*************************************************************** * Visual Warehouse Version 5.2 CSD 2 * * Licensed Materials - Property of IBM * 5639-VW5 * IBM Corp. All Rights Reserved. (C) Copyright 1995, 1998 *************************************************************** File name: READMEU.TXT Date: July 1999 This README file contains the following sections: o Functions and features new in CSD 2 o Functions and features new in Version 5.2 o Visual Warehouse (VWSWIN directory) -- Installation notes -- Release notes o DataGuide Administrator for Windows 95/NT (VWSWIN directory) o DataGuide User for Windows 95/NT (DGWUSR directory) o DataGuide for the Web (DGWEB directory) o Documentation (BOOKS directory) o APARs fixed in CSD 2 Additional README files can be found in other directories on the CD-ROM. For example, the README for the AIX agent is in the VWAGTAIX directory. Functions and features new in CSD 2 ----------------------------------- 1. Support for IBM Classic Connect V2.1.1 announced on April 13, 1999. For details, refer to Software Announcement 299-090 (RFA31074), dated April 13, 1999. Note: Running IBM Classic Connect V2.1.1 with the Visual Warehouse V5.2 Windows NT agent requires PTF WR21111 (this CSD). Running IBM Classic Connect V2.1.1 with the Visual Warehouse V5.2 AIX agent requires IBM DB2 DataJoiner V2.1.1 running under AIX with PTF U462821 or later. For more information, see the new publication on this CSD titled: "Using Classic Connect with Visual Warehouse" - Cconnect.pdf 2. Support for IBM DB2 Universal Database V6.1 3. Support for table names and column names up to 30 characters in length. This capability is new in DB2 UDB V6.1 and therefore is enabled only for tables and columns in DB2 UDB V6.1 databases. To take advantage of this feature, you need this CSD and you need to migrate the VW control database to DB2 UDB V6.1. This is because the metadata tables in the VW control database use unique indexes to prevent duplication of tables within the same resource and between columns within tables. In DB2 UDB V6.1, the limit on indexes has increased. Functions and features new in Version 5.2 ----------------------------------------- The following functions and features are new in Version 5.2: Transformers - A set of stored procedures and user-defined functions to add data transformation, data cleaning, and statistics in Visual Warehouse processes. The CD-ROM includes the transformers, the user interface, and the infrastructure for these database extensions. Agent feedback - A file-based mechanism for returning information (return codes, SQL codes, messages, row counts, byte counts) from a Visual Warehouse program to the Visual Warehouse agent. SUN agent - A Visual Warehouse agent for SUN Solaris. ISV toolkit - A toolkit (documentation and samples) for independent software vendors to more easily integrate applications with the Visual Warehouse solution. Metadata synchronization - A function to add transformations at the column level when pushing metadata from Visual Warehouse to the information catalog. Metadata delete - A function to propagate deletes during the synchronization process from Visual Warehouse to the information catalog. Encryption - A function that uses the IBM Cryptographic Center of Competence encryption/decryption code for password persistence. Cascade on failure - A function that starts another business view on failure. Numeric tokens - An additional set of tokens that returns the numeric equivalent of the current set of string tokens. Locate and Show Related - Functions to find objects (tables, columns, business views) from the Visual Warehouse interface by specifying conditions (attribute, operator, value), and to show their relationships and dependencies with other objects. For example, you can determine which business views use a certain source column and see how those business views cascade, what the business views input data to, or what status the business views are in. Installation - Supports new functions and features; improved automation of the installation process. Subtypes - An updated list of DB2 subtypes for new agent support. Host name support - A string identifier to differentiate between two information resources with the same database type and the same database name. Metadata store - A function to create the DataGuide information catalog metadata tables in the same control database as the Visual Warehouse metadata tables when DataGuide installation is selected. Predefined program objects - Information catalog program objects for business partner products (for example, Cognos and Business Objects) are predefined when the common object types are created. Data viewing - A function to display a sample of data from source or warehouse tables and test the SQL page of the business view while building it in the business view notebook. Visual Warehouse (VWSWIN directory) ----------------------------------- Installation notes ------------------ 1. The install program does not indicate whether the database manager is running when you begin installing. Make sure that the database is running before you install Visual Warehouse. 