10 Setting Up Delivery Destinations

This chapter describes the setup required to deliver BI Publisher reports to printers, e-mail servers, FTP servers, WebDav servers, content servers, and cloud server. It also describes how to set up the HTTP notification server.

It covers the following topics:

• Configuring Delivery Options

• Adding a Printer

• Adding a Fax Server

• Adding an E-Mail Server

• Adding a WebDAV Server

• Adding an HTTP Server

• Adding an FTP Server

• Adding a Content Server

• Adding a Common UNIX Printing System (CUPS) Server

• Adding a Cloud Server

Configuring Delivery Options

Use the Delivery Configuration Options page to set general properties for e-mail deliveries and notifications from BI Publisher and for defining the SSL certificate file.

To configure delivery options:

1. From the Administration page, select Delivery Configuration, as shown below.
   
   

   
   Description of the illustration GUID-19EB0295-79E9-45CE-A5C7-B382C8680E8F-default.gif

   
   
2. Enter the following properties:

   • SSL Certificate File — If SSL is enabled for your installation, then you can leave this field empty if you want to use the default certificates built-in with BI Publisher. SSL works with the default certificate if the server uses the certificate signed by a trusted certificate authority such as Verisign. This field is mandatory only if the user uses the SSL with a self-signed certificate. The self-signed certificate means the certificate is signed by a non-trusted certificate authority (usually the user).

   • E-mail From Address — Enter the From address to appear on e-mail report deliveries from the BI Publisher server. The default value is [e-mail].

   • Delivery Notification E-mail From Address — Enter the From address to appear on notifications delivered from the BI Publisher server. The default value is [e-mail].

   • Success Notification Subject — Enter the subject line to display for e-mail notification recipients when the report status is Success.

   • Warning Notification Subject — Enter the subject line to display for e-mail notification recipients when the report status is Warning.

   • Failure Notification Subject — Enter the subject line to display for e-mail notification recipients when the report status is Failed.

   • Skipped Notification Subject — Enter the subject line to display for e-mail notification recipients when the report status is Skipped.

   • Use System Proxy Settings - When selected, the Delivery Manager looks up the proxy server settings from the Java runtime environment.

     Note the following:

     • Printer, Fax, WebDAV, HTTP and CUPS servers use proxy settings for http protocol when SSL is not used. When SSL is used, the and https proxy setting is used.

     • FTP and SFTP use proxy settings for FTP.

     • Contents servers and email servers do not support connection over a proxy, regardless of this setting.

     You can override the proxy settings per delivery server, using proxy configuration fields on the individual server setup page. If a proxy server and ports are configured for a delivery server, the Delivery Manager uses the proxy server and port configured for the server instead of the one defined in the Java Runtime environment. In Cloud installations, this check box is always selected, and cannot be turned off or overridden by individual server settings.

Adding a Printer

Regardless of whether BI Publisher is running on Linux, Unix, or Windows, the printer destination can be any IPP server.

The IPP server can be the printer itself, which is the easiest option, but if the printer does not natively support IPP, you can set up a print server that does support IPP (such as CUPS) and connect BI Publisher to the print server and then the print server to the printer. In this print server scenario, the print server can run on any operating system.

To send fax from BI Publisher, you must set up Common Unix Printing Service (CUPS) and the fax4CUPS extension, to enable connection to your fax server from BI Publisher. The fax set up requires this plugin to the CUPS server on the operating system. Note that the Administration page makes the distinction between a fax and a printer server in the UI, so that users can pick one or the other or both at runtime. Even though the fax and printer server that the users see can both use a single CUPS server.

For information on setting up CUPS or Windows IPP print servers and how to connect network printers to them, refer to the CUPS or Windows IPP software vendor documentation.

Two types of security are supported: Basic and Digest.

