Cognos Migration to the Cloud - Friday 10/13

[Matthew Levin]

Cognos Cloud Migration Scheduled for Friday, October 13^th

Cognos users,

 

We will be migrating Cognos from an on-premises application to a Cloud based application, hosted by IBM on Friday, October 13th. 

 

What does this mean for users?

• The URL will be changing from cognos.oit.uci.edu/ibmcognos to uci.ca.analytics.ibm.com
• Any explicit bookmarks/embedded links will need to be updated
• We are planning on having a redirect in place through the end of 2023 before we fully decommission the on-premise version
• New login screen before UCI's Single Sign-On

• 
• IBMid is your UCIn...@uci.edu
• This will be prompted each time you login, but you can select "Remember me" to have the page remember your account
• For the first time after you login, an IBMid will be created and you will need to acknowledge the IBMid Account Notices:
•    

• There should be no changes to the functionality or useability of the reports
• Report any issues you are experiencing to the Cognos Support team via a ServiceNow Incident or email o...@uci.edu and ask for the ticket to be assigned to the Cognos Support team.
  
  

What does this mean for developers?

• There will be a development freeze (except for critical updates) beginning on Thursday, October 12^th at 8pm through Saturday October 14^th (once the Cloud is fully configured)
• Content refresh will be from the on-prem backup as of Oct 12 at 8pm and will occur during the day of October 13^th on the Cloud
• Any emergency changes needed to on-prem between 10/12 and 10/14 will need to be manually done in the Cloud once environment is available
• There should be minimal, if any, impact to development of new reports
• All scheduled reports will be retained and will be enabled in the Cloud once the refresh is complete (for daily reports, Oct 14^th will likely be the first report)
• Any reports throwing an invalid data source will need an incident raised with the Cognos Support team to update data source configuration
• For those with FM access, we are standing up a new box and will communicate separately the new location
• Please let me know if you have any specific reports you would like to test prior to the migration
• Report any issues you are experiencing to the Cognos Support team via a ServiceNow Incident or email o...@uci.edu and ask for the ticket to be assigned to the Cognos Support team.
  

Timeline of Events:

• Thursday 10/12 
• 8pm - Backup of on-premises Cognos instance
• Content freeze for on-premises begins
• Friday 10/13 - Content Freeze
• Refresh Cognos Cloud Content Store
• Validate Data Sources
• Update ZotPortal links to new URL
• Saturday 10/14
• Communication will be sent when the Cloud environment is ready
• Content freeze lifted, all new development will be done in the cloud

If you have any questions, please contact me at lev...@uci.edu.

 

Thanks,

Matt Levin
Cognos Manager

OIT | University of California, Irvine

(949) 824-2045

 

CHG0045225

 

[Matthew Levin]

Cognos users,

This is just a reminder the Cognos migration is scheduled for next Friday, October 13th. I will be sending out another reminder Wednesday, October 10th, before efforts begin Thursday night.

Please reach out with any questions or concerns. I've also included a few questions/answers that have come up and wanted to share with everyone:

• Q: Do I need to create a new IBMid?
  
  A: No. The IBMid is your UCIn...@uci.edu.
• Q: Will there be any functional changes for users?
  A: No. Other than the URL and login screen change, everything else should be the same as it currently is.
• Q: Is there anything else I need to prepare or do prior to the migration?
  A: There shouldn't be. We have emailed those directly in efforts of getting everything prepared and cleaned up prior to Friday. All content, unless otherwise noted, will automatically be migrated over, including scheduled reports.
• Q: Will the current URL still work?
  A: Yes, for the next 2 months. As mentioned below, we are implementing a URL redirect, but this will only be temporary. Any bookmark or explicit URL should be updated to the new URL as soon as possible. We are hoping to log users who are using the redirect, in hopes of getting the URL updated correctly. By the end of the year, we will remove the redirect and replace it with a landing page to direct users to the new URL.
• Q: Will there be any changes to the maintenance windows (currently scheduled every Friday from 10pm - 1am)?
  A: IBM will now be responsible for the maintenance, and we are confirming the schedule. I will provide an update once available

