Unraveling the Mystery of the New Maximo Reporting

Transcription

1 Unraveling the Mystery of the New Maximo Reporting Increasing Your Options for BIRT and Existing Reports Authors Christine Forti, Director of Business Development Kapil Kedar, Product Marketing Manager Ash Nanda, VP of International Professional Services

2 Notice The information in this white paper is proprietary to Actuate Corporation ("Actuate") and may not be used in any form without the prior consent of Actuate by Actuate Corporation. All rights reserved. All rights reserved. Electronic edition published Version 1.1, September 23, This document contains trademarks and registered trademarks of Actuate Corporation and third party vendors. All trademarks are property of their respective owners. The Ready for IBM Tivoli mark and the trademarks contained therein are trademarks of IBM Corp. The IBM logo and the IBM Premier Business Partner emblem are trademarks of International Business Machines Corporation in the United States, other countries, or both. Actuate Corporation Actuate International 2207 Bridgepointe Parkway Niederhaslistrasse 4 San Mateo, CA Regensdorf Tel: (888) Switzerland [email protected] Tel: URL: Fax: URL: [email protected] Actuate UK Ltd. Actuate France 1st Floor A Division of Actuate International Pickford House 47, rue le Corbusier 46 Bow Lane Boulogne Billancourt London, EC4M 9DL France United Kingdom Tel: +33 (1) Tel: +44 (0) Fax: +33 (1) Fax: +44 (0) [email protected] [email protected] URL: URL: Actuate GmbH Actuate Asia Pacific Kaiserstr Temasek Blvd Frankfurt #35-01 Suntec Tower Three Germany Phone: +49(0) Singapore Fax: +49(0) Tel: [email protected] Fax: URL: [email protected] URL: ACTUATE CORPORATION PAGE 2

3 Contents Abstract... 3 Introduction... 4 What is BIRT?... 5 Options for Reporting in Maximo What about Maximo 8?... 8 Options for Customers Continuing with Maximo Business Benefits of Maximo BIRT Reporting with the iserver... 9 Conclusion Appendix A: The History of Reporting in Maximo Appendix B: Differences between the Maximo 7 Reporting Feature and the iserver Appendix C: IBM Maximo Reporting and BIRT FAQs Appendix D: BIRT Resources for IBM Maximo Customers Abstract Since the release of version 5 in 2001, the IBM Maximo Asset Management application has provided reporting functionality by embedding technology from Actuate Corporation. In Maximo 7, however, IBM has introduced a new reporting solution, based on open source technology from the Business Intelligence and Reporting Tools (BIRT) project of the Eclipse Foundation, an initiative led by Actuate. In other words, Maximo is essentially migrating from one Actuate-developed reporting technology to another. This change has raised many questions for Maximo customers. They want to know how the switch in reporting technology will affect them: What is BIRT and what can it do? If they upgrade to Maximo 7, what are the choices for reporting? What will happen to existing reports? As the founder, co-lead of the project, and primary developer of BIRT within the Eclipse Foundation, Actuate is the leading expert on both BIRT and Actuate technology. As such, Actuate is uniquely positioned to advise Maximo users on strategies for adopting BIRT, while also getting the most from current Actuate Reports within Maximo. This white paper will help you determine what Maximo s new reporting direction means to you, what your options are, and the decisions you need to make going forward. ACTUATE CORPORATION PAGE 3

4 Introduction As IBM Maximo Asset Manager has evolved over time, so has its reporting strategy. Since release 5.0 in 2001, IBM Maximo has used Actuate e.report and iserver products as the basis for its reporting capabilities, replacing technology from Cognos, Crystal, and SQRiBE. Maximo has also further enhanced its reporting capabilities by incorporating Actuate e.spreadsheet and Query in subsequent releases. With the release of Maximo 7 in 2008, IBM again changed the reporting technology for Maximo to an open source solution from the Eclipse Foundation s Business Intelligence and Reporting Tools (BIRT) project, also developed by Actuate. This decision is part of IBM s strategy of providing a consistent reporting technology across its software product portfolio, as BIRT is embedded in a broad range of products from the Tivoli 1, Rational, WebSphere and Information Management brands. IBM Products that Embed BIRT Rational Rational Application Developer Rational BuildForge Rational ClearQuest Rational Method Composer Rational RequisitePro Rational Quality Manager Rational Software Architect Rational Software Modeler Rational Systems Developer Rational Team Concert Tivoli Tivoli Common Reporting Tivoli Composite Application Manager Tivoli Maximo Tivoli Monitoring Tivoli Netcool Tivoli Omegamon Tivoli Storage Manager Tivoli Usage and Accounting Manager WebSphere WebSphere Registry and Repository WebSphere ILOG JRules DB2 WebSphere RFID Center InfoSphere Data Architect SPSS Showcase Suite Figure 1 IBM Products that embed BIRT. IBM has chosen to use BIRT as the core reporting technology across its large product line. IBM is not the only corporation to depend on BIRT as the basis of reporting for its products. Others include BMC, Cisco, Fujitsu, HSBC, Mentor Graphics, S1 and Software AG. Given the importance of reporting in Maximo after all, reporting is the predominant way end-users get information and insight from the data Maximo collects customers are understandably concerned about how this technology change will affect them. They want to know: What is BIRT? What reporting capabilities does it provide? What are the options for reporting when upgrading to Maximo 7? How will reporting work in Maximo 8 and beyond? What business benefits can I expect from BIRT reporting in Maximo? How can we extend Maximo reporting functionality beyond what IBM provides? Can we preserve our significant investment in existing Actuate Reports when upgrading to Maximo 7? Will we lose any of the reporting capabilities provided in Maximo 5 or 6? 1 BIRT is at the core of Tivoli Common Reporting, the standard infrastructure for creating, viewing, and managing reports for all products in the Tivoli product line, including Maximo. For more information on Tivoli Common Reporting, refer to: ACTUATE CORPORATION PAGE 4

