. You can edit the user rights through the Central Management Console in the Business Objects Enterprise Applications > Report Conversion Tool section.For more information on the CMC and user rights, see the BusinessObjects Enterprise XI R2 Release 2 Administrator’s Guide.


Using the Report Conversion ToolUsing the Report Conversion Tool 1

Using the Report Conversion ToolYou perform the following tasks when working with the Report Conversion Tool:

Step Description

Log on and select the interface language

You log on to the Report Conversion Tool and select the language in which the interface will be displayed.See “Logging on” on page 10.

Select and convert reports

You select the reports that you want to convert, then convert them to Web Intelligence XI R2 format. See “Selecting and converting reports” on page 10.

Audit the conversion session

You create an audit log (written to a database table in a database of your choosing) that gives details of the conversion. For more information, see “Auditing the conversion session” on page 15. For information on the audit table structure, see Appendix A: Audit table structure and data.

View conversion results and publish reports

You view the converted reports to evaluate the extent to which they have been converted, and publish the converted reports.For more information, see “Publishing converted reports” on page 18.For detailed information on which Desktop Intelligence features convert to Web Intelligence, and how the Report Conversion Tool performs the conversion, see “Desktop Intelligence feature conversion” on page 21.


Using the Report Conversion ToolLogging on1
Logging on
To log on to the Report Conversion Tool1. Click Start > Programs > BusinessObjects XI Release 2 >

BusinessObjects Enterprise > Report Conversion Tool.2. Click Available languages and select the interface language from the list

if you want to change the interface language.3. Enter the system, user ID, password and authentication mode

(Enterprise, LDAP or Windows AD) and click OK.

Selecting and converting reportsYou use the first screen in the Report Conversion Tool wizard to select reports for conversion. The pane on the left shows the repository in tree format. You select reports from the repository and move them to the list on the right for conversion.After you have selected reports for conversion, click Next at the bottom of the screen to start the conversion. The Conversion in Progress screen appears as the documents are being converted. This screen lists all the documents, together with their conversion status. Note: As well as listing the number of Fully Converted, Partly Converted and Not Converted documents, this screen also list the number of documents that could not be converted because of an error during the conversion process.

Temporary documentsDuring conversion, the Report Conversion Tool uses the Public Folders > Report Conversion Tool Documents > Report Conversion Tool Temporary Documents folder for temporary document storage. It creates subfolders with the name <login>_<system_name> to store these documents. For example, if you log on to a system called “test” using the Report Conversion Tool, and you use the login “testuser”, the folder name is “testuser_test”.Check the temporary documents folder periodically and delete any temporary documents that the Report Conversion Tool has not removed.


Using the Report Conversion ToolExploring the repository 1

Exploring the repositoryYou can work in folder view or category view when exploring the repository. You can select reports from the following types of folders:• your personal folders• other user folders to which you have access rights• favorites foldersThe folder types are displayed with the following icons:

The report statuses are displayed with the following icons:

(For more information on the report statuses, see “Report statuses” on page 7.)

To explore the repository1. Click Folders to view the repository by folder or click Categories to view

the repository by categories.2. To view the properties of a folder or category, right-click it, then select

Properties from the menu.

Folder type Icon

Public

Inbox

Favorites

Icon Description

Report has never been converted.

Report has been fully converted.

Report has been partly converted.

Report could not be converted.


Using the Report Conversion ToolExploring the repository1

3. To refresh the contents of a folder or category, right-click it, then select Refresh from the menu.

4. To view unconverted reports only, select Show unconverted reports only.

Selecting reports for conversionYou can select reports for conversion individually, by folder or by category.

To select individual reports1. Highlight the reports in the left pane and click >>, or right-click and select

Add selected reports.The Report Conversion Tool adds the reports to the list of reports for conversion.


Using the Report Conversion ToolExploring the repository 1

To select reports by folder1. Click Folders to view the repository by folder.2. Select the folder that contains the reports you want to convert and right-

click.3. Select Add all reports in this folder to all add all the documents in the

folder to the list of reports for conversion.4. Select Add all reports in this folder and subfolders to add all the

documents in the folder and its subfolders to the list of reports for conversion.

To select reports by category1. Click Categories to view the repository by category.2. Select the category that contains the reports you want to convert and

right-click.3. Select Add all reports in this category to all add all the documents in

the folder to the list of reports for conversion.4. Select Add all reports in this category and subcategories to add all

the documents in the category and its subcategories to the list of reports for conversion.

Searching for reports To search for a report

1. Type the name of the report in the search box below the list of folders/categories.

2. Click the Search icon to the right of the search box.The Report Conversion Tool highlights the reports that correspond to your search.Note: You can search on partial report names. If you search on “Sales2”, you retrieve all reports whose name begins with “Sales2”, for example: “Sales2004”, “Sales2005”.

Saving and opening lists of reports for conversionYou can save the list of reports selected for conversion to a file (in XML format) and open this file later to populate the list.

To save a list to a file1. Click Save List.


Using the Report Conversion ToolExploring the repository1

2. Type the name of the file you want to create in the Save dialog box, then click OK.

To open a saved list1. Click Open List, then select the file you want to open from the list.

The list of documents to convert is populated with the documents in the file.

Converting reports containing free-hand SQLBy default, the Report Conversion Tool does not convert documents containing free-hand SQL. To convert free-hand SQL reports, select Convert reports containing free-hand SQL. Note: Free-hand SQL conversion is possible only if Designer is installed on the same machine as the Report Conversion Tool.If you do not select this option, free-hand SQL documents appear as Not Converted at the end of the conversion process.For more information on how the Report Conversion Tool converts free-hand SQL reports, see “Free-hand SQL” on page 34.Note: The Report Conversion Tool cannot convert a free-hand SQL report unless a valid database connection for the free-hand SQL exists.


Using the Report Conversion ToolAuditing the conversion session 1

Auditing the conversion sessionYou can create an audit log to provide details of the conversion. The audit log is a database table (called OBJ_G_MIGRATION) that the Report Conversion Tool adds to the database you select for auditing. For information on auditing and database compatibility, see “Auditing and database compatibility” on page 16.For more information on the structure of the table, see Appendix A: Audit table structure and data.

Defining the audit connectionBefore you can create an audit log, you must set up an audit connection to identify the database that will host the audit table. To do this you need to perform the following steps before running the Report Conversion Tool:• Create the audit connection• Assign the connection to the Report Conversion Tool

To create the audit connection1. Start Designer.2. Select Tools > Connections.3. Click Add.4. Follow the steps in the New Connection Wizard to create the connection.

See the Designer’s Guide if you need more information.

To assign the audit connection to the Report Conversion Tool1. Log on to the Central Management Console.2. Select BusinessObjects Enterprise Applications > Report

Conversion Tool.3. Select the connection in the list of connections and click Update.Note: You can also assign an audit connection from within the Report Conversion Tool. For more information, see “To create the audit log” on page 16.

Creating the audit logYou create the audit log in the second screen of the Report Conversion Tool, after you have converted your reports.


Using the Report Conversion ToolAuditing the conversion session1

To create the audit log1. Select Audit the conversion.2. Select the audit connection.

By default, the connection assigned in the Central Management Console is selected. (For more information on assigning a connection in the CMC, see “To assign the audit connection to the Report Conversion Tool” on page 15.)

3. Select Delete existing audit table rows... if you want to clear existing data in the audit table before auditing the current conversion.Note: Only the rows previously written to the audit table by the current user are deleted. Rows written by other users remain in the table.

4. Select Append... if you want to add the current conversion data to the existing audit data.

5. Type a comment under Include this comment in each row written to the audit table if you want to add a comment to each row written to the audit table.

