Questions Log: Installing Cognos BI 10.2.2

CONGOS 10.2.2 PERFORMANCE TUNING
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Performance Tuning” recorded webinar. To view the
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QUESTIONS LOG:
COGNOS 10.2.2 PERFORMANCE TUNING

Q: Will PowerPlay Studio also be deprecated?
A: There are currently no plans by IBM to deprecate
PowerPlay Studio.
Q: What are the licensing implications of distributed
environment? Is a license required for each server, or
does each user license it?
A: It depends on the licensing model you have in place
with IBM.
Questions Log: Cognos 10.2.2 Performance Tuning

Q: IBM recommends 4GB for the JVM, but you are
referencing 1.5GB. Why?
A: This is according to IBM documentation. People have
been hearing this from IBM Support for specific issues
but it has not been documented at this time. More
information on this topic is available here:
http://www-
01.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/#!/SSEP7J_10.2.
2/com.ibm.swg.ba.cognos.crn_arch.10.2.2.doc/c_adgm
emorystngs.html%23ADGmemorystngs
Q: Does the ISAPI module work with Apache
WebServer?
A: ISAPI is only available with Windows IIS

Q: To confirm, Query Service does not need to be
enabled if you are not using Dynamic Query Mode?
A: That is correct. The Query Service is for Dynamic
Query Mode only and can be set to false to free up
resources.
Q: How do you tune a report output that contains
graphics?
A: We would need to review your issue before being able
to provide a recommendation. You can contact us for a
complimentary performance and stability review via
email info@senturus.com, or by calling 1-888-601-6010,
ext. 85.

Q: To run report in Dynamic Query Mode, do we have
to convert all relational packages into DMR models?
A: That is correct.
Q: In a distributed environment, how many
dispatchers can we add?
A: There is no limit to the number of dispatchers you can
add.

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Q: Can non-Dimensionally Modeled Relational (DMR)
relational models go against JDBC data connections? if
yes, would this boost performance over regular data
connections?
A: Yes non-DMR models can go against JDBC connection.
You would need a DMR and to define the package as
Dynamic Query Mode (DQM) to take advantage of any
performance enhancements.

Q: Can you explain more about how summary tables
work?
A: Summary tables help performance when working with
large amount of data that needs to be aggregated in real
time; for example, if you have a table with 1 million
sales records for each fiscal year. To get the annual
total, you would need to select the >1 million rows and
sum/group them up in real time. A summary table would
have one line with the annual total for each year, so
returning the amount would be a basic one row select
statement.

Q: What are 'stitched queries' in Framework Manager?
A: Stitched queries occur in report when there are
multiple fact tables being referenced; for example, a
forecast fact and a sales fact. Selecting a measure from
a conformed time dimension such as year will cause
Cognos to determine the year and sales in one query,
and year and forecast sales in another, and join them
together. This can sometimes lead to poor performance
depending on the amount of data that is “stitched” in
Cognos.

Q: In Cognos on Linux, do you recommend CGI or
mod2?
A: CGI is an older technology. We would recommend not
using CGI if possible.
Q: Regarding migration from 10.2.1 with Tomcat to
10.2.2 with Websphere, what benefits or
disadvantages?
A: So far, we have not seen any difference.

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Q: Do you have a document that lists which services
should be disabled when you have a dispatcher on the
gateway host in a distributed environment?
A: We don’t have any specific document; we would need
to review your existing environment.
Q: Are there any connection issues while using Vertica
DB in Cognos that you are aware of?
A: Not that we’re aware of. Versions 4-7.1 should all be
supported. More information can be found here:
http://www-
969.ibm.com/software/reports/compatibility/clarity-
reports/report/html/prereqsForProduct?deliverableId=1
391013543612#sw-7

Q: How do you tune presentation requests during peak
periods when the volume of requests is very high?
A: We would need to review you environment to see
where the root cause for performance is.
Q: Do you have any online training for System
Administration?
A: Yes! For a full listing of our current training course
schedule, visit: http://senturus.com/training

Q: How stable is 10.2.2 vs 10.2.1? I've seen that IBM
doesn't support SQL Server 2014 on 10.2.1, so we're
hesitant to upgrade our SQL Server instance. But I’m
also worried about 10.2.2. Should we wait for 10.2.2
fix packs before going to 10.2.2?
A: So far, 10.2.2 has been very stable. FixPack1 was
released mid-April, and there has not been any other fix
packs since. 10.2.1 seems to have been a problem child
of sorts as it is on FixPack7.

Q: What's a good way to optimize Query Service (JVM)
Memory in Dynamic Query Mode mode for reporting
using a OLTP data source?
A: Are you referring to Dynamic Cubes? There’s a
Dynamic Cube hardware sizing guide that can help you
with this
http://www.ibm.com/developerworks/library/ba-pp-
infrastructure-cognos_specific-page659/

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Q: What methods, tools, utilities, etc. could be used
for a Linux Cognos server to help diagnose
intermittent system/network/database issues that
impact report runs?
A: The most common methods are top/Iotop, IPTraf, and
nmon.

Q: To tweak your server to run more interactive
reports (we have lots of unused memory), do you
typically just increase the number of processes and
leave the high and low affinity numbers as is?
A: You should review your audit logs and user activity to
determine what the balance of high vs. low should be.
Once you set this, you can bump up the number of
processes and see how the server is responding.