5 As the primary developer of both the reporting technology historically embedded in Maximo Actuate e.reports, e.spreadsheet, and Query, which are collectively referred to as Actuate Reports in this white paper and the Eclipse BIRT technology, and given Actuate s long history with Maximo and its customers (see Appendix A), Actuate is uniquely qualified to help you understand the changes brought about by BIRT. This white paper will help you determine what Maximo s new reporting direction means to you, the options available, and the decisions that need to be made going forward. What is BIRT? BIRT is the acronym for the open source Business Intelligence and Reporting Tools project of the Eclipse Foundation. The Eclipse Foundation, formed by IBM in 2001, is a consortium of software industry vendors and the broader community that uses an open source development and licensing model to deliver the world s most widely used development tools. The Eclipse BIRT project began in 2004 and provides a designer, an engine for running reports and data visualizations, a webbased viewer for end-users, and APIs that enable developers to extend the technology. BIRT has rapidly become the standard in open source technology for reporting and rich information application development with more than 6.5 million downloads more than 4 million in 2008 alone. Actuate has driven BIRT since its inception. It proposed the project to the Eclipse Foundation in 2004 and continues to colead it. At any time in the last five years, Actuate has dedicated some 30 engineers 2 to building the next generation of BIRT technology a far greater percentage of manpower than contributed by the other entities combined. In fact, Actuate has developed more than 95% 3 of BIRT code. Like Actuate Reports, BIRT is a stable, mature, professional-grade technology, capable of supporting the most demanding commercial reporting and business intelligence applications. This is especially true when BIRT runs on the BIRT iserver 4, the industry s most scalable reporting and rich information application platform that has been deployed within thousands of mission-critical applications. BIRT differs from Actuate Reports 5 and other third-party reporting technologies because it is specifically designed to support web-page-like layouts, plus the highly popular Web 2.0 experience. As most readers are aware, this new paradigm of Internet interaction was pioneered by rich information applications (RIAs) like Google Maps, Facebook, and Yahoo! Finance. The popularity of RIAs has completely changed user expectations around how they should interact with web-based information, including reports. Today s users expect to use drag-and-drop functionality to rearrange, sort, filter, and otherwise personalize their reports. They want to create dynamic, interactive charts that filter data instantaneously 6 and even send them to their iphones and other mobile devices. BIRT and Actuate s BIRT-based product line enable Maximo users to have this rich, interactive experience when accessing and manipulating their reports and data visualizations. 2 See 3 See 4 In previous releases, the BIRT iserver was named the Actuate iserver. Regardless of name, it runs BIRT, e.reports, e.spreadsheets, and Queries. 5 In this document, the term Actuate Reports refers to the three reporting technologies included in Maximo 5 and 6: Actuate e.reports, Actuate e.spreadsheets, and Actuate Query 6 By instantaneously, we mean that the report immediately adapts without requiring another request to the server. ACTUATE CORPORATION PAGE 5

6 Options for Reporting in Maximo 7 For a number of reasons, including the desire to provide a consistent reporting technology across IBM software products, IBM decided to offer the benefits of BIRT to Maximo customers. The company switched from Actuate Reports to Actuatedeveloped Eclipse BIRT beginning with Maximo 7. IBM realized, however, that abruptly changing reporting technology could greatly inconvenience Maximo customers, some of whom would need to recreate hundreds of custom reports and would also lose critical report server functionality. To address these issues, IBM provides three approaches to reporting for customers upgrading to Maximo 7. Customers can choose the approach that best meets their schedules, budgets, and end-users expectations. Maximo 7 Mechanism 1 (default): Maximo reporting feature Eclipse BIRT Report Engine Mechanism 2: Embedded hooks to iserver Mechanism 3: Maximo ERI External Reporting Interface iserver e.reports Query e.spreadsheet Third-Party Reporting Tool BIRT Option Eclipse BIRT Report Engine Figure 2 Maximo 7 includes three different reporting approaches, each of which can be used to integrate a different type of reporting technology with the Maximo application. The first approach is to use the built-in Maximo reporting feature. The second is to configure Maximo to use the iserver. The third is to use the Maximo ERI to write code that integrates Maximo with any third-party reporting technology. ACTUATE CORPORATION PAGE 6

