A Proven Migration Method for Cognos Planning

1

1252 - A Proven Migration Method for Cognos Planning

Anthony D’UgoDeloitte

Johnathan HodgeCognos

Agenda

Migration Method for Cognos Planning

The environment and the migration cycle

The process and the priorities

The Cognos 8 Planning 8.2 Deployment Wizard

What’s new in 8.2 to help this process?

What does migration look like with Planning 8.2?

2

Where do I find more information?

http://support.cognos.com/supported/tti/public/

1. Category: Upgrade and Migration2. Area: Performance Management3. Document: Migrating between Environments in

Cognos Planning Proven Practice

Cognos Proven Practices Document

Check periodically for updates

http://support.cognos.com/supported/supportlink/techniques/ta_0609_03.html

Supportlink Article

Cognos 8 Planning: Migrating Applications between Test and Live Environments

Planning Server Infrastructure

How does your organization’s Planning Server Infrastructure look like?

Development/Test/QA

Production/Live

Development/Test

Production/Live

QA

3

Understanding Environment Activities

Prepare Models for Production/Live

Testing

Validation and Acceptance

New Model Development

Contributor End-user Input

Operational Processing

Development/Test/QA

Production/Live

Planning Environment Migration Cycle

In Production/LiveCollecting

End-user Data

Changes to Production/Live

First-time Migration to Production/Live

Preparationof ExistingModels inDevelopment

/Test/QA

New ModelDevelopment

4



End-user Data




/Test/QA


Change Control

Record, review, and approve proposed changes

Define timing of changes

Coordination of resources to support approved changes

Batching of approved changes into a release numbers for tracking

Testing and acceptance

Log information related to release number:

Back-out plan to reverse changes

Acceptance and migration to production details

Update technical and end-user documentation

Communication of changes

Deliver net new training to end-users

Go ahead, make more

changes

5



End-user Data

Changes toProduction/Live



/Test/QA


Analyst Libraries

Contributor Datastore

Publish Container

LAE

AccessManager

Planning AdministrationDomain (PAD)

ContributorMacros

Admin Links

First-time Migration to Production

Dev

elo

pm

ent

/ QA

/ T

est

En

viro

nm

ent

Pro

du

ction

/ Live E

nviro

nm

ent

Multiple instances of Access Manager (Optional) Shared instance of Access Manager (Not Required)


Admin Links

Publish Container

Analyst Libraries

LAE

AccessManager

Planning AdministrationDomain (PAD)

ContributorMacros

A>C / C>A D-Links part of solution (Required) Contributor-only models (Optional) Analyst-only model (ends here)

Import/Upgrade method, or Backup/Restore method Depends on connectivity between environments

Not migrated

Not migrated

Only if part of the solution architecture

6



End-user Data




/Test/QA


Changes to Production

Structural

Changes

Only

Update Cube

Data and All

Other Changes

Underlying Analyst Model Access Tables and Saved

Selections e.List, Users and Rights Web-Client Configuration

Update Cube Data Structural Changes System Links etc…

The goal is to balance the quality and integrity of the Contributor applications while minimizing downtime for Contributor end-users

7

Model Administrator

Dev

elo

pm

ent

/ QA

/ T

est

En

viro

nm

ent P

rod

uctio

n / L

ive En

viron

men

t

Structural Changes Only


Application XML

Analyst Libraries

ContributorMacros

Admin Links

LAE

AccessManager

Reverse migrate Test and validate Contributor Application online

Application XML method Pre-tested and validated

structural changes Contributor Application offline

Other items migrated only if requiredContributor

Application

Online

Offline

Model Administrator

Update Cube Data and All Other Changes

Dev

/QA

/Tes

t E

nvi

ron

men

t

Pro

du

ction

/ Live E

nviro

nm

ent

Reverse migrate Application XML exported, pre-

tested and validated structural changes

Contributor Application online

Second reverse migrate, with Contributor Application offline

Pre-tested and validated cube data and structural changes loaded

Other items migrated only if required

Application XML

Cube Data




Analyst Libraries

ContributorMacros

Admin Links

LAE

AccessManager

Forward migrate

ContributorApplication

Online

Offline

8

Agenda

Migration Method for Cognos Planning

The environment and the migration cycle

The process and the priorities

The Cognos 8 Planning 8.2 Deployment Wizard

What’s new in 8.2 to help this process?

What does migration look like with Planning 8.2?

Cognos 8 Planning 8.2

Planning on the Cognos 8 Platform

Attach Documents

Copy Commentary

Validations

Cognos Packages as a data source for Planning

Improved access to SAP BW

Deployment Wizard

9

Cognos 8 Planning 8.2: Deployment Wizard

Environment Migration

Customer to Cognos Customer Support

Deploying Blueprints

Remapping & moving between

Namespaces

DB platforms

Copying

Backup

Cognos 8 Planning 8.2: Deployment Wizard

Move Model OR Model and Data

Planning Deployment Package

PAD Objects – Macros & Links

Analyst Libraries

Contributor Applications

Security mapping from source

to target

10

Deployment Wizard: Model Only

Macros

Links

PAD Objects

Analyst

Libraries

Contributor

DevelopmentZone

ProductionZone

EXPORTING

Macros

Links

PAD Objects

Analyst

Libraries

Contributor

IMPORTING

Extension Info (incl. system links)

