InetSoft Tools & Technology: An Overview of InetSoft's Features for Reporting Security

Security is a very important aspect of any software product. A BI security schema is what allows a reporting solution to function at the enterprise level. With proper security, powerful business intelligence software like Style Intelligence or web reporting software like Style Report can be made available to every person in the company. Each division can have its own data sources, and each person within the division can have his or her own access rights to the data and reports.

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Single Sign-On / Integration

Problem: There is a security schema used in a current application, and the same security should be used for reporting.

The InetSoft Solution:

Since InetSoft's software is usually embedded within a website, or another application, a single sign-on (SSO) capability eases the end user experience. InetSoft's software integrates with existing LDAP security models (iPlanet/SunOne, Active Directory, or Open LDAP). Simply enter the server settings, and InetSoft's software will import the users, and roles. These users/roles can then be used when setting the permissions for InetSoft's software components.

The other option when creating SSO is to implement a Security Provider interface. This simple Java interface includes methods like authenticate, and checkPermission. By making this part of the API available, we provide complete flexibility for security. InetSoft's software checks the principal object in the user’s session. Passing this principal object along from your application will create the single sign-on functionality.




Privacy

Problem: Many different users who have different roles and rights access an enterprise reporting solution. The security system must allow for these complicated bureaucratic structures.

The InetSoft Solution:

Security can be applied at each level of the report process. This allows for precise control of information, while preserving the reusability of reports.

Data Security

At the data level, we apply Virtual Private Models. VPMs are attached to the different roles in your security schema. The VPMs can filter the rows returned by a query, and hide columns or tables. With this level of control, the same report can return different data, depending on the user who runs it. VPMs are even applied in Ad Hoc. Permissions can also be set on pre-defined queries.

Report Security

On the report level, access to folders and reports can be changed based on users and roles. The permissions include reading, and writing separately. For example, some users can have access to run a report, but will be unable to overwrite it, if they have made changes.

Customization

Finally, at the interface level, users/roles can have different access to certain features. The scheduler, alerts, ad hoc analysis, and OLAP functionality can be turned on or off for specific individuals or groups. Additionally, each user or role has a separate dashboard that they can customize without affecting those of others.
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