Analytics: Application Developer (Siebel 7.

7)

Module 3: Siebel Analytics

Architecture
Module Objectives

After completing this module you will be able to:

 Identify the major components that make up the Siebel
Analytics architecture
 Describe the role of each component in the architecture
 Describe the relationships among the components

Why you need to know:

 Enables you to understand the relationship between
Siebel Analytics components, preparing you to
successfully install and configure them

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Siebel Analytics Architecture
 Is made up of five main components:
 Clients
 Siebel Analytics Web Server
 Siebel Analytics Server
 Siebel Analytics Scheduler
 Data Sources

Siebel
Data
Analytics
Sources
Server
Siebel
Clients Analytics
Web Server

Siebel
Analytics
Scheduler

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Clients
 Provide access to analytics information via Web browser
 Siebel Dashboards
 Siebel Answers
 Siebel Delivers
 Siebel Analytics Web Administration

Siebel
Data
Analytics
Sources
Server
Siebel
Clients Analytics
Web Server

Siebel
Analytics
Access analytics Scheduler
information via
Web browser

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Siebel Dashboards
 Provide prebuilt, fully-interactive access to analytics information

Can be
organized by
role

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Siebel Answers
 Provides a self-service analysis platform
 Is rendered from information in the Siebel Analytics Server and
Siebel Analytics Web Server

Highly
interactive UI

Driven
based on
security

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Siebel Delivers
 Client application that:
 Is used to create iBots
 Delivers alerts to subscribed users
 Is integrated with Dashboards and Answers
 Job identifies what information to filter, when it should run, and
who to send alerts to

User interface used to

create iBots

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Siebel Analytics Web Administration
 Is used to access administrative functions of Siebel Analytics
Web and view information about the currently installed system

Information about currently installed system Installed components

Links to administrative functions

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Siebel Analytics Web Server
 Provides the processing to visualize the information for client
consumption
 Is implemented as an extension to a Web server
 Uses the web catalog file (.webcat) to store aspects of the
application
 Receives data from the Siebel Analytics Server and provides it
to the client that requested it

Siebel
Data
Analytics
Sources
Server
Siebel
Clients Analytics
Web Server

Siebel
.webcat Analytics
Scheduler

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Siebel Analytics Web Catalog (.webcat)
 Stores the application Dashboards, request definitions, pages,
and filters
 Contains information regarding permissions and accessibility of
the Dashboards by groups and users
 Is created when the Web Server starts
 Is administered using Siebel Analytics Catalog Manager

Siebel
Data
Analytics
Sources
Server
Siebel
Clients Analytics
Web Server

Siebel
.webcat Analytics
Scheduler

Module 3: Siebel Analytics Architecture 10 of 29

Siebel Analytics Server
 Provides efficient processing to intelligently access the physical
data sources and structures the information
 Uses metadata to direct processing
 Generates dynamic SQL to query data in the data sources
 Connects natively or via ODBC to the RDBMS
 Structures results to satisfy requests
 Provides the data to the Siebel Analytics Web Server

Siebel
Data
Analytics
Sources
Server
Siebel
Clients Analytics
Web Server Is the primary focus
of this course
Siebel
.webcat Analytics
Scheduler
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Siebel Analytics Server Details
 Several important components are used by the Siebel Analytics
Server
 Repository file (.rpd)
 Cache
 NQSConfig.ini
 DBFeatures.ini
 Log files
Siebel Cache
Analytics
Server

NQSConfig.ini NQSServer.log
.rpd
DBFeatures.ini NQSQuery.log
Siebel Analytics
Administration Tool

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Repository File (.rpd)
 Contains metadata that represents the analytical model
 Is created using the Siebel Analytics Administration Tool
 Is divided into three layers
 Physical—represents the data sources
 Business—models the data sources into facts and dimensions
 Presentation—specifies the users view of the model; rendered in
Siebel Answers

Siebel Cache
Analytics
Server

NQSConfig.ini NQServer.log
.rpd
DBFeatures.ini NQQuery.log
Siebel Analytics
Administration Tool

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Cache
 Contains results of queries
 Is used to eliminate redundant queries to database
 Speeds up results processing

Siebel Cache
Analytics
Server

NQSConfig.ini NQServer.log
.rpd
DBFeatures.ini NQQuery.log
Siebel Analytics
Administration Tool

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NQSConfig.ini
 Is a configuration file used by the Siebel Analytics Server at
startup
 Specifies values that control processing, such as:
 Defining the repository (.rpd) to load
 Enabling or disabling caching of results

Siebel Cache
Analytics
Server

NQSConfig.ini NQServer.log
.rpd
DBFeatures.ini NQQuery.log
Siebel Analytics
Administration Tool

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DBFeatures.ini
 Is a configuration file used by the Siebel Analytics Server
 Specifies values that control SQL generation
 Defines the features supported by each database