DevelopmentZone

ProductionZone


Deployment Wizard: Model and Data

Macros

Links

PAD Objects

Analyst

Libraries

Contributor

DevelopmentZone

ProductionZone

EXPORTING

Macros

Links

PAD Objects

Analyst

Libraries

Contributor

IMPORTING


DevelopmentZone

ProductionZone


11

Summary

Cognos 8 Planning 8.2 is automating many of the manual steps required with pre-8.2 Planning

There is no substitute for good change control: the process itself remains broadly the same with 8.2

Cognos Proven Practices Document: http://support.cognos.com/supported/tti/public/

Come and see us for more information at the Deloitte and Cognos Planning stands

A Proven Migration Method for Cognos Planning

Dear Cognos Finance Forum Attendee, Thank you for your interest in this document, A Proven Migration Method for Cognos Planning, prepared by Anthony D’Ugo, Senior Manager in Deloitte’s Performance Management practice. For your benefit, this document contains an excerpt from the most recent version of the Proven Practice document, Migrating from Development to Production Environments for Cognos Planning. The full document will be available in the near future and replace the exiting version on the Cognos Proven Practices website, so check periodically for updates. This document is just a small example of the comprehensive value and quality we deliver to our clients. We hope you find this document useful to your organization. We look forward to answering any questions you may have with respects to the subject of this document or other topics. Best regards,

Deloitte: Cognos Global Systems Integrator

Deloitte has over 10 years of experience delivering Cognos implementation and support services. As a certified Cognos Platinum Partner, Deloitte has successfully implemented Cognos Planning, Cognos 8 BI, Cognos Controller and Cognos Finance in over 150 instances. In

2004, Cognos recognized Deloitte with the Global Systems Integrator award. Deloitte is the only global professional services firm to win this distinction for our integrated Cognos technical solution, project management and process consulting capabilities.

Deloitte Inc.79 Wellington Street WestSuite 1900P.O. Box 29, TD CentreToronto ON M5K 1B9Canada

Anhony D’Ugo, CGASenior Manager Direct: (416) 643-8979

Cell: (416) 948-7049Fax: (416) [email protected]

Member ofDeloitte Touche Tohmatsu













The following is an excerpt from the current version of the Proven Practice document, Migrating from Development to Production Environments, for

Cognos Planning. The document is currently in the process of being updated with the most current tried, tested, and proven content.

http://support.cognos.com/supported/tti/public/

1. Category: Upgrade and Migration 2. Area: Performance Management 3. Item: Migrating between Environments in Cognos

Planning Proven Practice

Check periodically for updates

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Table of Contents

Scope and Overview.............................................................................................................. 3

Document Overview ................................................................................................3 Server Environment Migration Approach ....................................................................3

First-time Migration to Production ......................................................................................... 4

Changes to Production ............................................................................................................ 6

Structural Changes Only..................................................................................................... 6

Update Cube Data and All Other Changes ......................................................................... 8 Access Manager Considerations ..............................................................................10

First-time Migration to Production ...................................................................................... 11

Process Flow ........................................................................................................11 Backup Analyst Library in Development ...................................................................11 Copy Analyst Libraries to Production........................................................................12 Export the Admin Links from Development...............................................................12 Export Contributor Macros from Development ..........................................................13 Connectivity Between Environments? ......................................................................14 Set the Development Application Offline ..................................................................15 Remove Development Application from PAD .............................................................16 Backup the Development and Production Application Datastore ..................................17 Add Application Back to PAD in Development............................................................17 Restore the Development Backup to Production ........................................................18 Add Application to PAD in Production.......................................................................19 Add to Monitored Applications to Job Server(s) in Production......................................19 Note the Application Information in Development......................................................21 “Import/Upgrade Application” from Development to Production ..................................22 Multiple Instances of Access Manager? ....................................................................24 Validate Access Manager Certificate in Production .....................................................25 Manual Update of Production Access Manager Instance? ............................................25 Validate User Classes in Production .........................................................................25 Re-import Rights File in Production .........................................................................27 Reselect User Classes for Client Extensions in Production...........................................28 GTP the Application in Production............................................................................29 Validate System Links in Production ........................................................................29 Update Publish Container and Settings in Production .................................................30 Delete Any Links with the Same Name in Production .................................................31 Import Admin Links to Production ...........................................................................32 Validate Admin Links in Production..........................................................................33 Import Contributor Macros to Production .................................................................33 Set Production Application Online............................................................................33 Set the Development Application Online ..................................................................34

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Scope and Overview

Document Overview This document outlines proven practices in server environment migration to support a Cognos Planning (CP) system. The goal is to balance the quality and integrity of the Contributor Applications while minimizing downtime for Contributor end-users. There are several options available within, and external to, the CP software that may provide the same or similar outcomes. This document was developed based on proven methods at multiple client sites. Where possible, the CP functionality is utilized to enable tasks. Every effort has been made to consider various server environment configurations and IT policies and incorporate general server environment migration procedural best practices. It is recommended that the procedures contained in this document be applied to Cognos Planning versions 7.3 SP3, 7.3 MR1, and 8.1. This document focus on migrating objects specific to Cognos Planning only and not any Business Intelligence relate objects. Note, for the purposes of this document the terms development and production refer to the server environments and not to the items in the administration tree of the Contributor Administration Console.

Server Environment Migration Approach The server environment migration process is designed to ensure proper transitions between Development and Production Server Environments. The process involves strategically taking applications offline in Production, timely backups, reconciliation of data, and validation of changes. A clear distinction is made between first-time migration to Production and changes to Production during a planning cycle. The processes are distinguished because we do not need to be concerned with contributor end-user input data when applying a first time promotion at the beginning of the planning cycle. This approach is based on the concept that the development environment is the master copy of the applications and the models are prepared, primed, and validated for use in the production environment.

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At the beginning of the planning cycle, the entire Contributor Datastore will be migrated to the Production Server Environment. The Contributor Application will be prepared and verified in the Development Server Environment before the migration to Production. The diagram below illustrates the movement of objects between sever environments for the First-time Migration to Production process:

Development Production

Analyst

Libraries

Contributor

Datastore

Publish Container

Contributor

Datastore

Admin Links

Publish Container

Migrate

Migrate

Migrate

Analyst

LibrariesMigrate

LAE

Access

Manager

LAE

Access

Manager

Migrate

Planning

Administration

Domain (PAD)

Planning

Administration

Domain (PAD)

Contributor

MacrosContributor

Macros

Admin Links


See section Access Manager Considerations for details on migrating the Local Authentication Export (LAE) file from Access Manager. Analyst Libraries will only require migration if they are an integral part of the planning model solution. If there are A>C or C>A D-Links which are part of the model design and solution, the Analyst Libraries will need to be migrated to

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production. If the CP model is a Contributor-only application, the migration of the Analyst Library is optional. With the migration approach outlined in this document, the development environment becomes the master version of the solution models. It is good practice to backup Analyst Libraries before any changes are made using a simple tool such as WinZip to compress the underlying file folders. Ensure Analyst is closed and no users are locking objects in Analyst before executing the back-up. When the Contributor datastore is migrated, all content within the contributor application will be promoted. This includes, model structures and data as well as all configurations and items viewable within the Cognos Enterprise Planning – Contributor Administration Console (CAC) for the contributor application. If connectivity is permitted between the server environments, the Import/Upgrade method may be used to migrate the datastore. Otherwise the Backup/Restore method may be used. These methods will be discussed in more detail later in this document. It is not necessary to promote the Publish Container datastores, as they only include snapshots of the planning data at a point in time for reporting or transfer to a datamart or warehouse. The Publish Container can easily be created in the production environment if required. The structures within the Publish Containers are synchronized when the publish process is executed. It is not advisable to promote the Planning Administration Domain (PAD) datastores (live and common) because they contain the internal database connection strings unique to the environment. Also, the Contributor application set for development and production are often different. It is recommended that development and production environments each have separate PAD instances. The Administration Links and Contributor Macros will need to be migrated separately because they are situated at the PAD level and the PAD datastores are not migrated. The Contributor Access Rights at the PAD level cannot be exported. Therefore they will need to be manually maintained in the Development and Production Server Environments.

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Changes to Production

Once the Contributor application is successfully promoted to the production environment at the start of the planning cycle, and users have started inputting planning data, any subsequent changes which many need to be applied to production require a separate process. The processes are delineated because we do not need to be concerned with contributor end-user input data when migrating for the first time to production at the beginning of the planning cycle. There are two paths which may be followed:

• Structural changes only • Update cube data and all other changes

Structural Changes Only

Structural changes are more specifically changes to:

• Underlying Analyst Model (Libraries) • Access Tables/Saved Selections • e.List, Users and Rights • Web-Client Configuration

The below diagram illustrates the movement of objects between sever environments for the Changes to Production – Structural Changes Only process.

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Analyst Library


Contributor

DatastoreContributor

Datastore

Reverse Migrate

Application XML

Migrate

Application XML

Analyst

Librararies

Publish Container

Admin Links

Publish Container

Migrate

Migrate

Analyst

LibrariesMigrate

LAE

Access

Manager

LAE

Access

Manager

Migrate

Planning

Administration

Domain (PAD)

Planning

Administration

Domain (PAD)

Contributor

MacrosContributor

Macros

Admin Links

Changes to Production - Structural Changes Only

The production Contributor Datastore is reverse migrated from production to the development environment. This allows changes to be applied, tested and validated against the user input data. Process tasks will require verification that user input data (as well as other data) will not be lost as a result of the changes. When reverse migrating the Contributor Datastore, the same tasks need to be performed as when forward migrating. This is necessary to make the application, which is reverse migrated, functional in the development environment. Once changes are applied, tested and verified, the Application XML will be exported from the development environment and imported into the production environment. This process is not destructive to production data. Note that SP3 has a known issue when a new cube is introduced via the Application XML. The required import tables corresponding to the new cube are not created, which causes conflicts in the CAC. MR1 has addressed this issue. If SP3 is in use and new cubes needs to be introduced to the production applications, then the

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Analyst Libraries may be migrated and synchronized to workaround the problem until the software is upgraded to MR1 or 8.1. When using the Application XML method of promoting changes to production, most (but not all) items within the “Development” section of the administration tree in CAC are migrated. All items in the “Production” section are not migrated and need to be manually updated if changes need to be applied. These include changes to the Publish Container, System Links, and Client Extensions. Changes to Admin Links and Contributor Macros will only need to be re-migrated if required.

