Using Scan MD Microstrategy

ScanMD

WHAT IS SCAN MD?

ScanMD is a troubleshooting application whose aim is to provide a quick resolution to known metadata logical inconsistencies. Logical inconsistencies are errors within an object's definition structure. The word 'known" means that those erroneous structures have already been investigated and processed by MicroStrategy Technical Support and, as a result, a Test has been implemented in ScanMD.

It is not the intention that ScanMD be used as a proactive method for addressing metadata inconsistencies. If you find yourself proactively running ScanMD and/or finding inconsistencies through ScanMD then please contact MicroStrategy Technical Support as this means that there is, most likely, a deeper problem to be investigated.

Refer to the following technical note if ScanMD is going to be executed against a 10.3 and higher metadata:

CONSIDERATIONS/GUIDELINES

ScanMD is to be used as a troubleshooting application and a vehicle to provide a quick resolutionafter a problem has been identified as a metadata inconsistency. In other words, ScanMD should not be run on a "schedule" or "after every migration".
Before running ScanMD, a database backup of the metadata must be made. With a backup of the metadata in place, proposed fixes should only be accepted if the full impact of the fix is understood.
When a Fix is performed on a project, the MicroStrategy Intelligence Server should be stopped, or that Project unloaded. No users should be connected to the project undergoing a fix.
Always use the latest version of ScanMD, which is the one supplied in this document.
For cases where ScanMD is used, there may still be questions as to how the metadata got into this state. To help answer that question -- customers encountering inconsistency issues should make note of Schema-related changes (if the problem is affecting Schema objects), Object Migrations, or error messages prior to experiencing the problem. Change Journaling, if it has been enabled, can help in preserving this information.

Microstrategy's disclaimers and Limitation of Liabilities about using ScanMD:

Disclaimer:The utility application is provided "as is" and without warranty of any kind. Microstrategy Expressly disclaims all warranties, express, implied or statutory, including, without limitation, the implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, satisfactory quality and noninfringement.

Limitation of Liability: Microstrategy shall have no liability to licensee for any damages of any kind, including, but not limited to, liability for direct, indirect, special, incidental or consequential, damages (which shall include, but not be limited to, loss of data or information, loss of revenue or anticipated profits or lost business).

SCANMD CHECK-ONLY MODE

The current version of ScanMD does not provide the ability to execute one or more common tests in check-only mode. Due to the new feature enforcing the inter-object dependencies, check-only mode is not possible in this release. Consider one example, before executing Schema Collection Verification test which ensures all schema objects are in the Schema collection, the ScanMD will execute Table Verification test and eliminate table objects with invalid definition. Therefore, the execution sequence is crucial to maintain the metadata consistency. Check-only mode may generate misleading results by ignoring inter-object dependencies and execution sequence.

HOW TO USE SCANMD

Follow steps below:

Go to Start -> Programs -> MicroStrategy -> Tools, run ScanMD
Click Nextto pass ScanMD introduction to the next step, which is Step 1of ScanMD
In Step 1, choose a Project Source from the drop down list, and enter a Login and a Passwordthat have administrative privileges to the metadata. Click Next to go to Step 2
In Step 2, choose a single project, All Projects , or Configuration from the drop down list. Select a different location for log file if desired. Click Next to go to Step 3

NOTE: During the transition from Step2 to Step3, ScanMD will check the compatibility between the Metadata Version and the version of the MicroStrategy platform present on the machine where ScanMD is running.
In Step 3, choose between Common Tests and Custom Tests. If a Custom Test is not yet added, click Add test to browse to its location. Make your test selections, and Click Next to go to Step 4;

NOTE:

- Multiple Common Tests can be chosen at once, but only one Custom Test can run one at a time.

- Either Common Tests or Custom Tests can be selected, but not both.
In Step 4, adjust tests against project(s) chosen in Step 2, select a Number of concurrent test executions, choose whether to Fix all errors automatically or not, and click Next to begin the scan; If any errors are found, ScanMD will pop up a dialog for each set of Common Tests that was executed.

NOTE:

- Some ScanMD Common Tests must be run in a specific order. As of ScanMD 8, the execution order of the Tests is enforced. If Common Tests is chosen in Step 3, ScanMD will automatically add any other Common Tests that are required.
```
Based on your test selections, Scan MD has identified some additional tests which need to be run in order to ensure the integrity of your Metadata.
The required tests will be added to your selections.
```
Though only "Attribute Verification" and "Hierarchies Verification" are selected, four other common tests are added with suffix "(Required)":

- Those Tests which do not have any dependencies are still allowed to execute in parallel.

- "Concurrent test executions" usually reduce the overall execution time when running on a computer with multiple cores or CPUs and against remote MDs (i.e. not a local DB such as Access).
In the Summary Step, select "Check here to open the log file" if you wish to review, after clicking Close, the actions that ScanMD performed. Otherwise, simply click Close.

ScanMD Test Results:

ScanMD Summary step:
Restart Intelligence Server if the changes cannot be reflected in 3-tier environemnt.