Running TI Processes from Command Line: TM1RunTI.exe

[normanbobo]

In a post in another topic a few weeks back there was some discussion about a new component in 9.5.2 Hotfix 1 called TM1RunTI.exe. When the hotfix was applied, apparently this program just appeared. I attempted to download this hotfix, but IBM's Fix Central is currently showing only 9.5.2 HotFix 2 (which is related to TM1 Web and does not apparently contain any other components.) Does anyone know how to obtain Hot Fix 1 and/or this executable?

[Mike Cowie]

Hi:

Hotfixes are supposed to be cumulative, so hotfix 2 should include the contents of hotfix 1. See here for more details on hotfixes, in general:
http://www.tm1forum.com/viewtopic.php?f=21&t=3143

TM1RunTI.exe doesn't seem to have much documentation yet, but I'm sure it eventually will (hopefully) in either the next TM1 release to have updated documentation or in a separate tech note from IBM. I was able to get it to work with a little trial and error/clunking around in a DOS prompt, and you can always ask IBM to give you some documentation on it, too. Here's a copy/paste from the command's DOS "help":

Code: Select all

tm1runti -?
  or tm1runti -help
  or tm1runt1 [<cmd_parm>...] [<ti_parm>...]

     where <cmd_parm> is one of:
          -i <filespec>
          -process <string>
          -connect <string>
          <connect_parm>...

     where <ti_parm> is:
          <parm_name> '=' <parm_value>

     where <connect_parm> is one of:
          -adminhost <string>
          -server <string>
          -user <string>
          <password_parm>
          -AdminSvrSSLCertAuthority <filespec>
          -AdminSvrSSLCertID <id>
          -AdminSvrSSLCertRevList <filespec>
          -AdminSvrSSLExportKeyId <id>
          -ExportAdminSvrSSLCert <T|F>
          -CAMNamespace <string>

     where <password_parm> is one of:
          -pwd <string>
          -passwordfile <filespec> -passwordkeyfile <filespec>

Regards,
Mike

[normanbobo]

Hi:

Hotfixes are supposed to be cumulative, so hotfix 2 should include the contents of hotfix 1.

Right. This has been the distribution method for a long time. Thinking this to be the case, I downloaded and unzipped both the 32-bit and 64-bit versions of Hot Fix 2. The only files were files there were for the copy/paste fix for TM1Web. No other files were in the fix pack and HotFix 1 is now missing. I think IBM messed up.

[Mike Cowie]

Lovely. It's probably worth a quick IBM service request to get it if you feel like navigating the Passport Advantage or Partnerworld (if appropriate) waters...

[normanbobo]

Mike ... I beat you to the suggestion to call support. It was already in the works ... and here is what I learned:

1) The utility was actually first released with 9.5.1 HF14, a "limited distribution" release. This explains why it works with 9.5.1 as well as 9.5.2.
2) The very responsive IBM support person obtained the documentation, attached at the bottom of this link. I asked for and was given permission to distribute the document.
3) Because of the unusual way in which the interface was introduced (only through hotfixes), I specifically asked whether the utility was a "supported" feature. The answer was that it is fully supported.
4) There is a very powerful command line, particularly when combined with the -i "specification" option and the ability to encrypt passwords.
5) Unfortunately, there appears to be a bug with the -i functionality. After multiple attempts with our application as well as the IBM sample applications, I continually received an error using the -i option: (TM1 API Error) "SystemServerNotFound" <newline> Server connection failed. After another support call, this error has been replicated by IBM and is currently being researched.

In the mean time, though, very nice and full implementation of a command line interface which should be extremely useful going forward.

TM1RunTI User Documentation 952HF1.pdf

TM1RunTI User Documentation.

(107.2 KiB) Downloaded 2430 times

[Mike Cowie]

Looks interesting - should save me having to continue updating my version of a command-line TI EXE, which I'll officially retire once this is more widely available!

FYI, I bet there's a good chance TM1RunTI will work with pre-9.5.1 versions, too, if needed. This is probably not officially supported, but given what I know of the API I bet it'll work.

If it helps to explain the error you're getting: if you're using CAM authentication (e.g., with Cognos Express), I believe there may be some case-sensitivity here, unlike most things TM1. So, if your namespace is "CognosExpress" and you instead use "Cognosexpress", it will fail to connect. That was an issue I ran into when using the TM1 API methods for CAM logins to TM1, and presumably TM1RunTI uses the same API functions.

Regards,
Mike

[normanbobo]

I was very careful to use the same case in the command line as appears in the TM1 tree, so I don't think that was the cause of the error. I will let everyone know what support says.

The biggest advantage for this routine is that it is from the vendor. Though the routine you have supplied for many years has been helpful to many, there are some clients (including my current client) who cannot use "third party" software. It must be vendor-supplied and vendor-supported before it is installed. We were facing having to write our own routine to call the API -- interesting, but not productive. This came out in the "nick of time" for this project.

[David Usherwood]

So....
If your client buys (say) SQL server, they only use Micro$oft frontends?
Quebit is a thoroughly reputable and well-established company (I'll say it, Mike may not feel he can) and there's no reason that makes sense to me to ban third party products.

[Martin Ryan]

It's fairly common policy though. I tend to find the larger an organisation the more blanket policies they have because it's too hard to deal with things on a case by case basis. It's counter productive in my view as it ends up costing organisations a lot of money (e.g. Norman re-inventing the wheel), but policy none-the-less.

[Wim Gielis]

Thanks guys, useful information, and thanks IBM to get me rid of some action buttons.