6. Click Next to write the audit data to the audit table.

Auditing and database compatibilityThe following table lists the compatibility of the audit table and the audit universe with different RDBMS:

To create the audit table in a Sybase database1. To allow the RCT to create the audit table in a Sybase database, run the

following script:

RDBMS Audit table Audit universe

Oracle Compatible CompatibleMySQL Compatible CompatibleInformix Compatible CompatibleSybase SQL Server See “To create the audit

table in a Sybase database” on page 16.

Compatible

MS SQL Server Compatible CompatibleDB2 Compatible CompatibleAccess Compatible See “To modify the audit

universe for an Access database” on page 17.


Using the Report Conversion ToolAuditing the conversion session 1

sp_dboption “<database_name>”,"ddl in tran ",true

go

This script tells Sybase to allow DDL statements within a transaction by setting the “DDL In Tran” property to true. (The default value is false.)The Report Conversion Tool issues the CREATE TABLE command from within a transaction. This action fails unless Sybase is set to allow DDL within a transaction.

To modify the audit universe for an Access database1. In the join expression for the G_MIG_C_USER column, change the UPPER

function to UCASE as follows:UCASE(OBJ_G_MIGRATION.G_MIG_C_USER) =

UCASE(@variable(‘BOUSER’))

2. Change the definition of the [Number of Documents] measure from count(distinct OBJ_G_MIGRATION.G_MIG_C_DOCNAME) to count(OBJ_G_MIGRATION.G_MIG_C_DOCNAME).

Note: Because you cannot use the COUNT and DISTINCT keywords in the same statement in Access, this workaround removes the DISTINCT keyword. You also need to modify the audit report so that the [Number of Documents] measure eliminates duplicate values.


Using the Report Conversion ToolPublishing converted reports1
Publishing converted reports
After writing the conversion results to the audit database, you publish the converted results to the repository.A summary of the conversion results appears at the top of the screen, listing the percentages of Fully Converted, Partly Converted and Not Converted reports. You can also perform the following tasks before publishing the converted documents:• Define the connection settings that allow you to view the converted

reports in InfoView.• Open original or converted reports• Rename converted reports • Change the categories of converted reports• Change the folder in which a converted report is published.

Note: By default, the Report Conversion Tool publishes converted reports in the same folder as the source report.

To define the InfoView connection settings.1. Right-click any row in the list of converted reports and select Set

InfoView connection properties.2. Set the connection protocol, host, port and web application in the Set

InfoView Properties dialog box.

To open an original or converted report in InfoView1. Right-click the row showing the report and select Open original report

or Open converted report on the menu.

To rename a converted report1. Right-click the Target name column on the row showing the report and

click Rename converted report.2. Type the new name.

To change the categories of converted reports1. Right-click the Target categories column on the row showing the report

and click Change categories.2. Click Publish in the following categories, then select the categories.3. To return to the categories assigned to the original Desktop Intelligence

report, follow step 1, then click Publish in the same categories as the original report.


Using the Report Conversion ToolPublishing converted reports 1

To change the folder in which a converted report is published1. Right-click the Target folder column on the row showing the report and

click Change folder.2. Click Publish in the following folder, then navigate to the folder.3. Click OK.4. To revert to the same folder as the original report, follow step 1, then

select Publish in the same folder as the original report.Note: If you publish a converted report to a different folder than the original folder, the converted report inherits the security settings of the new folder. Ensure that these settings are consistent with the converted report. For example, users who will need to access the converted report must have access rights to the folder.

To publish the converted reports1. Click the checkbox in the left column next to the reports you want to

publish, or click the checkbox in the column header to select all reports.2. Click Next.

The Publish Status screen tracks the progress as the Report Conversion Tool publishes the reports.

3. Click Close when publishing has finished.The Conversion Complete screen appears, giving a summary of the conversion session.

4. Click Return to Start to start another conversion session, or click Exit to exit the Report Conversion Tool.


Using the Report Conversion ToolPublishing converted reports1


Desktop Intelligence feature conversion

Desktop Intelligence feature conversion

chapter

Desktop Intelligence feature conversionOverview2
Overview
This chapter provides detailed information on Desktop Intelligence features and how or whether they are converted into Web Intelligence. Use the information in this chapter in conjunction with the audit log generated by the conversion to understand how the Report Conversion Tool converted your reports.For details on the audit log file structure, see Appendix A: Audit table structure and data.


Desktop Intelligence feature conversionReport features and conversion status 2

Report features and conversion statusThe level of similarity between a converted report and the original Desktop Intelligence report depends on the features in the original report. The Report Conversion Tool cannot convert all Desktop Intelligence features to Web Intelligence XI R2 because Web Intelligence XI R2 does not support all Desktop Intelligence features. The Report Conversion Tool marks reports as Fully Converted, Partly Converted or Not Converted depending on the features in the original report.Each feature in the original report has its own associated conversion status, and the most serious generates the overall status of the conversion. For example, if the original report contains a feature that cannot be converted and generates a Partly Converted status, the whole report is considered to be partly converted and the feature is not present in the Web Intelligence report.The presence of certain features in the original report means that the Report Conversion Tool cannot generate a Web Intelligence report. In this case the conversion status is Not Converted.“Fully converted reports” on page 23, “Partly converted reports” on page 24 and “Not converted reports” on page 24 give more information on the different conversion statuses. “Features and their conversion status” on page 28 lists all Desktop Intelligence features and their associated conversion status. “More on feature conversions” on page 34 provides specific details, where appropriate, of certain feature conversions and how they are handled by the Report Conversion Tool.

Fully converted reportsA fully converted report is structurally identical or almost identical to the original report, although some minor features or properties might have been lost in the conversion. Note: Although a fully converted report is structurally identical to the initial report, it might still return different figures after conversion in certain situations. This is because the Web Intelligence XI R2 calculation engine interprets the structure differently. For more information, see Chapter 3: Calculations in Desktop Intelligence and Web Intelligence XI R2.Some features not supported natively by Web Intelligence are re-implemented by the Report Conversion Tool in the Web Intelligence report. (For example, grouped variables in Desktop Intelligence are implemented with an If function in the converted Web Intelligence report - for more


Desktop Intelligence feature conversionReport features and conversion status2

information see “Grouped variables” on page 37.) The re-implemented feature behaves identically in Web Intelligence and does not affect the Fully Converted status.

Partly converted reportsCertain features in the original Desktop Intelligence report carry a default status of Partly Converted. If a report contains at least one feature that carries a Partly Converted status, the whole report is flagged as Partly Converted.You can modify this behavior by editing the Report Conversion Tool initialization file. This is useful if you have numerous reports containing a feature that generates a Partly Converted status by default, but you do not consider conversion of the feature important. In this case you edit the initialization file to set the associated status to Fully Converted. For more information on editing the initialization file, see “Customizing the feature conversion status” on page 25.

Not converted reportsIf the Desktop Intelligence report contains a key feature that cannot be converted, the report is not converted. For example, if a report contains any data providers other than universes or free-hand SQL, it cannot be converted.


Desktop Intelligence feature conversionCustomizing the feature conversion status 2

Customizing the feature conversion statusThe Report Conversion Tool has an initialization file, in XML format, which allows you to determine the status generated by some report features. You can flag these features as Fully Converted or Partly Converted.The initialization file allows you to customize the conversion process according to your needs. If you have numerous reports containing a feature that generates a Partly Converted status during conversion, but you do not consider conversion of this feature important, you can edit the initialization file so that the feature generates a Fully Converted status. Note: You cannot control the status generated by all report features with the initialization file. If the table in “Features and their conversion status” on page 28 gives a hard-coded status instead of an initialization file setting, you cannot use the initialization file to change the status.


