IBM Cognos

This section provides you with information on how to connect IBM Cognos query tool to Exasol using JDBC connection. IBM Cognos Business Intelligence has supported the JDBC interface of Exasol since version 10.2.1.1 Interim Fix 3 onwards (since 2014).

Environment

The following environment is used as an example:

  • IBM Cognos Business Intelligence for Windows.
  • Windows Operating System.
  • Exasol JDBC connector.

Prerequisite

You need to have the following:

  • Cognos must be installed and running on your Windows environment.
  • JDBC driver provided by Exasol.
  • Compatible IBM Cognos version 11.1.3.
  • A running Exasol SaaS database. For more information, see Manage Databases and Clusters.
  • The IP address of the client or server where the tool is running must be listed in the allowed IP address list. For more information, see Network Security.

Connect IBM Cognos to Exasol

Follow these steps to connect IBM Cognos Windows tools to an Exasol instance.

Step 1: Install JDBC

Follow these steps to download, install, and use the JDBC driver:

  1. Download the JDBC driver from the Exasol Downloads portal.
  2. Run the downloaded file (EXASOL_JDBC-x.y.x.msi) and install it.
  3. Copy the JDBC driver file - exajdbc.jar (...\EXASOL\Exasol-version\JDBC) into IBM Cognos.
  4. Restart the IBM Cognos service.

For additional information, refer to the JDBC driver section.

Step 2: Connect IBM Cognos with Exasol Database

Follow these steps to connect IBM Cognos with Exasol database along with the necessary properties:

  1. On IBM Cognos Connection screen, click Launch and then click IBM Cognos Administration.

  2. Select the Configuration tab and then click New Data Source icon on the right side of the screen to create a new data source.

  3. Enter a name for the data source and click Next.
  4. In the New Data Source wizard, for Type select JDBC from the list and click Next.
  5. In the next screen, enter the following properties: 
    • Type: Exasol
    • JDBC URL: jdbc:exa:<host-range>:<port>
    • Connection properties: SCHEMA=xxx - This step optional. You can enter the value if you want to set a default schema as part of the connection.
    • Driver class name: com.exasol.jdbc.EXADriver
    • Signon: Enter the User ID and Password from your database.

  6. Clicking the Test the connection option opens the Test the connection - New Data Source wizard where you can test your connection.

  7. Click Test. If the connection is successful, you will see the status Succeeded.