Disable TM1 to auto load in Excel

[ExApplix]

TM1 version 9.5.1
Excel 2007
Windows XP

When I installed TM1, I selected the option to Always load TM1 in Excel. But now I want to change it back to the default behaviour so that I can start standard excel (without TM1 pluggin) and if I want TM1 then I will start Perspectives for TM1.

I have tried changing macro settings and disabled TM1 Add-on within Excel - but all in vain.

Can someone tell me how to fix it without reinstalling TM1?

[Alan Kirk]

TM1 version 9.5.1
Excel 2007
Windows XP

When I installed TM1, I selected the option to Always load TM1 in Excel. But now I want to change it back to the default behaviour so that I can start standard excel (without TM1 pluggin) and if I want TM1 then I will start Perspectives for TM1.

I have tried changing macro settings and disabled TM1 Add-on within Excel - but all in vain.

Can someone tell me how to fix it without reinstalling TM1?

I don't know how you "disabled" the add-in, but I can tell you that if it's done the correct way then TM1 won't load.

Office Button -> Excel Options -> Add-Ins -> Manage Excel Add-ins (drop down at the bottom) -> Unckeck IBM Cognos TM1 Perspectives -> [OK].

If you return to the add-ins list (Office Button -> Excel Options -> Add-Ins) it should now appear in the Inactive Applications Add-ins list, and will not load the next time you start Excel.

[ExApplix]

Alan, I was doing the same thing which you have advised. After changing the Excel Add-in setting TM1 Perspective does not load automatically when I start Excel. But now it is not even loading when I click on the Perspectives for Excel icon.

I want to load TM1 when I click on Perspectives for Excel icon.

Any help in this case would be much appreciated. Thanks!

[Crystal]

When you say TM1 is not loading when you open Perspectives, are you telling that it is just opening Excel? Does perspectives open fine when you invoke "tm1p.xla" file from the installation directory?

[RCO]

Hi All,

This is actually the case for me.
We had a server restart and after that not a single user can start Perspectives from the desktop icon or not even going to the windows start menu, All Programs--> IBM Cognos Express --> Xcelerator Client.
It simply doesn't do anything at all, however if I start excel (2010) and then go to recent files and click in the tm1p.xla file then Perspectives launches.
Would you have any ideas?

[Alan Kirk]

This is actually the case for me.
We had a server restart and after that not a single user can start Perspectives from the desktop icon or not even going to the windows start menu, All Programs--> IBM Cognos Express --> Xcelerator Client.
It simply doesn't do anything at all, however if I start excel (2010) and then go to recent files and click in the tm1p.xla file then Perspectives launches.
Would you have any ideas?

The client is completely independent of the server except when it's logged in. The client can be launched whether there is one server running or a thousand servers running or no servers at all running on the network. A server restart will not change this.

What might is if the Ignore Other Applications that use Dynamic Data Exchange option is changed to Yes. In Excel 2010 this will be found in the File menu => Options =>Advanced group, under the General heading which will be found right at the bottom. This option should normally be UNchecked. If it is checked then one by-product is that it will completely stuff up your ability to launch Excel files from shortcuts, which is what the Excellerator icon in your Start menu most likely is. (It certainly is for Perspectives.) You should get a "There was a problem sending the command to the program" error, which admittedly doesn't gel with your statement that it doesn't do anything at all.

The only reason that I bring this up is that it doesn't make sense for every user to suddenly be unable to launch the shortcut unless some paranoid genius in the IT department applied a group policy turning the Ignore DDE option on. For your safety and convenience, don'cha know.

Other things that I'd look at are whether the extension .xla is still associated with Microsoft Excel (Control Panel => Default Programs in Windows 7), and whether there has been any recent change in security policies which stop you launching a shortcut from the folder in which you have the add-in in. (That one's a little far fetched.) Speaking of which, just to be safe look at the properties of your Xcelerator Client shortcut to get the path to the .xla file, and try opening the file within Excel by going to that location manually. You're assuming that the recent file is the same one as is on that path, but it may not be the case.

[RCO]

Hi Alan,

Thank you so much for your kind and detailed reply.
I have previously check the DDE option in excel and it is Unchecked, so have now gone to the Default Programs in windows 7 and the .xla file type is still associated to MS excel.
The properties in the Xcelerator Client shortcut

Capture.JPG (42.99 KiB) Viewed 13341 times

In which:
Target - "C:\Program Files\IBM\Cognos Express Clients\Xcelerator Client\bin\jre\7.0\bin\javaw.exe" -jar ce_notifier.jar"
Run - "C:\Program Files\IBM\Cognos Express Clients\Xcelerator Client\clientnotifier"

I'm unsure on whether this is correct or not but if it isn't, Why would this changed at the first place?
I understand the client install is completely independent of the server except when it's logged in, but what riddles me is the fact that right after the server restart every user started having the same problem including me as an admin.