Desktop Intelligence feature conversionCustomizing the feature conversion status2
Understanding the initialization file
The initialization file is called errorlogsettings.xml and is stored in the $INSTALLDIR/win32_x86 folder. The file looks like this:

<LOGMANAGER><ERRORLOGS TARGET=”FULLYCONVERTED”>

<ERROR TYPE=”Filter/FilterFormula”/> 

<ERROR TYPE=”Breaks/ValueBasedBreaks”/> 

<ERROR TYPE=”Drill/QueryDrill”/><ERROR TYPE=”Drill/MissingeRef”/>

<ERROR TYPE=”Graph/3DChart”/><ERROR TYPE=”Graph/PieChart”/><ERROR TYPE=”Graph/ElementPosition”/><ERROR TYPE=”Graph/Pie3DChart”/> <ERROR TYPE=”Graph/General”/>

</ERRORLOGS><ERRORLOGS TARGET=”PARTLYCONVERTED”>

<ERROR TYPE=”Query/Query”/><ERROR TYPE=”Query/Keyword”/><ERROR TYPE=”Query/QueryProp”/><ERROR TYPE=”Query/QueryCond”/><ERROR TYPE=”Query/Grouping”/>

etc...

The table in “Features and their conversion status” on page 28 matches the feature references in the file (Filter/FilterFormula, for example) to features. Use the table to determine which entries to edit in the initialization file to customize the conversion process to your needs.

Editing the initialization fileBy default, the file generates a Fully Converted status for some features (the errors listed in the <ERRORLOGS TARGET=”FULLYCONVERTED”> section) and a Partly Converted status for others (listed in the <ERRORLOGS TARGET=”PARTLYCONVERTED”> section).


Desktop Intelligence feature conversionCustomizing the feature conversion status 2

To change the status generated by a feature, move it to the appropriate section. For example, if you do not want a filter on a measure in a block to generate a Partly Converted status, move the corresponding element to the FULLYCONVERTED section as follows:

<LOGMANAGER> <ERRORLOGS TARGET=”FULLYCONVERTED”> <ERROR TYPE=”Filter/BlockMeasureFilter/> </ERRORLOGS>...</LOGMANAGER>

Note: If an error is included in both sections, it generates a Fully Converted status. If an error is not included in either section, it generates a Partly Converted status.


Desktop Intelligence feature conversionFeatures and their conversion status2
Features and their conversion status
The following table lists Desktop Intelligence features and describes how they are handled by the Report Conversion Tool. The final column provides one of two types of information:• The conversion status if the feature always generates the same status

and this behavior cannot be customized• The initialization file setting that determines whether the feature is

flagged as Fully Converted or Partly Converted if this status can be customized For more information on the initialization file, see “Customizing the feature conversion status” on page 25.

Desktop Intelligence feature

Result in Web Intelligence report

Conversion status or initialization file setting

Data providersOLAP data provider Report not converted. Not convertedPersonal data provider Report not converted. Not convertedStored procedure data provider

Report not converted. Not converted

XML data provider Report not converted. Not convertedUniverse data provider, where the universe is not found


Free-hand SQL The SQL is moved to a derived table in a generated universe.See “Free-hand SQL” on page 34.

Fully converted

QueriesFilter with a Calculation operand


FIlter with a Select Query Results operand (query on a query)


Automatic refresh setting Setting is lost. Partly converted


Desktop Intelligence feature conversionFeatures and their conversion status 2

Scope of analysis with filter on a measure

Scope of analysis objects become result objects (see “Scope of analysis and measure filters” on page 36).

Partly converted

User objects User objects are lost. Partly convertedAn object whose definition includes the Designer @Script function

The report cannot be refreshed. (See “The @Script function” on page 36.)

Partly converted

Sort in a query The sort is lost. Fully convertedDelete Trailing Blanks option set

Option is lost. Fully converted

Do Not Retrieve Data option set

Option is lost. Fully converted

Document PropertiesEnhanced Viewing setting does not exist in Desktop Intelligence

The Enhanced Viewing setting is enabled.

Fully converted

FiltersComplex global or block filter

The filter is lost in some cases (see “Complex global and block filters” on page 39).

Filter/ComplexGlobalFilterorFilter/ComplexBlockFilter

Filter on a formula A variable is created and the filter applied to the variable (see “Filter on a formula” on page 38).

Fully Converted

Filter in a block applied on a measure

Filter is lost. Filter/BlockMeasureFilter

SectionsHide Section Header formula

The formula is lost and the header is always visible.

SectionFormat/HideHeader

Hide Section Footer formula

The formula is lost and the footer is always visible.

SectionFormat/HideFooter

Special report contentsOLE object The object is lost. SpecialContent/OLE






Picture The picture is lost. SpecialContent/PictureVBA macro The macro is lost. VBA/VBABlocksHide Block formula The formula is lost and the

block is always visible.Partly converted

Across Edge Display settings in crosstabs

The settings are lost. Partly converted

Page break header after page break setting

Setting is lost. Partly converted

Page break footer after page break setting

Setting is lost. Partly converted

Hide object (in the Block Pivot settings)

Object is lost from the block.

Partly converted

BreaksBreak on multiple dimensionsNote: This refers to a break defined on more than one dimension, not a block that has multiple breaks on single dimensions.

The break is removed. Breaks/BreakOnMultipleDimension

Break on an object not in the block

The break is removed Breaks/BreakObjectNotInBlock

Folded break The break is unfolded Breaks/FoldedBreakValue-based break The break is removed Breaks/ValueBasedBreaksPagesPage setup options Original page setup

options are lost and default Web Intelligence page options applied.

Fully converted

Functions






ApplicationValue Appears as RepFormula(“original_syntax”)For more information, see “Unsupported functions” on page 37.

Formula/UnsupportedFunctionBlockNumberCurrentPageDataProviderTypeGetProfileNumberGetProfileStringHyperlinkMulticubeOLAPQueryDescriptionPageInSectionProductCountAll Converted to Web

Intelligence syntax. For more information, see “CountAll function” on page 37.

Partly converted

Dates All date formats Changed to an equivalent

Web Intelligence format according to the mappings given in “Date format mapping” on page 35.

Fully converted

Relative dates Implemented with the RelativeDate function. For more information, see “Relative dates” on page 41.

Fully converted

Cell formatFill character The fill character is lost. Fully convertedHide cell formula (free-standing cells)

The hide cell formula is lost and the cell is always visible.

FormatCell/Appearance






Border styles Converted according to the mappings given in “Border styles” on page 39.

Fully converted

VariablesAll variables The variable description is

lost.Fully converted

Variable that references another variable that cannot be converted

Report not converted Not converted

Grouped variables. The grouped variable is implemented with an If function. For more information, see “Grouped variables” on page 37.

Fully converted

SortsA block sorted on an object not included in the block

The sort is lost. Partly converted

ChartsMultiple groups The first group only

appears.Graph/MultiGroupChart

3D Pie Charts There is no plot area in Web Intelligence 3D Pie charts

Graph/Pie3DChart

3D Charts There is no plot area in Web Intelligence 3D charts

Graph/3DChart

Series color The original relationship between a series and its color is lost. For more information, see “Series color” on page 41.

Fully converted

Rotation, elevation and start angle

These settings are lost in Web Intelligence.

Fully converted

Plot area The plot area does not exist in Web Intelligence pie charts and 3D charts.

Fully converted

Wall color All walls have the same color in Web Intelligence.

Fully converted






Save optionsWrite password or protection password set


FontsFont mapping Fonts are mapped

between Desktop Intelligence and Web Intelligence according to customizable rules. For more information, see “Font mapping” on page 40.

