Dashboard Migrations - easy for admin and developers?

[#1]

Hi I've read the SAP wiki on migrating dashboards and am still not sure how to proceed in the most smooth manner.

How to Migrate and Upgrade Dashboards - Business Intelligence (BusinessObjects) - SCN Wiki

You can find my version information in my signature - 3.1 SP3. 

I have two issues

1. Migrating QaaWS:  When migrating the qaaws queries using the import/export wizard, the web service url host is still pointing to our development web service URL.  This causes me to have to edit every query, get the dialog that asks if I'd like to use the new host and then step through the wizard to publish the URL.  This is a lengthy process.  The instructions make it seems as if you are done after running the wizard and no further action is needed.
2. Migrating SWF:  We don't have LCM installed, so I gather we need to use option 1, which is also recommended.  However using a relative path for the URL seems like it will cause problems.  First, the developers will not be able to preview their dashboards - so each time they deploy to development, they need to update every single data connection.  Second, the web service is hosted on a different server than our infoview/boxi web/app server. 

We have a dashboard with about 60 QaaWS queries, so this has become very painful to fix.  Our initial move took several hours, which makes it seem like we are doing something very wrong.

Thanks for any help.

Sam

[Former Member · Accepted solution]

I would suggest you to first open the dashboards in the Xcelsius and then use the relative path for the web service url in the data connections ,export it to platform and then migrate it to whereever you want.In this scenario flash would be migrated.

[Former Member · Accepted solution]

But how can developers continue to develop the dashboards?  Each time they make a change, they will need to update their data source urls to a relative style.  Is this incorrect?

[Former Member · Accepted solution]

Unfortunately there is no easy way out here in BOXI 3.1 .. It has been a pain point in 3.1 dashboard..

The only option which makes life little simpler is to have LCM which unfortunately you do not have yet... Also LCM is not so reliable in 3.1

If possible consider to migrate to 4.0 or 4.1 which will make life much simpler and mainly getting rid of QAAWS with query browser will make things much simpler..

[Former Member · Accepted solution]

Hopefully we can upgrade in the next 1-2 years. 

[Former Member]

Thanks everyone for your answers.  Your helps is very appreciated.

[sapanesh_agnihotri]

Hi Sam,

Did you tried flash player method as well?

Migration of dashboards using Flash Variables

This method requires you to consider the below steps while you are designing the dashboards.

One thing we have recommended with QaaWS in the past is to try to design your dashboard to make it easier to point to a different server.

What you can do is:

1. For each QaaWS Web Service connection, copy the Web Service URL and put it into the spreadsheet using this format:

   =<URL>

   Using the "=" syntax makes it a formula that we can edit later.
2. Bind the Web Service URL to each cell (one per query)
3. In Excel, take the server name from one of the cells and put that in its own cell (e.g., A1)
4. Update each of the URL cells to refer to the cell created in step 3.

   =A1&<rest of the URL here>

5. Define a Flash Variable to pass in the server name
6. Once you publish the SWF to the BI platform, you may change the Flash Variable value for a specific dashboard using the CMC\\\\

Thanks,
Sapanesh

[Former Member]

That option listed LCM as a prerequisite, so I did not consider it.  Do you have experience that it will work using the import wizard?

[Former Member]

Hi Sam,

Please find the below screenshot which says when you migrate using Upgrade Management Tool while migration it will ask you give the target Web application server then it will update the Qwaas.

Regards,

Ambreen

[Former Member]

Hi Sam,

Can you use Upgrade Management Tool from your side.

Please go through the doc below, might help you

How to Upgrade to BI4.0 - Business Intelligence (BusinessObjects) - SCN Wiki

Regards,

Javed

[Former Member]

We are on 3.1 moving from development to production.  Is this to usable in this situation?

[Former Member]

No.. Upgrade management tool will not help as it is meant migration from one version of BOE to another version like from BI 3.1 to 4.0

[amrsalem1983]

Hello Sam,

I had the same issue with my live office dashboards, i had around 70 dashboards migrated from BOXI3.1 to BI4.1 and the URL is fixed everywhere in the dashboards, some of them has many Live office connections.

maybe my case is easier than yours, but also still painful to change each and every URL to match the new server, and again using the relative path wont allow the developers to preview their dashboard or export it to powerpoint when needed.

But unfortunately this is the only solution available, i mean this is the only way to fix such issue, there is no SDK to help in this case that allows you to change the SWF files using java programming.

i Think anyway with time you have to change those dashboards in case you want to mobilize them

Regards

Amr