Product:
Cognos Controller 8.5.1 service pack

Problem:
After upgrade to a new version of Cognos Controller you get a error when you run Database Conversion Utility to upgrade the database to the latest version.

You get message:
Current dbversion.txt missing – unable to proceed with conversion.

Solution:
Ensure that the DBCONV.EXE program is in the C8 folder, where the needed support files are located.

Copy the DBCONV.EXE program to the C8 folder – if it is not located in this folder.

A reinstall of Cognos Controller would also place the files in correct folders.

Product:
Cognos Controller 10.1
Microsoft Windows 2008 R2 server

Symptom:
When try to convert a older cognos controller database, you get a error when you run the DbConv program from the folder D:\Program Files (x86)\ibm\cognos\c10\legacy.

Error Message:
DbConv Error
ERROR 429 (Hex 1AD):
ActiveX component can’t create object

Database Upgrade is aborted due to error in processing Step 755.
Error – 429 ActiveX component can’t create object
Current DB Version is 754

Cause:
During the install of Cognos Controller 10.1 on the Microsoft Windows 2008 R2 server some files was not correct registered.

Solution:

1. Logon to the Controller application server as an administrator
2. Launch Windows Explorer, and navigate to the folder: C:\Windows\SysWOW64\common
3. Right-click on the file “Xceedzip.dll” and choose “properties”. Check the file size. It should be approximately 278 KB. If it is 0 Kb then the file is corrupt and will need to be replaced.
4. Navigate to the folder: \Common (this can be: D:\Program Files (x86)\ibm\cognos\c10\common)
5. Right-click on the file “FrCrypto.dll” and choose “properties”. Check the file size. It should be approximately 29 KB. If it is 0 Kb then the file is corrupt and will need to be replaced.
6. Launch a command prompt by clicking “Start” – “Run” and then typing in “CMD”
7. Change directory using: cd C:\Windows\SysWOW64\common
8. Register the file using: regsvr32.exe xceedzip.dll
9. Change directory to the c8\common folder (for example using: cd “D:\Program Files (x86)\ibm\cognos\c10\common”)
10. Register the file using: regsvr32.exe FrCrypto.dll

Product:
Cognos Controller 10.1
Microsoft Windows 2008 R2

Symptom:
Open Cognos Controller Configuration hang when you select the Report Server section.
In some cases you get a error message.
You can only kill the Controller Configuration program from Windows Task Manager, and when you go into Controller Configuration again it will hang.

Error message:
File Download
Do you want to save this file, or find a program online to open it?
Name: cognosisapi.xts&h_CAM_action=logon
Type: Unknown File Type, 252KB
From: servername

Cause:
You have changed the Controller Configuration to use cognosisapi.dll but not changed on the Windows 2008 iis to handle isapi for cognos controller. You need to change the IIS settings before you change in Controller Configuration.

Can also happens when you enter a none valid Report Server URL in Controller Configuration.

Solution:
1) In IIS select the server node, then double-click ISAPI and CGI Restrictions in the right pane, Under Actions on the right hand screen select Edit Feature Settings and make sure Allow unspecified ISAPI modules is selected.
In the Left Connection pane select the cgi-bin virtual directory, then double-click Handler Mappings in the right pane.
In the Actions pane click Add Module Mapping, the settings should be similar to:

Request path: cognosisapi.dll
Module: IsapiModule
Executable (optional): C:\Program Files (x86)\ibm\cognos\c10\cgi-bin\cognosisapi.dll
Name: ISAPI-cognos

Click OK and Yes to allow this ISAPI extension

2) If running 64-bit In iis under Application Pools, select your application pool for the ibmcognos virtual directories i.e. DefaultAppPool, on the right-hand side click Set Application Pool Defaults and change Enable 32-Bit Applications to True

3) Edit the file /c10/cgi-bin/web.config and add:
allowPathInfo=’true’
to the following entry:

To become:

4) Restart iis

5) In Cognos Configuration under Environment change Gateway URI to reference cognosisapi.dll instead
i.e.
from:
http://servername:80/ibmcognos/cgi-bin/cognos.cgi
to:
http://servername:80/ibmcognos/cgi-bin/cognosisapi.dll

(Leave Cognos Configuration open for the moment)

In the /webcontent directory, edit the index.htm and default.htm files and change
URL=cgi-bin/cognos.cgi?
To
URL=cgi-bin/cognosisapi.dll?

