Integrating BI Content into the Portal 

Purpose

You can integrate business content of the BI system into the SAP NetWeaver portal seamlessly. The portal enables you to access applications from other systems and sources, such as the Internet or intranet. Using one entry point, you can reach both structured and unstructured information. In addition to content from Knowledge Management, business data from data analysis is available to you from the Internet and from the intranet.

The integration of BI content into the portal enables you to work more closely and more promptly with company colleagues when you need to do so. For example, this can help when you need to insert notes and comments for key figures and reports, run approval processes automatically, and in doing so, take part in decisions within a broad company context.

The provision of information is based on user roles in the company. As the role concept is used in the BI system, it is possible to carry out a simple integration of BI content into the portal. The users see the same BI role content in the portal.

Furthermore, you can also use the iView concept to integrate BI applications and integrate individual Web applications from BI as iViews in the Portal. You can then display and use them from a page in the portal, together with other iViews from the BI system or from other systems.

BEx Information Broadcasting allows you to precalculate BEx Web Applications, queries, and workbooks and to distribute them into the portal. Furthermore, you can generate online links to queries and Web applications and then publish them in the portal. The BEx Portfolio, based on Knowledge Management, forms the central entry point for access to business intelligence information in the portal. For more information, see Information Broadcasting.

Implementation Considerations

For the integration of BI content into the portal, it is necessary to configure both systems once they have been installed. You also need to install a Precalculation Service for the precalculation and distribution of workbooks for information broadcasting. For more information, see:

●     The Internet address service.sap.com/installNW2004s  ® Installation

●     SAP Reference IMG ® SAP Customizing Implementation Guide ® SAP NetWeaver ® Business Intelligence ® Reporting-Relevant Settings  ® BEx Web ® Integration into the Portal

●     Configuration for Information Broadcasting

Integration

The following figure shows the integration into the portal and provides an overview of the function landscape and tool landscape of the Business Explorer:

Features

The following sections describe the integration from the portal user’s viewpoint on one hand, and on the other hand, from the viewpoint of the administrators and authors who generate and publish the BI content:

●     Integration from the User’s Viewpoint

●     Integration from the Viewpoint of Administrators and Authors

For an overview of which options you have for integrating BI content into the portal, see Overview: Integration and Display Types of BI Content.