Thanks,
Matt Levin
Cognos Manager
OIT | University of California, Irvine
(949) 824-2045

---

From: Matthew Levin
Sent: Wednesday, August 30, 2023 3:36 PM
To: uci...@uci.edu <uci...@uci.edu>; ucpath-...@uci.edu <ucpath-...@uci.edu>; uci-cogn...@uci.edu <uci-cogn...@uci.edu>; uci-cognos-rep...@uci.edu <uci-cognos-rep...@uci.edu>
Subject: Cognos Migration to the Cloud - Friday 10/13

 

[Matthew Levin]

Cognos users,

Due to a few outstanding items, we are not 100% ready to migrate and will be postponing the Cognos Cloud migration to Friday, November 17th. We apologize for the inconvenience and I will continue to keep you posted as we get closer.

Please reach out if you have any questions.

Thanks,
Matt Levin
Cognos Manager
OIT | University of California, Irvine
(949) 824-2045

---

From: Matthew Levin <lev...@uci.edu>
Sent: Monday, October 2, 2023 4:42 PM

To: uci...@uci.edu <uci...@uci.edu>; ucpath-...@uci.edu <ucpath-...@uci.edu>; uci-cogn...@uci.edu <uci-cogn...@uci.edu>; uci-cognos-rep...@uci.edu <uci-cognos-rep...@uci.edu>

Cc: Malini Ramaprasad <rama...@uci.edu>; Meredith Ehrenberg <mehr...@uci.edu>; Brian Crose Craft <bcc...@uci.edu>; Rajesh Mahadevan <rmah...@uci.edu>; Nagarjuna Subramanya <nag...@uci.edu>
Subject: Reminder: Cognos Migration to the Cloud - Friday 10/13

 

[Matthew Levin]

Cognos Cloud Migration Re-Scheduled for Friday, November 17^th

Cognos users,

 

We have cleared our last major roadblock this morning and are on target to migrate Cognos from on-premises to the Cloud, hosted by IBM, on Friday, November 17^th. 

 

What does this mean for users?

• The URL will be changing from cognos.oit.uci.edu/ibmcognos to uci.ca.analytics.ibm.com
• Any explicit bookmarks/embedded links will need to be updated
• We are planning on having a redirect in place through the end of 2023 before we fully decommission the on-premise version
• New login screen before UCI's Single Sign-On
• 
• IBMid is your UCIn...@uci.edu
• This will be prompted each time you login, but you can select "Remember me" to have the page remember your account
• For the first time after you login, an IBMid will be created and you will need to acknowledge the IBMid Account Notices:
•    
• There should be no changes to the functionality or useability of the reports
• Report any issues you are experiencing to the Cognos Support team via a ServiceNow Incident or email o...@uci.edu and ask for the ticket to be assigned to the Cognos Support team.
  
  

**Health Sciences Employees​**

Your login will be UCIn...@uci.edu NOT UCIn...@hs.uci.edu. If you enter @hs.uci.edu, you will be prompted for an IBMid password (see screen below), and will not be directed to UCI's single sign-on. If you get this screen, please check you are using @uci.edu or contact the EEC.

What does this mean for developers?

• There will be a development freeze (except for critical updates) beginning on Thursday, October 12^th at 8pm through Saturday October 14^th (once the Cloud is fully configured)
• Content refresh will be from the on-prem backup as of Oct 12 at 8pm and will occur during the day of October 13^th on the Cloud
• Any emergency changes needed to on-prem between 10/12 and 10/14 will need to be manually done in the Cloud once environment is available
• There should be minimal, if any, impact to development of new reports
• All scheduled reports will be retained and will be enabled in the Cloud once the refresh is complete (for daily reports, Oct 14^th will likely be the first report)
• Any reports throwing an invalid data source will need an incident raised with the Cognos Support team to update data source configuration
• For those with FM access, we are standing up a new box and will communicate separately the new location
• Please let me know if you have any specific reports you would like to test prior to the migration
• Report any issues you are experiencing to the Cognos Support team via a ServiceNow Incident or email o...@uci.edu and ask for the ticket to be assigned to the Cognos Support team.
  