7 Approach 1: Move completely to BIRT reporting, using the built-in Maximo reporting feature 7 This is the default. Maximo 7 includes 150 BIRT reports and directly embeds a Maximo reporting capability that is based on the Eclipse BIRT Engine with some IBM-developed features 8. This is the right approach for Maximo customers who don t require much report customization or interactive reports for end users. Customers can either use the pre-defined reports or manually recreate any important existing Maximo 5 and 6 Actuate reports as BIRT reports. While end-users will receive some of the benefits of the new BIRT reports, the capabilities cannot be extended. Further, Maximo customers choosing this route would lose some functionality, such as the ability to reports in Excel format or deliver Excel spreadsheets with intact formulas (see Appendix B). Approach 2: Retain existing Actuate Reports, while incrementally adopting BIRT by using the iserver from Actuate If customers configure Maximo to use the iserver 9 instead of the built-in Maximo reporting feature, they can: Run Actuate Reports and BIRT reports on the same report server with the BIRT Option for the iserver from Actuate. This will allow customers to continue using their existing reports and introduce BIRT reports when the time is right. Provide end-users of Maximo BIRT reports with enhanced Web 2.0 functionality, including interactive viewing, dragand-drop report modification, click-to-sort, and interactive Flash charts. These capabilities, provided with the BIRT Interactive Viewer, effectively relieve IT of the burden of delivering one-off report modifications for each user. Give end-users the ability to create their own reports via BIRT Studio from Actuate, an easy-to-use yet powerful web-based report design environment. Benefit from official Actuate support that encompasses all BIRT users, including report developers, administrators, and report users. This approach works well for those who have created numerous custom Actuate e.reports or e.spreadsheet reports and want to continue using them, while gradually adopting BIRT reports when the time is right. It is also valuable to Maximo customers who want to enable end-users to create and modify BIRT reports. While customers upgrading from prior releases to Maximo v7 can request the iserver Upgrade V9SP2 from IBM to continue to run existing Actuate Reports, this upgrade has limitations. Also, IBM will not support this configuration with future releases of Maximo. Actuate s BIRT-based product line allows BIRT and Actuate Reports to co-exist on the iserver, and end-users to become more self-sufficient by modifying and creating their own reports with the BIRT Interactive Viewer and BIRT Studio. For more information, see the section entitled Business Benefits of Maximo BIRT Reporting with the iserver. Additionally, with the licensing of this software, Maximo customers benefit by receiving customer support directly from Actuate. Approach 3: Use an alternative third-party reporting tool Customers are not constrained to using only BIRT reports or Actuate Reports in Maximo 7. They can take advantage of Maximo s External Reporting Interface (ERI) to plug in a third-party reporting tool. End-users can then access these thirdparty reports within the Maximo application. For example, Business Objects Crystal Reports is integrated with Maximo using the ERI In this document, the term Maximo reporting feature refers to the combination of the open source Eclipse BIRT Engine plus some additional IBM-developed features. 8 These features include basic scheduling and notifications with PDF attachments. 9 IBM will provide an iserver Upgrade V9SP2 that works with Maximo 7 to customers who specifically request it. 10 For details refer to The BO Crystal integration document from IBM. ACTUATE CORPORATION PAGE 7

8 What about Maximo 8? The reporting strategy for Maximo has evolved and will no doubt continue to do so in future releases. IBM has indicated that it will support two approaches in Maximo 8: 1. Customers can use BIRT via built-in Maximo reporting feature. 2. Customers can use the Maximo ERI 11 to integrate Maximo with third-party reporting technology, such as the iserver from Actuate or Business Objects Crystal Reports. While IBM will no longer make Actuate Reports or iserver technology available to Maximo 8 customers, Actuate can support customers continued, successful use of Actuate technology with Maximo 8 and later releases. This lets customers preserve their investment in Actuate technology and insulate their organizations from future changes to Maximo s evolving reporting strategy. Maximo 8 iserver e.reports Maximo reporting feature BIRT Report Engine Maximo ERI External Reporting Interface Query e.spreadsheet BIRT Report Engine Figure 3 - Maximo 8 will no longer contain built-in hooks to the iserver, and IBM will no longer provide the iserver to customers. Maximo 8 will continue to integrate with the iserver via the Maximo External Reporting Interface (ERI). Options for Customers Continuing with Maximo 6 If customers delay upgrading to Maximo 7, they can still take advantage of BIRT technology, either by building their own solutions with open source Eclipse BIRT technology or by licensing software and support services from Actuate. With the latest version of the iserver from Actuate, customers can configure Maximo 6 to run both BIRT reports and Actuate Reports on the same infrastructure, thereby providing users with extended BIRT functionality. This functionality includes interactive Flash charts and the ability to modify and save reports via drag-and-drop, to create personal reports, and to view reports on an iphone and other mobile devices. 11 ERI = External Reporting Interface ACTUATE CORPORATION PAGE 8

