Preparing Stories for Mobile

Learn how to enable your stories for either the iOS or Android mobile apps.

To view stories in the mobile app, they must be created using Responsive pages (not Canvas or Grid). When creating your story, you can preview how it will look on a device by choosing (Device Preview) from the story toolbar. Select either Android or iOS for your Device type and specify a Size from the list provided.

Note
The size previews for Phone and Tablet correspond to the following Android device specifications:
  • Generic Phone: Viewport equal or under 768 px width
  • Generic Tablet: Viewport between 769 to 1024 px width
  • Large Tablet: Viewport equal or greater than 1025 px width
Note
The size previews for Phone and Tablet correspond to the following iOS devices:
  • Small Phone: iPhone 11 Pro, iPhone XS, iPhone X, iPhone 8, iPhone 7, iPhone 6S
  • Large Phone: iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro Max, iPhone XS Max, iPhone XR, iPhone 8 Plus, iPhone 7 Plus, iPhone 6S Plus
  • Small Tablet: iPad Pro (9.7-inch), iPad Air 2, iPad (9.7-inch), iPad Mini
  • Large Tablet: iPad Pro (10.5-inch, 11 inch, 12.9 inch), iPad Air (2019)

The mobile apps can only be viewed in portrait mode for phones and landscape mode for tablets. The apps do not rotate orientation.

You can set different font sizes for the resolutions of different device types. This allows story designers to target how text is displayed for a single story when viewed across multiple mobile devices. First select a device and size, such as an iOS Small Phone. Then with a tile in the story selected, open the Designer panel and select Styling. Fonts can be changed for individual tiles in the story.

You can also hide an individual Responsive story page so it doesn't appear on mobile devices. Select the page tab in the story designer and choose Hide in mobile.

Viewing Geo Maps on Mobile Devices

Below are guidelines to best design stories containing geo maps for an optimal mobile experience.

Scenario A - One map per story page
Maximum one geo map per page
Each map should contain three or less map layers
Choropleth layer should contain less than 500 regions
Scenario B - Multiple maps per story page
Maximum three Geo Maps per page
Each map should contain only a single map layer
Choropleth layer should contain less than 500 regions

Optimized modes on iOS mobile

Two optimization settings are provided for stories enabled for mobile:
  • Optimized iOS: this mode enables stories to load faster on iOS mobile devices by leveraging the embedded browser.
  • View Time Optimization: this mode enables mobile users to benefit from improved the performance of dashboards (in certain scenarios) and leverage usability improvements in stories on iOS mobile devices.
Note
Not all features and story options will be available when you enable these modes.

Enabling the optimized modes

  1. Access your story:
    • From the Home Screen, under Recent Stories, select the story. OR
    • From the () Main Menu, go to Browse, then Files, and then select the story.
  2. Next to Controls, select Edit.

    From the (Edit Story) dropdown list, select Story Details.

  3. Under Optimized iOS, turn on the Enable for iOS App setting. Your story will now run in Optimized iOS mode on your iOS device.
  4. Under View Time Optimization, turn on the Enable Optimized Mode setting.
    Note
    Stories must be enabled for Optimized iOS for View Time Optimization mode to work on your iOS device. On your mobile device, you must also enable the Enable View Time Optimized setting. For more information, see Changing App Settings.

Supported and unsupported features for Optimized iOS

What is supported with this mode? What is not supported with this Mode?
Only available in the iOS Mobile App starting from version 2.77.0
  • Hyperlinks in tables
  • Planning:
    • Value Driver Tree
    • Data Action
  • Commenting
  • Dynamic Images
  • R-Visualizations
  • Clock
  • Geo Maps
  • Chart filter reset
  • Chart footers
  • Smart Insights
  • Web page
  • Top N options
  • Canvas pages: canvas and grid layouts
iOS devices with at least 3GB of RAM Offline mode
Supported story features:
  • Charts
    Note
    Forecasting in timeseries and timestamp charts is not supported.
  • Tables with limited support for cell actions:

    • Swap Axis

    • Drill

    • Display Options

    • Hyperlinks

  • Images/Shapes
  • Text/Headers with Dynamic text support
  • RSS
  • Story Filters and Input Controls
  • Sharing and Annotation
  • Hyperlinks
  • Bookmarks: you can apply, save, and delete.
    Note
    You cannot rename bookmarks in the mobile app.
  • Widget full screen landscape mode
  • Deeplinks
  • Prompts
  • Device Preview
  • Chart Scaling
 SAP Digital Boardroom
Local and live models (SAP HANA and SAP BW)  
  • Offline – limited to analytics models
  • Mobile application management through MDMs
  • Mobile SDK
  

Working with Live Data sources in Optimized iOS mode

The table below summarizes live connectivity supported and unsupported features for mobile-enabled stories running in Optimized iOS mode.