Timeline of Events:

• Thursday 11/16

• 8pm - Backup of on-premises Cognos instance
• Content freeze for on-premises begins

• Friday 11/17 - Content Freeze

• Refresh Cognos Cloud Content Store
• Validate Data Sources
• Update ZotPortal links to new URL

• Saturday 11/18

• Communication will be sent when the Cloud environment is ready
• Content freeze lifted, all new development will be done in the cloud

Common Questions:

• Q: Do I need to create a new IBMid?
  A: No. The IBMid is your UCIn...@uci.edu.
• Q: Will there be any functional changes for users?
  A: No. Other than the URL and login screen change, everything else should be the same as it currently is.
• Q: Is there anything else I need to prepare or do prior to the migration?
  A: There shouldn't be. We have emailed those directly in efforts of getting everything prepared and cleaned up prior to Friday. All content, unless otherwise noted, will automatically be migrated over, including scheduled reports.
• Q: Will the current URL still work?
  A: Yes, for the next 2 months. As mentioned below, we are implementing a URL redirect, but this will only be temporary. Any bookmark or explicit URL should be updated to the new URL as soon as possible. We are hoping to log users who are using the redirect, in hopes of getting the URL updated correctly. By the end of the year, we will remove the redirect and replace it with a landing page to direct users to the new URL.

• Q: Will there be any changes to the maintenance windows (currently scheduled every Friday from 10pm - 1am)?
  

• A: IBM will now be responsible for the maintenance and will be completed on the third Saturday of the month. Time appears to fluctuate based on the type of maintenance that is required. We will update the information on Decision Support and send out communication if there is any downtime. They also maintain the following site with the status of the environment: https://cognos-analytics.status.io/ (We are Cognos Analytics on Cloud - Hosted - Dallas).

[Matthew Levin]

Apologies for the multiple emails. Correcting a few dates below.

Thanks,
Matt Levin
Cognos Manager
OIT | University of California, Irvine
(949) 824-2045

---

From: Matthew Levin <lev...@uci.edu>
Sent: Wednesday, November 1, 2023 2:46 PM

To: uci...@uci.edu <uci...@uci.edu>; ucpath-...@uci.edu <ucpath-...@uci.edu>; uci-cogn...@uci.edu <uci-cogn...@uci.edu>; uci-cognos-rep...@uci.edu <uci-cognos-rep...@uci.edu>

Subject: Cognos Migration to the Cloud - Friday 11/17 (New Date)

 

Cognos Cloud Migration Re-Scheduled for Friday, November 17^th

Cognos users,

 

We have cleared our last major roadblock this morning and are on target to migrate Cognos from on-premises to the Cloud, hosted by IBM, on Friday, November 17^th. 

 

What does this mean for users?

• The URL will be changing from cognos.oit.uci.edu/ibmcognos to uci.ca.analytics.ibm.com
• Any explicit bookmarks/embedded links will need to be updated
• We are planning on having a redirect in place through the end of 2023 before we fully decommission the on-premise version
• New login screen before UCI's Single Sign-On
• 
• IBMid is your UCIn...@uci.edu
• This will be prompted each time you login, but you can select "Remember me" to have the page remember your account
• For the first time after you login, an IBMid will be created and you will need to acknowledge the IBMid Account Notices:
•    
• There should be no changes to the functionality or useability of the reports
• Report any issues you are experiencing to the Cognos Support team via a ServiceNow Incident or email o...@uci.edu and ask for the ticket to be assigned to the Cognos Support team.
  
  

**Health Sciences Employees​**

Your login will be UCIn...@uci.edu NOT UCIn...@hs.uci.edu. If you enter @hs.uci.edu, you will be prompted for an IBMid password (see screen below), and will not be directed to UCI's single sign-on. If you get this screen, please check you are using @uci.edu or contact the EEC.

What does this mean for developers?

