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Using Customized ProClarity Views in a PPS Dashboard

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Have you ever wanted to use the ProClarity Report View in a PPS Dashboard and allow the view to be launched full-screen in ProClarity Web Professional (rich-client)? Or have you wanted the ability to cross-drill in a ProClarity Decomposition Tree when opened full-screen?

I found a great PerformancePoint & ProClarity tip recently , that addresses these needs. This tip came from one of our technical specialists out in the field, Howard Morgenstern, with assistance from one of our developers, Tim Morgan. Howard writes a blog called Howard@MSFT Selling BI. This tip will help you embed ProClarity Analytic Server (PAS) views in a PPS Dashboard using UI configuration parameters. Check out the article here.

The neat part about this workaround is that it gives you access to the entire PAS frameset, which in turn gives you access to additional ProClarity UI, like the ProClarity toolbar.

To make full use of this tip, it is useful to have some knowledge of PAS UI configuration parameters. This information is available in the PAS Administrators Guide, pages 90-94. Some of the more useful UI configuration parameters are shown below:

UI Configuration Parameter URL Parameter Equivalent Description
tb tabsVisible=False Hides the ProClarity logo, UI tabs and left pane. Great for Dashboard use.
dt dimToolvisible=false Hides the Data Layout tab, preventing the user from changing hierarchies or member selections on rows, columns or background.
ht contentNavigation=false Removes the PAS library breadcrumb trail, contents tab and previous/next page icons.
fs fullScreen=true Adds a button to the PAS toolbar that opens the view in a new window. Can be used to open the view in ProClarity Web Professional.

The following screenshots illustrate the use of the ProClarity toolbar in a PPS Dashboard view. First, here is a Decomposition Tree with the default ProClarity Report options.

Figure 1: Decomposition Tree with default ProClarity Report options

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The following screenshot shows the use of UI Configuration parameters to display the ProClarity toolbar, with an icon for launching the Decomposition Tree in ProClarity Web Professional.

Figure 2: Decomposition Tree with tb;ht;fs options

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Figure 3: ProClarity Toolbar, Icon to Launch Web Professional

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I have found this workaround to be very useful. Thanks, Howard! It's great to get tips like this from the field. Any questions? Do you have a great tip/trick to share with the broader PerformancePoint community? Please comment on this blog, or shoot me an email.

Rex Parker, Program Manager, PerformancePoint Server

Email: rexpark@microsoft.com

Lastly, some Q&A:

FAQs

Q) I've been using the Web Page Report to show ProClarity views in a PPS Dashboard. This allows me to pass URL parameters, and gives me full control over the ProClarity UI. Why would I want to use the "server name" workaround?

A) The Web Page Report does not accept PPS dashboard filter values. The "server name" workaround allows you to configure the ProClarity UI and still accept PPS dashboard filter values.

Q) What is the purpose of the Configuration Options text box for the ProClarity Report View? Can I use this instead of the "server name" workaround?

A) This box allows the user to enter in UI Configuration parameters without using the "server name" workaround. However, the ProClarity Report View only renders a portion of the ProClarity frameset, and does not give the user access to additional portions of the ProClarity UI, such as the ProClarity toolbar. This is an issue that the workaround solves. Also, this workaround eliminates the need to manually copy-and-paste very long PAS URLs.

Q) I used this workaround with the "fs" parameter to give users the ability to open ProClarity views in ProClarity Web Professional (rich client) but I don't see the button in the ProClarity toolbar. What gives?

A) Two things to check: First, make sure that the users have been given access to Web Professional. This is done in the PAS Administration Tool. Second, make sure that the users have downloaded Web Professional. Once these conditions are met, the users should see the "globe" icon in the ProClarity toolbar, which is the icon for opening the view in Web Professional.

Comments

  • Anonymous
    March 30, 2008
    I don't see the same [Launch Web Professional] icon on the ProClarity Toolbar. Rather, I have a launch [Full View] icon, which opens ProClarity Web (Thin-Client). Do I have to install another piece to get the rich-client?

  • Anonymous
    March 31, 2008
    Do you have web professional permissions in PAS? If so, you should see the button to launch the web professional?

  • Anonymous
    September 23, 2008
    I found a very easy way to add Proclarity functionality to PPS reports. Follow this link: http://blogs