In Cognos Configuration save you settings and restart the services.

6) In Controller Configuration under Report server change Report server to cognosisapi.dll instead of cognos.cgi
i.e.
http://servername/ibmcognos/cgi-bin/cognos.cgi
to:
http://servername/ibmcognos/cgi-bin/cognosisapi.dll

When the user surf to http://servername/ibmcognos, will cognosisapi.dll be used as default.

Product:
Cognos Controller 10.1
Microsoft Windows 2008 R2

Symptom:
When starting Cognos Controller client, it will hang and not show up.

This happens on a client computer (citrix server) that run a 64 bit operation system.

Possible error:
Microsoft IE Execute shell
Microsoft IE Execute shell has encountered a problem and needs to close.
We are sorry for the inconvenience.

Cause:
Cognos Controller is a 32 bit application, and will not execute in a 64 bit Internet Explorer.

Possible Solution:
Set the Client computer (citrix server) to process all NET framework code as 32 bit.

start cmd by select “run as administrator” from start menu on client computer.
go to c: drive
change to folder with command: cd %windir%\Microsoft.NET\Framework64\v2.0.50727
Enter command: Ldr64.exe setwow

More information:
On Windows 2008 R2 server when running Controller Configuration, you must right click the program and select Run as Administrator.

Ensure that the client have trust to the Cognos Controller server.
Check by running CASPOL -LG from the Microsoft.NET\Framework\v2.0.50727 folder on the client. This will list the servers that the NET framework client trust.

When you run the caspol command, you must start the command prompt/bat file by right clicking the program and selecting Run as Administrator.

start cmd run as administrator
cd C:\%windir%\Microsoft.NET\Framework\v2.0.50727
caspol -q -m -ag “All_Code” -url http:// SERVERNAME /* FullTrust -name “Controller_ SERVERNAME ” -d “Controller_ SERVERNAME ”

(replace SERVERNAME with the name of your server NetBios or FQDN depending what you have setup)
Run the CASPOL command once for FQDN and once for the NetBios Servername to ensure the clients access to the server.

Product:
Cognos Controller 10.1
Microsoft Windows 2008 R2

Symptom:
The Cognos Controller client freeze (hang) after you have selected the database to use. The login dialog is not showing up. There are no error messages in windows event log.

If you run Controller Client direct on the Controller Application server – it works fine.
But from all client computers the Controller Client will hang.

Problem:
When Cognos Controller client start it will contact Cognos connection to check if it is there, even if you use native controller security. When report server setting is http://localhost/ibmcognos/cgi-bin/cognosisapi.dll , this will not work – Cognos connection can not be found on the local client.

You can sometimes get a Internet Explorer 404 error in Controller before the login dialog.

Cause:
After you have applied the Cognos Controller hot fix, the settings in Controller configuration is reverted back to default values. Therefore the Report server value is localhost and not the server name.

Solution:
Open Controller Configuration on your Controller server.
Go to the Report Server tab.
Change the url from localhost to the servername

Report server should be:
http://srv001/ibmcognos/cgi-bin/cognosisapi.dll

Dispatcher URI should be:
http://srv001:9300/p2pd/servlet/dispatch

(change srv001 to your server name)

Click save and close.
Test again.

Product:
Cognos Controller 10.1
Microsoft Windows 2008 server

Issue:
How automatic set the background picture in Cognos controller for all clients on a Citrix server?

Inside Cognos Controller client, you can define a BMP file to be used as background picture.
Recommended is to have a different background picture for your test environment.
To make Controller Client color different from the productions clients.

In Cognos Controller client go to
Maintain – Installation – Local Preferences
Here you can enter the key app_background
And a value that points to a local BMP file.