About Printing PDF

PDF is a popular output format for business reports and is printable from viewer software such as Adobe Reader. However, some reports require printing directly from the report server. For example, paychecks and invoices are usually printed as scheduled batch jobs. Some newer printers with PostScript Level 3 compliant Raster Image Processing can natively support PDF documents, but there are still many printers in business use that only support PostScript Level 2 that cannot print PDF documents directly.

To print PDF documents directly from the BI Publisher server if your printer or print server does not support printing PDF, you have the following options:

• Select one of BI Publisher's filters: PDF to PostScript or PDF to PCL.

• Configure a custom, or third-party filter.

After completing all other required fields for the print server, you can schedule reports to print directly from the BI Publisher server to any printer in your system that supports PostScript Level 2.

Setting Up a Printer

You set up printers from the Administration page.

To set up a printer:

1. From the Admin page select Printer. Select Add Server.

2. Enter the following required fields:

   • Server Name — Enter a unique name. Example: Localprinter

   • URI — Enter the Uniform Resource Identifier for the printer.

     Example: ipp://myhost:631/printers/myprinter

     Example URI syntax for Windows IPP server: http://ip-address/printers/name-printer/.printer

3. Enter a Filter (optional).

   A filter enables you to call a conversion utility to convert the PDF generated by BI Publisher to a file format supported by your specific printer type. BI Publisher provides the following filters:

   • PDF to PostScript

     BI Publisher includes a PDF to PostScript filter. This filter converts PDF to PostScript Level 2. Select PDF to PostScript from the list to use BI Publisher's predefined filter.

   • PDF to PCL

     To convert PDF to PCL, select PDF to PCL. This automatically populates the Filter Command field.

     BI Publisher supports the PDF to PCL conversion only for font selection requirements for check printing. For generic printing requirements, use the PDF to PostScript filter.

     You can embed PCL commands into RTF templates to invoke the PCL commands at a specific position on the PCL page; for example, to use a font installed on the printer for routing and account numbers on a check. For more information, see Embedding PCL Commands for Check Printing in Report Designer's Guide for Oracle Business Intelligence Publisher.

   You can also call a custom filter using operating system commands.

   About Custom Filters

   To specify a custom filter, pass the native OS command string with the two placeholders for the input and output filename, {infile} and {outfile}.

   This is useful especially if you are trying to call IPP printers directly or IPP printers on Microsoft Internet Information Service (IIS). Unlike CUPS, those print servers do not translate the print file to a format the printer can understand, therefore only limited document formats are supported. With the filter functionality, you can call any of the native OS commands to transform the document to the format that the target printer can understand.

   For example, to transform a PDF document to a PostScript format, enter the following PDF to PS command in the Filterfield:

   pdftops {infile} {outfile}

   To call an HP LaserJet printer setup on a Microsoft IIS from Linux, you can set Ghostscript as a filter to transform the PDF document into the format that the HP LaserJet can understand. To do this, enter the following Ghostscript command in the Filter field:

   gs -q -dNOPAUSE -dBATCH -sDEVICE=laserjet -sOutputFile={outfile} {infile}
   

   For fax servers, you can use the filter to transform the file to Tag Image File Format (TIFF).

4. Optionally enter the following fields if appropriate:

   • Security fields — Username and Password, Authentication Type (None, Basic, Digest) and Encryption Type (None, SSL).

   • Proxy Server fields — Host, Port, User Name, Password, Authentication Type (None, Basic, Digest)

Adding a Fax Server

To send fax from BI Publisher, you must set up Common Unix Printing Service (CUPS) and the fax4CUPS extension, to enable fax transmissions from BI Publisher.

See the following resources for information about setting up CUPS and the fax4CUPS extension:

To set up fax delivery:

1. From the Administration page, select Fax. Select Add Server.
2. Enter the following required fields:

   • Server Name — Enter a unique name. Example: Localprinter

   • URI — Enter the Uniform Resource Identifier for the printer. Example: ipp://myhost:631/printers/myprinter

3. Enter a Filter (optional).

   A filter enables you to call a conversion utility to convert the PDF generated by BI Publisher to a file format supported by your specific printer type. BI Publisher provides the following filters:

   • PDF to PostScript

     BI Publisher includes a PDF to PostScript filter. This filter converts PDF to PostScript Level 2. Select PDF to PostScript from the list to use BI Publisher's predefined filter.

