Configuring MicroStrategy Mobile for iPhone or iPad

Before a user can view reports and documents in MicroStrategy Mobile for iPhone/iPad, the application must be configured to communicate with Mobile Server and Intelligence Server. Manually configuring each device can be time-consuming and difficult. Instead, you can create a configuration.

A mobile device configuration is a list of settings for a MicroStrategy Mobile application that are stored in a file on Mobile Server. A configuration for MicroStrategy Mobile for iPhone/iPad contains information about the memory limit, network timeout, caching, and error logging, as well as what projects can be accessed from the application and what buttons are available on the home screen.

A single configuration can configure devices to connect to multiple Mobile Servers. Users can manually connect to any available Mobile Server, if the configuration allows them to configure the application from the mobile device. For instructions on how to configure the application from the mobile device, see Configuring the Application from the Device.

You can create and save multiple configurations. Each configuration can have its own login credentials, list of projects, and Home screen design. For example, you can create one configuration for regional sales managers, providing access to only those projects that report on sales data. You can then create another configuration for executives, which gives them access to all projects currently in production and also provides a Home screen with buttons for several high-level dashboards.

User logins and passwords included with a configuration should be used only for demonstration purposes, as the configuration is not transmitted or stored securely.

Once you have created a configuration, you can generate a URL for that configuration. You can then email that URL to a mobile device user. When the user opens the URL, the MicroStrategy application on the mobile device is automatically configured with the saved settings. For steps, see Configuring Mobile Devices Using a Generated URL.

To Create an iPhone or iPad Configuration

Access the Mobile Server Administrator page:

In Windows: From the Start menu, point to Programs, then MicroStrategy Tools, and select Mobile Administrator. The Mobile Server Administrator web page opens.
In UNIX/Linux: After you deploy MicroStrategy Mobile Server Universal and log on to the mstrMobileAdmin servlet using proper credentials, the Mobile Server Administrator web page opens. The default location of the Administrator servlet varies depending on the platform that you are using.

From the pane on the left, select Mobile Configuration.
Click Define New Configuration.
From the Device drop-down list, select either iPhone or iPad to create a configuration for the device. Click OK.
In the Configuration Name field, type the name of the configuration. This is the name that is displayed in the configuration list.

Configure the iPhone or iPad Settings

Select either the iPhone Settings or iPad Settings tab.
By default, the MicroStrategy Mobile application has a dark color theme. To change the theme color, select Light from the Application Theme Color drop-down list.
To choose an accent color to highlight icons, buttons, and clickable text in MicroStrategy Mobile, click the desired color in the Accent Color area.
You can select an accent color that is used in your organization's logo.
In the Network timeout field, specify how long, in seconds, the application should wait for the network to respond before reporting a timeout. The default value is 60 seconds.
In the Maximum columns in grid field, specify the maximum number of columns displayed at one time in a grid report. The default value is 10 columns for iPhone and 50 columns for iPad.
From the Logging Level drop-down list, select the level of information to be stored in the application's log file. You can choose from the following levels:

Warnings: Errors and warnings generated by Mobile are included in the log file. This is the default option.
Errors: Errors generated by Mobile are included in the log file.
Messages: Messages generated by Mobile are included in the log file.
All: Warnings, errors, and messages generated by Mobile are included in the log file.
Off: Nothing is written in the log file.
To view the log file, in the MicroStrategy Mobile for iPhone application, from the Settings screen, tap Advanced Settings, then, in the Logging group, tap View Log.

In the Maximum log size field, specify the maximum number of entries to be stored in the log file. The default value is 50 entries.
In the Check for new subscriptions every field, enter how often, in seconds, the application checks for new versions of subscribed reports and documents on Intelligence Server. The default value is 600 seconds.
In the Validate device caches every field, enter how often, in seconds, the application validates the report and document caches on the device with Intelligence Server. The default value is 600 seconds.
This check only invalidates a cache on the device if the corresponding cache on Intelligence Server is invalid or expired; it does not check whether any changes have been made to the original report or document.
If your report/document has the pre-caching feature enabled but does not use server side catching, select the Cache real-time data for checkbox to use the local caches for a specified amount of time. Enter the number of seconds that a local cache remains valid.
For instructions on configuring reports, documents, or the contents of a folder to be pre-cached, see Configuring the Home Screen for iPhone, iPad, and Android Devices.
If caching for a specific report or document has been disabled, you can still force it to use the pre-cache feature on a mobile device. To do this, open the report or document in Developer, open the corresponding Report Caching Options or Document Properties dialog box, and select the Allow mobile devices to cache data temporarily to optimize performance checkbox.
By default, the Mobile Server network response quality is measured and displayed as a green, yellow, or red image on the mobile client. To disable this feature, clear the Monitor Network Status checkbox.
By default, users can view and change the configuration settings in the Settings screen in the application. To prevent users from changing the configuration settings for the application, clear the Allow users to access advanced and connectivity settings checbox.
To allow access to reports and documents even when the connection to the network is intermittent, select the Automatically pre-load subscriptions checkbox. If this checkbox is selected, caches are loaded for all subscribed reports and documents when the application is launched.
To disable folder caching and to refresh folders every time that the user opens them, clear the Cache Folders checkbox.

