Data Sheet
Cisco Tidal Enterprise Adapter for SAP BusinessObjects
Introduction to Enterprise Scheduling and Adapters
IT operations that focus on the automation of business processes involve integrating a wide range of
custom and enterprise applications and the infrastructure on which they run, often with complex
interdependencies. In such environments, IT typically uses job scheduling tools to control batch and on
demand event processing, which are vital to the success of a range of business operations from sales to
manufacturing to financial management.
For the past decade, Cisco® Tidal Enterprise Scheduler has been defining standards for job scheduling
usability, scalability, and breadth of coverage. The role of the many Cisco adapters available for
Enterprise Scheduler is to make connectivity, control, and visibility of diverse technologies accessible
directly through the Enterprise Scheduler user interface. The breadth of coverage these adapters provide
simplifies end-to-end scheduling of processes across the enterprise.
Product Overview
Cisco Tidal Enterprise Adapter for SAP BusinessObjects
Enterprise Adapter for SA P BusinessObjects is an interface betw een Enterprise Scheduler and the SA P
BusinessObjects bus iness intelligence (BI) platfor m w here users can define, launch, and monitor SA P
BusinessObjects tas ks and job steps w ithin a scheduler environment. The combination of Enterprise Scheduler and
Enterprise Adapter for SA P BusinessObjects offers superior functionality and process granularity over native SA P
scheduling tools.
By incorporating Enterprise Adapter for SA P BusinessObjects into enterpr ise-w ide job scheduling environments,
organizations can add complex scheduling functions to their BI solutions, w hile consolidating their environment via a
single pane of glass. The adapter offers complete graphical user interface (GUI) job definition capabilities, the ability
to set complex, system-w ide dependenc ies, and custom calendar creation w ithout the need to use multiple tools or
cumbersome scripting methods w hich must be managed throughout their entire lifecycle.
Enterprise Scheduler prov ides virtually unlimited flexibility in developing and defining SA P BusinessObjects
processing steps, giv ing IT staff the ability to create complex job streams that utilize the adapter to mer ge any BI;
data integration; extract, transform, and load ( ETL); and data w arehouse processes.
The Challenges of Scheduling Job Steps for SAP BusinessObjects Environm ents
SA P Bus inessObjects is a pow erful software suite designed to allow business managers to access, format, analyze,
navigate, and share all types of information. SA P BusinessObjects solutions enable data discovery, delivery, and
management, as w ell as query, reporting, and sophisticated numer ic and text data analysis capabilities.
Without effective process automation, running the tasks needed to support BI operations may not occur correctly or in
the correct order. With many moving parts, such as job steps and data transformation tasks, w orkloads can br eak
dow n, and poor environmental monitoring can leave operations staff in the dark about w hat part of a process failed
and w hy. As a result, w hen process interactions betw een data w arehouse services and BI reporting functionality are
less than optimal, business operations and strategic decision- making can be negatively impacted.
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Data Sheet
How the Adapter for SAP BusinessObjects Works
Enterprise Adapter for SA P BusinessObjects is pow ered by an agentless application program interface (API) -level
integration developed using the native SA P BusinessObjects softw are developer ’s kit (SDK) to embed SA P
BusinessObjects functionality into Enterprise Scheduler. It allow s users to connect to SA P BusinessObjects servers
and define jobs using standard Enterprise Scheduler dialog screens. Because SA P BusinessObjects jobs are defined
like any other Enterprise Scheduler job, users can leverage job, file, and var iable dependencies, calendars, events,
monitoring, and error notifications. In addition, they can benefit from detailed runtime error detection, alerts, and
automated remediation.
Users can create and schedule jobs in Enterprise Scheduler to perform tasks in a variety of SAP BusinessObjects
applications, inc luding Crystal Reports, SA P BusinessObjects Web Intelligence, Des ktop Intelligence, Data Services,
Data Integrator, and XBRL Publishing. The adapter also queries SA P BusinessObjects InfoStore to access f olders
and objects, w hich then can be brought into the automated scheduling environment w ith full variable and parameter
support. Based on defined scheduling criteria, the adapter submits a SA P BusinessObjects task to run through the
native job scheduling service.