2. If you install Fixpack 9044 for DB2 UDB 5.0, be sure to install it on your database clients as well as on your database server. 3. If any DB2 environment variables are set on machines where Visual Warehouse is installed, they must be set as system variables, not as user variables. In particular, if DB2CODEPAGE is set as a user variable, Visual Warehouse might not be able to authenticate the passwords of Visual Warehouse users, and business views might fail when they are run, because Visual Warehouse cannot connect to a source or target database. 4. When you install either DB2 UDB V5 fix pack 8 or DB2 UDB V6.1, with some configurations you may find that the VW logger service will not stay active. This is because it cannot connect to the VW control database. This results in a user not being able to logon to the VW Desktop. The DB2 V6.1 installation installs the IBM DB2 ODBC Driver in a different directory from prior versions, and the NT registry and ODBC.INI files may point to the previous directory. VW uses ODBC to connect to the control database and the Default Target Warehouse database. So, you need to do the following things to recover: 1) Modify the NT registry. Navigate the registry to the entry: My Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\ODBC\ODBCINST.INI\IBM DB2 ODBC DRIVER Modify the value named driver to have data D:\SQLLIB\BIN\DB2CLI.DLL Modify the value named setup to have the data D:\SQLLIB\BIN\ DB2ODBC.DLL where D: is the drive you have installed DB2 UDB on. (These values used to have the path name set to C:\WINNT\SYSTEM32\) 2) Modify ODBC.INI to reflect the new path name for the ODBC registered databases. 3) Stop and start the VW Server and VW Logger services. 4) Test the ODBC connection using ODBC from the Control Panel. Release notes ------------- 1. ODBC considerations If system rc=126 is displayed, verify that the client software for the ODBC data source that you are connecting to is installed and properly configured. On both AIX and SUN: A. See the sample .odbc.ini file in the /odbc, where the default install directory is /usr/lpp/IWH for AIX and /opt/IBMiwh for SUN. B. After the IWH.environment file in the install directory is configured for OBDC access and for the target DB2 instance, you must restart the agent daemon and run the "IWH.agent.db.interface intersolv" script in the installed directory to switch to ODBC access. 2. Initialization considerations A. Before you log on to Visual Warehouse, check that DB2 is started where the control database is installed. Otherwise, an error that the server is not responding at this time with return code 6106 may be returned. B. If rc=128 is displayed at initialization, either IWH2REGI or one of its dependent DLLs cannot be loaded. Make sure that: 1. \%SYSTEMROOT%\system32 is in the system path. 2. Visual Warehouse is installed correctly and no part is missing. 3. TCP/IP is fully installed and running on the workstation (not adding TCP/IP ports to the services file). 4. The local system does not have some other problem (for example, missing a required system DLL). C. If you have Fixpack 9044, 9054, or 9074 for UDB 5.0 installed, the following errors will occur. The problem is fixed by Fixpack 9084 for UDB 5.0. 1. In the Configuration window, if you click Update twice without closing the Configuration window, a protection exception will occur trying to read memory. You must open the Configuration window again, make your changes and click Update so that the second set of changes takes effect. 2. In the Statistics window, if you click Reset twice, or if you click Reset and then Refresh, a protection exception will occur trying to read memory. You must open the Statistics window again, and if the error occurred using Reset, click Reset again so that the second reset takes effect. D. When running initialization to a remote control database (the database is not on same machine as the Visual Warehouse server or administrator), make sure the client machines are at a higher level of maintenance than DB2 UDB V5.0. The Visual Warehouse server and administrator require at least the first fixpack for DB2 V5.0. This problem is indicated by initialization loops after the message, "Verifying database input parameters...". 3. Business view considerations A. There are several changes in Visual Warehouse 5.2 for creating program and transformer business views: 1. The resources that each business view uses are specified so that you can follow the flow and processing of the warehouse data more precisely. 