SAP BusinessObjects

The section explains how to connect SAP BusinessObjects to your Exasol database using the Exasol ODBC and JDBC drivers.

SAP BusinessObjects is a business intelligence software and big data analytics platform that helps you explore, analyze, and share real-time business analytics easily. For more information, see SAP BusinessObjects Business Intelligence Platform.

Exasol takes no responsibility for changes in functionality or terms of use for third-party tools. For more details about the compatibility and use of these tools with Exasol, refer to the respective software vendor’s website.

Prerequisites

  • A running Exasol database
  • Exasol ODBC or JDBC driver must be installed. You can download drivers from the Exasol Downloads portal. For more information, see Drivers.
  • A running Instance of SAP BusinessObjects

ODBC Connection

Configure the Driver

To set up the ODBC driver in Windows ODBC Administration:

  1. Configure the Exasol ODBC driver and datasource as described in Configure the driver and data sources.
  2. Open odbc.prm file from the ODBC installation directory and modify the following parameters.
    <Parameter Name="DB_TYPE">GENERIC</Parameter>
    <Parameter Name="EXT_JOIN">YES</Parameter>
    <Parameter Name="CONCAT">||</Parameter>
    <Parameter Name="COMMA">||' '||</Parameter>
    <Parameter Name="OUTERJOINS_GENERATION">USUAL</Parameter>
    <Parameter Name="LEFT_OUTER">$(+)</Parameter>
    <Parameter Name="RIGHT_OUTER">$(+)</Parameter>
    <Parameter Name="EXT_JOIN_INVERT">YES</Parameter>
  3. Save the file.

You can now connect to Exasol using the ODBC driver. For more information, see Using ODBC Driver.

JDBC Connection

Configure the Driver

To set up the JDBC driver for Exasol, do the following:

  1. Go to the JDBC driver folder in the BusinessObjects installation directory.
    For example, C:\BusinessObjects\SAP BusinessObjects Enterprise XI 4.0\dataAccess\connectionServer\jdbc
  2. Copy the exajdbc.jar into the directory.
  3. Create a copy of the jdbc.sbo file.
  4. Open the file in a text editor and add the following lines in the new file.
    <JDBCDriver>
        <ClassPath>
            <Path>$ROOT$/drivers/java/dbd_jdbcwrapper.jar</Path>
            <Path>C:\JDBC-drivers\exajdbc.jar</Path>
        </ClassPath>
    ...
    <Databases>
            <DataBase Active="Yes" Name="Exasol JDBC">
                    <Parameter Name="JDBC Class">com.exasol.jdbc.EXADriver</Parameter>
                    <Parameter Name="URL Format">jdbc:exa:$DATASOURCE$</Parameter>
  5. Save the file.

You can now connect to Exasol using JDBC driver, see Using JDBC Driver.

Connect SAP BusinessObjects to Exasol

Using ODBC Driver

Do the following to connect to Exasol using ODBC driver:

  1. Open the Information Design Tool from Start> SAP Business Intelligence > SAP BusinessObjects BI platform 4 Client Tools.
  2. Create a new local project:
    1. Select File > New > Project.
    2. Add a name for the project.
    3. Click Finish.
  3. Right-click the Project and select New > Relational Connection.
  4. In New Relational Connection dialog, add resource name, description, and click Next.
  5. Do the following in the Database Middleware Driver Selection dialog:
    • Select GENERIC > Generic ODBC Datasource > ODBC driver.
    • Add username and password.
    • Choose a data source name for the ODBC alias.
  6. Click Finish.

Using JDBC Driver

Do the following to connect to Exasol using JDBC driver:

  1. Open the Information Design Tool from Start> SAP Business Intelligence > SAP BusinessObjects BI platform 4 Client Tools.
  2. Create a new local project:
    1. Select File > New > Project.
    2. Add a name for the project.
    3. Click Finish.
  3. Right-click the Project and select New > Relational Connection.
  4. In New Relational Connection dialog, add resource name, description, and click Next.
  5. Do the following in the Database Middleware Driver Selection dialog:
    • Select GENERIC > Exasol JDBC > JDBC driver.
    • Add JDBC-URL: jdbc:exa:<host-range>:<port>
    • Add JDBC Class: com.exasol.jdbc.EXADriver
  6. Click Finish.