The adapter enforces SA P Bus inessObjects security rules by authenticating user access through associations
betw een Enterprise Scheduler runtime users and SA P Bus inessObjects users. Creating a SA P BusinessObjects job
in Enterprise Scheduler is highly secure and is as simple as creating any other job.
Once a job has been submitted, Enterprise Adapter for SA P BusinessObjects monitors the w orkload through to
completion. It returns the final completion status—w hich then can be used to control dow nstream jobs and details
associated w ith enterprise-w ide w orkloads—to the central console. In addition, it allows users to cancel, hold/resume,
abort, and rerun tasks from Enterpr ise Scheduler. This feature provides significantly more control over the
environment than offered by scripting or other nonintegrated scheduling solutions.
Features and Benefits
The adapter extends Enterpr ise Scheduler to incorporate the SA P BusinessObjects infor mation and access that staff
requires to schedule jobs through the Enterpr ise Scheduler interface. It simplifies scheduling and respects the
integr ity and security of the SA P BusinessObjects environment.
Enterprise Adapter for SA P BusinessObjects, w ith Enterprise Scheduler, delivers standardized, centralized, and
scriptless scheduling for both simple and complex processes, as w ell as thorough trac king and alerting. These
capabilities increase efficiency, reduce errors, and support enterprise objectives, enabling IT staff to focus on
innovation and strategic initiatives. Spec ific capabilities include:
Robust Event Monitoring and Alert Notifications – Enterprise Adapter for SA P BusinessObjects is event‐ based.
It launches processes based on defined calendars, schedules, or event triggers and provides thorough monitoring,
enabling users to see status changes in real time and to control those processes as they execute.
The adapter notifies users via email or other alerting mechanis ms w hen new content from reports or SA P
BusinessObjects Web Intelligence is available. When a job is complete, output can be attached or, for greater
security, can be referenced through a hyperlink, requiring that users present credentials before being able to access
information. Trace logs give IT staff the ability to deter mine w here an execution failed, w hether execution steps
occurred in the expected order, and w hich parts of the execution took the most time to run.
Seam less Support for Ad Hoc and Scheduled Jobs – Business managers frequently make ad hoc BI requests that
must be run immediately. Gradually, these jobs are reused and fall into predictable patterns. For efficiency, they
should be organized into calendars or schedules. With Enterpr ise Scheduler and Enterprise Adapter for SA P
BusinessObjects, these ad hoc jobs can be easily transitioned into standard production runs, eliminating manual
intervention in the scheduling process. In addition, because this solution offers a single point of control for all
© 2010 Cisco and/or its affiliates. All rights reserv ed. This document is Cisco Public Information.
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Data Sheet
enterprise-w ide schedules and processes, it simplifies adherence to prescribed policies and allow s IT operations staff
to seamlessly incorporate SA P BusinessObjects jobs into established schedule updates.
Enterprise-w ide Coverage – Enterpr ise Scheduler and Enterprise Adapter for SA P BusinessObjects support cross application, cross-platform job dependencies, enabling integration of a w ide variety of SA P jobs into other w orkloads.
Single Web-portal Interface – The solution offers a single point of control for company-w ide job scheduling through
its portable, browser-based interface.