This may cause Mobile to open folders more slowly, as it must retrieve information about the folders from Intelligence Server every time they are opened.
To clear the caches when the application is closed, select the Clear caches when the application closes checkbox.
To prevent users from modifying caching settings, clear the Allow users to modify caching settings checkbox.
To prevent users from modifying logging settings, clear the Allow users to modify logging settings checkbox.
To enable push notification alerts, select the Enable push notification checkbox.
For details on configuring push notification alerts, see Configuring MicroStrategy Mobile for iPhone or iPad to Receive Push Notifications.
To enable push notifications, Mobile Server must be configured to use Secure Socket Layer (SSL) encryption. For detailed instructions on configuring Mobile Server to use SSL, see the Enabling Secure Communication chapter in the System Administration Help.
To allow MicroStrategy Mobile to download data in the background when the application is running in the background, select the Enable background download mode checkbox.
The Enable Push Notification option must be selected before you enable background downloading.
By default, mobile users can email, and print an image of the report or document that they are viewing. To disable this feature, clear the Enable sharing, including emailing, printing, and saving to photos checkbox.
By default, mobile users can annotate an image of the report or document that they are viewing, and email a copy to their contacts. To disable this feature, clear the Enable annotating checkbox.
If you require your users to log into your MicroStrategy projects using a passcode, and your users have iOS devices with Apple Touch ID® enabled, they can use their fingerprints to access the app, instead of using a passcode. To enable this feature, enable the Allow authentication via system pass code for Touch ID/Face ID checkbox.
To require users to log into MicroStrategy using a password, see Configure Users' App Passwords.
To disable MicroStrategy Mobile's built-in PDF viewer, select the Disable the built-in PDF viewer checkbox.
If this option is selected and the Allow users to open PDF documents in external applications checkbox is selected, users are prompted to choose a third party PDF viewer when they open a PDF document.
By default, Mobile users can use other applications to view PDF documents that are generated by MicroStrategy Mobile. To disable this privilege, clear the Allow users to open PDF documents in external applications checkbox.
To allow Mobile users to open keynote files in an external application, select the Use external applications to open Keynote files checkbox. Mobile users are prompted to choose a third party Keynote viewer when they open a Keynote document.
To ignore user privilege errors when the mobile device is reconciling, select the Ignore user privilege errors during reconcile checkbox.

Enable this setting if you are creating a single Mobile configuration that includes multiple projects that may not be accessible by all users who are using that configuration. This option eliminates the error messages that users would normally receive for each inaccessible project during reconciliation, and removes any associated subscriptions and caches from the mobile device.
To display authentication errors when the mobile device is reconciling, select the Show authentication error while reconcile checkbox.
To cache the last typed user name and only require users to enter their passwords, select the Pre-populate authentication dialog with cached login checkbox.
To display a log out option in the Action menu in MicroStrategy Mobile, select the Display Log Out Option in Action Menu checkbox.
When a Mobile user logs out, their user name, password, and session information are removed from the device and they are logged out of the project on the connected Intelligence Server. The Mobile user must type their credentials to log back in to the application.
To clear all caches on the mobile device when a Mobile user logs out, select the Clear caches on log out checkbox.
To display the tab for your reports, select the Display "My Reports" tab checkbox.
By default, the MicroStrategy Mobile application displays a Learn More link. When this link is tapped by a Mobile user, the mobile version of the MicroStrategy website opens in the default web browser. You can modify the Learn More link in the following ways.

To change the Learn More link, enter the desired URL in the Custom URL field.
To remove the Learn More link, clear the Show "Learn More" Link checkbox.

