Sapfox blog: Creating Business Layer (Universe) using Information Design Tool and optimize in SAP BO Web Intelligence

In this document, I will explain creating connection to HANA cube, publishing connection to SAP BO Repository, Data foundation, Business Layer and shortly, overview on SAP Web Intelligence 4.0.
The information design tool is an SAP BusinessObjects metadata design environment that enables a designer to extract, define, and manipulate metadata from relational and OLAP sources to create and deploy SAP BusinessObjects universes.

A universe is an organized collection of metadata objects that enable business users to analyze and report on corporate data in a non-technical language.

Universes enable the business users too freely and securely access, analyze, enrich and share information using familiar business terms.
Universes do not store data from HANA or add any performance overhead. Universes are just like any other client tool using SQL to access HANA and the latest data from HANA is sent to client tool on query refresh.

Procedure for creating Business layer (Universe)

1. Go to Start -> Programs -> SAP BusinessObjects 4 -> Sap BusinessObjects BI platform Client tools -> Information Design Tool

2. Create a New project. Select on File -> New -> Project (Project can be shared for collaborative shared universe).

3. Name the project and specify the location of project.

And select on Finish.

4. Right click on newly created project and select New -> Relational Connection.

5. Name the connection and Click on Next.

6. As database driver, select “SAP -> SAP High-Performance Analytic Appliance (SAP HANA) 1.0 -> JDBC Drivers” Click Next.

7. Keep the Authentication Mode set to “Use specified username and password”
Enter your HANA username (SULABH_USER) and your password (xxxxxxx)
Enter the server connection -> hostname:<port number>

Test the connection, if the connection test is successful, click “Next”

8. Click on Finish.

9. From the project folder, select the connection you just created. Right-click and select “Publish
Connection to a Repository

10. Log on to the BI 4 using the connection information provided by the instructor System: <hostname>:<port number>, Username: Administrator, Password: xxxxx, Authentication: Enterprise and Click on “Connect”

11. Select the repository folder where you want to publish the connection. Click on Next

12. Click on Yes and close

JDBC Connection is now defined on the BI 4.0 system and available to BI front end tools like SAP BusinessObjects Explorer.

13. Create a new data foundation within your project. Name the data foundation.

14. Select single source.

15. Select the secured connection you have previously created. It should have a file extension .cns and Click “Finish”

16. Expand the “_SYS_BIC”, and select “Sulabh/EFASHION_ANVIEW/OLAP”, double click on it. This analytic view will be added in the right panel. Save it.

This analytic view will be added in the right panel. Save it

17. Now, you should be able to see the data foundation we just created (i.e. SFLGHT_FOUN.dfx). Right click on the “SapFoxTest_HANA” project again to create the Business Layer.

18. Select the type of data source for the business layer as “Relational Data Foundation”. Click on Next.

19. Enter the name of business layer. Click on Next

20. Choose the data foundation we just created in the previous steps. Use the button to select the data foundation. Click on Finish. Now, the business layer is created

21. Now, the new business layer is created successfully. Before we publish it, we need to do one more thing. Expand the “Sulabh Efashion Anview OLAP”, Select the “Margin”. Right now, it shows as an attribute. We need to define an aggregation function for this field to make it to be a measure.

22. Right click on Margin, and choose “Turn into Measure with Aggregation Function/Sum” in the content menu.

Now, the icon of the Margin filed becomes the measure’s icon.

23. Right click on the business layer we just created and publish it to a repository by selecting “Publish/To a Repository…”

24. IDT shows the wizard and ask you to check the universe integrity. The “Check Integrity” button helps you checking the model. Click on “Next”. Now, the wizard asks for the location in the BOE server to store the business layer file. I saved HANA_SFLHIT.blx under folder SULABH_TEST_Unv in SAP BOBI 4.0 CMC. Click on Finish

25. The message dialog: “Universe published successfully” tells the universe is successfully published. Click on close.

Web Intelligence

Web Intelligence is used to generate interactive reports for data analysis, information discovery and Ad hoc reporting. Web Intelligence performs Querying, Reporting, Analyzing and Sharing information.

1. Go to Start -> Programs -> SAP BusinessObjects 4 -> Sap BusinessObjects BI platform Client tools -> double click on Web Intelligence Rich Client

2. Select on data source -> Universe (i.e. HANA_SFLIGHT)

3. Enter your User Identification to logon to SAP Business Objects Web Intelligence
System: xxxxx(host):xxxx(port)
User name: Administrator
Password: xxxxx
Authencation: Enterprise

4. The editor opens to Query Panel, You can view data source i.e. HANA_SFLIGHT universe. Select your objects to display in report. (In this scenario I want to analysis Family Name, Category, City, Fiscal period, QTR. Margin, Amount Sold, Quantity Sold, and Sales Revenue from HANA_SFLGHT universe). So I added Attribute and Measures to result objects. Now , I run the query, the report looks like below: