NCAS

DSS Desktop Web FAQ for the ncasdss2 desktop

Problem Resolution
When trying to open a report, an error message appears saying "PowerPlay is unable to use this .MDC file with the report you want to open. Locate the right .MDC file." This error occurs when trying to open Cognos 7 reports with a Cognos 6.5 viewer. Upgrade the Cognos PowerPlay viewer to version 7. 
After choosing a report, nothing happens after clicking the Launch button. The Last Modified Time appears.
  • Go to \ncas\ncas_app\ncasdss2 and double click on copy_ini.bat.
  • Open C:\ncasdss2\desktop.ini and see if the first line is C:\Program Files\Cognos\cer3\bin\pwrplay.exe. 
  • If it is not, copy \ncas\ncas_app\ncasdss2\desktop.ini to C:\ncasdss2, which will overwrite the existing file.
  • Restart the desktop and try the Launch button again.
After choosing a report, the Last Modified Time does not appear, and the Launch button is still greyed out.
  • Go to \ncas\ncas_dat\dss\mdc. Note the first 3 numbers and/or letters of the file names.
  • Open C:\ncasdss2\path.cfg and make sure the last line starts with the same 3 numbers and/or letters of the mdc files. 
  • Also make sure that C:\ncasdss2\path.cfg has a slash (/) at the end of the first 4 lines.

When trying to open a report, an error message appears saying "Cannot open the cube. It may have been moved, renamed, or deleted."
  • This message is normal, click OK and the ‘Choose a Local Cube’ box will appear.
  • Select a cube that pertains to the report you are opening. BD701 reports use the budgt cube, financial analysis reports ending in P use the prop cube, and financial analysis reports ending in G or F use the gov cube.
  • You can also choose an historical cube that contains an entire fiscal year, i.e. gfy02 for gov, pfy02 for prop, and bfy02 for budgt.

When trying to open a report, an error message appears saying "PowerPlay Data Server can’t open the PowerCube (Open Powercube)."
  • After choosing a report, a message appears saying "Cannot open the cube." Once you click on OK, the ‘Choose a Local Cube’ box appears.
  • If you click on OK in this box without choosing a cube, you will get the ‘Open PowerCube’ error.
  • You must choose a cube from the list instead of taking the default cube.
  • See the previous question for which cubes go with which reports.

After choosing an Adobe report, clicking the Open button does not open the report.
  • Check to see if Adobe Acrobat Reader is installed.
  • If it is installed, make sure the second line in the file C:\ncasdss2\desktop.ini points to the location of the reader.
  • To install Acrobat Reader 5.0 run \ncas\ncas_app\ncasdss2\install.bat and click on the Install Adobe Reader button.

After launching the desktop, the menus only show AAA, BBB, CCC or XXX, YYY, ZZZ.

The desktop is not configured correctly in order to see the data on the server.

  • Run \ncas\ncas_app\ncasdss2\install.bat and click on the Path Configuration button.
  • Make sure the drive letter and mapping reflect the exact mapping of the user. Click the Save button and restart the desktop.

When running install.bat, an error message appears saying "can’t find javaw."

Make sure you are running install.bat through a Windows Explorer network mapping on the user’s PC. The program will not run using UNC paths.

When launching a report, PowerPlay gives an error message of "failed to update system registry."

On Windows 2000 & XP, the user needs to have at least Power user rights to use PowerPlay. If this can not be granted, call the OSC Help Desk for further instructions.  

When using the scroll arrow buttons on the PowerPlay Dimension Line, the following message is displayed: “PowerPlay for Windows has encountered a problem and needs to close.” Change your PowerPlay Preference settings as follows.
  • From the PowerPlay File menu, select “Preferences”, and then click on the “Dimensions” tab.
  • Click in the checkbox for the selection “Show the first and last buttons when scrolling” so that the selection remains checked.
  • Then click on the “OK” button.