Update Cube Data and All Other Changes

While a Contributor application is in production collecting data from users, it may be necessary to update the cube data in the application. This may be required to support your organization’s planning process. For example, the most current period actual data may not be available because of differences in timing between your financial close process and your planning process. Actual data may need to be updated in your Contributor application while in production. It is recommended to take the Contributor application offline during this process to preserve unsaved user input data. Otherwise, users that have open e.List items and are actively editing data while changes are being applied may be prompted for a restructure before data can be saved or forced to reload the e.List item depending on the type of change applied. Best to avoid this end-user confusion and take the application offline before applying changes to production. The below diagram illustrates the movement of objects between sever environments for the Changes to Production – Update Cube Data and All Other Changes process:

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Analyst Library


Contributor

DatastoreContributor

Datastore

Reverse Migrate

Analyst

Librararies

Contributor

Datastore

Publish Container

Contributor

Datastore

Admin Links

Publish Container

Migrate

Migrate

Migrate

Analyst

LibrariesMigrate

LAE

Access

Manager

LAE

Access

Manager

Migrate

Planning

Administration

Domain (PAD)

Planning

Administration

Domain (PAD)

Contributor

MacrosContributor

Macros

Admin Links

Changes to Production - Update Cube Data and All Other

Changes

The production Contributor Datastore is reverse migrated from production to the development environment similar to the Changes to Production – Structural Changes Only process. Again, this allows changes to be applied, tested and validated against the user input data. In the interest of minimizing the downtime of the application for the Contributor end-users, only after the changes have been tested and validate will the system be taken offline. This is to preserve the end-user input data and ensure it is not changing during the update process. Once offline, the Contributor Datastore is reverse migrated a second time. Pre-tested and validated changes are then applied (via application XML, import data files, etc) and the Contributor Datastore is then forward migrated to production. Changes to Admin Links and Contributor Macros will only need to be re-migrated if required.

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Access Manager Considerations For ease of maintenance, a single shared instance of Access Manager is recommended between server environments. Be aware that with this structure, you may need to consider a solution to prevent production end-users from accessing the development/QA Contributor applications. One option is to add an additional layer of IIS security to prevent users from accessing the Contributor applications in the development environment. With separate instances of Access Manager for each environment, you will need to consider how the instances will be synchronized. The LAE file may be exported from the development/QA instance and imported into the production instance. If this approach is preferred ensure that, when importing, the “Empty the target namespace” option is selection. Alternatively, the changes applied to the development/QA instance can be reapplied to the production instances either manually or via the Access Manager – Batch Maintenance application. Note that the procedures to migrate the Access Manager LAE file are not detailed in this document. With separate instances of Access Manager, changes to Access Manager Users and User Classes should be synchronized between environments before any of the following processes in this document are performed. Detailed steps are found in the relevant Access Manager documentation.

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First-time Migration to Production This process is recommended when a Contributor application is migrated at the beginning of a planning cycle, before any end-user input.

Process Flow


Validate User

Classes in Prod.

Validate Admin.

Links in Prod.

GTP the

Application in

Prod.

Remove Dev.

Application from

PAD

Validate Access

Manager

Certificate in Prod.

End

Start

Re-import Rights

File in Prod.

Close Request for

Migration to Prod.

Backup the Dev.

And Prod.

Application

Datastore

Restore the Dev.

Backup to Prod.

Set the Dev.

Application Offline

Add Application to

PAD in Prod.

Add to Monitored

Applications in

Prod.

Add Application

Back to PAD in

Dev.

Export the Admin

Links from Dev.

Delete Any Links

with the Same

Name in Prod.

Import Admin.

Links to Prod.

Backup Analyst

Library in Dev.

Validate System

Links in Prod.

Set Prod.

Application Online

Export Contributor

Macros from Dev.

Import Contributor

Macros to Prod.

Remove Existing

Prod. Application

from PAD

Update Publish

Container and

Settings in Prod.

Reselect User

Classes for Client

Extensions in

Prod.

Copy Analyst

Libraries to Prod.

Backup the Dev.

And Prod.

Application

Datastore

Set the Dev.

Application Offline

“Import/Upgrade

Application” from

Dev. to Prod.

Connectivity

Between

Environments?

Yes

Remove Existing

Prod. Application

from PAD

No

Yes

Set the Dev.

Application Online

Multiple

Instances of

Access

Manager?

Manual

Update of

Prod. AM

Instance?

Yes

No

No

Note the

Application

Information in

Dev.

Backup Analyst Library in Development With the method of promotion outlined in this document, the development environment is the master version of the Analyst Libraries. It is highly recommended that before a promotion of the Contributor application takes place, a backup is created to allow the Application Administrator to revert back to the state of the Analyst Library before the migration to the production environment occurred, if required. When performing a backup of an Analyst Library, using a simple tool such as WinZip to compress the underlying file folders is effective. Ensure Analyst is closed and no users are locking objects in the Analyst Libraries before executing the backup. Also ensure the entire

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underlying file folder is backed up and consider any common libraries that may need to be backed-up as well.

Copy Analyst Libraries to Production If the planning solution includes any A>C / C>A D-Links this step is required. If the planning solution is a Contributor-only model this step is optional as synchronizations with Analyst will not be required with the methods of migration outlined in this document. If your planning solution is an Analyst-only model then you will not need to proceed further with the process. It is good practice to utilize a shared network folder to facilitate the transfer for files and folders between the server environments. The backup created in the previous task may be utilized. When pasting/restoring the file folder to the production environment it is best to delete the entire existing file folder first. This will ensure that no undesired files/objects which may have been removed from the Analyst model are deleted. If your library contains A>C or C>A D-Links, you will need to update the contributor source connections information in the Library Functions screen within Analyst:

From the File menu in Analyst, select Library / Objects. Within the Library Function screen, choose the desired library, and then select the D-Links which need to be updated then click the down arrow icon to move items into the bottom pane. In the bottom pane, right click to display the pop-up menu and select “Change contributor source on D-Links. Select the desired Contributor application and the specific substitute options.

