You're developing a universe for your own personal use and don't need to share it with anyone else. In this case, you might choose to publish it locally. However, if you're working on a team and need to ensure that everyone is using the same version of the universe, you should publish it to a repository.
Publish Locally
When you publish a business layer, the wizard exports the business layer and its referenced resources.
These resources include:
- The local connection (.cnx)
- The data foundation (.dfx)
- The business layer (.blx)
In this scenario, you can create a document to query this universe using SAP BusinessObjects Web Intelligence 2025 in Desktop mode.
Publish a Universe Locally
Start by selecting the business layer in the Local projects view.
Next, right-click the business layer to display the context menu. From there, select Publish→To a local folder to complete the process.
Publish to a Repository
Watch the video to understand the process of publishing a universe and its key benefits for centralization, security, and lifecycle management.
Publish a Universe to a Repository
Start by selecting the business layer in the Local projects view.
Then, right-click the business layer and select Publish→To a repository. This action initiates the process of publishing your universe to the designated repository.
Edit Published Resources
You cannot edit a published universe directly in SAP BusinessObjects Information Design Tool. To work on a published universe, you need to retrieve it with the Retrieve universe wizard.
The wizard retrieves the universe from a repository. It separates the universe into the business layer and the resources it references. These resources include the connection shortcut and data foundation. The wizard then creates these resources in a local project where you can edit them.
Retrieve a universe
To retrieve a universe, first open a session on the repository where the universe is stored, using the Repository resources view.
Then, locate the universe you want to retrieve and right-click it. From the context menu, choose Retrieve universe.
The wizard will guide you through the remaining steps; simply follow the on-screen instructions to complete the retrieval process.
Best Practices
- Use a structured promotion path for your environments: development, quality assurance, and then production. This ensures that changes are thoroughly tested before being deployed to production.
- To collaborate with your team, import the universe from the repository.
- Document all changes for future reference.
- Use the LifeCycle Management tool to promote universes between environments. This process is more reliable than a manual import and export.
- If you are unsure about your universe version, import the universe from the repository.
Let's Summarize What You've Learned
- Publication is the final step; use Publish universe wizard to export a business layer locally or to the repository.
- Publishing locally exports .cnx, .dfx, and .blx; enables creating Web Intelligence documents in Desktop mode.
- Publishing to a repository exports .cns, .dfx, and .blx; supports SAP BusinessObjects Web Intelligence 2025 in Web and Desktop modes, SAP Crystal Reports 2025, and SAP Analytics Cloud.
- Repository publishing provides centralization, detailed security, and lifecycle management across development, test, and production environments.
- You cannot edit a published universe; use Retrieve universe to pull it locally and edit referenced resources.