For instance, I had a very small application that opens up a filled report (without TM1 functionality).
Then a VBA button contained some simple code to export the values of certain cells to a CSV file.
An action button then executed a TI process to load the values.
Now it will become one button
(I know I could do a series of Application.Run("DBSW",...) in Excel VBA, but I prefer to do a zero out before loading the values.)

I will devote an article to it on my website, and there I will link to this topic.

Have a nice day,

Wim

[normanbobo]

So....
If your client buys (say) SQL server, they only use Micro$oft frontends?
Quebit is a thoroughly reputable and well-established company (I'll say it, Mike may not feel he can) and there's no reason that makes sense to me to ban third party products.

David ... Policy is policy. This has nothing to do/say about the reputation of Quebit or the routine provided by Mike Cowie. In fact, I even stated in my post that many have used Mike's routine with success. With this client (and many large organizations), software products installed on servers and used in production applications must first be evaluated, then purchased through a formal acquisition program and must be supported by the vendor. It would have been faster to develop our own routine than to go through this process for Mike's routine. Besides, Mike indicates the routine is not supported -- use at your own risk (even if it does work). But it is all "water under the bridge" now that IBM has (finally) come out with a routine. BTW, the IBM routine has a very rich interface. They did a pretty good job with it.

[normanbobo]

IBM development determined the source of the "connecting to server" error. I had copied the configuration file from the PDF document supplied by IBM (and attached in an earlier post). There were hidden special characters embedded in the PDF file. I re-created the configuration file by simply typing into a text file. All seems well now. Lesson learned: create your own configuration files ... don't copy from manuals.

[Martin Ryan]

I must be going blind - I can't find TM1RunTI.exe. I've recently installed 9.5.2 so I figured it should be there somewhere, but a manual look through the various bin files and a Windows search for TM1RunTI.exe hasn't found anything. Where is it?

I also saw in the document that Norman posted reference to tm1guardian.exe, what does this do (and where is it)?

Martin

[Alan Kirk]

I must be going blind - I can't find TM1RunTI.exe. I've recently installed 9.5.2 so I figured it should be there somewhere, but a manual look through the various bin files and a Windows search for TM1RunTI.exe hasn't found anything. Where is it?

I also saw in the document that Norman posted reference to tm1guardian.exe, what does this do (and where is it)?

I don't have HF2 for 9.5.2 (Edit: OK, now I do, but it appears to have been for Web only) but I have 1 and 3. As far as I can see the RunTI exe was only inluded in the HF1 package.

HF1 for 64 bit is still (as of the time of writing) on the Boulder FTP site, though the x86 one isn't, go figure. You could probably get it from there. Or if you can't, you may work with someone who already has the package.

No idea about TM1Guardian.exe, though.

[Martin Ryan]

Ah, so I am blind. Just not in the way I thought I was. I read that it was a Hot Fix in 9.5.1 so assumed it was part of the 9.5.2 normal install. First line of the first post says otherwise.

[Alan Kirk]

Ah, so I am blind. Just not in the way I thought I was. I read that it was a Hot Fix in 9.5.1 so assumed it was part of the 9.5.2 normal install. First line of the first post says otherwise.

Yes, it's another fine piece of Iboglix stuffing around. It's time for them to decide "Is you is or is you ain't an officially released and supported app". If it is, then it should be going into the bin folder of new installs, and the documentation should be incorporated into the main docs. The current situation of "You get it if you're lucky, if you notice it or if you subscribe to TM1Forum and find out about it" is an absurdity.

[guntupalli]

[No idea about TM1Guardian.exe, though][/No idea about TM1Guardian.exe, though.]

TM1RunTI.exe utility is of special interest in those application situations where TI process needed to be
grouped in order to ensure that TI’s that can run in parallel do so, and those which cannot be are
serialized in the right order.
- In these situations, TM1RunTI may be used in conjunction with the tm1guardian.exe utility to
achieve the desired results.

[Alan Kirk]

[No idea about TM1Guardian.exe, though][/No idea about TM1Guardian.exe, though.]

TM1RunTI.exe utility is of special interest in those application situations where TI process needed to be
grouped in order to ensure that TI’s that can run in parallel do so, and those which cannot be are
serialized in the right order.
- In these situations, TM1RunTI may be used in conjunction with the tm1guardian.exe utility to
achieve the desired results.

Yes, most of us can read the document for ourselves (and did, which is where we saw the reference to it).

Martin's question was, and I (correctly) quote:

I also saw in the document that Norman posted reference to tm1guardian.exe, what does this do (and where is it)?

Perhaps to clarify the question... (a) What exactly does it do to achieve the "desired results" described in the manual and (b) Where is the .exe to be found?

You have fresh information on these subjects, perhaps?

(Also, when you're quoting from a document like that please make it clear that it is a quotation from somewhere else (and cite the source) rather than some unique insight that you're offering from your own knowledge and experience. Most of the posters to this thread will know that because we've already read the document and the words will be eerily familiar. It may not be obvious to a new visitor, though.)

[David Usherwood]

Does anybody feel strong enough to raise an SR to find out what on earth TM1Guardian is, and why IBM haven't bothered to document it? I'm rather buried in my 400gig model at present.

[Alan Kirk]

Does anybody feel strong enough to raise an SR to find out what on earth TM1Guardian is, and why IBM haven't bothered to document it? I'm rather buried in my 400gig model at present.

Yeah, I'll do it. I actually want to find out what the intended status of the process running tool is anyway; whether it's intended to be properly supported / released and if so, when.