2. User dialogs are added for each program and transformer. These dialogs help you create the specific parameters for each business view. The dialogs ensure that the combination of parameters is valid for the selected program or transformer. 3. The behavior of the business view notebook is changed for some programs and transformers to fit the needs of that program or transformer. B. The source and target for a program must be specified. In some cases, the source and target are the same. If a program (DB2 Load Append, for example) requires a file source, then a file must be selected in the Create Business View window. This requires that the file be identified to Visual Warehouse as a file resource. If a program requires a target table, then a target table and warehouse must be specified in the Create Business View window. C. A new dialog for each program and transformer has been added. The dialog prompts you for the specific parameters for the selected program or transformer. When the business view is created, the parameter dialog opens first. You are guided to enter a valid combination of parameters. All of the parameters must be entered before you can save any of the parameters. As the parameters are specified, the columns in the target warehouse table are generated for the user. D. The behavior of a program or transformer business view is based on the requirements of the program or transformer. In some cases, columns cannot be added to the business view. In some cases, the population type cannot be changed. In some cases, the column order cannot be changed. The business view notebook is not available when certain actions cannot be taken. For detailed information about each program and transformer, see the online help. 4. Transformer considerations A. With DB2 UDB 5.0 (on any operating system where transformers can be installed): For successful execution of the transformers on UDB 5.0, each business view must be run from the same user ID as the schema into which the transformers were installed. This schema will be identified by the value that was specified as the table qualifier when Visual Warehouse was installed. It is normally IWH by default. For target databases in which transformers will be used, you must define a user ID on the operating system on which the target database resides that matches this schema, for example, define "IWH". Then, using the Visual Warehouse administrative client, click the Warehouse tab on the desktop, select the target warehouse, and click File --> Properties from the window menu bar. Click the Database tab, change the user ID to IWH, and enter the password specified when the user ID was defined to the operating system on which the target database resides. B. With DB2 UDB 5.2 or UDB 5.0 plus fixpack 6 (on any operating system where transformers can be installed): The requirement to run each business view with the same user ID as the schema into which the transformers were installed (explained in section 4.A) is removed. However, if the FormatDate function is used in a column definition (Column Mapping tab of the Business View notebook), the function name FormatDate must be prefixed with the table qualifier. To prefix the function name with the table qualifier, click the (...) button next to the column definition in the Column grid. Prefix FormatDate in the Calculated Column SQL field. For example, set it to IWH.FormatDate. C. With DB2 UDB 5.2 EEE on SUN Solaris: When the transformers are installed in this environment, you may receive the following error message: SQL4300N Java Support is not installed on this platform. To resolve this, apply the workarounds as documented in the IBM DB2 Java Support - Frequently Asked Questions Web page: http://www.software.ibm.com/data/db2/java/v5/faq.html D. FormatDate transformer with mixed code sets When the Visual Warehouse client operating system and the transformer target database's operating system are running under different code sets, you must take one of the following actions to identify the local DATE or TIME format (or both) of the target database in order for the FormatDate transformer to execute successfully. This requirement applies to all user environments that run under a mixture of code sets. Solution alternative 1: Use telnet to access the operating system where the transformer target database resides. Connect to the target database and select from the input column using the local DATE and TIME formats. After the local DATE and TIME formats are identified, edit the SELECT SQL statement in your business view that refers to the FormatDate transformer and use the local DATE and TIME formats