Features Summary
Benefits Summary
Connects Crystal Reports, SAP BusinessObjects Data Services, Web
Intelligence, and other SAP BusinessObjects solutions to other
platforms and applications
Creates unlimited dependencies and broader, integrated business
workf lows
Automates SAP BusinessObjects functions v ia a single pane of glass
and consolidates IT operations around one set of internal procedures
Reduces costs and increases efficiency by conf ining training and
operational support to one, enterprise-wide application automation
env ironment
Automates business workflows and provides easy access to all
application and data sources
Eliminates ―swiv el chair‖ management and consolidates views of enterprisewide output
Permits granular workflow creation and failure detection
Supports data integrity and accuracy
Off ers advanced scheduling features and event-driven processing
Increases data integration accuracy and BI team productiv ity by delivering
timely results
Prov ides a content management browser that locates reports and
specif ic schedule queries and that can also be restricted to specific
packages and/or folders
Prov ides f ast access to the right reports at the right time
Enables any report or SAP BusinessObjects Web Intelligence
parameter to be set dynamically using Tidal variables
Giv es IT staff the flexibility to create the job definitions and parameters it
wishes and simplifies managing complex workloads
Lev erages the SAP BusinessObjects web services API
Seamless integrates Enterprise Scheduler and SAP BusinessObjects
reports
Enf orces SAP BusinessObjects security associated with Enterprise
Scheduler runtime users
Enables users to know who has access to what, providing optimal security
in all development, test, and runtime environments
Def ines ―new report availability‖ triggers which can send email
messages with links to reports stored on the SAP BusinessObjects
server
Reduces IT staff involvement through automated alerts and frees staff
members to handle mission-critical tasks
Packages all implementation details in the UI that connects Enterprise
Scheduler to SAP BusinessObjects and defines SAP BusinessObjects
schedules
Eliminates scripting and complex manual interventions that must be
documented and managed throughout their lifecycle
Accelerated ROI
Enterprise Adapter for SA P BusinessObjects leverages an industry -leading scheduling solution, Enterprise
Scheduler, w hich is respected for its ease of use and broad enterprise coverage. It delivers robust and scalable
scheduling functionality, including integrated job definitions and seamless handling of events, dependencies,
resources, calendars, and output. It also pr ovides exception-based control and role-based security. In addition, its
intuitive graphical interface requires no scripting. Ultimately, this solution can accelerate ROI by increasing efficiency,
as w ell as reducing errors and issues, through better automation and process visibility.
Cisco/SAP Partner Integration
Enterprise Scheduler is part of the SA P BusinessObjects Partner program, the only job scheduling solution to have
earned this close relationship w ith SAP BusinessObjects.
Key Requirements
Although specific planning and sizing is straightforw ard, actual requirements can vary by enterprise, depending on
the environment and type of coverage needed. Specific requirements information is easily obtainable after an initial
conversation w ith a product expert. Enterprise Scheduler and its adapters can be installed and deployed by users or
by engaging Cisco Services. To guide and inform the new and existing Enterprise Scheduler user community, there is
an extensive library of support materials available through Cisco Know ledge Services .
© 2010 Cisco and/or its affiliates. All rights reserv ed. This document is Cisco Public Information.
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Data Sheet
About Cisco Tidal Enterprise Scheduler
Cisco Tidal Enterprise Scheduler drives efficiency by centraliz ing and providing a single view of cross-enterprise job
scheduling events. This pow erful, yet easy-to-use solution enables organizations to assemble complex batch job and
business process schedules that span the enterprise. With its ability to closely monitor scheduled jobs, automatically
detect problems, and define actions to aid in recovery, business process performance can be greatly enhanced.
With the broad adapter and agent coverage prov ided by Enterprise Scheduler, IT operations teams can effectively
schedule processes that touch a w ide range of databases, systems, and applications. They can also easily
incorporate and manage new applications as they come online, w hich helps improve the operat ion of mission-critical
business processes as the enterprise expands and evolves.
Companies in a variety of industries rely on Enterpr ise Scheduler to keep their daily operations running s moothly.
Cisco’s enterpr ise job scheduling softw are combined w ith a w ide range of Cisco Intelligent Automation solutions can
deliver even greater levels of automation and optimization to the data center than conventional scheduling and
performance management solutions.
For More Information
For more information about this or any other Cisco product or service, please visit
http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/ps11092/index.html
Printed in USA
© 2010 Cisco and/or its affiliates. All rights reserv ed. This document is Cisco Public Information.
1092-E 04/11
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