Export the Admin Links from Development Admin Links are not migrated when a Contributor application database is promoted because they are situated at the Planning Administration Domain (PAD) level rather than at the Contributor application level. This architecture is what permits the definition of data transfers between Contributor applications.

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Admin Links can be exported from the development environment and imported into the production environment. You can only export one link at a time. A file with the extension of *.cal is created. Do not edit this file as it will result in an error when importing. To export the Admin Links, select Administration Links / Manage Links from the CAC. Select the Administration Link which needs to be exported from the top portion of the screen, and click “Export”. Save the .cal file to the following Shared Network Folder.

Export Contributor Macros from Development Contributor Macros do not get migrated when a Contributor application database is promoted because they are situated at PAD level rather than at the Contributor application level. This architecture permits the macro to control functions at a global level. Contributor Macros can be exported from the development environment and imported into the production environment. Unlike Admin Links, they are not exported manually but via Contributor Macros. These macro steps export and import the macros. When the Contributor Macro is executed to export all the macros in the development server Environment, it creates a subfolder for each macro in the PAD and an XML definition file for each macro step. The folder defined for migrating Contributor Macros should be a shared network folder.

1. If a Contributor Macro has not been setup for export of all the development PAD macros, then create the macro using the “Export Macros to Folder” macro step:

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2. Execute the macro to export macros to folders. Again, when the Contributor Macro is executed to export the macros in the development environment, it creates a subfolder for each macro in the PAD and an XML definition file for each macro step.

3. You could then use a batch file that uses a multi-file search and replace DOS utility (there are some available on the web). It is needed because when macros are exported, XML files that contain macro definition have a server name embedded within. The development server name needs to be replaces with a production server name: <parameter name="applicationuri" datatype="PADObject"

displayname="Application" extrasettings="Application">

<![CDATA[Datastores/DEVELOPMENT SERVER NAME/Applications/Budget]]>

</parameter>

Connectivity Between Environments? Whether connectivity is permitted between server environments will determine the path taken in this process. If connectivity is not permitted between server environments, the Backup/Restore method to migrate the Contributor datastore will apply. If connectivity is permitted, the Import/Upgrade method may be utilized.

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Set the Development Application Offline To set a Contributor application offline from CAC, select the appropriate application and click

on the stop icon on the tool bar. The development Contributor application is taken offline in preparation for the backup so the state of the application is offline when the backup created. Therefore, when the backup is restored into the production environment later in the process, it is already in an offline state. This will prevent any users from accessing the Contributor application in production before desired.

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Remove Development Application from PAD To remove the development Contributor application from the PAD, select the appropriate application, right click, and select “Remove Application”. When the dialog box appears to confirm your action, click “Yes” to remove the Contributor application from the PAD. The development Contributor application is removed from the PAD to clear the association of the application to a PAD before the backup is created. Therefore, the application can be successfully added to the production PAD after the backup is restored to the production environment. By removing the Contributor application from the PAD, each of the applications’ databases [adminoption] table is updated. It clears the “optionvalue” column value for the PAD_GUID and PAD_NAME.

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Backup the Development and Production Application Datastore Using standard database backup procedures, initiate a backup of the Contributor application database in the development and production environments. If you are unsure of the database name associated with the Contributor application, then from the CAC select the appropriate Contributor application at the application level to view the application information. The application will need to be added back to the PAD first: The backup should be stored in a shared network folder.

Add Application Back to PAD in Development Once the backups have been successfully created, the Contributor Application can now be added back to the PAD. In CAC, select the “Applications” item below the Development database server name, then right click and select “Link to existing Applications…”: The “Add Existing Applications” dialog box will appear. Check the appropriate Contributor applications to add to the PAD, and then enter the “Application ID”. As a standard, the “Application ID” can always be equal to the “Datastore Name”. This standard will always ensure the Application IDs are consistent between Server Environments.

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Remove Existing Production Application from PAD To prepare for the restore of the development backup into Production, remove the corresponding production Contributor application from the production PAD. For details on how to remove an application from the PAD see Remove Development Application from PAD. The steps are the same irrespective of which server environment.

Restore the Development Backup to Production Using standard database restore procedures; initiate a restore of the Contributor application database into the production environment. The backups from the development to restore in production may be retrieved from a shared network folder. If the database already exists in the production environment, then overwrite the existing database with the restored backup. Ensure the “Force restore over existing database” option is selected if using SQL Server. If this is a new database to the production environment, ensure the same datastore name is used as in the development environment. For details on how to find the datastore name for the Development Server Environment see Backup the Development Application Datastore in SQL.

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Add Application to PAD in Production Once the restore of the datastore is successful, the Contributor application is then added to the PAD in the production environment. If the corresponding development Contributor application was removed from the PAD in the Development Server Environment before the backup was created, then no errors or warnings should be expected. If not, it will be necessary to manually delete the PAD entries from the database. To clear the PAD entries manually, open the [adminoption] table in the SQL database. Then delete the “optionvalue” column value for PAD_GUID and PAD_NAME:

For details on how to add the application to the PAD see Add Application Back to PAD in Development.

