09 Oct 2019 OAC to OTBI Connections Improvements

Oracle has taken a new step in its approach to analytics; one that takes a more customer-centric vision and enables automated insights under one brand: Oracle Analytics.

Oracle Analytics Cloud is the core of the Oracle Analytics platform. OAC provides a powerful tool to business users with governed self-service analytics capabilities for data preparation, visualization, augmented analysis, and natural-language processing. OAC’s governed self-service experience allows Oracle Analytics users at enterprises around the world to drive faster insights and optimize business results.

Oracle continues to bring new features to OAC and in their Release 105.2 – March 2019, a new option is added for Data Visualization connections:“Use the active user’s credentials”. When this option is selected, the credentials of the user connected to OAC will be used to extract data from Fusion, applying all the configured security roles and restrictions for that user. This way users won’t be prompted to enter their username and password and will be able to access only the data that they have the permissions, privileges, and role assignments to access.

We will look into this new functionality, but to access this, first we need to carry out some steps:

Step 1: Create the report in OTBI

Using the business area “Sales – CRM Resource Territory” we must select the “Sales Resource Hierarchy” and the attribute name from “Employees” dimension.

Figure 1: Criteria tab from Analysis

In order to only show reportees under the user executing the report we’ve used “Selection Steps” to emulate row level security handled with a session variable (DISPLAYNAME) as we can see in the next images:

Figure 2: Results tab from Analysis

Figure 3: Selection steps pop-up

We must save the report in “Shared Folders” and the users that will execute the report must have permissions granted.

Figure 4: Selection steps pop-up

After executing the report, below we can see the results obtained for both users selected for the demo, Sam Brown’s reportees in left and Nathan Whitaker’s reportees in the right:

Figure 5: Report Results: in the left Sam Brown’s reportees, in the right Nathan Whitaker’s reportees.

Step 2: OTBI side set-up

Oracle has a well explained step by step guide that details all the changes required in OTBI, so there is no need to go into further details on this aspect. Nonetheless, below you will some screenshots of our guidance process to support Oracle’s document.

Create Oracle Applications Connections

Keep in mind that we must modify users and set-up a compatible password with OAC constraints (+12 characters, for example)

Figure 6: Qlik Accessing Security Console

Figure 7: New Impersonator user creation process

Figure 8: New role assignation process

Step 3: OAC side steps

Now we need to set-up security in Oracle Identity Cloud Service.  When accessing OICS, we need to create the users we already created in the OTBI environment, if the impersonate user (dvadmin) does not already exist in OAC, we must create it with the same name/credentials used in OTBI.

Figure 9: OICS set-up. Adding users

Also, we must add users to the OCI_Administrators group so that they have the proper privileges:

Figure 10: Assign users to OCI_Administrators group

Once users have been created in both environments, we must create the connection in OAC Data Visualization using the dvadmin user since this one is the Impersonator user in OTBI that had been created before. We then navigate to Data>Create>Connection and select Oracle Applications.

Figure 11: OAC Data Connections creation panel

Information to fill:

• Name: representative name of the connection.
• Description: description of the connection.
• HOST: https: we must include our OTBI URL. (http://www.example.com:9740/analytics/)
• Username: dvadmin
• Password: Password from dvadmin user previously created.
• Authentication: We must select “Use the active user’s credentials”.

Figure 12: OAC Data Connections specifications panel

Next step is to set access to the new connection, you can specify access directly to users but it’s recommended to assign access to roles. This depends on your security configuration set-up.

Figure 13: OAC Data Connections access panel

Step 4: Create the report in OAC

Now let’s test this feature. First, we need to create a Data Set using the connection created in Step 3.

We go through Analytics>Data>Create>Data Set

Figure 14: OAC Data Set creation panel

If all the steps we previously made worked properly, we should be able to select the connection just created.

Figure 15: OAC Data Set creation panel with OAC to OTBI connection already created

Once we select the “OAC to OTBI” connection, the source of the Data Set will be an Analysis, in this case the one that we created previously in OTBI under “SHARED FOLDERS\OAC to OTBI\Reportees Report”

Figure 16: OAC navigation through OTBI shared folder catalogue

Figure 17: OAC accessing the Reportees Report saved in OTBI

Then, we save the data set to create a new report using it as source.

Figure 18: OAC retrieving data from OTBI report’s data set

Once the data set is created it’s ready to be used in a report. Accessing OAC with Nathan Whitaker, we can see all the reportees listed:

Figure 19: Reportees from Nathan Whitaker

Now if we create a report using the same data set, but in this case with Sam Brown’s user, the report will show Sam’s reportees:

Figure 20: Reportees from Sam Brown

If we compare the results obtained in OAC with the results we got in the OTBI platform we can confirm that the reports matche results for each user, confirming that security and privileges for each user are well managed between both platforms.

Conclusion

One of the aspects where Oracle was always criticized was related to complications when integrating their own products. With the addition of this new feature, we can see how Oracle is pushing forward to integrate the cloud products in a simple way, while simultaneously making products easy to use with friendly UI. As a result of this, OAC is becoming the core feature of Oracle Cloud platform and the most complete analytics platform within its industry.

Don’t hesitate to check our cloud services and contact us if you would like to receive more information about Oracle Analytics Cloud (OAC).