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Working with XML/A Connections

An XML/A connection describes how to connect to a remote XML/A provider, such as an XML/A source in another instance of JasperReports Server. In this case, the XML/A source points to a Mondrian connection in the remote server.

ja anatomy xmla conn

Figure 1 Anatomy of an XML/A Connection

JasperReports Server can act as either an XML/A provider or as an XML/A client. In the former case, remote servers retrieve data from an OLAP data source exposed by an XML/A definition in the JasperReports Server repository. In the latter case, JasperReports Server connects to a remote XML/A provider to retrieve data that populate reports and views. Typically, the server accesses a remote instance of JasperReports Server to form a distributed environment (Performance Tuning), but the server can also connect to other types of XML/A provider, such as Microsoft SQL Server Analytic Services (SSAS). Because JasperReports Server uses OLAP4J (http://www.olap4j.org/), it may also be able to connect to other types of XML/A provider, though such configurations are not currently certified. In this release, only JasperReports Server and Microsoft SQL Server Analytic Services are certified as XML/A providers.

The remote server must also be configured for XML/A. For instructions regarding Jaspersoft OLAP, see Jaspersoft OLAP Administration and Creating an XML/A Source. If you are connecting to Microsoft SQL Server Analytic Services at a high level, you must:

  • Configure Internet Information Services (IIS) to provide connectivity to Microsoft SQL Server Analytic Services.

  • Deploy and configure msmdpump.dll, which is an IIS extension that provides data connectivity via HTTP.

  • Configure security in Microsoft SQL Server Analytic Services according to your needs.

  • Test Microsoft SQL Server Analytic Services using an XML/A client tool, such as waRehouse EXplorer (REX; http://sourceforge.net/projects/whex), which is an open source Java client for browsing multidimensional data sources. Testing with a third-party tool can help you troubleshoot your Microsoft SQL Server Analytic Services configuration.

For more information about Microsoft SQL Server Analytic Services, refer to the associated documentation.