Add to Monitored Applications to Job Server(s) in Production The Contributor application must be added to at least one job server in order for jobs to process. If not added, the jobs will remain in a queued status until the Contributor application is added to at least one job server or server cluster. When adding the Contributor application to the monitored applications, they should be added to the proper job server or server cluster based on the planned server environment specification which should be structured to optimize performance.

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To add the Contributor application to the monitored applications at the job cluster level open the CAC, expand the Job Sever Clusters node in the administration tree , then select the appropriate job server cluster and click “Add” to insert the Contributor application to the job sever cluster: It is good practice to create a separate job server cluster when there are multiple job servers planned to scale the processing of a group of Contributor applications. As job servers are added or removed from the job server cluster, the Contributor applications at the job server cluster level will be automatically added or removed from the job server(s) which are members of the job server cluster. To add the Contributor application to the monitored applications at the job sever level, from CAC, expand the Job Sever Clusters node in the administration tree, expand the appropriate job server cluster name, expand the appropriate job server, click on Monitored Applications, and then click on the “Add” button on the right pane to add Contributor applications to the job sever:

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Select the appropriate application(s) and click Add. The application should appear in the list below the heading “Monitored Objects held in this Job Sever”.

Note the Application Information in Development Before proceeding, note the following pieces of information about the Contributor application in the development environment:

• Application Display Name • Datastore Name • Application ID

This information can be found using the CAC by selecting the appropriate Contributor application at the application level. The information will display in the right pane under “Application information”: This information is used in later tasks and helps to ensure that these key pieces of information are consistent between production and development environments.

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“Import/Upgrade Application” from Development to Production The purpose of this step is to import the development Contributor application to the production environment. Ensure that you are connected into the production environment using the CAC.

1. From the CAC in the production environment, select Datastores/<Database Name>/Applications then right click and select “Import/Upgrade Application…”

2. When the Import/Upgrade Application wizard displays click “Next >” until you arrive

at the “Select Application” screen. This is where you connect to the production database server and select the source Contributor datastore to import. You need to select the “Database Provider”, then enter the “Datastore Server” (development) and then click the refresh button so the entered datastore server can be queried for valid Contributor applications. Select the Contributor datastore by choosing the “Name”. Finally, click “Test Connection” to verify the connection valid. Click “Next >” when done:

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3. The next screen is the “Application Details” where information about the target datastore will be entered. Here is where application information captured in the Note the Application Information in Development task is entered. Other information such as the in this screen needs to be verified before clicking “Next >” to proceed:

4. Expect to be prompted to overwrite the existing Datastore. This is required to ensure the naming of the datastores between the server environments is consistent. Click “Yes” to proceed: As a backup has already been created earlier in this process for the development datastore, creating a backup it is optional.

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5. Follow through the wizard for the “Offline Users”, “Assign Application to Job

Server(s) or Job Server Cluster(s)” and finally the “Importing/Upgrading Application” screen and click “Finish” to initiate the import:

6. A dialog box will then appear which confirms that the source application is not a prior version. The Import/Upgrade Application functionality was designed to upgrade Contributor application created in a previous version of the software to version 7.3:

Note that at the end of the Import/Upgrade Application process, a dialog box will appear to remind you to GTP the application before it can be accessed. In the interests of making this process efficient, other updates to the application will be made before the GTP is initiated.

Multiple Instances of Access Manager? If your planning server infrastructure includes multiple instances of Access Manager for each environment, there is a separate path to follow in this process. The instances will need to be synchronized. See the section on Access Manager Considerations for more details.

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Validate Access Manager Certificate in Production If there are separate instances of Access Manager for the development and production Server Environments, it will be necessary to validate the Access Manager Certificate. An Access Manager Certificate is used to check that the administrator is a member of a valid user class in Access Manager. If the administrator becomes invalid, such as if they are removed from Access Manager, or their permissions change, the certificate becomes invalid and needs to be updated. An invalid certificate may result in Contributor end-users not able to see information about other users related to the workflow. For example, they can save and submit data, but they may not be able to identify their reviewer. To validate the Access Manager Certificate, go into CAC, expand the application the expand Development / Web-Client Configuration / Validate Access Manager Certificate. If a warning message appears, then accept to update the certificate; otherwise click the Update Certificate button:

Manual Update of Production Access Manager Instance? With multiple instances of Access Manager, it is recommended that the instances are synchronized with the Export/Import method using the LAE file. See the section on Access Manager Considerations for more details. If your process involves manually making changes to Access Manager in the production environment, there are additional tasks which are required to prepare the migrated Contributor application before it can access by Contributor end-users successfully. These steps are required to update the internal ID references between Contributor and Access Manager.

Validate User Classes in Production If there are separate instances of Access Manager for the development and production environments, it will be necessary to validate the Access Manager user classes. The internal ID references between the environments for the Access Manager User Class objects will be updated in this step. To validate user classes, in the administration tree of CAC, navigate to <Application Name> / Development / e.List and User Classes / User Classes, and click the Validate button. A

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warning message will appear, and then click “Yes” to proceed. If all user classes are valid, a dialog box will provide a message to this effect. If there are invalid users, the dialog box will inform you of how many have been updated.

Use the validate user classes function to verify that the user classes in the Contributor application are still valid in Access Manager. For example, a user class may exist in Contributor that has been removed from Access Manager. It will also refresh the internal ID references for all user classes. There should be no need to re-import the user classes from Access Manager.