9 Business Benefits of Maximo BIRT Reporting with the iserver Configuring Maximo 7 reporting with the iserver instead of the integrated Maximo reporting feature Approach 2 in the section entitled Options for Reporting in Maximo 7 offers many business benefits. These benefits range from saving hard dollars on a Maximo deployment to improving overall ROI and providing end-users with new capabilities. Benefit: Reduce Maximo Deployment Costs while Reaching More Users Under the standard Maximo 7 configuration, the reporting feature runs all reports. Because this reporting feature is embedded in the application, all users must be licensed to use the full Maximo application. At most companies, however, many who benefit from Maximo reports have no need to use all aspects of the application. In effect, serving these reporting-only users means paying for functionality they do not need. As a result, Maximo customers typically pay too much or must severely limit the number of users who can access reporting functionality. The solution to this problem is to configure Maximo 7 with the iserver instead of the Maximo reporting feature. Reportingonly users can access the reports they need through a Maximo Reporting Portal 12 built on the iserver. Instead of a full Maximo license, reporting-only users can acquire less costly report user licenses from Actuate. The result? More users can benefit from the information Maximo provides at a lower cost, increasing ROI. Figure 4 With the implementation of a Maximo Reporting Portal using the iserver from Actuate, access to information in Maximo can be provided to an extended group of end-users who only consume information and don t use other aspects of the Maximo application. Deployment costs are reduced by eliminating Maximo software license fees for these users and providing less costly reporting-only licenses. There are other benefits to implementing a Maximo Reporting Portal with the iserver. Reporting-only users will no longer require Maximo training, streamlining their experience to focus solely on reporting tasks. Furthermore, if customers use a mix of BIRT reports and Actuate Reports, the Maximo Reporting Portal will make it possible to use the same methods to access all reports, regardless of type To view a Maximo Reporting Portal demonstration, visit 13 Without a Maximo Reporting Portal, depending on configuration, users might need different methods to access different report types. ACTUATE CORPORATION PAGE 9

10 Benefit: Reduce IT Costs and Improve Service by Enabling Maximo End-users to Easily Modify and Create BIRT Reports IBM chose to integrate BIRT into Maximo in a way that emphasizes traditional static reporting capabilities, such as gathering parameter values, rendering reports in PDF, and ing reports to users. While this is an excellent use of the technology, it scratches the surface of the value that BIRT reporting can provide Maximo users. By using the iserver instead of integrated Maximo reporting, customers can leverage unique and valuable BIRT functionality not provided by IBM. The iserver with some value-added options lets end-users extend the power of BIRT far beyond what Maximo offers: End-users can personalize standard Maximo BIRT reports with Actuate s web-based user interface, the BIRT Interactive Viewer. With this self-service tool, they can modify report formatting, incorporate sorting and filtering, and share reports with others. The BIRT Interactive Viewer will help dramatically reduce the cost of report modification, while also improving service to the business. 14 Figure 5 provides screen shots of the BIRT Interactive Viewer. End-users can perform ad-hoc reporting, creating and personalizing reports using Actuate s web-based BIRT Studio 15. This includes the ability to create the entire structure of the report, including charts and graphs, and use advanced grouping, sorting, user-defined calculations, and more. Figure 6 shows a screen shot. End-users can interact with live Flash objects built into reports. These objects respond instantaneously to input, enabling users to dynamically drill down to more detail or quickly filter report data. Flash objects also make it possible to create reports that include maps, live gauges, and other sophisticated controls. Figures 7 and 8 include screen shots of Flash-based BIRT dashboards with interactive visualizations and charts. BIRT reporting allows users to view their reports in their format of choice. Currently, Maximo users are restricted to running a report, viewing it as a web page, or receiving it via as a PDF attachment. With the iserver, reports can also be delivered to mobile devices, incorporated into dashboards, and ed as Excel spreadsheets. 14 For more information on the BIRT Interactive Viewer, including a recorded demo, visit 15 Learn more about the BIRT Studio at ACTUATE CORPORATION PAGE 10

11 Figure 5 BIRT Interactive Viewer. End-users view BIRT reports in the BIRT Interactive Viewer, and have a toolbar that invites them to interact, modify and save their views of reports. The two screenshots above show how an end user can easily add and subtract columns, change column order, modify grouping and sorting, add and modify aggregations, and add columns with custom calculations. ACTUATE CORPORATION PAGE 11

12 Figure 6 BIRT Studio is an easy-to-use yet powerful web-based designer for end-users. With it, users can create charts and graphs; add, rearrange, reformat, show and hide data; and change report, row, column and cell formatting (including conditional formatting) to create their own BIRT reports. Users can also securely share these BIRT reports with other users. Figure 7 BIRT technology is not limited to static reports. It can be used to build a wide variety of interactive charts and visualizations, as demonstrated in this BIRT-based dashboard. As the user moves the mouse over each visualization, it immediately adapts: data labels appear, colors change, charts expand, and more. ACTUATE CORPORATION PAGE 12

13 Figure 8 With Actuate s value-add BIRT Designer Professional, developers can create interactive, Flash-based charts and data visualizations. For example, in this work order visualization, end-users can move the pointers on the labor, material, and service cost gadgets on the left, which will then immediately change the graph and chart images on the right, without refreshing the entire webpage, enabling end-users to interact with the data, and instantly see how changes impact the overall cost allocation. Benefit: Preserve Existing Investment in Actuate Reports As noted earlier, using the iserver instead of the integrated Maximo 7 reporting feature enables customers to continue to run Maximo 5 and 6 Actuate e. Reports, e.spreadsheets, and Maximo Queries as they move toward adopting BIRT. Because the iserver can run all report types, customers can either choose to move gradually to BIRT perhaps by creating new reports in BIRT and only recreating the most popular Actuate Reports in BIRT or to forgo BIRT completely and continue using Actuate Reports. While a significant portion of Actuate e.reports functionality can be replicated with BIRT, IBM provides no viable replacement for e.spreadsheets in Maximo 7. It is simply not possible to generate fully functional, analysis-ready Excel spreadsheets with intact formulas and multiple worksheets. To continue using e.spreadsheets, customers must configure Maximo 7 with the iserver. If choosing not to take this route, it will be necessary to do a data dump into Excel and then manually modify spreadsheets, a labor-intensive and error-prone process. Benefit: Reduce Risk by Retaining Report Server Functionality Users Depend On If a customer opts for the default configuration of Maximo 7, reports will be generated by the Maximo reporting feature, not the iserver as was the case in Maximo 5 and 6. As a result of this change, Maximo 7 customers will lose important functionality. Both the iserver and the Maximo reporting feature use the Actuate-developed Eclipse BIRT Report Engine at their cores and provide basic functionality to run and distribute static reports. However, the Maximo report feature is much more limited than the iserver; it lacks key functionality, such as letting users share reports, complex scheduling, batch scheduling, spreadsheet reporting, end-user interactivity, and end-user report writing. ACTUATE CORPORATION PAGE 13

