Before You Begin 2-15
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You can use an icon to denote objects in a logical table that pertain to a specific functional area, or that are sourced from a particular logical table source.
You can only change the icon for individual objects. You cannot globally change the icon for all objects of a particular type.
To change the icon for a particular repository object: 1.
In the Administration Tool, right-click an object in the Physical, Business Model and Mapping, or Presentation layer for example, a particular logical table.
2. Select Set Icon.
3.
In the Select Icon dialog, select the icon you want to use for that object and click OK
.
Sorting Objects in the Administration Tool
Many dialogs in the Administration Tool show lists of objects, such as a list of physical columns in the Physical Table dialog, a list of logical levels for Preferred Drill Path in
the Logical Level dialog, and a list of presentation hierarchies in the Presentation Table dialog.
You can click the header to sort the objects in ascending or descending order. An up arrow or down arrow icon is displayed next to the header name, indicating how the
list has been sorted.
Each list also has a default order that is persisted from session to session. The default order appears when you view a list in a dialog for the first time each session. The
default order is displayed when there is no ascending or descending arrow icon in the header. Click the header three times to toggle between ascending, descending, and
default order. In some cases, the default order is the ascending or descending order.
Some dialogs provide the capability to move items up or down in a list. In these dialogs, if you click Up or Down while the list is sorted in ascending or descending
order, the selected item moves, and the resulting order becomes the new default order. Note that clicking the header eliminates any manually determined order.
About Features and Options for Oracle Marketing Segmentation
Some features and options in the Administration Tool are for use by organizations that have the Oracle Marketing Segmentation product. For information about these
features and options, see Oracle Marketing Segmentation Guide.
Note that additional information about Oracle Marketing Segmentation features is provided in the Presentation Services Help.
About the Oracle BI Server Command-Line Utilities
You can use a variety of command-line utilities with the Oracle BI Server to make programmatic changes to your repository file, run sample queries, delete unwanted
repository objects, and perform other tasks.
Table 2–7 describes the Oracle BI Server command-line utilities.
2-16 Metadata Repository Builders Guide for Oracle Business Intelligence Enterprise Edition
Running bi-init to Launch a Shell Window Initialized to Your Oracle Instance
Before running any of the Oracle BI Server command-line utilities, you must first run bi-init.cmd or bi-init.sh on UNIX to launch a command prompt or shell window that
is initialized to your Oracle instance. You can find this utility in:
ORACLE_INSTANCEbifoundationOracleBIApplicationcoreapplicationsetup Then, run the appropriate command-line tool from the resulting shell window with
the desired options.
Table 2–7 Oracle BI Server Command-Line Utilities
Utility Name Description
Where to Go for More Information
XML utilities biserverxmlgen,
biserverxmlexec, biserverxmlcli
Used to leverage the Oracle BI Server XML API for metadata migration,
programmatic metadata generation and manipulation, metadata patching, and
other functions.
The XML utilities include:
■
biserverxmlgen: generates XML from an existing RPD
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biserverxmlexec: executes the XML in offline mode to create or modify a
repository file
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biserverxmlcli: executes the XML against the Oracle BI Server
About the Oracle BI Server XML API in Oracle Fusion Middleware Integrators
Guide for Oracle Business Intelligence Enterprise Edition
nqcmd Used to run test queries against the
repository. Connects using an Oracle BI Server ODBC DSN.
Testing and Refining the Repository patchrpd
Used to generate and apply an XML patch file. This utility is especially useful for
patching repository files on Linux or UNIX systems.
Using patchrpd to Apply a Patch
extractprojects Used to extract projects from a given
repository. Using the extractprojects Utility to
Extract Projects equalizerpds
Used to equalize objects in two repositories that have the same name, but
different upgrade IDs. Running this utility before merging repositories prevents
unintended renaming during the merge. Equalizing Objects
prunerpd Used to delete unwanted repository
objects from your repository file, such as databases, tables, columns, initialization
blocks, and variables. Deleting Unwanted Objects from the
Repository
validaterpd Used to check the consistency of a
repository. Using the validaterpd Utility to Check
Repository Consistency sametaexport
Used to generate the information necessary for the Oracle Database SQL
Access Advisor or IBM DB2 Cube Views tool to preaggregate relational data and
improve query performance. Exchanging Metadata with Databases
to Enhance Query Performance
Before You Begin 2-17
About Options in Fusion Middleware Control and NQSConfig.INI
Many configuration settings that affect the Administration Tool and repository development are managed in either Fusion Middleware Control, or the
NQSConfig.INI configuration file. Repository developers must be familiar with Fusion Middleware Control and NQSConfig.INI configuration settings to effectively work
with the Administration Tool and with their repositories.
Some of the most common configuration settings that affect repository development include:
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Repository File: This option is set in Fusion Middleware Control. It controls the
current published repository.
■
Disallow RPD Updates: This option is set in Fusion Middleware Control. It
controls whether the Administration Tool opens in read-only mode, in both offline and online mode.
■
LOCALE: This option is set in NQSConfig.INI. It specifies the locale in which data
is returned from the server and determines the localized names of days and months.