Siebel Cache
Analytics
Server

NQSConfig.ini NQServer.log
.rpd
DBFeatures.ini NQQuery.log
Siebel Analytics
Administration Tool

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Log Files
 NQServer.log records Siebel Analytics Server messages
 NQQuery.log records information about query requests

Siebel Cache
Analytics
Server

NQSConfig.ini NQServer.log
.rpd
DBFeatures.ini NQQuery.log
Siebel Analytics
Administration Tool

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Siebel Analytics Scheduler
 Manages and executes jobs requesting data analytics
 Schedules reports to be delivered to users at specified times
 In Windows, the scheduler runs as a service

Siebel
Data
Analytics
Sources
Server
Siebel
Clients Analytics
Web Server

Siebel
.webcat Analytics
Scheduler

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Data Sources
 Contain the business data users want to analyze
 Are accessed by the Siebel Analytics Server
 Can be in any format, such as
 Relational databases
 Online Analytical Processing (OLAP) databases
 Flat files
 Spreadsheets

Siebel
Data
Analytics
Sources
Server
Siebel
Clients Analytics
Web Server

Siebel
.webcat Analytics
Scheduler

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Siebel Relationship Management Warehouse
 Is a predefined data source to support analysis of Siebel
application data
 Relevant data structures support Siebel eBusiness Applications
 Is in a star schema format
 Is included with Siebel Analytics Applications (not available with
standalone Analytics purchases)

Siebel
Data
Analytics
Sources
Server
Siebel
Clients Analytics
Web Server Siebel Relationship
Management
Siebel Warehouse (RMW)
.webcat Analytics
Scheduler

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DAC and Informatica Server
 Data Warehouse Application Console (DAC) Client
 Used to schedule, monitor, configure, and customize SRMW
extraction, transformation, and load
 Accesses metadata about ETL mappings and dependencies in the
DAC repository
 DAC Server
 Organizes ETL requests for processing
 Third party Informatica Server populates the SRMW from the
Siebel eBusiness Application Database (Siebel OLTP)
 Uses extract, transform, and load (ETL) routines

Siebel DAC and Informatica Server Siebel

OLTP RMW

Is the focus of another course

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Informatica Server ETL
 Uses Source Dependent Extraction (SDE) routines to extract
data
 Loads data into staging tables within the Siebel RMW
 Uses Source Independent Loading (SIL) routines to transform
data into stars within the Siebel RMW

Source
Dependent
Extract
Siebel OLTP
Siebel
OLTP Source
Full & Dependent Siebel Source Siebel
Incremental Extract Source 2 RMW Independent RMW
Source 2 Extraction Staging Loading Structures
Tables
Source
Dependent
Source 3 Extract Source 3

Source Dependent
Extraction
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Sample Request Processing
1. User views a Dashboard or submits an Answers request
2. The Siebel Analytics Web Server makes a request to the Siebel
Analytics Server to retrieve the requested data
3. The Siebel Analytics Server, using the .rpd file, optimizes
functions to request the data from the data sources
4. The Siebel Analytics Server receives the data from the data
sources and processes as necessary
5. The Siebel Analytics Server passes the data to the Siebel
Analytics Web Server
6. The Siebel Analytics Web Server formats the data and sends it
to the client

1 Siebel 2 Siebel 3
Clients Analytics Analytics Data Sources
6 Web Server 5 Server 4

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Siebel Analytics Standalone Architecture
 Does not require any Siebel eBusiness Applications

Browser

Web Server
Siebel Analytics Web

Siebel Siebel
Analytics
Analytics Analytics
Repository
Scheduler Server

Scheduler Data Data

Database Source Source

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Siebel Analytics Integrated Architecture
 Supports the Siebel Analytics Applications
 Parallels the Siebel eBusiness Applications architecture

Browser

Web Server

Siebel Web Engine Siebel Analytics Web

Siebel Siebel Siebel

Siebel Analytics
Enterprise Analytics Analytics
Repository Repository
Server Scheduler Server

Siebel
Siebel RMW
OLTP
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Implementation
 Siebel Analytics components are often implemented across
several computers on the network
 For example:

Analytics Server

Web-Based Client Web Server Data Server

Scheduler Server

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Clustering Siebel Analytics Servers
 Cluster Server Feature
 Allows up to 16 Siebel Analytics Servers in a network domain to
act as a single server
 Servers in cluster share requests from multiple Siebel Analytics
clients, including Siebel Analytics Answers and Siebel Analytics
Delivers
 Cluster Controller is primary component of the Cluster Server
feature
 Monitors status of resources in a cluster and performs session
assignment as resources change
 Supports detection of server failures and failover for ODBC clients
of failed servers

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Summary

This module showed you how to:

 Identify the major components that make up the Siebel
Analytics architecture
 Describe the role of each component in the architecture
 Describe the relationships among the components

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Lab
 In the lab you will:
 Explore Siebel Analytics components and files

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