from the target database for the input DATE and TIME formats (the second argument for FormatDate). Solution alternative 2: You can edit the SELECT SQL statement in your business view that refers to the FormatDate transformer and specify the default DATE and TIME formats for the input DATE and TIME columns. The default DATE and TIME formats can be LOC, EUR, USA or ISO. For example, SELECT IWH.IN_TABLE.INDATE, IWH.IN_TABLE.KEYID, IWH.FormatDate(CHAR(IWH.IN_TABLE.INDATE,ISO), 'YYYY-MM-DD', 'MMMM D, YYYY') FROM IWH.IN_TABLE E. Text fields on transformer interfaces The Visual Warehouse interface uses 8-point fonts by default. If you use a font size that is larger than 8 points, some of the text fields in certain transformer interfaces might collapse. Fields can collapse on the following transformers: ANOVA, Chi Square, Clean, Generate Key Table, Regression, Calculate Subtotal, Invert Data, and Format Date and Time. Solution: Change the size of the font that you are using to 8 points. To change the size of the font: 1. Close Visual Warehouse. 2. Navigate to the following directory: vwswin\iwh\bin. The file iwh2efnt.exe is located in this directory. 3. Run iwh2efnt.exe. 4. Specify the font and set its size to 8. Then click OK. 5. Run Visual Warehouse again. 5. Flat File LAN considerations When defining Flat File LAN sources, do not select FTP Copy on the Connections notebook page if the agent site in use is AIX, OS/2, or SUN Solaris. Use the VWPFTP program to access files in this configuration. 6. Import/export considerations A. Tag language files: Tag language files generated by earlier releases of Visual Warehouse cannot be imported into Version 5.2. To create tag language files in Version 5.2, first migrate your Visual Warehouse control database. B. Commit scope: In Version 5.2, all objects in the tag language file are processed, and then a single database commit is issued. In earlier versions, the commit scope was at the object level. C. New parameter added to the command line Import/export: In this CSD, a new optional parameter 'PREFIX=prefix_value' is added to the calling syntax of the command line Import/export. The new parameter should be the tables qualifier for your metadata tables, which is the "Tables Qualifier" parameter that was used on the Initialization window. If entered, this parameter must include the keyword 'PREFIX=' followed by the prefix value. If not entered, the default prefix value is 'IWH'. The updated calling syntax for Import is: iwh2imp2.exe filename.TAG logpath dbname userid password PREFIX=prefix_value [last_chkpid] The updated calling syntax for Export is: iwh2exp2.exe filename.INP dbname userid password PREFIX=prefix_value [/S] [/R] If used, the new parameter must immediately follow the last required keyword. See the Visual Warehouse book, "Integrating Applications with the Visual Warehouse Solution" for a description of parameters. 7. Integration with other products A. When OLAP servers (DB2 OLAP Server or Hyperion Essbase) read from SQL sources, they might encounter an error reading the Visual Warehouse ODBC system source named IWH_TEXT. The OLAP servers might fail when trying to read the list of data sources from ODBC. To avoid this problem, open the ODBC Administrator application on your workstation and edit the system data source IWH_TEXT. Saving this definition through the ODBC Administrator will write additional information that allows the OLAP servers to function correctly. B. When installing the OLAP Application Manager, you might encounter errors on some workstations when the environment variable PATH is updated. To avoid such errors, update the environmental variables manually as described in the OLAP documentation. Add a directory to the PATH statement and add an ARBORPATH environment variable. C. ETI*EXTRACT conversions and conversion programs work with Visual Warehouse and DataGuide Version 5.2 as well as the Version 3.1 Refresh. 8. Manually resetting control database passwords If you have an existing Visual Warehouse 5.2 control database, users might have problems logging on to the Visual Warehouse desktop, importing tables from a Visual Warehouse resource, or using a Visual Warehouse agent site that requires a password. If users cannot log on with their Visual Warehouse user ID after running the Visual Warehouse initialization with the Encryption/1 Gig fix release, follow these steps: 1. From the DB2 Command Line enter: Update iwh.vwuser to set password='ppppp', encrypted=0 where userid='uuuuu' **note comma is required, otherwise the command fails** where 'ppppp' is the unencrypted password and 'uuuuu' is the user ID associated with the password. 2. Run Visual Warehouse initialization again and make sure the Migrate selection is checked (click the Advanced option). 