14 As examples of this loss of functionality, the Maximo 7 reporting feature offers no way for users to run the e.reports, e.spreadsheets, and Maximo Queries they relied on in Maximo 5 and 6 and might want to continue to use. Further, IBM provides no viable replacement for e.spreadsheets in Maximo 7, and users who relied on Maximo Query will note that Ad Hoc Reports, Maximo 7 s replacement technology, does not achieve the same level of functionality. For instance, while Maximo Query allowed end-users to create reports with charts, user-defined grouping, and user-defined aggregates. This functionality is not available in either Maximo 7 s Ad-Hoc Reports or Query Based Reporting (QBR). Appendix B provides more detail about the capabilities that customers lose when upgrading to Maximo 7 if they use the Maximo reporting feature. Customers can preserve this critical functionality by requesting the iserver V9SP2 upgrade from IBM and configuring Maximo 7 to use it. Benefit: Reduce Total Cost of Ownership by Consolidating Reporting for All Applications into One Infrastructure Most Maximo customers run Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), time and attendance, inventory subsystems, and a variety of other enterprise applications and databases. Instead of using a different reporting solution for each and incurring the costs of administering multiple systems, consolidate this reporting onto the iserver. The iserver is designed to be the most scalable and reliable reporting platform in the industry, while supporting a wide variety of report types, including BIRT reports, e.reports, e.spreadsheets, and ad-hoc reporting. Many Actuate customers have realized significant cost-savings by consolidating their reporting on the iserver platform. This centralized model, which is often referred to as a center of excellence, can dramatically reduce hardware, administration, training, report development, and maintenance costs. Conclusion Customers upgrading to Maximo 7 must carefully consider their reporting options. There are essentially three approaches to consider: 1. Immediately moving all reporting to the new BIRT report technology 2. Using the iserver from Actuate to support both existing Actuate and BIRT reports, and to extend BIRT s functionality beyond what IBM has provided 3. Using an alternative third party reporting technology Each approach has its pros and cons, however, the second approach makes it possible to realize the business benefits BIRT offers, while preserving an existing investment in Actuate Reports. BIRT is an enterprise-grade technology, developed primarily by Actuate Corporation. It is designed to provide report users with the RIA experience that today s Internet users have come to expect. By moving to BIRT in conjunction with the iserver from Actuate, Maximo 7 customers can provide their users with the ability to self-service their requests for report modifications and new reports, thereby reducing IT costs and improving service to the business. Further, by configuring Maximo 7 with the iserver, more users can benefit from the information Maximo provides without incurring excessive Maximo software licensing or training costs. ACTUATE CORPORATION PAGE 14

15 Appendix A: The History of Reporting in Maximo Since 2001, Actuate reporting products have been integrated with and shipped as part of Maximo. The following table provides more detail: Maximo Versions Maximo Embedded Reporting Components Maximo 5.0, 5.1, 5.2 Actuate 5 (iserver, e.reports) Maximo 5.2 Patches 1 5 Actuate 7 (iserver, e.reports, Active Portal, Query, and e.spreadsheet) Maximo Actuate 8 (iserver, e.reports, Active Portal, Query, and e.spreadsheet) Maximo For new Maximo customers: Maximo reporting feature based on BIRT Report Engine For existing Maximo customers who upgrade: Maximo reporting feature based on BIRT Report Engine Upon request: Actuate 9 (iserver, e.reports, Active Portal, Query, and e.spreadsheet) Maximo 8 Maximo reporting feature based on BIRT Report Engine ACTUATE CORPORATION PAGE 15