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Re-import Rights File in Production As a result of validating user classes and the reset of internal ID references of user classes, the rights information will be cleared and will need to be re-imported into the Contributor application. From <Application Name> / Development / e.List and User Classes / Rights click the “Import” button. Navigate to the shared network folder which contains the import file. Ensure the correct options are selected. Click “OK” when done: This process should complete without errors as we are simply reloading a pre-verified file. If the following dialog box appears: Errors will need to be resolved before proceeding. Validate the work offline user class.

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Reselect User Classes for Client Extensions in Production Another impact from validating user classes is the need to reselect user classes associated to any client extensions. Again, this is due to the reset of the internal ID references for the user classes. This step is required if the Contributor application has client Extensions configured with the “Select User Class Names” property. To update the user classes associated to the client extensions, from CAC navigate to <Application Name> / Production / Extensions / Client Extensions, select the “Configure Extensions” tab then select the Client Extension and click “Configure”: When the Extension Properties wizard displays, then click “Next >” until you arrive at the User Class screen, then click “Select All” or manually select only user classes that apply and proceed though the wizard until complete:

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GTP the Application in Production In order for the changes in some of the previous tasks to take affect, a go to production (GTP) must be executed. The GTP is executed in the CAC by selecting the application and

pressing the green arrow icon. A GTP is required to move the application from the development state to the production state within the Contributor application (not between server environments).

Validate System Links in Production When promoting a Contributor application to the production environment which contains system links, it is good practice to validate the systems links before the application is set online. To validate the system links in a Contributor application, navigate to the <Application Name> / Production / System Links and then select each system link and click “Edit”: If the following dialog box appears, then the source application either has a different application ID in the production verses development environments, or the source application has yet to be migrated to the production environment.

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When the “System Link” screen appears, then select each paring in the “Map source to target dimensions” section and click edit to validate the definitions are correct in the Production Server Environment.

Update Publish Container and Settings in Production If the Contributor application requires publishing in the Production Environment, and a publish container is connected to the Contributor Application in the development environment, you will have to reconfigure the publish container in the production environment. When the Contributor application is migrated, the published container may be pointing to the instance of the publish container in the development database server. This needs to be reconfigured to point to the production database server.

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Delete Any Links with the Same Name in Production Before importing the admin links related to the Contributor application being migrated, delete any existing admin links targeting the Contributor application being migrated. In CAC, navigate to Administration Links / Manage Links then select the appropriate Administration Link and click “Delete” and confirm deletion.

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Note that you are only permitted to delete one Admin Link at a time.

Import Admin Links to Production Once the existing admin links targeting the Contributor application being migrated have been deleted, the admin links from the development environment can be imported. You can only import one link at a time. To import, navigate to Administration Links / Manage Links then click “Import”. Then select the appropriate Admin Link .cal file from the shared network folder. Note that on import you may be prompted to select the source/target application. If this is the case, ensure the source and target Contributor applications have the same Application ID in both the development and production environments. Also, ensure the source application exists in the production environment.

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Validate Admin Links in Production Once all the admin links have been imported they will need to be validated before they are functional. You will notice that the Administration Link and each Link Element will state an edit status of “UNKNOWN”: Each link element will need to be validated individually. To validate the Link Elements, select the Link Element and click “Edit”. When the “Administration Link – Element” screen appears, click “Finish”. Optionally, you may choose to validate each pairing in the Admin Links Element also. Once all link elements have been validated, the status of the Administration Link will update to “COMPLETE” indicating that the admin link is now valid for execution.

Import Contributor Macros to Production Importing Contributor Macros can only be achieved using the “Import Macro from Folder” Contributor macro. The macro should be configured to the shared network folder containing the exported macros from the development environment. For details on how the macros are exported see Export Contributor Macros from Development.

Set Production Application Online The Contributor application can now be set online in production which makes it available for Contributor end-users to input their planning data.

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To set the Contributor application online, from the CAC, select the appropriate application in the administration tree and click on the “Set Online” icon within the tool bar.

Set the Development Application Online To close the process, the development application can be set online. This will allow for further development in the application when required. It will return the development Contributor application to the state before this process was initiated. For details on how to set the application online see Set Production Application Online.

The preceding is an excerpt from the current version of the Proven Practice document, Migrating from Development to Production Environments, for

Cognos Planning. The document is currently in the process of being updated with the most current tried, tested, and proven content.

May 14-17, 2007Rosen Shingle Creek Resort

Orlando, Florida

COGNOS FORUM 2007

PROGRAM GUIDE

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TUESDAY BREAKOUT SESSIONS

Time Reporting & Analysis Beyond Reporting Planning & Consolidation

9:45 am – 10:45 am 1400 – An Introduction to Cognos 8Business IntelligenceCognosPanzacola F-1

1522 – Impromptu: Building A System of ReportsCognosPanzacola F-3

1110 – From Spreadsheets to Scorecards & DashboardsToronto Rehabilitation InstituteSebastian I-1

1176 – Successful Strategies for Long-Range Financial PlanningCBH & Resources Global ProfessionalsPanzacola G-1

1378 – Introduction to Financial Management and Control with Cognos Controller 8.2CognosPanzacola G-2

11:15 am – 12:15 pm 1144 – Maximizing the Value ofAnalysis StudioCognosPanzacola F-1