3. Log on to the Visual Warehouse desktop. *** OR *** If you are able to log on with a Visual Warehouse user ID that has Visual Warehouse administrator authority and cannot log on with another Visual Warehouse user ID, open the Visual Warehouse User notebook of the user ID having the problem, enter the password, and save. If you are having problems importing tables from a Visual Warehouse resource, open the Resource notebook for the resource that is having the problem, go to the Database page, enter the password, and save the changes. Then import the tables. If you are having problems using a Visual Warehouse agent site that requires a password, open the Agent Site notebook for the agent site that is having the problems, enter the password, and save the changes. Then run the business view again that uses this agent site. 9. DBCS considerations DB2 for AS/400 does not support double-byte DB2 schema names and table names. Therefore, you cannot use a double-byte DB2 schema name or table name in the definition of a business view in an AS/400 target warehouse. 10.Non-Windows NT agents causing hangs on business view population If a business view is using a non-Windows NT agent and the source of the business view is Oracle (via connect string), text file, or any resource that does not have the password entered in the Resource notebook, the Visual Warehouse desktop might lock up when the business view is being populated. If this occurs, you need to manually update the Visual Warehouse metadata to correct one or more entries in the Visual Warehouse control database. Follow these steps to manually correct the metadata: 1. Connect to the Visual Warehouse control database using the DB2 command line. 2. Enter: Update xxx.inforesource set binarypassword=NULL, password=NULL, encrypted=0 where binarypassword=x'0000' where xxx is the prefix that was specified on the Visual Warehouse Initialization window at install/initialization time. 3. Connect reset. 4. Run the business view again that was failing with the Flat File LAN Resource. 11.TBC Sample Demo The document of TBC Sample Demo can be accessed from vwsample->Tbcdemo52->tbcsamp.htm,in section 2 of Visual Warehouse Installation with TBC Sample Data, please use jdk1.1.7 instead of jdk 1.1.6, and use VW 5.2 CSD 2 (07/99) instead of VW 5.2 CSD 1 (03/99). 12.Data type 'nvarchar' not supported MS SQL Server 7.0 has introduced a new data type called 'nvarchar' and it actually changed some of the columns in its own system catalog to use this data type, e.g. dbo.syscomments. When the user creates a VW source and runs 'import columns' against an imported MS SQL Server 7.0 table with a 'nvarchar' column, the agent can not convert this SQL type to a C type. Therefore, the imported columns will not display any values for the 'native data type' and 'ODBC data type', and 'nvarchar' columns cannot be included in the imported definition. DataGuide Administrator for Windows 95/NT (VWSWIN directory) ------------------------------------------------------------ 1. To migrate a DataGuide Version 1.1 catalog to Version 5.2: 1. Export all objects from the DataGuide V1.1 catalog to a tag language file. 2. Remove DataGuide V1.1. 3. Install DataGuide V5.2. 4. Create a DataGuide V5.2 catalog. 5. Follow the instructions in the README.MIG file in the VWSWIN\DGWIN\TYPES directory. 2. Do not import a tag language file exported from Visual Warehouse. Instead, ensure that you export metadata from Visual Warehouse with the "Export for DataGuide" option selected. 3. Command line export for DataGuide (new): The DataGuide export function can now be started from the command line using the DGUIDE.EXE (also used to start DataGuide, the DataGuide Import function, and the MDIS import/export functions). The calling syntax is described below. See "Managing DataGuide" for more information about parameters. DGUIDE /DGNAME dgname /USERID userid /PASSWORD password /ADMIN /EXPORT file_name /LOGFILE file_name /OBJTYPE object_type /OBJECTS name where: dgname = The name of the DataGuide catalog to export from userid = The DataGuide administrator's user ID password = The DataGuide administrator's password ADMIN = Specifies that you are logging on as a DataGuide Administrator file_name = The tag language file name file_name = The name of the log file that contains the messages that DataGuide generates during the export process object_type = Object type name Specify the DPNAME, not the business name of the object type. name = The UUI for the objects to be exported (up to five UUIs separated by periods and enclosed in quotes). The UUIs for each object type are documented in the "Managing DataGuide" book. /C = Optional flag to indicate that all contained objects are to be exported (for example, export the entire