Summary Tables Questions...

Question

Hi to everybody,
I use Oracle Discoverer 10.1.2 and created some summary tables - using both methods : being specified by me and Discover automatically defined them....
I have two questions:
1) Is there any way to define the summary table(materialized view in the 'language' of Oracle Database ) in the application db user and not in the Discoverer Repository db owner.....????
NOTE: I have created the Discoverer Repository in a user , let's say EUL, whereas all referenced tables in the summary tables are owned in another user , say HIS...
Simply , I ask if a summary table can be created in the HIS dataschema and not in EUL.....
2)Is there any way to give the summary table a more meaningful name in the process of creating it..... I mean a name different from this one: EUL5_MV102497
Thanks , a lot
Simon

Answer 1

Hi Simon
As mentioned by Sabine, if you create the materialized views in the database you have full control. To answer your question I always build my summary tables in the schema of the user who owns the EUL.
However, I would have thought that you can do what you ask, but I'm not so sure. In theory, all you need to do in order to make this work is to make sure the EUL owner and the owner of the schema into where you want to insert the summary table has the following privileges:
These are the grants the EUL needs:
ALTER ANY MATERIALIZED VIEW
CREATE ANY MATERIALIZED VIEW
DROP ANY MATERIALIZED VIEW
ANALYZE ANY
These are the privileges needed by the user in whose schema you intend to create the materialized view:
CONNECT
RESOURCE
GLOBAL QUERY REWRITE
With these privileges granted you should be able to create summary tables inside Discoverer and have full control over the schema in which the materialized view is created and the name of the materialized view. I say should be able to because it doesn't seem to work. Please read on.
To control the MV schema and name, I should be able to use this workflow:
1. When you are in the manual summary folder process, you will come to a screen that allows you to maintain Combinations.
2. From the Combinations screen, highlight a combination and click the Properties button.
3. The Database Storage Properties dialog box will open.
4. In the Database Storage Properties dialog box, use the drop-down alongside the Table Owner and switch this to be a user who has the privileges mentioned earlier.
Note: the drop-down is not visible until you click in the Table Owner box
5. Click in Table Name (this is the name of the materialized view) and change it to a name that complies with your naming standards.
6.Change any other properties you wish, then click OK.
7. Click Finish to complete the summary folder.
At this point, even though I had granted the Global Query Rewrite to the other user, Discoverer Admin stopped and reported that the user needed this privilege. I was therefore unable to complete the summary folder process. Interestingly enough, the materialized view was actually created but I, as the owner of the EUL, was unable to use it. This is because in order for the EUL owner to be able to use an existing MV / Table that is owned by someone else, the other user needs to have run a grant like this:
GRANT SELECT ON MY_MV TO EUL_OWNER WITH GRANT OPTION
But how can this be done because the table is being created by me? The problem therefore is that only the owner of the MV can grant this but when you are inside Discoverer Admin you are not logged in as that user. I therefore am suspicious that, despite Discoverer having a screen to do so, it is not possible to create a summary table in someone else's account.
Has anyone been able to make this work?
In summary though, if the intention is to produce a materialized view that everyone can use then the above doesn't appear to work. However, it looks like you are able to create a materialized view within a user's schema that is only available to that user. This opens up the interesting possibility that you could create different materialized views for different users, thus giving users individual copies and potentially different copies of the data.
It would be interesting if someone were to test this out and report back. My only concern would be that once created, because it is the EUL owner who has the ALTER and DROP privileges, how would the schema owner update it? As I say, this is an interesting conumdrum.
Personally, as stated at the beginning, I always create my summary folders (aka materialized views) in the EUL owner's schema.
I hope this helps
Best wishes
Michael Armstrong-Smith
URL: http://learndiscoverer.com
Blog: http://learndiscoverer.blogspot.com