Deploying and Managing Microsoft SQL Server PowerPivot for SharePoint

Dave WickertPrincipal Program ManagerMicrosoft Corporation

DBI406

Session Objectives and Takeaways

Session Objective(s): Understand the various PowerPivot for SharePoint configurationsUnderstand the high level internals behind PowerPivot for SharePoint

When is the BI Appliance a good way to build your PowerPivot infrastructure Learn what is coming in SQL Server Denali PowerPivot . . .

PowerPivot Infrastructure

Implementations How are we going to build this?

ImplementationsInstallation

End-to-End Installation GuidesPowerPivot for SharePoint: Single Server InstallationPowerPivot for SharePoint: Existing Farm InstallationMicrosoft SQL Server 2008 R2 PowerPivot Planning and DeploymentPowerPivot for SharePoint - Transitioning from a Single Server to SharePoint Farm

Architecture DiagramsPowerPivot Technical Diagram: PowerPivot Client/Server ArchitecturePowerPivot Technical Diagram: PowerPivot Security Architecture

There are a lot of steps and a lot components integrated together:PowerPivot System Service, AS Engine, SharePoint, Excel Services, Reporting Services, Excel Client, Office Workspace, IIS, Windows, etc.)

Examples:To change password for SharePoint Farm takes seven separate steps in the farm, services, and IIS.Multiple steps to handle larger file sizes

Quick TipsRequires domain accountsUpgrade is tricky! May want to build out new server vs. upgrading existing

ImplementationsPowerPivot “New Server”

Web Services

Excel Services

PowerPivot

SQL databases

PowerPivot“New Server”

ImplementationsMove SQL databases out

SP Config

SP Content(s)

PPvt App Db(s)

SharePoint Databases

Web Services

Excel Services

PowerPivot

SharePointWeb/App Server

ImplementationsScale-out

SP Config

SP Content(s)

PPvt App Db(s)

SharePoint Databases

Web Services

Excel Services

PowerPivot

SharePointWeb/App Server

Web Services

Excel Services

PowerPivot

SharePointWeb/App Server

Web Services

Excel Services

PowerPivot

SharePointWeb/App Server

Web Services

Excel Services

PowerPivot

SharePointWeb/App Server

LB

ImplementationsDedicated servers w/ high availability

SP Config

SP Content(s)

PPvt App Db(s)

SharePoint Databases

Web Services

SharePointWeb Server

Web Services

SharePointWeb Server

Excel Services

SharePointApp Server

PowerPivot

SharePointApp Server

Other Services

SharePointApp Server

Excel Services PowerPivot

LB

. . .

. . .

ImplementationsCapacity planning (long term)

“New Server”

(1)

‘alias’ the SharePoint RDBMS physically moves the database, but the SharePoint configuration remains intactSingle

Server(2)

http://bit.ly/cZOHe0

‘migrate’ the SharePoint RDBMS so that the SharePoint configuration sees the database server in its true location

Single Server

(3)

Single ServerSingle ServerMultiple

Servers

Scale-out the farm by adding NLB servers; all servers providing all services

(4)

Specialize the farm; add app servers which are tied to various services (size, scale and configure)

WFE AppServer

(5)App

ServerApp

Server

ImplementationsDelegation, Claims, Active Directory

• Issue: Clicking on slicers on a PowerPivot workbook in SharePoint only worked as a domain administrator• Tried: The data connection uses Windows Authentication and user credentials could not be delegated• Solution: Occurs when AD environment upgraded from NT 4.0. Ensure users are:

• Members of the “Pre-Windows 2000” NT group (i.e. have Pre-Windows 2000 Compatible Access”• Part of the “Authenticated Users” group and have “Read Permissions”

• References• Delegation, Claims, Active Directory…Oh My!…Aw Crap!• The data connection uses Windows Authentication and user credentials could not be delegated• Testing the Claims To Windows Token Service for different identities• Delegation, Claims, Active Directory….Again?! Frak!• BIN308 SQLCAT: Configuring and Securing BI Applications in a SharePoint 2010 Environment