16 Appendix B: Differences between the Maximo 7 Reporting Feature and the iserver The following chart displays the Maximo 5 and 6 functionality that Maximo 7 customers will lose when using the integrated Maximo reporting feature instead of the iserver from Actuate. The chart also highlights in blue the enhanced BIRT functionality provided by Actuate s BIRT-based products and the iserver. Maximo 7 with default BIRT-based Maximo reporting (as shipped) Maximo 7 with Actuate 9 iserver and appropriate options (by request) Runs BIRT reports Y Y, with BIRT Option for iserver Runs Actuate e.reports N Y Y Runs Actuate e.spreadsheets N Y Y Runs Maximo Queries N Y Y Users can save report output to XLS file View scheduled reports by means other than Only by downloading a view from Maximo UI N Y Users can generate XLS files directly and have them ed to them. Y Users can schedule reports and visit the report server later to view them. This is more secure than ing the reports. multiple users with report results N Y Y Maximo 5 and 6 with Actuate 8 iserver (as shipped) N Y for e.reports and e.spreadsheets Maximo 5 Yes Maximo 6 Yes, but not as shipped Save report output to server N Y Maximo 5 Yes Maximo 6 Yes, but not as shipped. Users can share report output with other users securely via server End-users can modify reports (change column order, remove columns, change appearance, change chart types, add filters, add grouping) End-users can create own full-featured reports via a web-based design tool Ad-hoc Reporting: Users can specify aggregates (sum, average,...) to summarize each level of grouping Ad-hoc Reporting: Users can filter query results to target the most relevant data for their needs. Ad-hoc Reporting: Users can specify more than two levels of grouping Ad-hoc Reporting: Users can specify more than two levels of sorting Ad-Hoc Reporting: Users can create reports with charts Ad-Hoc Reporting: Users can save their report definitions and, if allowed by IT, securely share with other users. N Y Maximo 5 Yes Maximo 6 Yes, but not as shipped. N N Y, with BIRT Interactive Viewer Option for iserver Y, with BIRT Studio Option for iserver N Y Y N Y Y N Y Y N Y Y N N Administrator must do the sharing Y, with Maximo Query, or BIRT Studio Option for iserver Y N N N Y ACTUATE CORPORATION PAGE 16

17 Ad-Hoc Reporting: Users can create reports with Charts Report engine installed as part of Maximo application (one installer for both) Report engine/server can be deployed to separate box to prevent contention for resources and improve scalability Maximo 7 with default BIRT-based Maximo reporting (as shipped) Maximo 7 with Actuate 9 iserver and appropriate options (by request) Y N N Y N N Y, but not by default. Can be configured this way using WebSphere. Y, although not required. Does not require use of WebSphere. Maximo 5 and 6 with Actuate 8 iserver (as shipped) Y, although not required; (IBM strongly suggests different box) Figure 9 When moving from Maximo 5 or 6 to Maximo 7, important reporting functionality is lost. The reporting feature incorporated by IBM does significantly less than the iserver shipped with prior releases. To avoid this situation, customers can request the iserver V9SP2 Upgrade from IBM to retain existing capabilities or license software from Actuate to integrate and enhance BIRT reports. ACTUATE CORPORATION PAGE 17

18 Appendix C: IBM Maximo Reporting and BIRT FAQs 1. If I upgrade to Maximo 7, what are my choices for reporting? There are three choices: 1. Move completely to the new BIRT reporting technology, using the built-in Maximo reporting feature Use existing Actuate Reports, while incrementally adopting BIRT through use of the iserver. 3. Use another third-party reporting tool. For more information, please see the section of this paper entitled Options for Reporting in Maximo How do Actuate e.reports and BIRT reports differ? Both e.reports and BIRT reports are full-featured, highly flexible, and programmable reporting technologies. They differ, though, in their basic approach to reporting. e.reports are geared toward producing paginated, precisely-formatted reports that look the same on the web as they do on paper, with some interactive features such as a live table of contents and Smart Search. BIRT, in contrast, was designed with modern web page layouts and extreme user interactivity at its core. With Actuate s value-added BIRT products, end-users can personalize their versions of reports and save the changes for future use. They can also interact with Flash charts that instantly filter data and change how it is visually represented. 3. Should I upgrade to Maximo 7 to use the new BIRT reporting? The decision about upgrading to Maximo 7 should be made independently of the reporting functionality, because customers can configure Maximo 6 to use the latest BIRT technology. Actuate s Professional Services organization has extensive expertise in Maximo, BIRT, and Actuate Reports and iserver technology. It can advise on adoption strategies and how to leverage existing reporting infrastructures. 4. Is open source BIRT as suitable for commercial use as Actuate e.reports? Yes it is, especially if you run BIRT using the highly scalable and reliable iserver from Actuate. BIRT was designed from the ground-up to be as suitable for commercial products as any other technology Actuate has developed. 5. Why did Actuate develop BIRT instead of simply enhancing e.reports? Given Actuate s long-standing success with its e.report technology, many people wonder why Actuate developed BIRT, and therefore how e.reports and BIRT differ. In 2004, Actuate saw the trend toward Web 2.0 interactivity, the RIA application experience, and drag-and-drop functionality. Actuate realized that reporting and analysis would evolve the same way: that users would expect to be able to modify their view of a report on-the-fly in any number of ways. At the time, no other reporting technology including Actuate e.reports was truly capable of providing that type of interactive experience. Extreme interactivity must be built into the core of a reporting technology and not bolted on. Otherwise, the experience for end-users, report developers, and administrators will be frustrating, inconsistent, and unreliable. Actuate chose to develop BIRT to address the demand for interactive reporting. Actuate e.reports continues to address reports that do not have interaction requirements or that must be precisely formatted. 16 In this document, the term Maximo reporting feature is used to refer to the combination of the open source Eclipse BIRT Engine plus the additional IBM-developed features, which include notifications, and scheduling. ACTUATE CORPORATION PAGE 18