Q: To run a report in Dynamic Query Mode, do we
have to convert all relational packages into DMR
models? Will just publishing a relational package with
Dynamic Query Mode enabled work?
A: You must create a Dimensionally Modeled Relational
(DMR) and publish as a Dynamic Query Mode (DQM)
package. Not doing so will run reports in Compatible
Query Mode (CQM).

Q: Primary content manager often fails over to
secondary content manager. Does this mean we don’t
have required hardware resources to support the
traffic?
A: This is not normal. Cognos should only switch to
failover server if primary content manager is not
responding. You may need to add resources to the
primary server or unload some of the work that is being
done on this server to free up resources for your content
manager.

Q: I'm hearing confusion between the terms Dynamic
Query Mode and Dimensionally Modeled Relational
here. Can you explain?
A: Dynamic Query Mode (DQM) is new with Cognos 10,
and takes advantage of the 64-bit Dynamic Query Engine
and in memory technology. Dimensionally Modeled
Relational (DMR) is a method of structuring your
framework models to act like an OLAP data source. To
use DQM on relational models, you need to use a DMR.
Q: I am interested in the Cube Designer / Dynamic
Cube designer class and Cognos Query Studio.
A: For a full listing of our current training course
schedule, visit: http://senturus.com/training

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Q: We've experienced data retrieval issues that we
believe are related to using local cache settings
(framework model level setting). What is your
suggestion on using local cache (related to
performance vs. data integrity)? We have a six-
dispatcher server configuration.
A: We would need to know more about your existing
environment to know the root cause. Please contact us
for a complimentary performance and stability review
via email info@senturus.com, or by calling 1-888-601-
6010, ext. 85.

Q: Have you experienced CPU spikes due to Garbage
Collection when the JVM was running out of memory
due to high concurrency Dynamic Query Mode
reporting?
A: We have seen this, but diagnosing the issue can be
tricky and requires some real-time monitoring. Contact
us and we can help. You can contact us via email
info@senturus.com, or by calling 1-888-601-6010, ext.
85.
Q: In Framework Manager, what is the use of semi-
aggregate?
A: Semi-aggregate is for SAPDW and should not be used
for other data sources.

Q: What are you doing for clients who must report
against OLTP?
A: There are many things that should and should not be
done when working with OLTP. Please contact us for
more information via email info@senturus.com, or by
calling 1-888-601-6010, ext. 85.
Q: Do you need to configure Cognos any differently for
summary tables? Is Cognos Framework Manager aware
of summary tables?
A: A table is a table in the eyes of Cognos Framework
Manager. The benefit is that the number of rows and
amount of aggregation will be reduced tremendously
when using a summary table.

Q: We get 100% CPU usage on our dedicated
PowerPlay virtual server with just two cubes building.
The server has two Intel Xeon E5-2650 processors and
4GB of memory but memory usage is low. Does
PowerPlay not leverage multiple cores/processors?
A: Transformer cube builds can be resource heavy at
times. To determine the correct sizing for building
multiple cubes, we would need to review the cube
models and amount of data. Contact us via email
info@senturus.com, or by calling 1-888-601-6010, ext.
85.

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Q: If I need to decide between Active Report and
Workspace Advanced, which is a better approach if my
volume of data is a concern?
A: Active Report will pull down data and store it within a
.MHT file. Once an Active Report file has been created,
no database connection is needed. This may be a good
solution if you will have many users accessing the same
information. If your users require more ad-hoc reporting
that cannot be addressed with a single central report, it
may make more sense to use Workspace Advanced.

Q: I'm having an issue logging in using SSO. I logged in
as a different admin account on my machine, and now
it logs me in as that administrator all the time. How do
I clear the information?
A: We would need to review your current configuration
to troubleshoot.
Q: Are there any webinars on browser compatibility
issues using Cognos 10.2.1 / 10.2.2?
A: The full list of supported browsers can be found here:
http://www-
969.ibm.com/software/reports/compatibility/clarity-
reports/report/html/prereqsForProduct?deliverableId=1
391013543612#sw-16

Q: Active Report sometimes does not open in 10.2.1
workspace. The server becomes really slow. Are you
aware of something like this?
A: I am not aware of any issues. We would need to
review your reports and environment to troubleshoot.
Q: Can core.dmp files be deleted periodically? I see lot
of them occupying huge space on the server example.
A: Core dump files are usually an indicator of a serious
problem. You can delete them, but steps should be
taken to prevent them from being created.

Q: What does pogo failure mean while starting your
secondary content?
A: This could be a result of many things. We would need
more details to troubleshoot. You can contact us for a
complimentary performance and stability review via
email info@senturus.com, or by calling 1-888-601-6010,
ext. 85.
Q: How much additional resources are needed for
Active Report?
A: I am not aware of any additional resources needed for
Active Report. There are steps for improving speed and
keeping file size down that can be found on the IBM
Knowledge base.

Q: We just changed from 10.1.1 to 10.2.1. Should we
change to 10.2.2, and is easier to do so?
A: Upgrade process is the same. There are many less fix
packs to apply in 10.2.2.
Q: Can we have different summary tables for different
grains, like hourly, daily, monthly tables, and have
common time hierarchy?
A: Yes, although it will require more modeling and work
to maintain. I have often seen views used to union many
different summary grains. A dynamic or power cube
would be able to do this for you automatically based on
your dimensions.

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Questions Log: Installing Cognos BI 10.2.2

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