Fully converted





Desktop Intelligence feature conversionMore on feature conversions2
More on feature conversions
This section provides additional details of the more complex feature conversions listed in the table in the section “Report features and conversion status” on page 23.

Free-hand SQLWeb Intelligence XI R2 does not support free-hand SQL. The Report Conversion Tool converts free-hand SQL documents by creating universes with derived tables that contain the free-hand SQL. Each free-hand SQL query has a derived table. The report objects that were based on the free-hand SQL in the source report are based on the derived table in the Web Intelligence XI R2 report.The Report Conversion Tool creates free-hand SQL universes in the Report Conversion Tool Universes subfolder of the root universe folder in the CMS. Note: A derived table is a universe table that is based on an SQL query rather than a physical table in the database. It is the universe equivalent of a view in a relational database. For more information on derived tables, see the Designer Guide.The Report Conversion Tool creates Free-Hand SQL universes and connections as follows:• Universes are called FHSQLXXX.• There is one universe for each free-hand SQL data source.• Free-hand SQL universe connections are called

FHSQLXXX_<original_freehand_SQL_connection_name>

Note: If more than one free-hand SQL connection points to the same data source, the Report Conversion Tool uses the first connection name that it encounters to name the universe connection.

• Different free-hand SQL queries against the same data source are stored in the universe based on that data source as derived tables called ClassX.

• Objects based on a derived table are stored in a class with the same name as the derived table.

Example: Converting multiple free-hand SQL documentsIn this example you have five documents based on free-hand SQL queries.The first two (sales_rpt1 and sales_rpt2) are based on a database called sales and the free-hand SQL connection is called sales.


Desktop Intelligence feature conversionMore on feature conversions 2

The second two (emp_rpt1 and emp_rpt2) are based on a database called employees and the free-hand SQL connection is called emp.The fifth (emp_rpt3) is also based on the employees database, but the free-hand SQL connection is called employee.After conversion, the documents, universes, connections and derived tables are as follows:

Date format mappingAll Desktop Intelligence functions using Date formats as a parameter are converted using the following mapping:

WID document Universe Connection Derived table/Query object class

sales_rpt1 FHSQL001 FHSQL001_sales Class1sales_rpt2 FHSQL001 FHSQL001_sales Class2emp_rpt1 FHSQL002 FHSQL002_emp Class1emp_rpt2 FHSQL002 FHSQL002_emp Class2emp_rpt3 FHSQL002 FHSQL002_emp Class 3

Desktop Intelligence format Web Intelligence format

AM/PM, AM/pm, AM/Pm, AM/pM Aam/pm, aM/PM, aM/Pm, aM/pM, aM/pm, am/PM, am/Pm, am/pM

a or A

Am/pm, Am/PM, Am/Pm, Am/pM a or ADDDD, DDDd, DDdD, DDdd DDDDdddd, dDDD, dDDd, dDdD, dDdd, ddDD, ddDd, dddD

dddd

Dddd, DdDD, DdDd, DddD DdddDDD, DDd DDDddd, dDD, dDd, ddD dddDdd, DdD Ddddd, DD, dD, Dd ddd, D d



Queries

Scope of analysis and measure filtersIf a Desktop Intelligence query contains a condition on a measure and a scope of analysis, then the converted Web Intelligence query groups (in the Result Objects section) all objects from the Desktop Intelligence results (objects and scope of analysis). This maintains the same query results.

The @Script functionSome objects contain a reference to the Designer @Script function in their definition. This function returns the value of a VBA macro.Web Intelligence XI R2 does not support either the @Script function or VBA macros. If a query contains an object with a reference to @Script, the report cannot be refreshed.

HH HHH Hhh, hH hhh hmm, MM, mM, Mm MMM, m MMMMM, MMmm, MMmM, MMMm MMMMmmmm, mMmm, mMMm, mMMM, mMmM, mmMm, mmMM, mmmM

mmmm

Mmmm, MmMm, MmMM, MmmM MmmmMMM, MMm MMMmmm, mMm, mMM, mmM mmmMmm, MmM Mmmss, SS, Ss, sS sss, S syyyy, yYYY, yYYy, yYyY, yYyy, yyYY, yyYy, yyyY, Yyyy, YYYY, YYYy, YYyY, YYyy, YyYY, YyYy, YyyY

yyyy

yy, YY, Yy, yY yy

Desktop Intelligence format Web Intelligence format



Formulas and functions

Unsupported functionsIf Web Intelligence XI R2 does not support a function or keyword used in a Desktop Intelligence formula, the original formula appears as an argument to the special Web Intelligence function RepFormula as follows:RepFormula(“original_formula_syntax”)

The RepFormula function generates the #REPFORMULA message in Web Intelligence.Example: The BlockNumber functionA Desktop Intelligence report contains the BlockNumber function, which is not supported by Web Intelligence XI R2. This formula is changed to =RepFormula("=BlockNumber()") in the Web Intelligence report, and Web Intelligence displays the #REPFORMULA message in the cell containing this formula.

This mechanism is recursive (if VariableA is built using VariableB, and if VariableB is converted using the RepFormula() function, then VariableA will be converted using the Repformula() function).

CountAll functionThe Desktop Intelligence function CountAll is converted to Web Intelligence using the following syntax:

Variables

Grouped variablesA grouped variable in a Desktop Intelligence report is implemented in the Web Intelligence report with an If formula.Example: Grouped variables in Web Intelligence

Desktop Intelligence syntax

Web Intelligence syntax

CountAll(<Object>) Count ([Object];INCLUDEEMPTY;ALL)



You have a grouped variable called Resort Group in your Desktop Intelligence report. This variable is based on the Resort dimension and it has the following values:

This grouping s implemented in Web Intelligence as a variable called Resort Group which has the following formula:If(([Resort] InList("Bahamas Beach";"Hawaiian Club";"Royal Caribbean"));("US Resorts");If( ([Resort] InList("French Riviera"));("French Resorts");[Resort]))

Filters

Filter on a formulaIf the Desktop Intelligence report contains a formula to which a filter is applied, the Report Conversion Tool creates a variable based on the formula, places it in the cell originally containing the formula, and applies the filter to the variable.These variables are named in the form TurnedToVariable_n. As a result, if the original report contains three formulas with filters applied, the converted report contains the variables TurnedToVariable_1, TurnedToVariable_2 and TurnedToVariable_3.

Resort Grouping Resort Group values

Australian Reef <no grouping> Australian ReefFrench Riviera French Resorts French ResortsBahamas Beach US Resorts US ResortsHawaiian Club US Resorts US ResortsRoyal Caribbean US Resorts US Resorts



Filter on a measureIf a block is filtered on the values of a measure, the filter is removed during conversion.Example: Filter on a measureYou have a report containing the following data and you apply the filter Revenue = 2451104, which restricts the block to showing the first row only.

When the report is converted to Web Intelligence the filter is removed, and the block shows both rows.

Complex global and block filtersGlobal filters and block filters are converted only if they have the following format:<filtered_object><operator><constant or list_of_values>

For example, if a block is filtered on the Country object by <Country> <> “France”, the Report Conversion Tool is able to convert the filter.Any global or block filter that does not correspond to this format is a complex filter and is not converted. For example, the formula <Revenue> > <Average_Revenue> is not converted because it compares the filtered object against another object rather than against a constant or list of values.

