Third-Party Tools

Like the Activity – Reloaded universe we mentioned in Chapter 2, we’ll be includ-ing a version of our take on the Auditor data model for SAP BusinessObjects BI 4.0 in the collateral included with this book. It is written specifically for Oracle, but you are free to craft it for your database du jour. Specifically note, however, this universe is based upon a multi-source data source. If you want to redirect to a single-source universe, that is on you.

Now is not the time to panic as you look at this model. There is a lot to consider, but we’ll break it down into some bite-sized chunks to learn what has moved where.

Figure 7.53 The New Auditor Model in SAP BusinessObjects BI 4.0

New Auditor Features 7.7

왘 ADS_EVENT

The table formerly known as AUDIT_EVENT should not be unfamiliar. It is still primarily responsible for capturing the core characteristics of the event that took place in the environment, such as a user logon, a report that was refreshed, or a schedule that failed. The ADS_EVENT_TYPE table provides the decode to each type of event that is being reported upon in the EVENT_TYPE_ID column.

왘 ADS_EVENT_DETAIL

Like its predecessor the AUDIT_DETAIL table, the ADS_EVENT_DETAIL table provides the granular details about each event. These details provide the administrator differing views of each event based upon the EVENT_DETAIL_

TYPE_ID contained within it, which is further extrapolated by reviewing the ADS_EVENT_DETAIL_TYPE_STR table as shown in Figure 7.54.

왘 ADS_STATUS_STR(newandnotable)

The ADS_STATUS_STR table is one of the first examples we’ll illustrate to dem-onstrate some of the new grains of reporting that are available in Auditor. This table, as an example, provides the reporting capability to roll up events into their higher level “success” or “failure” status types. It is based upon the STATUS_ID in ADS_EVENT shown in Figure 7.55.

왘 ADS_OBJECT_TYPE_STR(newandnotable)

Prior to SAP BusinessObjects BI 4.0, object types were stored in a single col-umn in the AUDIT_EVENT table. This has been denormalized in the ADS_OBJECT_TYPE_STR table, and it is apparent that many more types of

Figure 7.54 A Path from the Audit Event to the Type of Detail About It

Figure 7.55 A Path from the Audit Event to Higher-Level Status Codes

objects are audited and listed here. The simple relationship between the two is demonstrated in Figure 7.56.

왘 ADS_EVENT_CATEGORY_STR(newandnotable)

Event types have always been one-dimensional. In Auditor in SAP Business-Objects BI 4.0, yet another new grain is a roll up of all events by their event cat-egory, as shown in ADS_EVENT_CATEGORY_STR. To make this walk, a cross-reference table ADS_EVENT_TYPE is in place simply as a bridge between the ADS_EVENT and the ADS_EVENT_CATEGORY_STR table, as shown in Figure 7.57.

왘 ADS_EVENT_TYPE

Replacing its predecessor the EVENT_TYPE table, ADS_EVENT_TYPE gives the base-level decode for the EVENT_TYPE_ID, as shown in the ADS_EVENT table.

SAP did a nice job of creating a more concise list of event types that are both rolled up to the category and detailed in ADS_EVENT_DETAIL, making report-ing easier in this iteration of this database.

왘 ADS_SERVER_NAME_STR(newandnotable)

We say new and notable only because the SERVER_PROCESS table from SAP BusinessObjects XI 3.1 and earlier days has been broken into smaller bits and replaced by the ADS_SERVER_NAME_STR table. Looking to identify which server serviced each event in the ADS_EVENT table? Read on.

왘 ADS_AUDITEE(newandnotable)

ADS_AUDITEE serves as much as a cross-reference table to decode out the varying types for each server. However, it’s really just a series of server types, the state of the server, and the unique identifiers as shown in Figure 7.58.

Figure 7.56 A Path from the Audit Event to the Object Type

Figure 7.57 A Path from the Audit Event to the Event Category

New Auditor Features 7.7

왘 ADS_SERVICE_TYPE_STR(newandnotable)

ADS_AUDITEE gives way via the SERVICE_TYPE_ID. With it, ADS_SERVICE_

TYPE_STR will roll the types of servers into non-aggregated service types such as Web Intelligence, SAP Crystal Reports, and, not that it is coming back any time soon, Desktop Intelligence (Figure 7.59).

왘 ADS_SERVER_TYPE_STR(newandnotable)

Unlike ADS_SERVICE_TYPE_STR, the ADS_SERVER_TYPE_STR table actually does aggregate the servers into a higher-level organization such as Job Server, Dashboard Server, Connection Server, and so on. There can certainly be value in not only rolling up reporting for all types of servers to see what the most active in an environment is (it’s all about understanding utilization).

There are a few other tables in the model that we won’t cover in detail here.

Importantly, always consult the BusinessObjects Platform Administrator Guide accompanying any release of the product for the list of what is being audited in

Figure 7.58 Server-Related Auditing

Figure 7.59 Desktop Intelligence…really…? Nah.

_STR Suffixed Tables

The tables require an important distinction in all tables suffixed with _STR. These tables support all languages supported in the SAP BusinessObjects BI 4.0 platform. Therefore, the possibility exists to get errant results if the specification of the LANGUAGE attribute is not selected properly. Either update the universe to limit to the desired language in all the joins, or remote the unneeded language codes from your lookup tables to avoid inflated numbers in your queries.

the release. Just like predecessors to auditing in SAP BusinessObjects BI 4.0, the combination of the event type and the detail type gives way to the combinations of reporting on events.