   • PDF to PCL

     To convert PDF to PCL, select PDF to PCL. This automatically populates the Filter Command field.

     BI Publisher supports the PDF to PCL conversion only for font selection requirements for check printing. For generic printing requirements, use the PDF to PostScript filter.

     You can embed PCL commands into RTF templates to invoke the PCL commands at a specific position on the PCL page; for example, to use a font installed on the printer for routing and account numbers on a check. For more information, see Embedding PCL Commands for Check Printing in Report Designer's Guide for Oracle Business Intelligence Publisher.

   You can also call a custom filter using operating system commands.

   About Custom Filters

   To specify a custom filter, pass the native OS command string with the two placeholders for the input and output filename, {infile} and {outfile}.

   This is useful especially if you are trying to call IPP printers directly or IPP printers on Microsoft Internet Information Service (IIS). Unlike CUPS, those print servers do not translate the print file to a format the printer can understand, therefore only limited document formats are supported. With the filter functionality, you can call any of the native OS commands to transform the document to the format that the target printer can understand.

   For example, to transform a PDF document to a PostScript format, enter the following PDF to PS command in the Filter field:

   pdftops {infile} {outfile}

   To call an HP LaserJet printer setup on a Microsoft IIS from Linux, you can set Ghostscript as a filter to transform the PDF document into the format that the HP LaserJet can understand. To do this, enter the following Ghostscript command in the Filter field:

   gs -q -dNOPAUSE -dBATCH -sDEVICE=laserjet -sOutputFile={outfile} {infile}

   For fax servers, you can use the filter to transform the file to Tag Image File Format (TIFF).

4. Optionally enter the following fields if appropriate:

   • Security fields — Username and Password, Authentication Type (None, Basic, Digest) and Encryption Type (None, SSL).

   • Proxy Server fields — Host, Port, User Name, Password, Authentication Type (None, Basic, Digest)

Adding an E-Mail Server

You add an e-mail server from the Administration page.

To add an e-mail server:

1. From the Administration page, select Email. This displays the list of servers that have been added. Select Add Server.
2. Enter the Server Name, Host, and Port for the e-mail server.
3. Select a Secure Connection method to use for connections with the e-mail server. The options are:

   • None

   • SSL — Use Secure Socket Layer.

   • TLS (Transport Layer Security) — Use TLS when the server supports the protocol; SSL is accepted in the response.

   • TLS Required — If the server does not support TLS, then the connection is not made.

4. Optionally enter the following fields if appropriate:

   • General fields — Port

   • Security fields — Username and Password.

Adding a WebDAV Server

You add a WebDAV server from the Administration page.

To add a WebDAV server:

1. From the Administration page, select WebDAV to display the list of servers that have been added. Select Add Server.
2. Enter the Name and Host for the new server.
3. Optionally enter the following fields if appropriate:

   • General fields — Port

   • Security fields — Authentication Type (None, Basic, Digest) and Encryption Type (None, SSL).

   • Proxy Server fields — Host, Port, User Name, Password, Authentication Type (None, Basic, Digest)

Adding an HTTP Server

You can register an application URL or postprocess HTTP URL as an HTTP server to send a notification request to after the report has completed.

The HTTP notification sent by BI Publisher posts a form data for Job ID, report URL and Job Status to the HTTP Server URL page.

To set up an HTTP notification to integrate with a third-party application, see Developer's Guide for Oracle Business Intelligence Publisher. To enable an HTTP notification for a scheduled report, see Configuring Notifications in User's Guide for Oracle Business Intelligence Publisher.

