Multi-User Development in Cognos 8/Framework Manager

[shawnjones]

all -

sorry, i'm new to cognos, so this may be a dumb question for you guys.  our government customer has only one cognos respository in production.  there are 3 warehouse projects they would like to host from this repos, but there is an issue.  instead of doing 3 or more packages to support each project, which, as i understand, would force the user through query and report studio to choose a package before "entering" the tool set, the customer would like all of the projects available to the users throught one package.  our issue is one project is being developed in washington dc, another in denver, and the third in boise.  we haven't been able to figure out how to divide the package up and merge the results in one place.  i hope this makes sense....we are developing one of the projects, and will be working on the metadata, relationships, queries, and reports at the same time the other groups are working.  in the end, they all need to merge so the users will see multiple folders (in query studio) from all the applications.

thanks in advance.....

shawn jones
saic

[mikewalker]

Hey Shawn

1. Create 3 separate FM projects (.CPF files) - one for Washington/Denver etc
2. Create a separate 'master' FM project - this is where all the packages will be published from.
3. In the master project, perform a 'Link Segment' operation for each of the individual FM projects.

The 'Link Segment' basically creates a live link to the other projects, so any development activity on the other projects are automatically included in the 'master' file once they have been linked.

This way you can delegate development work for a particular project/state/whatever out to a team which may be on the other side of the planet.

HTH,
Mike

[shawnjones]

wow - thanks for the quick response.  i'll start researching the link segement.  just a clarification.....the seperate projects can work independantly and merge at the end?  what about once it goes to production?  is the maintenance the same?  we all can work and still merge whenever we want?

again, thanks for your help.....this is certainly a great forum.....

[mikewalker]

Yeah - that is my understanding. Separate projects can work independantly and merge at the end - have a look at the FM documentation under heading "Creating a Segment" or similiar.

The method should work the same in PROD as in DEV, provided the only change is to the data-source connection properties.

Quote from the FM user guide (p. 43):

Segmenting and Linking Recommendations
You can use Framework Manager to create and link segments, projects, and folders. There are
some recommendations for using these features to minimize complexity and ensure stability in a
multiuser modeling environment.

Note: You can use synchronizing and action logging to return to earlier versions of the main
project or a segment (p. 52).

It is important to understand that a project segment is a complete project and that changes to that
project impact all other projects to which it is linked. In order for the model query subjects to
work, there must be a physical layer in each segment that contains a subset of the data source
query subjects on which they are based. These data source query subjects provide access to the
data and metadata and must be included in the appropriate segments.

The physical layer should never be modified in a segment because any changes will be reflected in
the linked parent model and will impact all other model segments that share data source query
subjects. Likewise, any changes to objects in the parent model will be reflected in the linked child
models. Changes may not be apparent outside the model in which they are made until the model is
closed and reopened.

If you intend to segment your project, we recommend that you:
❑ Model the physical layer as completely as possible (p. 42).
❑ Organize the physical layer using namespaces (p. 28).
You should create a namespace for query subjects, calculations, and filters that you expect to
be necessary for more than one segment.
You should create a namespace for each collection of query subjects that is unique to a
planned model segment.
❑ Segment the model (p. 43) for each namespace you created.
❑ Use a source code control repository (p. 48) when possible to restrict access and track changes
to your projects and segments.


Recommend reading p. 43 onwards of the FM user guide as it elaborates more on linking/segmenting & best practices.

Please let us know how your multi-user dev project goes!

Mike

[mikewalker]

Also there is another good post on multi-user FM development worth reading here:

http://cognoise.com/community/index.php?topic=810.0

[shawnjones]

again....thanks so much.......