Cell format

Border stylesSome Desktop Intelligence border styles do not exist in Web Intelligence. In such a case, default borders and no pattern are used in the generated Web Intelligence report. The log file does not list all cells impacted by this format reduction.The following table shows how Desktop Intelligence border styles are converted to Web Intelligence:

Country Revenue

US 2,451,104France 835,420



Fonts

Font mappingThe following Desktop Intelligence fonts can be converted to Web Intelligence: Arial, Courier New, Fixedsys, Impact, MS Serif, Helvetica, Tahoma, Times New Roman, BOJapan, defaultAll other fonts are switched to the default font in the converted Web Intelligence report. The default font used by Web Intelligence is dependant on the locale and is set by the administrator.You can change the font mapping by editing the <FONTMAPPING> section in the SETTINGS.XML file in the following directory:$INSTALLDIR\BusinessObjects Enterprise 11.5\win32_x86

Example: Change the font mapping Open the settings.XML file with any XML editor and add the following lines to change the mapping for Courier and Verdana: <FONTMAPPING>

<FONT SOURCE="Courier" TARGET="Courier New" />

<FONT SOURCE="Verdana" TARGET="Tahoma" />

</FONTMAPPING>

Note: All fonts that appear in the <FONTMAPPING> section must also appear in the <SERVERFONTS> section above it.

This Desktop Intelligence border style

Becomes this style in Web Intelligence

None NoneThin, medium, small dotline, medium dotline, long dotline

Thin

Bold BoldExtra bold, double line, double dotline

Extra bold



Charts

Series colorDesktop Intelligence allows you to associate colors with data series. The converted Web Intelligence report does not maintain this association and the original colors are replaced with colors from the default Web Intelligence color palette. This first series is assigned the first color in the palette, the second series is assigned the second color in the palette, and so on.

Dates

Relative datesRelative dates can be expressed in the form [date] +/- [number] in Desktop Intelligence. For example, <Invoice Date> + 2 refers to two days after the date in <Invoice Date>; <Arrival Date> - 5 refers to five days before the date in <Arrival Date>.Web Intelligence defines relative dates using the RelativeDate function and the Report Conversion Tool converts relative dates to this format. The previous examples appear in the converted report as follows:

Desktop Intelligence syntax Web Intelligence syntax

<Invoice Date> + 2 RelativeDate([Invoice Date];2)

<Arrival Date> - 4 RelativeDate([Arrival Date];-5)




Calculations in Desktop Intelligence and Web Intelligence XI R2

chapter

Calculations in Desktop Intelligence and Web Intelligence XI R2Overview3
Overview
Chapter 1: Using the Report Conversion Tool explains how to convert reports from Desktop Intelligence format to Web Intelligence XI R2 format using the Report Conversion Tool. After conversion, some reports that the Report Conversion Tool identifies as Fully Converted might still return different results in certain circumstances from the results returned by the original report. This happens because the calculation engine (the part of the software that calculates report results) does not always behave identically in Desktop Intelligence and Web IntelligenceXI R2. A Fully Converted report is a report whose structure is identical to the structure of the original report. Even so, the new calculation engine sometimes interprets this structure differently. This chapter helps you to identify reports that might be affected by calculation engine behavior, to understand the differences that this behavior produces, and, where possible, to make manual modifications to bring your converted reports in line with your original reports.The calculation engine differences fall into the following categories:

Category Details

Formula language differences

Some Web Intelligence functions do not always return the same value as the equivalent Desktop Intelligence function, and the two formula languages are not always identical.For more information, see “Formula language differences” on page 49.

Filter differences Web Intelligence does not always filter in the same way as Desktop Intelligence. For more information, see “Filtering differences” on page 54

Detail objects and non-aggregative measures

Desktop Intelligence and Web Intelligence treat detail objects differently in some situations. For more information, see “Detail objects and non-aggregative measures” on page 46.

Placing of dimensions Dimensions sometimes return different values in Desktop Intelligence and Web Intelligence, depending on where they are placed in a report. For more information, see “Placing of dimensions” on page 56.


Calculations in Desktop Intelligence and Web Intelligence XI R2Overview 3

Note: As a general rule, you should pay careful attention to reports with synchronized data providers. They are much more likely to be affected by calculation engine changes than reports with a single data provider.

Migration, conversion and calculation differencesYou use the Import Wizard to migrate Desktop Intelligence documents to Desktop Intelligence during migration to BusinessObjects Enterprise XI R2. You can then use the Report Conversion Tool to convert these documents to Web Intelligence XI R2 format (this process is described in Chapter 1: Using the Report Conversion Tool) or you can work with them in Desktop Intelligence. Calculation engine behavior differs between some versions of Desktop Intelligence (earlier versions of Desktop Intelligence before the product name change in XI R2) in addition to differing between Desktop Intelligence and Web Intelligence XI R2. This is covered in the BusinessObjects 6.x to XI Release 2 Migration Guide, in the chapter “Checking Imported Documents”. You should read it to understand how your Desktop Intelligence report might already differ from your original Desktop Intelligence report even before you use the Report Conversion Tool. (The exact differences depend on the version of Desktop Intelligence you were using before migration to Desktop Intelligence.) If you then convert the report to Web Intelligence XI R2, you should read this chapter to understand the additional changes in Web Intelligence.The following table summarizes migration and conversion of Desktop Intelligence reports from an earlier version to BusinessObjects Enterprise XI R2:

ExamplesUnless otherwise noted, the examples in this chapter are created from the Island Resorts Marketing universe shipped with BusinessObjects XI R2.

Source Report Transformation Tool

New Report Calculation Differences

BusinessObjects 5.x/6.x report (REP)

Import Wizard Desktop Intelligence report (REP)

Depends on source report version. See Migration Guide

Desktop Intelligence report (REP)

Report Conversion Tool

Web Intelligence XI R2 report (WID)

See this chapter for more information.


Calculations in Desktop Intelligence and Web Intelligence XI R2Detail objects and non-aggregative measures3
Detail objects and non-aggregative measures
A detail is a universe object that is associated with a dimension. The detail provides further information about the dimension. For example, Age is a detail of the Customer dimension in the Island Resorts Marketing universe.Desktop Intelligence allows multiple values of a detail object for one value of the associated dimension when the dimension and detail are placed in the same block. Desktop Intelligence also takes the detail values into account when calculating measures: if the value of a measure is given by the combination of dimension value plus detail value, this is the value that Desktop Intelligence displays.By default, Web Intelligence allows only one detail value for each dimension value, and Web Intelligence does not take the detail into account when calculating measures. If you place a dimension and detail in a block in a Web Intelligence report and the objects have a one-to-many relationship, the detail returns the #MULTIVALUE error and Web Intelligence calculates any related measures solely around the dimension value.You solve this by creating a variable of dimension type which references the detail, and replacing the detail with the variable. For example, if you have a detail called Age, you replace it with a variable of dimension type whose formula is =Age.Note: Although enabling the Avoid Duplicate Row Aggregation block property sometimes solves the problem of multi valued detail objects in simple situations, you should not use this property as a solution to this problem. It is a solution that works only in extremely simple reports.Example: A dimension with multiple detail valuesThis example illustrates in general terms the differences between Desktop Intelligence and Web Intelligence behavior.Desktop Intelligence:

Dimension Detail Measure

Dimension Value 1 Detail Value 1 400Dimension Value 1 Detail Value 2 300Dimension Value 1 Detail Value 3 200Dimension Value 2 Detail Value 4 1000


Calculations in Desktop Intelligence and Web Intelligence XI R2Extended dimension values 3

Web Intelligence with a multi valued detail object:

Web Intelligence with a dimension object that references a multi valued detail:

Non-aggregative measuresWeb Intelligence applies the same rule to non-aggregative measures. (A non-aggregative measure is a measure that does not have an associated aggregation method - for example Sum - defined in the universe.) If the measure has multiple values for one value of a dimension in the same block, Web Intelligence displays #MULTIVALUE in the measure cell.