By default, the passwords used to log in to projects and Intelligence Servers can be saved in the MicroStrategy Mobile application. To configure the application to remove saved passwords after a certain period of time:

In the Clear Saved Password settings, select After.
From the drop-down list, select whether to specify the password removal time in Days, Hours, or Minutes.
In the field, type the number of days, hours, or minutes before the saved passwords are removed from the application.
The timer counts from when the user types a password, or, if the password is included as part of a configuration, from when the configuration is applied. Once a password is removed, the user must type the password the next time the login dialog appears.

By default, the configuration used on the device is not updated automatically. To enable the mobile device to check the Mobile Server for updates to the configuration at a specified time interval:

In the Check and update configuration settings, select Every.
From the drop-down list, select whether to specify the time interval in Days or Hours.
In the field, type the number of days or hours that must pass between each check for updates.
The MicroStrategy Mobile application checks for an update to the Mobile configuration at this specified interval. If an update is found, the user is prompted to apply the new configuration to the mobile device. The user can then choose to apply the new configuration or wait to apply the configuration at a later time. If the user selects the latter option, the prompt reappears five minutes later.

To set up client authentication for Mobile Server, select the Use Certificate Server checkbox. With this option selected, you can set up a client certificate server responsible for creating certificates for mobile clients. These certificates are required from mobile clients attempting to access the Mobile Server.

To specify the certificate server, enter the certificate server's URL in the Use Certificate Server text field. This field must begin with https:// and requires the use of the fully qualified name of the certificate server in the URL, as in the following examples.

ASP:

https://fully_qualified_domain_name:port/ CertificateServer/asp/certificate.aspx

JSP:

https://fully_qualified_domain_name:port/ CertificateServer

https://fully_qualified_domain_name:port/ CertificateServer/servlet/certificate

where:

• fully_qualified_domain_name:port is the location and port of your certificate server. For example, machine_name.domain.com:8443.

For detailed steps on configuring a certificate server, see Client Authentication with a Certificate Server.

To clear the device cache when a certificate becomes invalid, select the Clear caches when certificate becomes invalid checkbox.

Configure Users' App Passwords

To specify requirements for the passwords that Mobile users enter to gain access to the Mobile application, use the following settings under App Password Options.

To require Mobile users to type a password to open the application, select the Require password to open the application checkbox.
To require Mobile users to type a password to open the application after the mobile device is unlocked, select the Require password after locking the device checkbox.
To require at least one numeric character in the password, select the Requires at least one numeric character checkbox.
To require at least one special character in the password, select the Requires at least one special character ($, @, %...) checkbox.
To require at least one capital letter in the password, select the Requires at least one capital letter checkbox.
To specify a minimum number of characters for the password, type the desired number, in characters, in the Minimum passcode length text box. The default value is 4 characters.
To specify a maximum number of failed login attempts before a user is locked out of the Mobile application, type the desired maximum number in the Maximum number of failed logon attempts text box. If the maximum is met, all data is wiped, including caches and the mobile app configuration. The default value is 10 attempts.
To specify how long a user has to wait to try again after they enter an incorrect passcode, type the desired amount of time, in seconds, in the Lockout duration text box. The default value is 0 seconds.
To specify the amount of inactive time that must elapse before a password request appears on the mobile device, type the desired number of seconds in the Require password on resuming application after text box. The user is required to re-enter valid credentials when the MicroStrategy Mobile application is resumed after being inactive for the specified period of time.
The MicroStrategy Mobile application is considered inactive if it is running in the background, if other applications are running in the foreground, or if the mobile device is locked.
If your users have configured their iOS devices to unlock using a numeric or alphanumeric password, you can allow them to use the same password to access MicroStrategy Mobile. On newer iOS devices such as the iPhone 6, users can access the app by scanning a fingerprint and using Apple Touch ID. To enable this feature, enable the Authenticate using iOS device passcode checkbox.

Configure the Connectivity Settings

Click the Connectivity Settings tab to configure the connectivity settings for your iPhone or iPad.

For instructions on configuring the connectivity settings, see Configuring Connectivity Settings for iOS and Android Devices.

Configure the Home Screen Settings

Click the Home Screen tab to configure the appearance of the home screen in the Mobile application.

For detailed instructions on configuring the home screen, see Configuring the Home Screen for iPhone, iPad, and Android Devices.

Save and Distribute the Mobile Configuration

When you are finished creating the configuration, click Save.
Generate a URL for the configuration, and distribute it to your Mobile users.

For detailed instructions on generating and distributing a URL, see Configuring Mobile Devices Using a Generated URL.