• There will be a development freeze (except for critical updates) beginning on Thursday, November 16^th at 8pm through Saturday November 17^th (once the Cloud is fully configured)
• Content refresh will be from the on-prem backup as of Nov 16^th at 8pm and will occur during the day of Nov 17^th on the Cloud
• Any emergency changes needed to on-prem between 11/16 and 11/18 will need to be manually done in the Cloud once environment is available

• There should be minimal, if any, impact to development of new reports

• All scheduled reports will be retained and will be enabled in the Cloud once the refresh is complete (for daily reports, Nov 19^th will likely be the first report)

[Matthew Levin]

Cognos users,

We are on target to complete the Cognos migration to the cloud this week. In conjunction with a regularly scheduled IBM maintenance window and opportunity for the team to complete the configuration/validation, Cognos will be unavailable beginning Friday, Nov 17^th, at 8pm, and will continue to be unavailable until about 12pm on Saturday, Nov 18^th. We will technically "flip the switch" from on-premises to the cloud environment on Friday at 8pm and any attempt to login to Cognos after 8pm will receive the IBM login screen as shown below.

I will send a reminder email on Thursday once the efforts begin and will send a follow up email on Saturday (targeting noon) once everything is complete and the environment is ready.

A few key reminders:

• The IBMid will be your UCInetID@uci.edu (this includes HS employees)
• The URL will change from cognos.oit.uci.edu/ibmcognos to uci.ca.analytics.ibm.com
• Any bookmarks/explicit links will continue to work through the end of the year via redirect, but should be updated accordingly
• Redirect will only be in place through the end of the year and then will be replaced with a "We Moved" landing page to direct people to the new URL

• Report any issues you are experiencing to the Cognos Support team via a ServiceNow Incident or email o...@uci.edu and ask for the ticket to be assigned to the Cognos Support team.

Developers/Testers:

• There will be a content freeze beginning Thursday, Nov 16^th at 8pm and will last until the environment is released around noon on Saturday, Nov 18th. 
• Any emergency fixes that need to be applied during the freeze will need to be re-applied to the cloud once available
• If you are currently testing any content in the cloud, the environment will be unavailable beginning Thursday morning at 8am to allow the team to begin migration tasks
• All scheduled tasks will be disabled in the on-premises version Friday night, and will be enabled on the cloud.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

[Matthew Levin]

Cognos users,

Just a reminder, the Cognos Cloud migration efforts begin tonight at 8pm. 

For users, there should be no impact to Cognos reports tomorrow during the workday. Cognos will be unavailable tomorrow night, beginning at 8pm, and should be available again on Saturday around noon. I will send a follow up email once Cognos is back up and ready to use.

For developers, the content freeze will begin at 8pm tonight. Any development done in Cognos after 8pm tonight will need to be replicated in the cloud environment. Please let me know if you need any assistance with this. We will have an opportunity tomorrow between 6 and 8pm where we will be able to manually copy any necessary changes.

If you have any questions, please contact me at lev...@uci.edu.

Thanks,
Matt Levin
Cognos Manager
OIT | University of California, Irvine
(949) 824-2045

---

From: Matthew Levin <lev...@uci.edu>
Sent: Tuesday, November 14, 2023 2:18 PM

To: uci...@uci.edu <uci...@uci.edu>; ucpath-...@uci.edu <ucpath-...@uci.edu>; uci-cogn...@uci.edu <uci-cogn...@uci.edu>; uci-cognos-rep...@uci.edu <uci-cognos-rep...@uci.edu>

Cc: Meredith Ehrenberg <mehr...@uci.edu>; Brian Crose Craft <bcc...@uci.edu>; Andre Dieudonne <adie...@uci.edu>; Martha L Nunez-Flores <mnun...@uci.edu>; Rajesh Mahadevan <rmah...@uci.edu>; Nagarjuna Subramanya <nag...@uci.edu>; Jeanne Baumann (Health) <baum...@hs.uci.edu>; Stephen Whelan <swhe...@uci.edu>; Wong, Michael <michae...@uci.edu>
Subject: REMINDER: Cognos Migration to the Cloud - This Friday 11/17

 

[Matthew Levin]

Cognos users,

I'm happy to report the Cognos environment is up and running in the Cloud, completing our migration. Users should not see any impact with functionality of the reports. All scheduled content should continue to be sent as scheduled, and all reports should be available. We are aware of 1 data source for OIR that is impacted and a support ticket has been submitted.