[Alan Kirk]

The properties in the Xcelerator Client shortcut

Capture.JPG

In which:
Target - "C:\Program Files\IBM\Cognos Express Clients\Xcelerator Client\bin\jre\7.0\bin\javaw.exe" -jar ce_notifier.jar"
Run - "C:\Program Files\IBM\Cognos Express Clients\Xcelerator Client\clientnotifier"

I'm unsure on whether this is correct or not but if it isn't, Why would this changed at the first place?
I understand the client install is completely independent of the server except when it's logged in, but what riddles me is the fact that right after the server restart every user started having the same problem including me as an admin.

Ah. I may need to leave this one to someone who has used Cognos Express, which I must confess I haven't. I thought that Xcelerator was the name that IBM used this week for the TM1 Excel client, which that is clearly not a shortcut to. javaw.exe is the non-console incarnation of my dear "friend" Java. That shortcut is in fact launching a Java application, which would explain why it certainly won't launch Excel... unless there's something in the Java package which launches Excel but that would seem to be a roundabout way of doing it.

[declanr]

Haven't got a copy of 10.2 Express available to check at the moment but I'm fairly sure it should still just point to tm1p.xla

As to what has happened globally to redirect it...


Edit - I lied; I just checked a copy of CX 10.1 I have and that does point to a javaw.exe file (it works fine by the way)

[Alan Kirk]

Haven't got a copy of 10.2 Express available to check at the moment but I'm fairly sure it should still just point to tm1p.xla

As to what has happened globally to redirect it...

Edit - I lied; I just checked a copy of CX 10.1 I have and that does point to a javaw.exe file (it works fine by the way)

When you say it works fine, do you mean that it launches Excel and the add-in, or launches some entirely Java-based client as a "replacement"?

If the former... actually in either case... I'm wondering if somebody at RCO's workplace did something to disable the JRE on all client machines for security purposes. (I have an alibi, incidentally. ) I'm still struck by the fact that this has happened on all machines at once, so something has changed on a global basis.

[RCO]

Thank you Declan for your reply.

Just like Alan, I'm also struck by the fact that this has happened on all machines at once and after a server start. According to one of the guys at our IT team (I'm in finance by the way) they haven't changed anything at all, I will investigate further thought..

Are there any files in the server that are somehow linked/used by the client Java application that launches Perspectives? Some sort of register?
Sorry if this sounds silly but this issue goes beyond my knowledge now.

[declanr]

Haven't got a copy of 10.2 Express available to check at the moment but I'm fairly sure it should still just point to tm1p.xla

As to what has happened globally to redirect it...

Edit - I lied; I just checked a copy of CX 10.1 I have and that does point to a javaw.exe file (it works fine by the way)

When you say it works fine, do you mean that it launches Excel and the add-in, or launches some entirely Java-based client as a "replacement"?

It just opens the excel add in (as far the eyes can see - obviously doing something extra behind the scenes) which is why I assumed it pointed directly to the xla file.

Are there any files in the server that are somehow linked/used by the client Java application that launches Perspectives? Some sort of register?
Sorry if this sounds silly but this issue goes beyond my knowledge now.

I would hazard a guess (and it is just that) that it may somehow send a notification of some variety to the Cognos Express Manager (the web GUI overview screen thing); but to be honest my involvement of using Cognos Express has always just been to set it up and use it exactly as I would use TM1 and/or Cognos BI - I tend to ignore the extra clunk that comes with it as my clients rarely want to know about any of that.

[lotsaram]

As far as I'm aware the main thing (possibly the only thing) the javaw.exe launcher does is to check the server version versus the installed client version. If the client doesn't match the server version then the user is prompted to go to the CX homepage and download the new client and it refuses to launch tm1p.xla. This is an annoyance because as we all know older client / newer server is is no problem.

Changing the link to a direct shortcut to tm1p.xla should work, no reason why it wouldn't.

[RCO]

Thank all for your replies, we have changed the link to a direct shortcut to tm1p.xla so users can launch Perspectives.

I still don't understand what was the cause of this issue but what matter the most is that it works now.

Thank you so much for your help
Rgs

[RCO]

Hi All,

The IT team found below error in the windows event view "JVMDUMP012E"
Has anyone seen this error type or know what it means?

Capture.JPG (37.52 KiB) Viewed 12897 times

[Alan Kirk]

The IT team found below error in the windows event view "JVMDUMP012E"
Has anyone seen this error type or know what it means?

Capture.JPG

According to this link it's time for a trip to your friendly support team.

JVMDUMP012E
Error in %1$s dump:%2$s
Explanation

The JVM detected an error while attempting to produce a dump.
System action

The JVM continues, but the dump might not be usable.
User response

Refer to diagnostic information or contact your local IBM® service representative.

The JVM is pretty good at producing dumps; it's a thought that crosses my mind every time I fire up Performance Muddler.

A huuuuuge, warm, gently steaming dump, sitting on your screen just waiting to be trodden in.

But that aside, from the sounds of it the JVM might not have been usable either after this happened. The key question is why. It's a question that you should definitely put to Support. I'd also be wondering if maybe you have automatic Java updates on. If one of those broke the JVM (or at least IBM's use of it) at your site it would explain why everyone's shortcut died at the same time.