Use the CData ODBC Driver for SAP BusinessObjects BI in MicroStrategy Desktop

MicroStrategy is an analytics and mobility platform that enables data-driven innovation. When paired with the CData ODBC Driver for SAP BusinessObjects BI, you gain database-like access to live SAP BusinessObjects BI data from MicroStrategy, expanding your reporting and analytics capabilities. In this article, we walk through adding SAP BusinessObjects BI as a data source in MicroStrategy Desktop and creating a simple visualization of SAP BusinessObjects BI data.

The CData ODBC Driver offers unmatched performance for interacting with live SAP BusinessObjects BI data in MicroStrategy due to optimized data processing built into the driver. When you issue complex SQL queries from MicroStrategy to SAP BusinessObjects BI, the driver pushes supported SQL operations, like filters and aggregations, directly to SAP BusinessObjects BI and utilizes the embedded SQL Engine to process unsupported operations (often SQL functions and JOIN operations) client-side. With built-in dynamic metadata querying, you can visualize and analyze SAP BusinessObjects BI data using native MicroStrategy data types.

Connect to SAP BusinessObjects BI as an ODBC Data Source

Information for connecting to SAP BusinessObjects BI follows, along with different instructions for configuring a DSN in Windows and Linux environments.

To connect to your SAP Business Objects BI instance, you must set the following connection properties:

• Url: set this to the rest API URL. After logging into the Central Management Console, choose 'Applications' from the combo box. Double-click on 'RESTful Web Service' and you'll see the access URL. By default it is, http://{Server-Name}:6405/biprws.
• User: set this to the username of your instance.
• Password: set this to the password of your instance.

When you configure the DSN, you may also want to set the Max Rows connection property. This will limit the number of rows returned, which is especially helpful for improving performance when designing reports and visualizations.

Windows

If you have not already, first specify connection properties in an ODBC DSN (data source name). This is the last step of the driver installation. You can use the Microsoft ODBC Data Source Administrator to create and configure ODBC DSNs.

Linux

If you are installing the CData ODBC Driver for SAP BusinessObjects BI in a Linux environment, the driver installation predefines a system DSN. You can modify the DSN by editing the system data sources file (/etc/odbc.ini) and defining the required connection properties.

/etc/odbc.ini

[CData SAPBusinessObjectsBI Sys]
Driver = CData ODBC Driver for SAP BusinessObjects BI
Description = My Description
User = username
Password = password
Url = http://myinstance:6405/biprws

For specific information on using these configuration files, please refer to the help documentation (installed and found online).

Connect to and Visualize SAP BusinessObjects BI Data using MicroStrategy Desktop

In addition to connecting SAP BusinessObjects BI in MicroStrategy enterprise products, you can connect to SAP BusinessObjects BI in MicroStrategy Desktop. Follow the steps below to add SAP BusinessObjects BI data as a dataset and create visualizations and reports of SAP BusinessObjects BI data.

1. Open MicroStrategy Desktop and create a new dossier.
2. In the datasets panel, click New Data, select Databases, and select Type a Query as the Import Option.
3. Add a new data source and choose DSN data sources.
4. Choose the DSN you previously configured (likely CData SAPBusinessObjectsBI Sys) and select Generic DBMS in the Version menu.
5. Set the User and Password properties for the DSN (or use placeholder values) and name the data source.
👁 Creating a new data source for SAP BusinessObjects BI.

6. Select the new database instance to view the tables. You may need to manually click the search icon in the Available Tables section to see the tables.
7. Create a SQL query for the SAP BusinessObjects BI data (see below) and click Execute SQL to test the query.

   SELECT * FROM MyCustomReport
   

   👁 Querying SAP BusinessObjects BI for data.
   NOTE: Since we create a live connection, we can execute a SELECT * query and utilize the filtering and aggregation features native to the MicroStrategy products.
8. Click Finish and choose to connect live.
9. Choose a visualization, choose fields to display (data types are discovered automatically through dynamic metadata discovery) and apply any filters to create a new visualization of SAP BusinessObjects BI data. Where possible, the complex queries generated by the filters and aggregations will be pushed down to SAP BusinessObjects BI, while any unsupported operations (which can include SQL functions and JOIN operations) will be managed client-side by the CData SQL Engine embedded in the driver. 👁 Visualize SAP BusinessObjects BI data.
   
10. Once you are finished configuring the dossier, click File -> Save.

Using the CData ODBC Driver for SAP BusinessObjects BI in MicroStrategy Desktop, you can easily create robust visualizations and reports on SAP BusinessObjects BI data. Read our other articles on connecting to SAP BusinessObjects BI in MicroStrategy and connecting to SAP BusinessObjects BI in MicroStrategy Web for more examples.