19 6. How is BIRT incorporated into Maximo 7? How does it differ from the way e.reports was incorporated into Maximo 5 and 6? The Maximo 7.1 footprint includes the BIRT Engine, as well as additional IBM-built reporting features, such as basic scheduling and the ability to transmit reports by . The integrated BIRT engine also runs on the same machine as Maximo and competes for the same computing processing and memory resources. Further, Maximo 7 includes approximately 150 BIRT reports. To customize these reports, IBM instructs customers to download the BIRT Designer from the Eclipse website. In Maximo 6, reporting was based on Actuate e.reports, e.spreadsheets, and Queries. Maximo 6 included the Actuate 8 iserver, and reports were developed using the Actuate 8 e.report Designer Pro and e.spreadsheet Designer. Although shipped with Maximo 6, the Actuate 8 iserver was installed separately, typically on a separate box, to ensure that Maximo and Actuate did not compete for computing resources. 7. Can I continue to run my existing Actuate e.reports and e.spreadsheets with Maximo 7? Yes, you can continue to run your existing reports with Maximo 7 through an iserver upgrade provided by IBM. If you use this approach, your existing reports will run on the iserver. To run BIRT reports on the iserver, you must license additional software from Actuate. To install the iserver V9SP2 upgrade: 1. Ask IBM to provide you with the iserver V9SP2 Upgrade. 2. Follow this IBM-supplied process: Modify the reports to accommodate Maximo s changes to its database schema. Change the data fields in the reports using the Actuate e.report Designer Pro for existing e.reports and Maximo Queries and e.spreadsheet Designer for e.spreadsheets. 17 From the actuate_oct2008_reporting.ppt webinar by IBM. ACTUATE CORPORATION PAGE 19

20 8. Is there a way to use BIRT with Maximo 6? Yes. You can still leverage BIRT technology, either by building your own solution or by licensing software and support services from Actuate. Maximo 6 can be configured to use the latest iserver technology that will run new BIRT reports as well as your existing Actuate Reports. 9. Will I be able to run Actuate e.reports with Maximo 8? Yes. Actuate e.report, e.spreadsheets, Query, and iserver technology will no longer be embedded in Maximo as of the release of Maximo 8. However, you can preserve your existing reports, knowledge base, and investment in Actuate technology and insulate your organization from the impact of IBM s evolving Maximo reporting strategy by entering into a business relationship with Actuate. Actuate can support your existing reports and continued, successful use of Actuate technology with Maximo 8 and later releases, through the use of the Maximo External Reporting Interface (ERI) introduced with the release of Maximo How do I convert e.reports to BIRT reports? BIRT and e.reports are two different reporting technologies that use different formats, and there is no utility to convert e.reports into BIRT reports. You will either need to rewrite all your e.reports in BIRT or rewrite only those that benefit from the extra interactivity BIRT provides. To simplify this scenario, you can run BIRT reports and e.reports on the same iserver, rather than running e.reports on an iserver and BIRT reports through IBM s Maximo reporting feature. 11. What is the learning curve for BIRT? In general, report developers find BIRT easier to learn and become more productive in a shorter period of time than with Actuate e.reports. This is because BIRT uses a familiar web design metaphor, uses standard technologies like Java and JavaScript, and has a superior user interface. 12. Can I utilize my existing hardware infrastructure? Although you are no longer required to deploy the integrated report feature in Maximo to a different machine than Maximo proper, we recommend doing so to increase performance and responsiveness. 13. If Actuate as a company is centered on BIRT, how is it operating financially, given that BIRT is open source software? Like most open source companies, Actuate makes money by: Charging for a variety of services, including customer support, training, implementation assistance, indemnification, and documentation for the open source BIRT technology. Offering commercial products that extend the capabilities of the open source version. For example, with Actuate s commercial BIRT-based products BIRT Studio, BIRT Interactive Viewer, BIRT Designer Professional you can create reports that embed interactive Flash objects, enable users to create their own full-featured reports through a web-based designer, and allow them to personalize IT-developed reports. 14. Is there a way to provide asset management information, stored in the Maximo database, to users without Maximo licenses? Yes. By using Maximo with the iserver from Actuate, users can independently access reports containing asset management information. By implementing a Maximo Reporting Portal or dashboard built on the iserver, end-users can log into the reporting portal directly. Thus, report-only users will not need full Maximo software licenses and instead can obtain less costly report user licenses from Actuate. ACTUATE CORPORATION PAGE 20

21 Appendix D: BIRT Resources for IBM Maximo Customers BIRT Exchange Community Sponsored by Actuate and staffed by its BIRT experts, BIRT Exchange ( ) is the most active community site on the Internet for BIRT developers and users. Since BIRT Exchange was started in 2007, there have been more than 20,000 registrants. Together, this large and expert community has shared hundreds of documents, examples, articles, and code samples all of which are stored and readily searchable on the site. BIRT Exchange also provides the most comprehensive forum for BIRT reporting questions, including those specific to using BIRT with Maximo. Resources include: Extensive contributions from developers, users, consulting firms, and the creators of BIRT Maximo-dedicated Forum for posting questions: Maximo-dedicated DevShare to share reports, code samples, documents, etc: Maximo Reporting Portal demonstration: Free downloads of open source Eclipse BIRT products Free trial downloads of Actuate commercial BIRT products The Eclipse BIRT Project The Eclipse Foundation hosts the open source BIRT project. While the BIRT Exchange community focuses on the immediate needs of report users, report creators, and administrators, the Eclipse BIRT Project is primarily for those who contribute to developing BIRT. To contribute code to BIRT, report or fix bugs, and influence the direction of the open source BIRT project, visit the Eclipse BIRT project at Where to Get the BIRT Designer The most current version of the BIRT Designer is always available on the BIRT Exchange and Eclipse websites at and Most Maximo report developers will want the RCP Designer, but those who plan to extend their reports using Java code will probably prefer the All-In-One Designer, because it includes the Eclipse IDE. Both the RCP Designer and the All-In-One Designer are open source and available at no cost. Actuate also provides commercial versions of BIRT Designers. They provide all the functionality of the Eclipse BIRT Designers, plus value-added extensions such as out-of-the-box support for Flash objects, auto-suggest for parameter values, built-in drivers for the most common relational databases, support for a meta data layer, and direct integration with the iserver. More information can be found at If you plan to use the integrated Maximo 7 report feature, you will need to contact IBM to determine which version of the Eclipse BIRT Designer is compatible with your Maximo release. From a historical perspective, Maximo 7 uses BIRT 2.1.2, while Maximo Fix Pack uses BIRT ACTUATE CORPORATION PAGE 21