■
DATE_TIME_DISPLAY_FORMAT, DATE_DISPLAY_FORMAT, TIME_ DISPLAY_FORMAT:
These options are set in NQSConfig.INI. They control the display of datetime formats.
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DEFAULT_PRIVILEGES: This option is set in NQSConfig.INI. It determines the
default privilege NONE or READ granted to users and application roles for repository objects without explicit permissions set.
See Oracle Fusion Middleware System Administrators Guide for Oracle Business Intelligence Enterprise Edition for full information about Fusion Middleware Control and
NQSConfig.INI configuration settings.
About the SampleApp.rpd Demonstration Repository
Oracle Business Intelligence provides a sample repository called SampleApp.rpd that provides best practices for modeling many different types of objects described in this
guide.
A basic version of SampleApp.rpd, called SampleAppLite.rpd, is automatically installed as the default repository when you choose the Simple Install option.
SampleAppLite.rpd is located in the following directory:
ORACLE_INSTANCE \bifoundation\OracleBIServerComponent\coreapplication_
obisn\repository The full version of SampleApp.rpd contains many additional examples and features.
This version can be found on the Oracle Technology Network at: http:oracle.comtechnetworkmiddlewarebi-foundationobiee-sam
ples-167534.html The default password for SampleAppLite.rpd is Admin123. For security reasons, you
must immediately change this default password the first time you open SampleAppLite.rpd in the Administration Tool. See
Changing the Repository Password
for more information.
2-18 Metadata Repository Builders Guide for Oracle Business Intelligence Enterprise Edition
Using Online and Offline Repository Modes
You can open a repository for editing in either online or offline mode. The tasks you can perform depend on the mode in which you opened the repository.
To open a repository, you must enter the repository password. This password is specific to each repository and is used to encrypt the repository.
This section contains the following topics:
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Opening a Repository in Offline Mode
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Opening a Repository in Online Mode
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Checking Out Objects
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Checking In Changes
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About Read-Only Mode
Opening a Repository in Offline Mode
Use offline mode to view and modify a repository while it is not loaded into the Oracle BI Server. If you attempt to open a repository in offline mode while it is loaded into
the Oracle BI Server, the repository opens in read-only mode. Only one Administration Tool session at a time can edit a repository in offline mode. See
About Read-Only Mode
for more information. You do not need to enter a user name and password to open a repository in offline
mode. You only need to enter the repository password.
To open a repository in offline mode: 1.
In the Administration Tool, select File Open Offline. 2.
Go to the repository you want to open, and then select Open. 3.
In the Open Offline dialog, enter the repository password, and then click OK.
If the server is running and the repository you are trying to open is loaded, the repository opens in read-only mode. If you want to edit the repository while it is
loaded, you must open it in online mode. Also, if you open a repository in offline
Note: The paint repository shipped with previous versions of Oracle
Business Intelligence is also available with this release in the following directory:
ORACLE_ INSTANCE
\bifoundation\OracleBIServerComponent\coreapplication_ obisn\sample\paint
Paint.rpd is not automatically set up as the default repository. In addition, paint.rpd is not optimized for this release of Oracle Business
Intelligence and should not be used as a basis for any repositories in production environments.
Note:
In offline editing, remember to save your repository from time to time. You can save a repository in offline mode even though the
business models might be inconsistent.
Before You Begin 2-19
mode and then start the server, the repository becomes available to users. Any changes you make become available only when the server is restarted.
When you open a repository in the Administration Tool in offline mode, the titlebar displays the name of the open repository.
Opening a Repository in Online Mode
Use online mode to view and modify a repository while it is loaded into the Oracle BI Server. The Oracle BI Server must be running to open a repository in online mode.
There are certain things you can do in online mode that you cannot do in offline mode. In online mode, you can perform the following tasks:
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Manage scheduled jobs
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Manage user sessions
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Manage the query cache
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Manage clustered servers
To open a repository in online mode: 1.
In the Administration Tool, select File Open Online to display the Open Online Repository dialog.
The Oracle BI Server DSNs that have been configured on your computer are displayed in the dialog. If no additional DSNs have been configured for this
version of the Oracle BI Server, you might see only the default DSN that is configured for you during installation.
See Integrating Other Clients with Oracle Business Intelligence in Oracle Fusion Middleware Integrators Guide for Oracle Business Intelligence Enterprise Edition for
information about how to create an ODBC DSN for the Oracle BI Server.
2.
Enter the repository password for the repository currently loaded in the Oracle BI Server.
You can use Repository tab of the Deployment page in Fusion Middleware Control to view the name of the current repository.
3.
Provide a valid user name and password. The user you provide must have the ManageRepositories permission. See Oracle
Fusion Middleware Security Guide for Oracle Business Intelligence Enterprise Edition for more information.
4.
If you expect to work extensively with the repository for example, you plan to check out many objects, select the Load all objects on startup option. This loads
all objects immediately, rather than as selected. The initial connect time might increase slightly, but opening items in the tree and checking out items is faster.
5. Select the appropriate DSN and click OK.