Extended dimension valuesDesktop Intelligence extends the values in a synchronized dimension with the values in the other dimensions with which it is synchronized. This means that Desktop Intelligence returns a dimension value when a block contains an associated measure value, even when the dimension is not explicitly placed in the block. In other words, Desktop Intelligence returns dimension values for all dimensions in the synchronization.Web Intelligence does not do this by default. To make Web Intelligence extend dimension values, you enable the Extend merged dimension values document property.Example: Extending dimension valuesThis example illustrates the difference between Desktop Intelligence and Web Intelligence default behavior. You have a report with the following three data providers:

Dimension Detail Measure

Dimension Value 1 #MULTIVALUE 900Dimension Value 2 Detail Value 4 1000

Dimension Detail Dimension Measure

Dimension Value 1 Detail Value 1 400Dimension Value 1 Detail Value 2 300Dimension Value 1 Detail Value 3 200Dimension Value 2 Detail Value 4 1000


Calculations in Desktop Intelligence and Web Intelligence XI R2Extended dimension values3

Data Provider 1:

Data Provider 2:

Data Provider 3:

If you combine Country of Origin from DP1 and Future Guests forms DPs 1, 2 and 3 in a block, Desktop Intelligence returns the following result:

Without the Extend merged dimension values option, Web Intelligence returns the following result:

Although the block contains measures associated with other merged dimensions, by default Web Intelligence shows only those values from the dimension explicitly placed in the block.With the Extend merged dimension values option enabled, Web Intelligence returns the same result as Desktop Intelligence.

Country of origin Future Guests

France 28


Germany 21


Japan 9

Country (DP1) Future Guests (DP1)

Future Guests (DP2)

Future Guests (DP3)

France 28Germany 21Japan 9

Country (DP1) Future Guests (DP1)

Future Guests (DP2)

Future Guests (DP3)

France 28


Calculations in Desktop Intelligence and Web Intelligence XI R2Formula language differences 3

Formula language differences

Running functions and sort orderIn Web Intelligence the running functions (RunningCount, RunningSum, RunningAverage, RunningProduct) rely on the sort order. In Desktop Intelligence they do not: Desktop Intelligence uses the previous value of the measure irrespective of the sort order.Example: Running functions in Desktop Intelligence and Web IntelligenceIn this example, a Desktop Intelligence report contains the formula RunningSum(<Revenue>,<Quarter). In Desktop Intelligence this formula produces the following result:

The figure for Q2 1999 is 146,670 (76,270 + 70,400), which Desktop Intelligence calculates even though the two revenue values do not appear consecutively in the block.

In Web Intelligence the block appears as follows:

Country Year Quarter Revenue RunningSum

France FY1998 Q1 76,270 76,270France FY1998 Q1 85,560 85,560France FY1998 Q3 81,085 81,085France FY1998 Q4 53,025 53,025France FY1999 Q1 70,400 146,670


France FY1998 Q1 76,270 76,270France FY1998 Q1 85,560 85,560France FY1998 Q3 81,085 81,085France FY1998 Q4 53,025 53,025France FY1999 Q1 70,400 70,400


Calculations in Desktop Intelligence and Web Intelligence XI R2Formula language differences3

The block returns the same value as Desktop Intelligence only when it is sorted by quarter.

Running functions and default reset contextsWeb Intelligence does not reset running functions by default in the same way as Desktop Intelligence. The following table summarizes the differences:

Example: Running function and a section break

Desktop Intelligence does not reset the calculation across the break:


France FY1998 Q1 76,270 76,270France FY1999 Q1 70,400 146,670

Report element Desktop Intelligence Web Intelligence

Section break No Reset ResetTable break No Reset No Reset

France

Resort Revenue RunningSum

French Riviera 835,420 835,420

US


Bahamas Beach 971,444 1.806,864Hawaiian Club 1,479,660 3,286,524



Web Intelligence does:

The Count function and empty valuesDesktop Intelligence and Web Intelligence functions define empty values differently. This impacts the totals returned by the CountAll/Count function when empty values appear in the list of values to be counted.Note: This issue affects to the CountAll function in Desktop Intelligence and the Count function with the IncludeEmpty and All arguments in Web Intelligence. These syntaxes are functionally equivalent.Desktop Intelligence regards only null values returned from the database as empty values. Web Intelligence also regards empty values created in a block as a result of client-side processing as empty.Example: The Count function and empty valuesIn this example you have a data provider that contains the following objects: Country, Year, Reservation Year, Revenue, Future Guests. There is a query filter restricting Reservation Year to ‘FY2003’ This query generates two SQL statements whose results are synchronized by the calculation engine. If you place the objects in a block as follows, the block contains empty values in the Future Guests column.

France


French Riviera 835,420 835,420

US


Bahamas Beach 971,444 971,444Hawaiian Club 1,479,660 2,451,104

Country Year Revenue Future guests

France FY1998 295,940 14France FY1999 280,310 14France FY2000 259,170 14US FY1998 767,614


Calculations in Desktop Intelligence and Web Intelligence XI R2Formula language differences3

These empty values are the result of calculation engine processing; they are not null values returned from the database. As a result, Desktop Intelligence ignores them and the count returns 1. Web Intelligence includes them and returns 2.Note: The equivalent formulas are CountAll(<Future guests>) in Desktop Intelligence and Count([Future guests];IncludeEmpty;All) in Web Intelligence.

Referencing data outside sectionsThe Desktop Intelligence formula language allows you to refer to data outside the current section in a report with sections. The Web Intelligence formula language, with the exception of the Report keyword, does not.Example: Referring to data outside the current sectionIn the report below, the free-standing cell below the block contains the formula Sum(<Revenue>) Where (<Country> = “US“):

US FY1999 826,930US FY2000 856,560

Count: 1 or 2

Country Year Revenue Future guests

France

Resort Revenue

French Riviera 835,420

2,451,104 or blank

US

Resort Revenue

Bahamas Beach 971,444Hawaiian Club 1,479,660

2,451,104



In Desktop Intelligence the cell returns the total revenue for the US even when it appears in the “France“ section. In Web Intelligence this cell is blank because the formula cannot reference data outside the current section.Note: The formula Sum([Revenue] In Report) returns the same value in Desktop Intelligence and Web Intelligence because you can use the Report keyword to access data outside the current section.


Calculations in Desktop Intelligence and Web Intelligence XI R2Filtering differences3
Filtering differences
Block filtersWhen you filter on a block, Desktop Intelligence applies the filter on the data in the underlying cube. Web Intelligence applies the filter to the data in the block.Example: Block filtersIn this example you have a data provider with the objects Country, Year and Revenue and you create a block containing Country and Revenue:

If you apply the filter Revenue >=2,000,000 on the block, the block returns no rows in Desktop Intelligence, because Desktop Intelligence applies the filter on the values in the cube (revenue by country and resort) rather than in the block. The cube values are as follows:

None of these values is >= 2,000,000, which is why the block returns no rows.In Web Intelligence the filter produces this result:

This is because Web Intelligence filters on the result objects (the objects in the block), and only US has a revenue >= 2,000,000.