As a reminder, you will now be prompted for an IBMid, which will be your UCIn...@uci.edu (including all HS employees). You should not need to create a new account. If you are having trouble, please contact O...@uci.edu.

Also, please note the new URL to access Cognos directly is uci.ca.analytics.ibm.com. For those of you who access reports via ZotPortal, all the links have been updated to the new link. We also will have a redirect in place through the end of the year so any bookmarks or previous links you use, will still be directed to the Cloud. Starting in January, this will go to a "we've moved" landing page.

Please let me know if you have any questions. Thank you for your continued patience and support.

Thanks,
Matt Levin
Cognos Manager
OIT | University of California, Irvine
(949) 824-2045

---

From: Matthew Levin <lev...@uci.edu>
Sent: Thursday, November 16, 2023 5:19 PM

To: uci...@uci.edu <uci...@uci.edu>; ucpath-...@uci.edu <ucpath-...@uci.edu>; uci-cogn...@uci.edu <uci-cogn...@uci.edu>; uci-cognos-rep...@uci.edu <uci-cognos-rep...@uci.edu>

Subject: REMINDER: Cognos Migration to the Cloud - Tomorrow Friday 11/17

 

[Matthew Levin]

Cognos users,

We are aware Cognos is currently down and has been unavailable since about 10am this morning. Our admins are currently working with IBM to troubleshoot the issue. 

We apologize for any inconvenience. Please let me know if you have any questions. 

Thanks,

Matt Levin
Cognos Manager
OIT | University of California, Irvine
(949) 824-2045

---

From: Matthew Levin <lev...@uci.edu>
Sent: Saturday, November 18, 2023 10:55:44 AM

To: uci...@uci.edu <uci...@uci.edu>; ucpath-...@uci.edu <ucpath-...@uci.edu>; uci-cogn...@uci.edu <uci-cogn...@uci.edu>; uci-cognos-rep...@uci.edu <uci-cognos-rep...@uci.edu>

Subject: Re: REMINDER: Cognos Migration to the Cloud - Tomorrow Friday 11/17

 

[Matthew Levin]

The environment is back up and running after IBM had to roll back unexpected maintenance. 

Please clear your cache if you continue to experience any issues. 

Thanks,
Matt Levin
Cognos Manager
OIT | University of California, Irvine
(949) 824-2045

---

From: Matthew Levin <lev...@uci.edu>
Sent: Sunday, November 19, 2023 3:37:46 PM

To: uci...@uci.edu <uci...@uci.edu>; ucpath-...@uci.edu <ucpath-...@uci.edu>; uci-cogn...@uci.edu <uci-cogn...@uci.edu>; uci-cognos-rep...@uci.edu <uci-cognos-rep...@uci.edu>

[Matthew Levin]

Cognos users,

Thank you for your patience during this migration. We are officially up and running in the Cloud and wanted to provide a follow-up of some things to keep in mind.

1. The login screen has changed, this is not an error. Moving forward, you will be prompted for an IBMid, which is your UCIn...@uci.edu. Once you login in, you will need to acknowledge the IBM Privacy Notice the very first time, and then you will be directed to UCI's Single Sign-On. Here's what the new login screen looks like:
1. 
2. The URL has changed from cognos.oit.uci.edu/ibmcognos to uci.ca.analytics.ibm.com. We will have a redirect in place through the end of the year, but please make sure to change any explicit links you may have bookmarked or embedded.
3. VPN is no longer needed to access Cognos. However, some applications that are linked to Cognos (i.e. KFS) may still require VPN. Also, if you are still using cognos.oit.uci.edu/ibmcognos to redirect to the new URL, the VPN will still be required.
4. We are working on a permanent solution to resolve the issues I reported yesterday. In the happenstance you login and just get a blank white screen, or get this error, please contact us immediately. A service at IBM will likely needs to be restarted.
1. 
5. If you are receiving any other errors, please try clearing your cache and trying again. If errors persist, please contact O...@uci.edu.
1. 
   

Thanks,
Matt Levin
Cognos Manager
OIT | University of California, Irvine
(949) 824-2045

---

From: Matthew Levin <lev...@uci.edu>
Sent: Sunday, November 19, 2023 4:33 PM