To add an HTTP server

1. From the Administration page, select HTTP to display the list of servers that have been added. Select Add Server.
2. Enter a name for the server, and enter the URL. When the report finishes processing, BI Publisher posts form data for Job ID, report URL and Job Status.
3. Enter the Security information, if required. If your server is password protected, enter the Username and Password. Select the Authentication Type: None, Basic, or Digest; and Encryption Type: None or SSL.
4. If the notification is to be sent through a proxy server, enter the fully qualified Host name, the Port, the Username and Password, and Authentication Type of the proxy server.

Adding an FTP Server

You can add an FTP server from the Administration page.

Note:

If the destination file name supplied to the BI Publisher scheduler contains non-ascii characters, BI Publisher will use UTF-8 encoding to specify the file name to the destination FTP server. Your FTP server must support UTF-8 encoding or the job delivery will fail with "Delivery Failed" error message.

To add an FTP server:

1. From the Administration page, under Delivery, click FTP to display the list of servers that have been added.
2. Click Add Server.
3. Enter the following fields for the FTP server:

   • Server Name — For example, myFTPserver.

   • Host — For example, myhost.company.com.

   • Port — The default for FTP is 21.

     The default for Secure FTP (SFTP) is 22.

     If you wish to use the defaults at run time, you can leave this field empty, BI Publisher automatically uses 21 for FTP and 22 for SFTP.

     However, if you wish to use the Test Connection option from the UI, you must supply the correct port number in this field. Specify 21 for FTP or 22 for SFTP.

   • Use Secure FTP — Select this box to enable Secure FTP (SFTP). Ensure you set the Port to 22 for SFTP. See SSH Options for SFTP.

   • Use Passive Mode — Passive mode is recommended when the FTP server is behind a firewall.

   • Host Key Fingerprint — Host key verification is a key security feature. If <hostKeyFingerprint> value is set, the value must match the fingerprint calculated from server's host key at runtime. If it does not match, an exception error is thrown. When you connect the first time, the Delivery Manager API allows you to retrieve the server key fingerprint.

   • Filter Command (optional) — You can use a custom filter to apply file conversion such as encryption. To specify a custom filter, pass the native Operating System command string with the two placeholders for the input and output filename, {infile} and {outfile}.

     For example, to set up PGP encryption of the file using a Filter Command, enter the following:

     gpg -e -r myKey -o {outfile} {infile}

     where

     myKey is the ID to gpg key (such as real name, email address, or fingerprint).

     The Filter command field does not support quotes. Therefore you cannot use certain valid gpg formats that include spaces, for example: "myname <[e-mail]>"). You must specify the ID in a single string with no spaces.

   • Create files with Part extension when copy is in process — Select this box if you want BI Publisher to create the file on the FTP server with a .part extension while the file is transferring. The .part extension indicates that the file transfer is not complete. When the file transfer is complete, the file is renamed without the .part extension. If the file transfer does not complete, the file with the .part extension remains on the server.

4. Enter a username and Password for the server if required.
5. Enter Proxy Server information — Host, Port, Username, Password, Authentication type

The following figure shows a sample SFTP delivery server setup:

Description of the illustration GUID-92F99DB3-7BC4-4836-BE7F-97E4517A64CD-default.gif

SSH Options for SFTP

Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP) is based on the Secure Shell technology (SSH). Oracle BI Publisher supports the following SSH options for SFTP delivery.

SSH Option	Supported Values
Cipher Suites	3des-cbc blowfish-cbc aes128-cbc aes128-ctr aes192-ctr aes256-ctr Note: You can use aes192-ctr and aes256-ctr cipher suites only when BI Publisher is running on a JVM on which the Java Cryptography Extension (JCE) unlimited strength jurisdiction policy files are installed.
Key Exchange Method	diffie-hellman-group1-sha1 diffie-hellman-group14-sha1 diffie-hellman-group-exchange-sha1 diffie-hellman-group-exchange-sha256 Note: You can use diffie-hellman-group-exchange-sha256 key exchange methods only when BI Publisher is running on a JVM on which the Java Cryptography Extension (JCE) unlimited strength jurisdiction policy files are installed.
Public Key Algorithm	ssh-dss ssh-rsa

Adding a Content Server

You can deliver documents generated by BI Publisher to your Oracle WebContent Server.