Country Revenue

France 835,420US 2,451,104

Country Resort Revenue

France French Riviera 835,420US Bahamas Beach 971,444US Hawaiian Club 1,479,660

Country Revenue

US 2,451,104


Calculations in Desktop Intelligence and Web Intelligence XI R2Filtering differences 3

Indirect filtersWeb Intelligence and Desktop Intelligence apply report filters differently when a report contains multiple data providers and those data providers are synchronized (through linking in Desktop Intelligence and merged dimensions in Web Intelligence). When you a apply a report-level filter, Desktop Intelligence also applies this filter indirectly; Web Intelligence does not.Example: Indirect filtersIn this example you have a report with two data providers synchronized on the Country dimension:DP1: Country, RevenueDP2: Country, Reservation Year, Future GuestsYou create a report with two blocks:

If you apply a report filter that restricts Reservation Year to “FY2003”, Desktop Intelligence automatically filters the first table in addition to the second:

Why? Desktop Intelligence applies an indirect filter to the first table because it is linked to the second table through the Country dimension. When you apply the report filter on Reservation Year, this removes all values of Country except “France“ from the second table. Desktop Intelligence then carries this filter through to the first table.

Country Revenue

France 835,420US 2,541,104

Country Reservation Year Future guests

France FY2001 17France FY2002 15France FY2003 14US FY2001 48US FY2002 8

Country Revenue

France 835,420

Country Reservation Year Future guests

France FY2003 14


Calculations in Desktop Intelligence and Web Intelligence XI R2Placing of dimensions3

Web Intelligence does not apply the indirect filter. The first table remains unchanged even when you apply the filter on Reservation Year.

Placing of dimensionsDimensions and sections

If you place a free-standing cell in a section and the cell content is a dimension contained in the section, Desktop Intelligence always returns the #MULTIVALUE error. Web Intelligence returns #MULTIVALUE if the dimension has more than one value in the section. If it has one value only, Web Intelligence returns that value.Example: Free-standing cell in a sectionIn this example you have a data provider containing the Country, Year and Revenue objects. You create a report with year as the section header and a block showing country and revenue in each section:

If you place a free-standing cell within the section and below the block, and set the cell formula to =<Country> (=[Country] in Web Intelligence), the cell returns #MULTIVALUE in both Desktop Intelligence Web Intelligence.

Now you apply a query filter that restricts Country to “France“:

In this case, Desktop Intelligence still returns #MULTIVALUE in the free-standing cell. Web Intelligence returns “France“, because the Country dimension now has one value only in each section.

FY1998

Country Revenue

France 295,940US 767,614

FY1998

Country Revenue

France 295,940

#MULTIVALUE or France


Calculations in Desktop Intelligence and Web Intelligence XI R2Placing of dimensions 3

Dimensions in block headers and footersWhen you place a dimension in a block header in Desktop Intelligence, the cell returns the minimum value of the dimension. When you place a dimension in a footer, the cell returns the maximum value of the dimension.In Web Intelligence, dimensions placed in block headers or footers return #MULTIVALUE.Example: Dimensions in block headers and footersYou place the Country dimension in the header and footer of block in a Desktop Intelligence report to produce the following result:

The formula for the header and footer is =<Country>. In the header this returns Min(<Country>) and in the footer Max(<Country>).In Web Intelligence the block appears as follows:

Australia

AustraliaFranceGermanyHollandJapanUKUSUS

#MULTIVALUE

AustraliaFranceGermanyHollandJapanUKUS#MULTIVALUE


Calculations in Desktop Intelligence and Web Intelligence XI R2Placing of dimensions3


Audit table structure and data

Audit table structure and data

appendix

Audit table structure and dataThe audit tableA
The audit table
The audit table is called OBJ_G_MIGRATION and contains the following columns and data:

Column DescriptionG_MIG_C_LOGDATE The date on which the conversion was run.G_MIG_C_DOCNAME The name of the Desktop Intelligence

document.G_MIG_C_STATUS The conversion status. Values are:

Not converted - the document could not be converted to Desktop Intelligence format.Partly converted - the document was converted, but a feature could not be converted.Fully converted - the document was fully converted to Web Intelligence.Note: A fully-converted document might still return different calculation results from the original document in certain circumstances. For more information, see Chapter 3: Calculations in Desktop Intelligence and Web Intelligence XI R2

G_MIG_C_LOGENTRY The row number per document. (A single document can generate multiple rows in the table.)

G_MIG_C_SEVERITY The severity of the problem. Possible values are:Error - the document could not be converted.Warning - the document was converted but a document feature could not be converted.Advisory - a document feature could not be converted; the effect of non-conversion is less than in the case of Warning.

G_MIG_C_CAUSE The cause of the error, warning or advisory.G_MIG_C_TYPE The general type of problem that caused

the error, warning or advisory.G_MIG_C_SUBTYPE The specific problem that caused the error,

warning or advisory.


Audit table structure and dataThe audit table A

G_MIG_C_ERRORTEXT Explanation of why the error, warning or advisory occurred.

G_MIG_C_FOCUS The part of the document that generated the error, warning or advisory.

G_MIG_C_KEYWORD A keyword that identifies the source of the error, warning or advisory.

G_MIG_C_RESULT What the conversion process did to handle the problem that created the error, warning or advisory. The result further details the problem identified in the keyword.

G_MIG_C_WORKAROUND A workaround for the problem that created the error, warning or advisory.

G_MIG_C_USER The user who ran the Report Conversion Tool.

G_MIG_C_FOLDER_CATEGORY The repository folder containing the Desktop Intelligence document.

G_MIG_C_AUTHOR The author of the Desktop Intelligence document.

G_MIG_C_COMMENT The comment the Report Conversion Tool. user entered when converting the document(s).

G_MIG_C_REP_CUID Unique ID assigned to Desktop Intelligence report

G_MIG__WID_CUID Unique ID assigned to Web Intelligence report

Column Description


Audit table structure and dataNot converted documentsA
Not converted documents
In a case where the Report Conversion Tool cannot convert a document, it generates multiple lines in the log table: one line that begins with Error for the non-conversion, and one line for each object within each data provider that could not be converted.You can remove these additional lines to leave the Error lines only by running the following SQL script to clean the table:

DELETE obj_g_migration WHERE g_mig_c_logentry > 0AND g_mig_c_status = 'Not converted'AND EXISTS (SELECT *FROM obj_g_migration2 mig1WHERE mig1.g_mig_c_logdate = g_mig_c_logdateAND mig1.g_mig_c_docname = g_mig_c_docname

AND mig1.g_mig_c_folder_category = g_mig_c_folder_category

AND mig1.g_mig_c_logentry = 0AND mig1.g_mig_c_status = 'Not converted'

)


Business Objects Information Resources

appendix

Business Objects Information ResourcesDocumentation and information servicesB
Documentation and information services
Business Objects offers a full documentation set covering its products and their deployment. Additional support and services are also available to help maximize the return on your business intelligence investment. The following sections detail where to get Business Objects documentation and how to use the resources at Business Objects to meet your needs for technical support, education, and consulting.

DocumentationYou can find answers to your questions on how to install, configure, deploy, and use Business Objects products from the documentation.

What’s in the documentation set?View or download the Business Objects Documentation Roadmap, available with the product documentation at http://support.businessobjects.com/documentation/.The Documentation Roadmap references all Business Objects guides and lets you see at a glance what information is available, from where, and in what format.

Where is the documentation?You can access electronic documentation at any time from the product interface, the web, or from your product CD.

Documentation from the productsOnline help and guides in Adobe PDF format are available from the product Help menus. Where only online help is provided, the online help file contains the entire contents of the PDF version of the guide.

Documentation on the webThe full electronic documentation set is available to customers on the web from support web site at: http://support.businessobjects.com/documentation/.


Business Objects Information ResourcesCustomer support, consulting and training B

Documentation on the product CDLook in the docs directory of your product CD for versions of guides in Adobe PDF format.