1291* – Report Makeovers: Producing Profressional ReportsCognosPanzacola F-3

1845 – BI Anywhere Anytime City of Albuquerque & CognosSebastian I-1

1422 – Introduction to EnterprisePlanningCognosPanzacola G-1

1045 – Deploying Cognos PlanningStep-by-StepAssurant Health Panzacola G-2

1:45 pm – 2:45 pm 1844 – What’s New in Cognos Series 7 Version 7.4CognosPanzacola F-1

1149 – ReportNet: Sophisticated Reporting Techniques Made EasyJohn Daniel Associates & GlaxoSmithKlinePanzacola F-3

1033* – Cognos 8 Go! Mobile & Your Wireless WorkforceRim & CognosSebastian I-1

1136 – Streamlining AdministationProcesses for Cognos Planning ModelsSRA InternationalPanzacola G-1

2143 – Cognos FinanceConcessio & FM SupplyPanzacola G-2

3:15 pm – 4:15 pm 1116 – Broader User Adoptionwith Cognos 8 BICity of AlbuquerquePanzacola F-1

1562 – Advanced Prompting in Cognos 8 BI CognosPanzacola F-3

1542 – Using Cognos 8 BI Event Management to Deliver Relevant Information to Business UsersCognosSebastian I-1

1424* – What’s New in CognosPlanning 8.2CognosPanzacola G-1

2145 – Cognos Controller at CognosCognosPanzacola G-2

4:30 pm – 5:30 pm 1294 – BI Training for Users: The Benefi ts of Blended LearningTravelers InsurancePanzacola F-1

1399 – Reporting off Cubes in Cognos 8 BICognosPanzacola F-3

1864* – Cognos Now! – The Revolutionary New Operational BI Appliance CognosSebastian I-1

1130 – Beyond Finance: CognosPlanning for Direct MarketingMerador & Wells Fargo Business DirectPanzacola G-1

1252 – A Proven Migration Method for Cognos Planning Deloitte & CognosPanzacola G-2

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1252 − A Proven Migration Method for Cognos PlanningAnthony D’Ugo, DeloitteJohnathan Hodge, Cognos

Learn how a sound application change control process for migrating Cognos Planning between servers from planning, to testing, and fi nally production environments can benefi t your deployment. Benefi ts of this best practice approach include reduced disruption to your business processes, improved service levels, and a lower risk of production errors down the road. Attendees will also gain an understanding of the important differences between a fi rst time migration at the beginning of the budgeting cycle and changes to an existing production environment.

Track: Planning & ConsolidationSession Type: Deployment Best PracticesExpertise: IntermediateRoom: Panzacola G-2

1180 − Advancements with Cognos 8.2 BI on SAP DataBob Corson, Cognos

Looking to optimize the value of your SAP application investment? Find out how the new features and functionality in Cognos 8.2 BI will help your organization take full advantage of your SAP NetWeaver, SAP BW, SAP R/3, and other non-SAP data. Using a number of real-life customer examples, this session will share lessons learned in implementation and how business issues were successfully addressed. Find out how advances in integration enable new functionality not available from any other BI solution on SAP BW. And hear about other Cognos 8.2 enhancements that streamline authoring, administration, and maintenance for your IT team.

Track: InfrastructureSession Type: Deployment Best PracticesExpertise: IntermediateRoom: Panzacola H-1

1185 − Best Practices for Data Structure and DesignAnthony Heavey, Assured GuarantyMichael Wilson, ISA Consulting

Need some quick tips on how create the right data structure and design for BI? Attend this session to hear about the important role of application and data warehouse design in delivering powerful solutions that drive value. Learn the proven approaches to data foundation, query, and report design, and how to identify when to leverage the database versus the reporting application to

support reporting and analytical functionality. Discover the best practices on how to create a streamlined data warehouse build with ETL with Data Manager. Finally, hear from IT professionals from Assured Guaranty and ISA Consulting as they give a real-world account of how they used the Data Manager in Cognos 8 BI to integrate their data into a single repository and standardize their reporting environment.

Track: InfrastructureSession Type: Deployment Best PracticesExpertise: IntermediateRoom: Panzacola H-3

1062 − Lessons Learned Migrating to Cognos 8 Jeffrey Guevin, Martin’s Point Health Care

Discover how a small, not-for-profi t health care company completed a successful upgrade to Cognos 8 BI: from initial plan, installation, and confi guration to testing, training, and rollout. Learn about the importance of creating detailed project plans, how to upgrade from PowerPlay to the new analysis environment, and how to use simple report designs to aid decision-makers. The session will also demonstrate how to create reports in Cognos 8 BI, including using PowerCubes as data sources in Report Studio.

Track: Migration & UpgradeSession Type: Deployment Best PracticesExpertise: AllRoom: Sebastian I-3

2062 − Achieving High Performance with a Cognos Balanced Scorecard Scott Brennan, Accenture

Find out the Accenture approach to creating a Balanced Scorecard that truly focuses on the metrics that create value. Learn about the proper steps to determining critical metrics, deploying technology, and aligning business drivers. Hear about Accenture’s own real-world journey in implementing a Balanced Scorecard internally, using the same advice and best practices they share with clients. Finally, learn why, when it came time to select a scorecarding solution for this important mission, they chose Cognos.

Track: Beyond ReportingSession Type: Business StrategyExpertise: IntermediateRoom: Conway

4:30 PM − 5:30 PM

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A Proven Migration Method for Cognos Planning

Technology

Transcript of A Proven Migration Method for Cognos Planning