BI Publisher's integration with the content server provides the following features:

• At run time, the report consumer can tag the report with Security Group and Account metadata (if applicable) to ensure that the appropriate access rights are applied to the document when delivered.

  See Adding Destinations in User's Guide for Oracle Business Intelligence Publisher.

• For documents that require specific custom metadata fields (such as invoice number, customer name, order date), BI Publisher enables the report author to map the custom metadata fields defined in Content Profile Rule Sets to data fields in the data model.

  See Adding Custom Metadata for Oracle WebCenter Content Server in Data Modeling Guide for Oracle Business Intelligence Publisher.

BI Publisher communicates with Oracle WebCenter Content Server using the Remote Intradoc Client (RIDC). The connection protocols therefore follow the standards required by the RIDC. The protocols supported are:

• Intradoc: The Intradoc protocol communicates to the Content Server over the over the Intradoc socket port (typically 4444). This protocol requires a trusted connection between the client and Content Server and will not perform any password validation. Clients that use this protocol are expected to perform any required authentication themselves before making RIDC calls. The Intradoc communication can also be configured to run over SSL.

• HTTP and HTTPS: The HTTP protocol connection requires valid user name and password authentication credentials for each request. You supply the credentials to use for requests in the BI Publisher Administration page.

• JAX-WS: The JAX-WS protocol is supported only in Oracle WebCenter Content 11g with a properly configured Content Server instance and the RIDC client installed. JAX-WS is not supported outside this environment.

  For more information about these protocols, see Using RIDC to Access Content Server in Developing with Oracle WebCenter Content.

Description of the illustration GUID-E979E1F6-9663-407C-9155-AAA05C558A1B-default.gif

To set up a connection to a content server as a delivery destination:

1. From the Administration page, under Delivery, click Content Server to display the list of servers that have been added. Click Add Server.
2. Enter the Server Name, for example: contentserver01.
3. Enter the connection URI for your content server. The URI can take any of the following supported protocols:

   • HTTP/HTTPS — Specifies the URL to the Content Server CGI path.

     For example:

     • http://localhost:16200/cs/idcplg
     • https://localhost:16200/cs/idcplg

   • Intradoc — The Intradoc protocol communicates to the Content Server over the Intradoc socket port (typically 4444). The IDC protocol also supports communication over SSL. For example:

     • idc://host:4444

     • idcs://host:4443

   • JAX-WS — Uses the JAX-WS protocol to connect to the Content Server.

     For example:

     • http://wlsserver:16200/idcnativews
4. To enable the inclusion of custom metadata with your report documents delivered to the content server, select the Enable Custom Metadata check box. This option must be selected to enable the custom metadata options in the Data Model Editor and the Scheduler.

Adding a Common UNIX Printing System (CUPS) Server

You add CUPS servers from the Administration page.

See Adding a Printer for information about when you must configure CUPS.

To add a CUPS server:

1. From the Administration page, select CUPS to display the list of servers that have been added.
2. Select Add Server.
3. Enter the Server Name and Host and Port for the CUPS server.

Adding a Cloud Server

BI Publisher can deliver reports to Oracle Document Cloud Services through a cloud server for enabling easy access and report sharing on the cloud.

To add a cloud server

1. Login to BI Publisher with administrator privileges, navigate to Administration > Document Cloud Services.
2. Click Add Server.
3. In the Server Name field, type the name of the cloud server through which the BI Publisher must deliver the reports to Oracle Document Cloud Services.
4. In the URI field, type the URI of the cloud server. For example, https://host.oraclecloud.com.
5. In the Username and Password fields, provide the credentials for accessing the cloud server.
6. Click Test Connection to ensure that the cloud server connection works.
7. Click Apply to save.