22 Training BIRT training classes from Actuate are available in two formats: 1) instructor-led classroom training, and 2) instructor-led online distance learning. Private on-site training at your company s location can also be arranged by contacting Actuate. Course titles include: Working with BIRT Report Designer (classroom and distance learning) Integrating and Deploying BIRT (distance learning) Developing a Customized BIRT Studio Environment (classroom and distance learning) Beyond Open Source: Using Actuate BIRT (classroom) Using the BIRT Integration APIs (classroom) Managing the BIRT iserver System (classroom and distance learning) Public classroom training is available in 10 cities in North America as well as London, Paris, Frankfurt, Singapore, Sydney and Tokyo. To view the schedule of public classroom and distance learning classes, visit: Customer Support for BIRT Actuate Support Engineers have identified and assisted more BIRT users than any other support team. Actuate provides a variety of support plans to assist developers and users of BIRT reports, whether they use open source Eclipse BIRT or Actuate s BIRT-based products. Because IBM does not support the Eclipse BIRT Designer, users may want to consider support plans from Actuate. To learn more, visit the following web pages: Implementation Assistance Actuate consultants can help kick start your Maximo project and accelerate time to production, while bringing you up to speed on BIRT best practices to support your long-term success. They are ready to assist across a wide range of activities from BIRT adoption strategies to report development and fine tuning. With five pre-defined Professional Services packages to choose among and the ability to define a custom engagement, Actuate consultants can help every Maximo roll-out leverage BIRT capabilities and make the most of your existing Actuate Reports and iserver technology. Actuate s BIRT-certified consultants can offer strategy recommendations, help make strategy decisions, and guide the implementation of best-practice BIRT development frameworks or implement them turnkey. They can also develop reports cost-effectively. You can register for one of the five following packages on BIRT Exchange, or contact Actuate to discuss a custom engagement. BIRT Strategy Workshop a one-day engagement that reviews your options and makes best-practice recommendations BIRT Deployment Strategy Package a five-day engagement that creates design documents and a project plan Best Practice BIRT Report Design Package a combination of two days of classroom training and three days of mentoring BIRT Fast Start Package - development of a reusable reporting Framework BIRT Report Factory a pay-as-you-go service for designing reports ACTUATE CORPORATION PAGE 22

23 Books The following books will help you learn to use BIRT in conjunction with IBM Maximo. The first two references in this list were written by Actuate employees and are available on Amazon.com. Additional books, including one written in German, offer evidence of strong user adoption worldwide: BIRT: A Field Guide to Reporting, by Diana Pen, Nola Hague, and Jane Satchel Integrating and Extending BIRT, by Jason Weathers by, Don French, Tom Bonder, Jane Satchel & Ian Chatalbasheva Practical Data Analysis and Reporting with BIRT, by John Ward Eclipse BIRT: Business Intelligence und Reporting Tool, (German Edition) by Ulrich Obst, Dennis Schladebeck You can also find many PDF and HTML documents on important BIRT topics at the BIRT Exchange at Blogs The following blogs discuss BIRT and are aimed at report developers: BIRT World, by Jason Weathersby of Actuate and Scott Rosenbaum of Innovent Solutions: BIRT-ing Out Loud, by Virgil Dodson of Actuate for BIRT-Exchange: Maximo Reporting Documentation from IBM IBM discusses its reporting strategy and the practicalities of using BIRT with Maximo, in the following documents: Tivoli Common Reporting - V7 Reporting Features Guide - reporting feature guide_v71 may.doc V7 QBR (Ad Hoc) Reporting and Report Object Structures V7 QBR_Ad Hoc Reporting.pdf Maximo s Business Intelligence Strategy MRO BI strategy.pdf Maximo Asset Management and Tivoli Asset Management for IT What s New in Release Maximo-WhatNewIn7.1.pdf V7 Report Options - MaximoV7_ReportingChoices_docview.pdf Maximo 7 and 8 reporting strategy FAQs.pdf IBM Maximo Asset Management 7.1 Report Developer Guide mam71_report_dev_guide.pdf Designing V7 Reports - Designing V7 Reports.pdf V7 Report Performance.pdf Powerpoint: IBM on Actuate Reporting for Maximo 7 (webinar aired 10/2008) Actuate_oct2008_reporting.ppt Configuring BIRT Designer with V7 - Configuring_BIRT212_V7.pdf BO / Crystal Integration - BO XI Product Integration.pdf External Report Integration - V7 External Report Integration ACTUATE CORPORATION PAGE 23