Creating Universes with SAP BusinessObjects

Book description

Create and maintain powerful SAP BusinessObjects Universes with the SAP Information Design Tool

In Detail

Creating a Universe using SAP BusinessObjects is your ultimate guide to mastering the development of BusinessObjects Universes using the SAP Information Design Tool. You will find many hands-on exercises as well as hints and best practices within this guide.

The book starts with an introduction to Business Intelligence and where BusinessObjects Universes fit into the big picture. Then, we will go through the Universe creation process. You will then learn how to create a Data Foundation (physical layer) and how to establish a new relational database and OLAP connection. Following this, you will learn how to create a Business layer. You will also learn how to handle security using user profiles and how to use functions such as @Aggregate_Aware(). This is a must-have book for any SAP BO Universe developer and will act as a reference for beginners and experts alike.

What You Will Learn

  • Leverage SAP BusinessObjects Universes to facilitate your Business Intelligence goals
  • Explore the Information Design Tool, which brings speed and efficiency to reporting
  • Build a robust Data Foundation layer
  • Make a business-oriented Universe
  • Test your Universe and discover issues
  • Use the security profile editor to secure your Universe
  • Develop Universes in a multiuser development environment

Table of contents

  1. Creating Universes with SAP BusinessObjects
    1. Table of Contents
    2. Creating Universes with SAP BusinessObjects
    3. Credits
    4. About the Author
    5. About the Reviewers
    6. www.PacktPub.com
      1. Support files, eBooks, discount offers, and more
        1. Why subscribe?
        2. Free access for Packt account holders
        3. Instant updates on new Packt books
    7. Preface
      1. What this book covers
      2. What you need for this book
      3. Who this book is for
      4. Conventions
      5. Reader feedback
      6. Customer support
        1. Downloading the example code
        2. Errata
        3. Piracy
        4. Questions
    8. 1. Introduction to BI and the Semantic Layer
      1. What is Business Intelligence?
      2. Business Intelligence concepts
        1. The knowledge pyramid
        2. Hindsight, insight, and foresight
        3. BI and DWH
      3. BI reporting tools architecture
        1. The one-tier architecture model
        2. The two-tier architecture model
        3. The three-tier architecture model
      4. What is a semantic layer?
      5. Introduction to Universes and the Information Design Tool
      6. History of SAP Business Objects
      7. Summary
    9. 2. Aligning BI Solutions with Business Demands
      1. Northwind
      2. The BI Maturity Model
      3. Configuring and setting up Northwind's database
        1. Getting the Northwind sample database
        2. Creating the ODBC Connection
      4. The Northwind data model
        1. Dimensional modeling terminologies
        2. Order information
        3. Inventory information
      5. Summary
    10. 3. Creating Our First Universe
      1. Information Design Tool
        1. The main features of the IDT
        2. The Information Design Tool interface
          1. Local Projects
          2. Repository Resources
          3. Security Editor
          4. Project Synchronization
          5. Check Integrity Problems
      2. Creating your first Universe step by step
        1. Creating a new project
        2. Creating a new data connection
        3. Creating a new Data Foundation
        4. Creating a new Business layer
        5. Saving and publishing the NorthWind Universe
      3. Finding help while creating a Universe
        1. The Universe wizard
        2. Cheat Sheets
      4. Summary
    11. 4. Creating the Data Foundation Layer
      1. Working with data connections
        1. The relational connection
        2. The OLAP connection
      2. Building the Data Foundation layer
        1. Types of Data Foundation
          1. Single Source
          2. Multisource-Enabled
        2. Physical tables and views
        3. Alias tables
        4. Derived tables
          1. Using the @Prompt functionality in a derived table
          2. Nested derived tables
          3. List of derived tables
      3. Joining tables
        1. Cardinality
        2. Key types
          1. A primary key
          2. A foreign key
        3. Join types
          1. Equal joins
          2. Theta joins
          3. Outer joins
          4. Self joins
      4. Data Foundation menus and functions
        1. Detecting joins
        2. Detecting cardinalities
        3. Detecting the row count
        4. Refreshing the structure
        5. Managing families
        6. Save the view as an image
        7. The search panel
        8. Auto-arranging tables
      5. Controlling the Data Foundation display
        1. Insert View
        2. Data Foundation visualization
      6. Data Foundation object manipulation
        1. Insertion
        2. Table manipulation
          1. Add to View
          2. Edit
          3. Merge
          4. Delimit
          5. Set Case To
          6. Replace by
          7. Detect
