SAP Integration Update Part 5 – Web Intelligence 4.0 connecting to BEx Queries
In the previous four updates we looked at how Crystal Reports for Enterprise 4.0 is able to leverage BEx queries from your SAP NetWeaver BW system and is able to provide hierarchical reports and reports with custom structures.
Now lets take a look at how SAP BusinessObjects Web Intelligence 4.0 is able to leverage such BEx queries with hierarchies and custom structures.
After we created the OLAP Connection as part of our SAP BusinessObjects Enterprise environment – which is identical to the connection for Crystal Reports for Enterprise 4.0 – we can start our new Web Intelligence report and we are being asked what kind of data source we would like to leverage.
The option BEx allows us to connect directly to BEx queries inside the SAP NetWeaver BW system without the need to create – actually author – a Universe.
Web Intelligence 4.0 is able to leverage a connection based on an InfoProvider and shows then all BEx queries for this InfoProvider…
….or the user can leverage a connection pointing to one particular BEx query.
After we selected our BEx query we are presented with the Web Intelligence query panel and the meta-data provided by SAP NetWeaver BW.
All Key Figures are presented with the Unit and the Formatted Value…
… and characteristics are presented with all available information.
In the example above we can see characteristic Product with Display Attributes such as Product Group, with several hierarchies such as Product Hierarchy 1 and 2, and with the short and medium text and the key.
Now for our report we are using the characteristic hierarchy Country Hierarchy 1 from the charactersitic Country and the key figure Net Value.
In the query panel we can then open the member selector for the Country Hierarchy 1 and are presented with a real hierarchical member list and are also able to leverage multi-dimensional concepts like children and descendants for our member selection.
In the report we can then leverage the hierarchy and open / close levels.
In addition we are able to leverage the hierarchy also for sections, which then allows us to have report elements like a table or a chart in each of the hierarchical elements – like World and Europe.
SAP BusinessObjects Web Intelligence 4.0 now allows you also to leverage the hierarchies as part of your charts, but you will notice that when dragging and dropping your chart onto a chart that it might look first like the image shown below.
Charts in Web Intelligence 4.0 do not provide you a hierarchical drill down and therfore you need to define – before creating the chart – which elements of the hierarchy should be shown. The easies way to create a hierarchical chart is to create the table first….
… expand the table to the level you would like to see in the chart…
… and then use the menu Turn into…
… and turn you hierarchical table into a hierarchical chart.
I hope everyone enjoys the journey on understanding how SAP BusinessObjects 4.0 integrated with your SAP landscape.
In case you are more a “visual” person you can also follow me on iTunes here.
Do you know what would be release date of XI 4.0 ? We are looking to implement it at client site and could not find any official document conforming date. I can see the release note not getting mix messages from different people ? Is it still on Ramp-up process ?
Thanks
currently the 4.0 Suite is in RampUp. The planned release to all customers is planned for Q2 2011.
regards
Ingo Hilgefort
Tammy
What's about the BW hierarchies in Data Federator R4 , actually dosen't work in R3 .
Thanks a lot Ingo
Knd Rgds
I read through the supported platform's documentation but it didn't specify what patch level BW should be at for BI 4.0.
The information that I did find was from your presentation regarding SAP Integration with BI4.0 to require BW 7.0 with SP24+, is this correct?
Also what kind of support will BI4.0 have with BW 7.3?
Regards,
Nick
It is always a pleasure to follow your blogs.
A question: are also virtual time hierarchies supported in BI 4.0?
Thanks,
Inigo Montoya
If I get it right, we will have to create an OLAP connection per BW cube we want to create BO reports on that uses BEx queries as a source? Is it not possible to create one connection towards the BW system and then have all queries available or is this planned for a future release?
Thanks,
Tom
Crystal Reports for Enterprise and Web Intelligence allow you to select a BEx Query from a list when you configure the connection in the Central Management Console to point to the InfoProvider.
Analysis, OLAP Edition and uses the connection against the BEx Query.
Analysis, edition for Microsoft Office is giving you the typical SAP dialog and you can select the query - like BEx Analyzer does today.
hope this helps
ingo
>when you configure the connection in the Central
>Management Console to point to the InfoProvider
Could you explain this steps more closely?
Thank you in advance.
Regards,
Masatoshi
take a look here:
SAP Integration Update Part 1 - Crystal Reports for Enterprise and SAP NetWeaver BW
Ingo
Thank you for giving the link.