Knowledge Exchange and Knowledge BaseOur Knowledge Exchange is an open, online forum for Business Objects users to share business intelligence strategies, experiences, ideas, and opinions. It’s a great way to find technical answers to your problems, rate the information you see, share thoughts with others, and receive specialized technical information.The Knowledge Base, accessible if you have a valid maintenance contract, is a regularly updated, searchable database containing technical articles and resolutions to customer cases. http://www.techsupport.businessobjects.com/

Send us your feedbackDo you have a suggestion on how we can improve our documentation? Is there something you particularly like or have found useful? Drop us a line, and we will do our best to ensure that your suggestion is included in the next release of our documentation: [email protected]: If your issue concerns a Business Objects product and not the documentation, please contact our Customer Support experts. For information about Customer Support visit: http://www.businessobjects.com/support/.

Customer support, consulting and trainingA global network of Business Objects technology experts provides customer support, education, and consulting to ensure maximum business intelligence benefit to your business.

How can we support you?Business Objects offers customer support plans to best suit the size and requirements of your deployment. We operate customer support centers in the following countries:• USA• Australia


http://www.businessobjects.com/support/


www.businessobjects.com/services/documentation.htm

www.businessobjects.com/services/documentation.htm

Business Objects Information ResourcesCustomer support, consulting and trainingB

• Canada• United Kingdom• Japan

Online Customer SupportThe Business Objects Customer Support web site contains information about Customer Support programs and services. It also has links to a wide range of technical information including knowledge base articles, downloads, and support forums.http://www.businessobjects.com/support/

Looking for the best deployment solution for your company?

Business Objects consultants can accompany you from the initial analysis stage to the delivery of your deployment project. Expertise is available in relational and multidimensional databases, in connectivities, database design tools, customized embedding technology, and more.For more information, contact your local sales office, or contact us at:http://www.businessobjects.com/services/consulting/

Looking for training options?From traditional classroom learning to targeted e-learning seminars, we can offer a training package to suit your learning needs and preferred learning style. Find more information on the Business Objects Education web site:http://www.businessobjects.com/services/training



http://www.businessobjects.com/services/consulting.htm

http://www.businessobjects.com/services/consulting.htm

http://www.businessobjects.com/services/education.htm

http://www.businessobjects.com/services/education.htm

Business Objects Information ResourcesUseful addresses at a glance B

Useful addresses at a glance

Address Content

Business Objects product informationhttp://www.businessobjects.com

Information about the full range of Business Objects products.

Business Objects Documentation Roadmaphttp://support.businessobjects.com/documentation/

Overview of Business Objects documentation.

Product documentationhttp://www.businessobjects.com/support

Business Objects product documentation, including the Business Objects Documentation Roadmap.

Business Objects Documentation [email protected]

Send us feedback or questions about documentation.

Online Customer Supporthttp://www.businessobjects.com/support/

Information on Customer Support programs, as well as links to technical articles, downloads, and online forums.

Business Objects Consulting Serviceshttp://www.businessobjects.com/services/consulting/

Information on how Business Objects can help maximize your business intelligence investment.

Business Objects Education Serviceshttp://www.businessobjects.com/services/training

Information on Business Objects training options and modules.


http://www.businessobjects.com

http://www.businessobjects.com/support

http://www.businessobjects.com/support



http://www.businessobjects.com/services/consulting/

http://www.businessobjects.com/services/consulting/

http://www.businessobjects.com/forms/tipsandtricks_login.asp

http://www.techsupport.businessobjects.com/

http://www.techsupport.businessobjects.com/

http://www.businessobjects.com/services/training

http://www.businessobjects.com/services/training

Business Objects Information ResourcesUseful addresses at a glanceB


Index
Symbols#MULTIVALUE 57
and dimensions in block footers 57and dimensions in block headers 57and dimensions in sections 56and non-aggregative measures 47

AAcross Edge Display setting 30ApplicationValue function 31audit logs

and Sybase databases 16contents 60creating 15creating connection 15setting up 15

Automatic refresh setting 28Avoid Duplicate Row Aggregation property 46

BBlockNumber function 31blocks

Avoid Duplicate Row Aggregation 46filtering 54

border styles 39breaks

folded 30on multiple dimensions 30on objects not in the block 30value-based 30

Business Objectsconsulting services 66, 67support services 66training services 66, 67, 67

Ccalculation engine

differences in behavior 45cell border styles

cell formatborder styles 32

cell formatfill character 31hide cell formula 31

cell formatsconverting styles 39

chartsmultiple groups 32plot area 32rotation, elevation, start angle 32series color 32, 41wall color 32

consultants, Business Objects 66conversion

compared to migration 45defined 6

conversion statuscustomizing with initialization file 7, 25

conversion stepaudit log data 15describing workflows 9

Count() function 51CountAll function 31creating connection

audit log 15crosstabs

Across Edge Display setting 30CurrentPage function 31customer support 66

Ddata providers

OLAP 28personal 28stored procedure 28


Index

universe 28DataProviderType function 31date formats 31Delete Trailing Blanks option 29description

Report Conversion Tool 6Designer

installing 8detail objects 46, 46dimensions

in block headers and footers 57in sections 56placement of 56

Do Not Retrieve Data option 29document properties

Extend Merged Dimension Values 46documentation

feedback on 65on product CD 65on the web 64roadmap 64

Eeducation. See trainingempty values

and Count() function 51different definitions of 51

Enhanced Viewing setting 29Extend merged dimension values property 47extended dimension values 47

Ffeedback, on documentation 65fill character 31filters

block 54complex 29global 29global and block 39indirect 55on blocks 29on formulas 29, 38on measures 39

folded breaks 30

fonts 40changing defaults 40font mapping 33

free-hand SQL 34Fully Converted reports 7functions

ApplicationValue 31BlockNumber 31Count 51CountAll 31, 51CurrentPage 31DataProviderType 31GetProfileNumber 31GetProfileString 31Hyperlink 31Multicube 31OLAPQueryDescription 31PageInSection 31Product 31RunningSum 49

GGetProfileNumber function 31GetProfileString function 31grouped variables 37

Hhidden objects 30Hide Block formula 30hide cell formula 31Hide Section Footer formula 29Hide Section Header formula 29, 29Hyperlink function 31

Iindirect filters 55information resources 63, 64initialization file

editing 26structure 26

installingclient or server 8


Index

Kkeywords

Report 53

Mmeasures

non-aggregative 44migration

compared to conversion 45Multicube function 31

Nnon-aggregative measures 44, 47Not Converted reports 7

OOBJ_G_MIGRATION

audit table descriptions 60OLAP data providers 28OLAPQueryDescription function 31OLE objects 29Online Customer Support 66options

Delete Trailing Blanks 29Do Not Retrieve Data 29

Ppage setup options 30PageInSection function 31Partly Converted reports 7password

protection 33write 33

personal data providers 28pictures 30platforms

Windows only 8pre-requisites

installing Designer 8user settings 8

Product function 31properties

Avoid Duplicate Row Aggregation 46

Extend merged dimension values 47protection password 33

Qquery calculation 28

Rrelative dates 41Report Conversion Tool

overview 6what is it 6

Report keyword 52, 53reports

accessing them for conversion 6resources 63, 64running functions

and sort order 49default reset behavior 49

RunningSum function 49

Sscope of analysis 29sections

and dimensions 56referencing data from 52

select and convert reportsfirst step 9

Select Query Results operand 28setting up

audit log 15sort order

and running functions 49sorts

in queries 29on blocks 32

stored procedure data providers 28support

customer 66locations 65technical 66web site 66


Index

Ttechnical support 66training, on Business Objects products 66

Uuniverse data providers 28user objects 29user settings

pre-prequisites 8

Vvalue-based breaks 30variable description 32variables

grouped 37VBA macros 30view conversion results

conversion workflow 9

Wweb

customer support 66getting documentation via 64useful addresses 67

web sitessupport 66training 66

write password 33