Hyperion Essbase Connection Type (SSRS)

To include data from a Hyperion Essbase external data source in your report, you must have a dataset that is based on a report data source of type Hyperion Essbase. This built-in data source type is based on the data extension for Hyperion Essbase, which enables you to retrieve multidimensional data from a Hyperion Essbase external data source.

Use the information in this topic to build a data source. For step-by-step instructions, see Add and Verify a Data Connection (Report Builder and SSRS).

Connection String

The following connection string example specifies a Hyperion Essbase data source on a server that uses port 13080 and XML for Analysis Services (XMLA) over the Internet using SOAP, connecting to a sample catalog:

Data Source=https://localhost:13080/aps/XMLA; Initial Catalog=Sample  

For more information about connection string examples, see Create data connection strings - Report Builder & SSRS.

Credentials

Credentials are required to run queries, to preview the report locally, and to preview the report from the report server.

After you publish your report, you may need to change the credentials for the data source so that when the report runs on the report server, the permissions to retrieve the data are valid.

For more information, see Specify Credential and Connection Information for Report Data Sources.

Queries

You can specify a query in the following ways:

  • Build a query interactively. Use the graphical query designer in Design or Query mode to browse the metadata on the external data source and generate a query in Multidimensional Expression (MDX) syntax.

    • Design View Drag dimensions, members, member properties, measures, and KPIs from the metadata browser to the Data pane to build an MDX query. Drag calculated members from the CalculatedMembers pane to the Data pane to define additional dataset fields.

    • Query View Drag dimensions, members, member properties, measures, and KPIs from the metadata browser to the Query pane to build an MDX query. You can edit MDX text directly in the Query pane. Drag calculated members from the CalculatedMembers pane to the Query pane to define additional dataset fields.

    For more information, see Hyperion Essbase Query Designer User Interface (Report Builder).

  • Import an existing MDX query from a report. Use the Import query button to browse to an .rdl file and import a query. You can import a query from a report that contains an embedded dataset that is based on a Hyperion Essbase data source. Importing an MDX query directly from an .mdx file is not supported.

At design time, run the query to view a result set. After you build the query, view the dataset field collection that is generated from the metadata in the Report Data pane. When the report runs, the actual data is returned from the external data source.

The Hyperion Essbase data processing extension supports extended dataset field properties. These are values that are available from the external data source but that do not appear in the Report Data pane. For more information, see Extended Field Properties later in this topic.

Query Parameters

To include query parameters, create a filter in the filter area in the query designer, and mark the filter as a parameter. For each filter, a dataset is automatically created to provide the available values. By default, these datasets do not appear in the Report Data pane. For more information, see Show Hidden Datasets for Parameter Values for Multidimensional Data (Report Builder and SSRS).

By default, each report parameter has data type Text. After the report parameters are created, you might have to change default values. For more information, see Report Parameters (Report Builder and Report Designer).

Extended Field Properties

The Hyperion Essbase data processing extension supports extended field properties. Extended field properties are properties in addition to Value and IsMissing that are defined for a dataset field by the data processing extension. Extended properties include predefined properties and custom properties. Predefined properties are properties common to multiple data sources. Custom properties are unique to each data source.

Extended field properties do not appear in the Report Data pane as items that you can drag onto your report layout. Instead, you drag the parent field of the property onto the report and then change the default property from Value to the property you want to use.

The name for an extended field property appears in the ToolTip when you rest the mouse on a field in the Metadata pane in the query designer. For more information about the query designer you can use to explore the underlying data, see Hyperion Essbase Query Designer User Interface.

Note

Values exist for extended field properties only if they are included in the MDX expression and the data source provides these values when your report runs and retrieves the data for its datasets. You can then refer to those Field property values from any expression using the syntax described in the following section. However, because these fields are specific to this data provider and not part of the report definition language, changes that you make to these values are not saved with the report definition.

Predefined Field Properties

Predefined field properties that are typically supported by multiple data providers and that appear in the underlying MDX query for a report dataset. For example, the MDX dimension property MEMBER_UNIQUE_NAME is mapped to the predefined report dataset field property UniqueName. To include the unique name value in a text box, use the expression =Fields!<FieldName>.UniqueName.

The following table provides a list of predefined field properties that you can use for a Hyperion Essbase data source.

Property Type Description or expected value
Value Object Specifies the data value of the field.

For a dimension property, this is mapped to MEMBER_CAPTION. For a measure, this is mapped to the data value.
IsMissing Boolean Indicates whether the field was found in the resulting data set.
FormattedValue String Returns a formatted value for a key figure.

Mapped from FORMATTED_VALUE in the MDX expression.
BackgroundColor String Returns the background color defined in the database for the field.

Mapped from BACK_COLOR in the MDX expression.
Color String Returns the foreground color defined in the database for the item.

Mapped from FORE_COLOR in the MDX expression.
UniqueName String Returns the fully qualified name of a level.

Mapped from MEMBER_UNIQUE_NAME in the MDX expression.

For more information about how to use fields and field properties in an expression, see Built-in Collections in Expressions (Report Builder and SSRS).

Custom Properties

Custom field properties that are supported by a data provider and that appear in the underlying MDX query for a report dataset, but do not appear in the report Datasets pane as fields under that dataset. For example, Long Names is a member property defined for a dimension level. To include the value in a text box, you use the expression =Fields!<FieldName>("Long Names"). Field names in the expression are case-sensitive.

Use the following syntax to refer to custom extended properties in an expression:

  • Fields!FieldName("PropertyName")

The following table shows the custom field property that you can use for a Hyperion Essbase data source.

Property Type Description or expected value
FORMAT_STRING String Defined on a measure, this is the FormattedValue available as a String type.

Remarks

Not all report delivery modes are supported by this data provider. Delivering reports through data-driven subscriptions is not supported for this data processing extension. For more information, see Use an External Data Source for Subscriber Data (Data-Driven Subscription).

For more information, see Using SQL Server 2005 Reporting Services with Hyperion Essbase.

How-To Topics

This section contains step-by-step instructions for working with data connections, data sources, and datasets:

Add and Verify a Data Connection (Report Builder and SSRS)

Create a Shared Dataset or Embedded Dataset (Report Builder and SSRS)

Add a Filter to a Dataset (Report Builder and SSRS)

These sections of the documentation provide in-depth conceptual information about report data, as well as procedural information about how to define, customize, and use parts of a report that are related to data.

Report Datasets (SSRS)
Provides an overview of accessing data for your report.

Create data connection strings - Report Builder & SSRS
Provides information about data connections and data sources.

Report Embedded Datasets and Shared Datasets (Report Builder and SSRS)
Provides information about embedded and shared datasets.

Dataset Fields Collection (Report Builder and SSRS)
Provides information about the field collection that is generated by the dataset query.

Data Sources Supported by Reporting Services (SSRS) Provides in-depth information about platform and version support for each data extension.

Using SQL Server 2005 Reporting Services with Hyperion Essbase
Provides detailed information about working with this data extension.

See Also

Report Parameters (Report Builder and Report Designer)
Filter, Group, and Sort Data (Report Builder and SSRS)
Expressions (Report Builder and SSRS)