PowerPivot Infrastructurea peek inside

Data Sources

PowerPivot for SharePointServer, Services, and Components

WFE

Excel Web Access

App

Excel Calculation Services

Content

SQL

Excel Web Service

SharePoint Farm

MSOLAP

TCP

HTTP

Channel

PowerPivot Web Service

Excel Calc Services

PowerPivot System Service

Analysis Services in VertiPaq Mode

PowerPivot Service Application Proxy

Client

Excel Services Application Proxy

Excel Services

PowerPivot Services

c2wts

MSOLAP Driver

c2wts/proxy

Data Sources

PowerPivot for SharePointRendering the PowerPivot Workbook

WFE

Excel Web Access

App

Excel Calculation Services

Content

SQL

Excel Web Service

SharePoint Farm

MSOLAP

Channel

PowerPivot Web Service

Excel Calc Services

PowerPivot System Service

Analysis Services in VertiPaq Mode

PowerPivot Service Application Proxy

Client

Excel Services Application Proxy

c2wts

Data Sources

PowerPivot for SharePointRendering the PowerPivot Workbook

WFE

Excel Web Access

App

Excel CalculationServices

Content

SQL

Excel Web Service

SharePoint Farm

MSOLAP

Channel

PowerPivot Web Service

Excel Calc Services

PowerPivot System Service

Analysis Services in VertiPaq Mode

PowerPivot Service Application Proxy

Client

Excel Services Application Proxy

c2wts

c:\Program Files\...\OLAP\Backup

Data Sources

PowerPivot for SharePointPowerPivot does NOT require Kerberos

WFE

Excel Web Access

App

Excel Calculation Services

Content

SQL

Excel Web Service

SharePoint Farm

MSOLAP

Channel

PowerPivot Web Service

Excel Calc Services

PowerPivot System Service

Analysis Services in VertiPaq Mode

PowerPivot Service Application Proxy

Client

Excel Services Application Proxy

c2wts

Data Sources

PowerPivot for SharePointServer Action

WFE

Excel Web Access

App

Excel Calculation Services

Content

SQL

Excel Web Service

SharePoint Farm

MSOLAP

Channel

PowerPivot Web Service

Excel Calc Services

PowerPivot System Service

Analysis Services in VertiPaq Mode

PowerPivot Service Application Proxy

Client

Excel Services Application Proxy

c2wts

PowerPivot for SharePointServer Action > c2wts

Data Sources

PowerPivot for SharePointServer Action > c2wts

WFE

Excel Web Access

App

Excel Calculation Services

Content

SQL

Excel Web Service

SharePoint Farm

MSOLAP

Channel

PowerPivot Web Service

Excel Calc Services

PowerPivot System Service

Analysis Services in VertiPaq Mode

PowerPivot Service Application Proxy

Client

Excel Services Application Proxy

c2wts

Data Sources

PowerPivot for SharePointServer Action

WFE

Excel Web Access

App

Excel Calculation Services

Content

SQL

Excel Web Service

SharePoint Farm

MSOLAP

Channel

PowerPivot Web Service

Excel Calc Services

PowerPivot System Service

Analysis Services in VertiPaq Mode

PowerPivot Service Application Proxy

Client

Excel Services Application Proxy

c2wts

c:\Program Files\...\OLAP\Backup

ImageLoad

PowerPivot for SharePointLoad Balancing

App1

Excel Calculation Services

SharePoint Farm

MSOLAP

Channel

PowerPivot System Service

Analysis Services in VertiPaq Mode

PowerPivot Service Application Proxy

c2wts

App2

Excel Calculation Services

MSOLAP

Channel

PowerPivot System Service

Analysis Services in VertiPaq Mode

PowerPivot Service Application Proxy

• By default, set to round-robin health allocation

• Testing notes that BP to set to health-based allocation

• Uses more resources than round-robin

• BUT, pro-actively evicts unnecessary VertiPaq dBs when under memory pressure

Capacity PlanningImpact of slicers, charts, tables, worksheets

~20

~530

ECS fires a lot of statements; this will be reduced in SharePoint SP1

Using the BI Appliance to jumpstart building PowerPivotinfrastructure

Microsoft Business Intelligence Appliance

SKUs Components

Server HP ProLiant DL360 G7 dual X5650 Processor (1U) with 96GB (12 core)

Storage 8 x internal 300 GB SAS disks

Software Windows Server 2008 R2 EE OEM, SQL Server 2008 R2 EE VL, SharePoint 2010 EE VL, PowerPivot SharePoint Integration

Infrastructure No physical (install in existing rack), Active Directory required

Services Software technical support

End-to-end, pre-configured stack quickly enables BI for Excel power users

Rich insight: Empower users to easily create PowerPivot workbooks from real-time business data for faster, more accurate insights

Reduced complexity: Overcome cost and complexity of BI; shift IT resources from running ad-hoc reports to innovation initiatives

Improved deployment & manageability : Appliance management dashboard and BI Center Getting Started Guide streamline deployment and simplify administration.

BI Appliance – Best Practices

Onboard Backup/Restore - Only an interim solutionBetter options: Use Windows Backup via a network backup (for off Appliance backup)Use comprehensive integrated SharePoint and SQL backup solution such as Data Protection Manager

Data partition (D: ) 683 GBFor more space: Move to an off-appliance backup solution (then remove the E: backup partition and extend the data partition D: to include rest of drive

SQL Max Server Memory set to 8192Raise or lower based on your needs

SharePoint max upload size and Excel Services max workload size set to 2GBLower the values to have more control over users workbook sizes

BI Appliance – Best Practices (cont.)

