Qlik NPrinting Governance Dashboard - Version 3 Now Available

[JonnyPoole]

To install or upgrade your existing Qlik NPrinting governance dashboard, simply deploy the new QVF  and reload the app: NPrinting Governance Dashboard - version3

If and only if you have altered the engine.config file(s) on your NPrinting Engine computer(s) to change the default 'resolvers-count' value,  then go to the 'deployment summary' sheet and enter the 'resolvers-count' value under 'Available Resolvers'.  This value sets a baseline that the new concurrency metric can evaluate to ensure your NPrinting environment is not core constrained. 

Please enjoy and post comments/suggestions in GitHub preferably, or in the community comments below.  

Version 3.0 (4/12/2022)

Update Details:

-Fixed a bug introduced by NP May 2021 SR3 where the reload fails in the load script:
< Field 'id' not found FROM "nprinting"."public"."task_execution" >

-Updated background colours on the "Task Recipients" Pivot Table to green

Version 2.0 

Update Details:

Deployment Summary Sheet:

• Configurable variable "vResolvers ".  By default this is set to the # logical engine processors. If you have changed  the "content-resolvers" property in the engine.config file(s)  to increase/decrease the number of resolvers in your NPrinting environment,  set vResolvers to the sum of this value in all your engine.config files.  

-New KPI "Peak  Connection Concurrency".  This is the number of unique connections used at any one time by executing publish tasks, subscriptions, on-demand requests, or metadata reload requests. It does not include preview requests.  If this number exceeds 60% of your resolver count, queuing is expected to occur and reports will take longer to run. The metric will turn red indicating it is time to add logical engine processors to your NPrinting Engine(s) to a maximum of 16 logical processors per engine. 

-New KPI "Peak Execution Concurrency". This is the number of concurrent execution requests at any one time . It is the sum of executing publish tasks + executing subscription requests + executing onDemand Requests + executing Metadata reload requests. If multiple reports are running in a single publish task, it counts as just '1' in this resolver . Does not include 'preview' requests.  

Report Delivery Sheet:

-New filters added

Data Connections Sheet:

-New filters added 

-Section Access field (yes/no ) added 

Qlik Lineage Sheet:

-New filters added

-New KPIs added:  Complex reports , Medium reports, simple reports

App Content Sheet:

-new filters added

Task Recipients Sheet:

-new filters added

Execution Analysis Sheet:

• New time chart:  "Active Connections by Type Over Time".  Shows concurrently used connections over time , stacked bar charts splits the type of request using the connection  (Publish Task, Subscription,OnDemand,Metadata Reload) . A Y Axis limit line shows the peak.  It turns red if it exceeds 60% of the vResolvers variable

-New table "Days when Concurrency Exceeded". Shows the number of days where the peak concurrency connections exceeds 60% of vResolvers.  

• New time chart:  "Executions by Type Over Time".  Shows concurrent executions over time , stacked bar charts splits the type of request   (Publish Task, Subscription,OnDemand,Metadata Reload) . A y axis limit line shows the peak over time.

-New table "Peak Concurrency by Day". Shows peak concurrency by day.

Report Performance Sheet:

-Container with 4 distribution plots showing execution length for publish tasks, subscriptions,ondemand requests and metadata reloads.  Colored by status (green = success,  red = failed)

-Container with 4 tables showing detailed executions

• 4 KPIs showing  "Average Publish Task Length", "Average OnDemand Length", "Average Subscription Length", "Average Metadata Reload Length" . 

Users Sheet:

-New Filters added

Execution Log Messages:

-New Filters added

Load Script / Model:

- vResolvers variable set to the sum of logical processors on each NP engine found

• section access field added to connections

• New master date table intervalmatched to executions. 

• vMonthsToLoad variable determines how many trailing months to generate in the master date table (default is 3 months)

Upgrade:

For anybody upgrading you will need to re-edit the data source in the load script and if and only if you have changed the resolvers-count setting in the NPrinting engine.config file .... then after reloading the app , go to the deployment summary sheet and update the vResolvers variable to be equivalent to the same value as 'resolvers-count' in the engine.config. If you have multiple NP engines, sum the number together and set vResolvers to the sum of the values found in the engine.config files.

[Ruggero_Piccoli]

Hi @DavidDocquoyBaudelet ,

I think you have to use the table time_based_trigger to join them.

Best Regards,

Ruggero

[DavidDocquoyBaudelet]

Hi,

Thanks a lot, that's work fine !

👍

[Rom1]

Hi,

I'm so sorry to ask your for help.

I'm trying to install NPrinting Governance Dashboard but i don't succeed with the connexion postgr.
I've changed the pg_hba.conf and postgresql.conf on my Nprinting server.
I've installed pgAdmin but i can't connect to the server.
It's working when I am on the Qlik Sense server but not in the Nprinting Server.

My version is Qlik NPrinting May 2021 SR5 / Version : 21.14.10.0

Thanks

[JonnyPoole]

@Rom1   what is the error you are seeing? Please provide a screenshot.  Have you opened the inbound firewall on the NP server for port 4992?  Please share the evidence of the port being opened.  Also  I don't understand this statement "It's working when I am on the Qlik Sense server but not in the Nprinting Server."  ( -> the dashboard can only be used in Qlik Sense but you say its working on the QLik Sense Server. That is confusing to me?)   

[Wodge]

In step 3, if the port number is different, would this still be uncommented out ? as the guide states 4992, but the port we have is different here.

In step 6, it states to enter the qlik sense server fully qualified machine name and the qlik sense server machine name, but would the qlik sense server fully qualified machine name just be the machine name and domain name, and the qlik sense server machine name just be the machine name without the domain?

Thanks !

[Lech_Miszkiewicz]

@Wodge -

1. port 4992 is the port postgres connector uses to communicate with repository. Use the port you use.
2. thats exactly what it is.

[Wodge]

@Lech_Miszkiewicz Thank you so much !

[JonnyPoole]

I've had a rash of inquiries about reload errors.  The cause is that in recent versions of Qlik Sense, the bulk reader setting is automatically enabled.  You will have to edit the connection properties of the postgresql connection in qlik sense manually to disable bulk reader (see image below). 

The setting us 'usebulkreader' and the value is 'false'.

The reason is that bulk reader cannot read very long strings, and unfortunately the governance dashboard must read some very large XML payloads from the NP Repository to parse lineage information and report complexity.  Disabling the bulk loader may result in a slower load, but it will prevent XML load errors. 

Bulk reader used to be disabled, but if you create a NEW connection in Qlik Sense in a recent version of Qlik Sense, its enabled by default

[louiswinter]

@JonnyPoole I believe this is the issue we are having loading the NP data into QlikView.  How do we disable "usebulkreader" in a QlikView load script?  I don't see this as an option on the ODBC DSN or on the ODBC CONNECT statement.

[louiswinter]

@JonnyPoole Never mind on the QlikView load question.  I changed the "Max LongVarChar" size on the DSN from the default to 1024000 and that fixed the issue (for now).  The current max length of the report.entities_xml data is just over 70000.  If we run into any more errors in the future we'll increase the value on the DSN some more.