Problem:
Local Preferences values are stored in the ccr.config file for each user in there windows profile.
You need to populate this file for each user when they logon to the Terminal Server.

Solution:
On citrix server create a folder called d:\script
On citrix server create a BMP file and save it as c:\windows\background.bmp
On citrix server download AUTOIT3:EXE from http://www.autoitscript.com/site/autoit/downloads/
And place it in folder d:\script

Create a text file in folder d:\script named replaceccr.au3 with this content:

$TextFileName = @UserProfileDir & “\AppData\Roaming\Cognos\ccr\ccr.config”

$FindText = “”
$ReplaceText = ‘ ‘

$FileContents = FileRead($TextFileName)
$Check = StringInStr( $FileContents, “” )

if $Check = 0 Then

$FileContents = StringReplace($FileContents,$FindText,$ReplaceText)
FileDelete($TextFileName)
FileWrite($TextFileName,$FileContents)

EndIf

Create a text file in folder d:\script named updateccr.cmd with this content:
d:\script\autoit3.exe d:\script\replaceccr.au3

In folder d:\script these files should now be:
Autoit3.exe = used to process au3 script files
Replaceccr.au3 = will check the users ccr.config file and add the “app_background” if it does not already have a “LocalPref” value.
Updateccr.cmd = file to run to active the script

You may then add the updateccr.cmd file to your C:\Windows\System32\usrlogon.cmd, to make it run when anyone logon to the Windows Server.

More information about Terminal Server logon script
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/195461

http://www.brianmadden.com/blogs/guestbloggers/archive/2005/03/01/understanding-the-citrix-metaframe-logon-and-logoff-process.aspx

More information about Autoit3:
http://www.autoitscript.com/autoit3/docs/functions.htm
http://www.autoitscript.com/autoit3/docs/macros.htm

Product:
Cognos Controller 10.1

Symptom:
Error before login to Cognos Controller you get an error message. You get the message after you have selected the controller database to use.

Error message:
Log On IBM Cognos Controller

AAA-AUT-0011
Invalid namespace was selected

Cause:
Cognos Controller 10 is setup to talk to a Cognos BI 8 installation.

The Dispatcher URI in Controller Configuration Report Server is not only used when you run the standard reports – it is also used when validate the login when using Server Authentication. The Report Server Dispatcher value is inherited to Server Authentication.

The values for Report Server will be reset to default values when you install the Cognos Controller Update Components Fix Pack on a existing Cognos Controller installation.
https://www-304.ibm.com/support/docview.wss?uid=swg27020782

Solution:
On the Cognos Controller application server
Start IBM Cognos Controller Configuration
Select Report Server in the list
Change the Dispatcher URI to be a valid URL

To something like this
http://SRV001:9300/p2pd/servlet/dispatch

Click Save
Exit Controller Configuration
Start Cognos Controller client and test again.

More Information:
If the Cognos BI service is not available you will get an error of this kind instead:
IBM Cognos Business Intelligence
Error executing request. Please verify that the target URI is valid and that IBM Cognos is online.

Below error message in Swedish:

”IBM Cognos-gatewayen kan inte ansluta till IBM Cognos BI-servern. Servern kan vara otillgänglig eller så kan gatewayen vara felaktigt konfigurerad.”
”Försök igen eller kontakta administratören.”

Product:
Cognos Controller 8.5

Problem:
How to install the Cognos Controller client automatic?

Cause:
Sometimes the IT department want to automate the installation of the Cognos Controller Client on the client computer or Citrix server.

Solution:
You can from a script start the CCRLOCALCLIENT.MSI file and add parameters that will respond to the questions you get when you install.

Copy first the CCRLOCALCLIENT.MSI file to the Client Computer.
You can download it from
http://servername/cognos8/controllerbin/ccrlocalclient.msi

Enter below on ONE row in a DOS prompt on the client computer:
msiexec.exe /qb /i ccrlocalclient.msi WSSURL=http://servername/cognos8/controllerserver HELPURL=http://servername/cognos8/controllerhelp

Replace servername above with the name of your Cognos Controller server.