What is supported? What is not supported?
Live data connectivity
  • Direct type connections for BW & HANA data sources (authentication type):
    • SAML
    • Cloud Connector-based Mobile Single Sign-On
    • Basic
  • Tunnel type connection for BW & HANA data sources (authentication type):
    • SAML
  • HANA Cloud connection (authentication type):
    • SAML
    • Basic

    For more information on usage restrictions for this connection type see Live Data Connection to SAP HANA Cloud Using an "SAP HANA Cloud" Connection.

  • S/4 live connections (authentication type):

    • None - Using the None authentication option allows you to connect to data source systems that use SSO that are not based on SAML 2.0. For more information see Using the 'None' Authentication Option.

      • User Name and Password - provide a user name and password for your data source system.

      • SAML SSO - use this option for SAP S/4HANA on-premise versions older than 1909 (7.54) or when using the cloud connector to connect to live SAP S/4 HANA.

      • SAML SSO (Standard-Compliant) - use this option for SAP S/4HANA on-premise 1909 (7.54) versions or newer.

  • Data Warehouse Cloud connection (authentication type):
    • SAML
Note
For direct SAML Connection, the IDP login is displayed for up to 60 sec to enter credentials. It closes automatically. In case of a timed-out or failed connection, tap Story refresh to reconnect your live data source.
 Live data connectivity
    • Direct type connections for BW & HANA data sources (authentication type):
      • Token-based Single Sign On to live data sources
      • SAML login using user imported certificate
  IDP session timeout – inconsistent reconnection to data source.
Note
It is recommended that you manually refresh the story to reconnect.

Supported and unsupported features for View Time Optimization

What is supported with this mode? What is not supported with this Mode?
Only available in the iOS Mobile App starting from version 2.115.
  • Planning:
    • Value Driver Tree
    • Data Action
  • Commenting
  • Dynamic Images
  • R-Visualizations
  • Clock
  • Geo Maps
  • Chart filter reset
  • Chart footers
  • Smart Insights
  • Web page
  • Top N options
  • Canvas pages: canvas and grid layouts
  • Analytic Applications
iOS devices with at least 3GB of RAM
  • Android
  • iOS Safari
  • Offline mode - all models
Supported story features:
  • Charts
    Note
    Forecasting in timeseries and timestamp charts is not supported.
  • Tables with limited support for cell actions:

    • Swap Axis

    • Drill

    • Display Options

    • Hyperlinks

  • Images/Shapes
  • Text/Headers with Dynamic text support
  • RSS
  • Story Filters and Input Controls
  • Sharing and Annotation
  • Deeplinks
  • Prompts
  • Chart Scaling
  • SAP Digital Boardroom
  • Device Preview
  • Landscape mode
  • Story-level linked analysis
  • Story interactive mode
  • Story Reset
  • Hyperlink in Charts, chart title hyperlink, and hyperlinks to mobile apps
  • Bookmarks
  • Filters and filter actions:
    • Single Value Slider
    • Story Hyperlink (when the following setting is enabled: "Apply selected dimension as a filter")
    • Measure-based filters
    • Range filters in charts when there is a page-level linked analysis
    • Table filters
    • Cross Calculation Input Control
    • Complex filters
    • Deleting filters
    • "Cascading Effect" (change to one filter affects all related filters in the story)
Local and live models (SAP HANA and SAP BW)  
  • Offline – limited to analytics models
  • Mobile application management through MDMs
  • Mobile SDK

Working with Live Data sources in View Time Optimization mode

The table below summarizes live connectivity supported and unsupported features for mobile-enabled stories running in View Time Optimization mode.

What is supported? What is not supported?
Live data connectivity
  • Direct type connections for BW & HANA data sources (authentication type):
    • SAML
    • Cloud Connector-based Mobile Single Sign-On
    • Basic
  • Tunnel type connection for BW & HANA data sources (authentication type):
    • SAML
Note
For direct SAML Connection, the IDP login is displayed for up to 60 sec to enter credentials. It closes automatically. In case of a timed-out or failed connection, tap Story refresh to reconnect your live data source.
 Live data connectivity
    • Direct type connections for BW & HANA data sources (authentication type):
      • Token-based Single Sign On to live data sources
      • SAML login using user imported certificate
  IDP session timeout – inconsistent reconnection to data source.
Note
It is recommended that you manually refresh the story to reconnect.