Based on PowerPivot “New Server” All-in-1 installationDesigned as standalone machine

Don’t combine with other systems – should not just ‘add’ to an existing farmShould not combine appliances to get more capacityIf you need more capacity, get a regular server(s) and install components

Goal was to size the hardware for 80 concurrent usersBut we have published performance info for more, see HP sizing white paper (http://h20195.www2.hp.com/V2/GetPDF.aspx/4AA3-3086ENW.pdf)

What’s coming in SQL Server Denali PowerPivot

SQL Server Denali PowerPivot

Builds upon our V1 release in SQL Server 2008 R2New administrative capabilities

Lots of bug fixing, failover capabilities and scalability enhancementsDefault allocation algorithm changed to health-based rather than round-robin (means we are more responsive to low memory situationsMore ‘knobs’ to control:

Amount of database caching done on the app serversCleanup of database caching (based on inactivity)Disable data refresh jobs if they are constantly failing, or if they succeed but are not being viewed

SQL Server Denali PowerPivot (cont.)

New administrative capabilities (more):New capacity planning health rules for CPU, memory and disk space (you will start to see warnings if you are running out of resources)Support for transparent connectivity (.bism files)New midtier minidump facility

demo

SQL Server Denali PowerPivotAdministrative improvements

SQL Server Denali PowerPivot (cont.)

A new setup experienceRather than installing and configuring SharePoint directly, setup now just lays down the bits and there is a new standalone configuration wizardCapabilities:

Wizard has both a one-click “GO” option as well as astep-by-step experienceExisting farm steps integrated with the wizardIndividual steps can be scriptedHistory is directly integrated into the toolAble to uninstall, upgrade, repair and patch separately

SQL Server Denali PowerPivot (cont.)

Important note:SharePoint SP1 is required for CTP3 (and RTM)

SQL Setup will issue a warning if SharePoint SP1 has not been installed when the PowerPivot bits are laid down. This gives you some time to upgrade to SP SP1.However, if you still haven’t upgraded to SP1, by the time you get to run the PowerPivot configuration wizard, we will throw a fatal error and you will be blocked from configuring your SharePoint farm until you upgrade to SP1.

demo

SQL Server Denali PowerPivotSetup Experience

TroubleshootingResources

• SQL Server PowerPivot for SharePoint Newsgroup• Personal / MVP blogs like:

• powerpivotgeek.com• dennyglee.com• powerpivotpro.com• powerpivot-info.com• powerpivotblog.nl

• Twitter > #PowerPivot• Professional Microsoft PowerPivot for Excel and SharePoint > Chap

ter 9

Related Content

Breakout Sessions:“DBI206 – What’s New in Microsoft SQL Server Code-Named “Denali” for SQL Server Analysis Services and PowerPivot”, Tues 5/17 @10:15am

Interactive Sessions:“DBI471-INT – Tips and Tricks for Troubleshooting a Microsoft SQL Server PowerPivot for SharePoint Installation”, Tues 5/17 @3:15pm

Hands-on Labs:“DBI372-HOL – Managing Microsoft PowerPivot for Excel 2010 Solutions in Microsoft SharePoint Server 2010”

Find Me Later At…the Microsoft product booth today Thurs (10:30am-noon) – Stop by for a chat!

What’s Next?

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GAME ON! Join us at the top of every hour at the BI booth to compete in the Crescent Puzzle Challenge and Win Prizes

Sign up to be notified when the next CTP is available at: microsoft.com/sqlserver

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More info slides . . .

BI Appliance – Installation steps

Install Windows 2008 R2 (and apply all critsit patches)Add user to appliance Local AdminLay down SharePoint 2010 w/ all prerequisitesInstall SQL Server 2008 R2 PowerPivot “New Server”Install KB979917 (SP issues)Install KB976127 (updated ADO.NET Data Services)

BI Appliance – Installation steps

Configure Registry Keys (to identify the appliance)Configure the c2wts service so it depends on CryptoAPI

C:\> sc config c2wts depend= cryptsvcSee:

http://powerpivotgeek.com/2010/04/02/help-c2wts-has-fallen-and-it-cannot-get-up/

Increase ReadFileChunkSize to 0x0003E800 (optimized for larger file uploads)Configure SharePoint VSS Writer service to start automaticallyDeploy ApplianceHome.wsp (Appliance Homepage)Apply custom SharePoint template (used by Homepage)

BI Appliance – Installation steps (cont.)

Disable/Enable PowerPivot feature on Homepage site (ensures that thumbnails are taken properly by Gallery)Deploy ApplianceAdmin.wsp (CA console add-in)Change Excel Services File Sizes

WorkbooksizeMax = 2000 ChartAndImageSize=100

Configure Sharepoint logs Location ="D:\SharePointLogs" DaysToKeepLog = 7

BI Appliance – Installation steps (cont.)

Set portal superUserAccount to Sharepoint\SystemSet portal superReaderAccount to "NT AUTHORITY\LOCAL SERVICE”Raises PowerPivot MaxUserConnectionPoolSizefrom 1000 to 10,000Configure SQL max memory to 8GB (leaves rest for PowerPivot)Configure SecureStore application (fix PowerPivot bug on fast computers)Optional post-install steps: Reporting Services in SharePoint mode (see docs for steps)