I could confirm it is necessary to prepare
OLAP connection at the beginning
for creating WebI report based on BW data
as was expected.
Regards,
Masatoshi
Thanks for the input!
Just have two more questions:
- in the configuration of the OLAP connection in the CMC, I see the 'save language' checkbox. If we don't check this box and log on with anonther language, does this mean then all objects will get the other language from the infoobject descriptions and the language dependant texts as well? (whereas in 3.1 we needed a universe per language?)
- in terms of transport of the OLAP connection, can we just redirect to a different system (quality / production) and will everything just keep on working after transport? I didn't immediately find something in the Lifecycle Manager user guide.
Thanks a lot and happy easter!
Tom
if you do not save the language then the language in the user profile will decide on the language of the meta-data, assuming there is multi-language meta-data in the BW system or you translated the Universe.
for transporting there is the Lifecycle Manager.
ingo
I have 2 questions about that (I'm working on a SAP BI4.0 (SP2) WebIntelligence report based on a BEx Query).
My first BEX query has got a hierarchy characteristic, with for example 6 levels in the hierarchy.
For reasons of performance, we display only the 2 first levels of the hierarchy, but I want to be able to drill in other levels of the hierarchy if needed, I expected then that the webi report request additional data to BW as in BEX.
Do you know how to do this?
On my second BEX query, I have 2 characteristics (char1, char2) and 1 key figure.
In my WebIntelligence report, I display only char1 and the key figure, and I want to be able to drill down to the Char2 values corresponding to the char1 values when I click on it.
It corresponds to the 'custom hierarchy' we can define in the universe designer, but as my report is based on a Bex Query, I don't have anymore a universe...
Is it possible to do that when working on a Webintelligence report based on a bex Query ?
Thanks
CL
in case you want to be able to drill you need to select all members of the hierarchy in the query panel before going to the actual report then you can design the report and you are able to drill.
On the second part it is the same "design" here. You include the items into the result objects from the query panel. then you design the report. also make sure you use the query stripping which is a property in the query panel and in the report.
Ingo
If I want to use a BW hierarchy in WEBI report, Do I always have to use a Bex query as data source?
thanks!
yes - the BEx query is your entry point to SAP BW
ingo
We have recently installed Business Objects 4.0.2 and have some questions about Webi 4.0 and reports based on SAP BW via BICS connection.
1. Is there a way to display the key of hierarchy in WEBI 4.0. Currently I only see the text for Cost centres.
Is there a settting that we need to change to control the display Key/Text.
2. Also Can we control the hierarchy level that we want to display.
Currently I do not see any control, It just displays the entire hierarchy.
What if my users do not want my users to see the details of the lower nodes of hierarchy.
Thanks
Suman
on item #1 are you referring to a custom structure using keyfigures with a hierarchical structure ? If so - that is only supported in Analysis, edition for Microsoft Office and Analysis, edition for OLAP.
on item#2 : So far Web Intelligence can only select the members and leafs of a hierarchy but not based on levels. a Level based selection is planned for Feature Pack 03.
Ingo
Item 1 - It is not a keyfigure based hiererachy. It is a Cost Center Hierarchy. It has a Key and a text value like any attribute. Currently it shows the Text of the Hierarchy like "Parks department", "Engineering dept" and so on. But each Cost center also has a key it is associated with. In WEBI 3.0 we were able to select the key and medium name, But in this new version, by default it displays only the medium name but not the key.
Item 2 - what is the difference between leaf and node. Currently it brings entire hierarchy. Some one on the forum said that we could use "Scope of Analysis" button on query panel to select the level we want to display for hierarchy. Interestungly in my WEBI tool, Scope of Analysis button is disabled. Any ideas please?
Thanks very much for your time
Suman
I am always very interested in your posts on the integration of the SAP BO suite into the SAP BW world.
In SAP BO 4.0 Web Intelligence there is an option to enable query stripping on the WebI query level and as a document property. I was not able to find out what the difference is between these two options.
Best reagards and thanks in advance for a short notice.
Francis Fink
Hi Ingo,
How do we extract the SQL/MDX that is generated for a Webi report when built this way (I mean by using BICS). I know in 3.1 version we used to get it from the BAPI's in BW. Similiraly how can we do it in 4.0. Need this to troubleshoot performance.
Thanks,
Prashanth
Hi,
there is no MDX statement when using the direct BICS connectivity
ingo