tree structure) /T = Optional flag to indicate that all 'Contacts' associated with the object are to be exported /A = Optional flag to indicate that all 'Comments' associated with the object are to be exported /L = Optional flag to indicate that all linked objects are to be exported For example: DGUIDE /DGNAME DGCAT1 /USERID hchan /PASSWORD mypass /ADMIN /EXPORT x:\mypath\mytag.tag /LOGFILE x:\mypath\export.log /OBJTYPE TABLES /OBJECTS ".." /c /t /l This command will export a table object with a UUI of DBNAME(VWTARGET) OWNER(VWADMIN) TABLES(CUSTOMER) from the DGCAT1 DataGuide catalog ('hchan' is the DataGuide administrator who uses the password 'mypass'). The table object is to be exported as a tree (all columns associated with the table will be exported), and will have all the contact objects as well as linked objects. All objects that are exported are to be written to the tag language file called x:\mypath\mypath.tag. DataGuide for the Web (DGWEB directory) --------------------------------------- 1. Specifying very complex search criteria on the Advanced Search page can cause Advanced Search to hang and an error to be displayed on the Web server. To continue, you must close your browser and then open it again. 2. Before using this interface to access an information catalog that contains non-English characters, install corrective service for Net.Data. 3. Do not use the editor Notepad to update the *.mac and *.hti files. Use an editor that does not require carriage returns, such as WordPad. Save the file as plain text. 4. If you are using DBCS multiple-byte characters, you must set the Net.Data variable DTW_MBMODE to YES in the DB2WWW.INI file. See the Net.Data documentation for further instructions. Documentation ------------- The BOOKS directory on the CD-ROM contains the following publications that you can view or print: o Planning and Installing Visual Warehouse and DataGuide - Install.pdf o Installing and Using the Visual Warehouse AS/400 Agent - As400agt.pdf o Managing Visual Warehouse - Vwmanage.pdf o Managing DataGuide - Dgmanage.pdf o DataGuide Programming Guide and Reference - Dgproggd.pdf o Managing ETI*EXTRACT Conversion Programs with Visual Warehouse - Etmanage.pdf o Integrating Applications with the Visual Warehouse Solution - isvtool.pdf o Using Classic Connect with Visual Warehouse - Cconnect.pdf These publications are in portable document format (PDF). You can view or print the publications using the Adobe Acrobat Reader. Go to the Adobe Web site (http://www.adobe.com) and download a free copy of the Adobe Acrobat Reader for your operating system. Some of the tables in the DataGuide Programming Guide and Reference are not optimized for online viewing. To see these tables in the correct format, you can print the PostScript file (DGPROGGD.PS) in the BOOKS directory. Information in the PDF version of Managing Visual Warehouse supersedes information in the printed version of the book. Message Updates --------------- o Message IWH08457 is not documented in the Messages and Reason Codes online book. The message should be documented as follows: Message Text: Failed to execute user function . Explanation: The OS/2 Agent failed to execute an invoked DLL. Administrator Actions: Check the secondary return code (RC2) and take the recommended action. o Message IWH14012 is not documented in the Messages and Reason Codes book. The message should be documented as follows: Message Text: Specified column "" not found in table "". Explanation: The specified column was not found in the table that you selected. Administrator Actions: Verify that the specified column is defined for the table that you selected or that the proper table is being used. APARs fixed in CSD 2 -------------------- The following APARs are fixed in this CSD: JR12886 - Qualification of file names for ESSBASE load programs JR12923 - Migration of control database with prefix other than IWH JR12934 - Incorrect wording in Managing DB manual migration instructions JR12974 - VW message 3705 during copy of Business View JR13026 - Compensate for Intersolv ODBC flat file driver pipe character JR13098 - Error 7356/8520 using VW Host Adapter accessing VSAM JR13100 - SQL0204N exporting to tag file with prefix other than IWH JR13116 - Round trip problem exporting and importing fixed length flat file JR13117 - Flat file source imported from tag file not available to BV create JR13134 - Error 2001/100 renaming flat file source with no fields JR13195 - Promote/demote failure depending on obscure creation day JR13220 - Overflow error during populate of editioned Business Views JR13279 - Error running a VWP with no parameters at AS/400 agent JR13291 - Hang copying BV in a large control database JR13292 - Support FTP copy to other than system drive