          8. Change Qualifier/Owner
        3. The table's values and display
          1. Count Rows
          2. Show Table Values
          3. Select Related Tables
          4. Highlight Related Tables
          5. Display
          6. Centre on Selection
          7. Show Local Dependencies
          8. Highlight Aliases
        4. The table's basic functions
      7. Summary
    12. 5. Creating the Business Layer
      1. Gathering requirements
      2. The Business layer's main window
        1. The left panel
        2. The Properties panel
        3. The Data Foundation panel
      3. Business Layer
        1. Managing Business layer views
        2. Showing/hiding the search panel
        3. Expand and collapse all
        4. Display Options
        5. Inserting objects
      4. Business objects
        1. Folders
        2. Dimensions
          1. Main properties
          2. SQL Definition
            1. The Select property
            2. The Where property
            3. The Extra Tables property
          3. Keys
          4. Controlling advanced properties
            1. Access Level
            2. Objects can be used in
            3. Database Format
            4. List of Values
            5. Display
          5. Source Information
          6. Custom Properties
        3. Attributes
        4. Measures
          1. Difference between the database and projection functions
        5. Filters
          1. How to create a filter
          2. Filter properties
      5. Summary
    13. 6. Testing Your Universe
      1. The Universe development life cycle
        1. Initiation
        2. Planning and design
        3. Implementation and development
        4. Quality assurance and testing
          1. SIT
          2. UAT
        5. Closing
      2. Using the Check Integrity wizard
      3. Queries in the Business layer
      4. Summary
    14. 7. The Data Foundation Layer – Advanced Topics
      1. Design concepts
        1. Information systems
          1. Online transactional processing
          2. Online analytical processing
        2. The DWH schema types
          1. The snowflake schema
          2. The star schema
          3. The relational model
      2. Advanced design techniques of Data Foundation
        1. Alias tables
        2. Context
        3. The shortcut join
        4. Advanced Data Foundation properties
          1. Description
          2. SQL Options
          3. Summary
          4. Parameters
      3. SQL design traps
        1. The fan trap
          1. Solving a fan trap
        2. The chasm trap
          1. Solving the chasm trap using context
          2. Solving the chasm trap using an alias table
        3. Loop
          1. Fixing the loop using the shortcut join
          2. Fixing the loop using context
          3. Fixing the loop using an alias table
      4. Summary
    15. 8. The Business Layer – Advanced Topics
      1. List of values
        1. List of values based on a dimension object
          1. List of values based on the query panel
          2. List of values based on a custom hierarchy
        2. Static list of values
        3. List of values based on custom SQL
      2. Navigation paths
        1. The default navigation path
        2. The custom navigation path
      3. Index awareness
        1. Primary keys
        2. Foreign keys
      4. Aggregate awareness
        1. Inserting aggregated tables
        2. Defining the aggregated objects
        3. Detecting the aggregation navigation
      5. Common business objects' specific functions
        1. @Aggregate_Aware()
        2. @DerivedTable()
        3. @Prompt()
        4. @Select()
        5. @Variable()
        6. @Where()
      6. Multilingual Universes
      7. Advanced Business layer properties
        1. Description
        2. Summary
        3. Change Data Foundation
        4. Parameters
      8. Summary
    16. 9. Data Security and Profiles
      1. Understanding the security model
      2. Working with the Security Editor
        1. Universes / Profiles
        2. Users / Groups
      3. Understanding Data Security Profiles
        1. Connections
        2. Controls
        3. SQL
        4. Rows
        5. Tables
      4. Understanding Business Security Profiles
        1. Create Query
        2. Display Data restriction
        3. Filters
      5. The security matrix
      6. Summary
    17. 10. A Multiuser Development Environment
      1. Working with projects
        1. Local projects
          1. Creating a local project
          2. Opening a local project
          3. Deleting a local project
        2. Shared projects
          1. Creating a shared project
          2. Renaming and deleting a shared project
          3. Synchronizing projects
      2. Promotion and the life cycle management console
        1. Promoting a Universe from one environment to another
        2. Promoting NorthWind using the LCMBIAR file
        3. Promoting NorthWind using the Live to Live method
      3. The Upgrade Management Tool
      4. Converting UNV to the new Universe UNX extension
      5. Summary
    18. Index

Product information

  • Title: Creating Universes with SAP BusinessObjects
  • Author(s): Taha M. Mahmoud
  • Release date: September 2014
  • Publisher(s): Packt Publishing
  • ISBN: 9781782170907