MicroStrategy FAQ


What is MicroStrategy 9.4?

MicroStrategy 9.4 is the latest release of MicroStrategy Business Intelligence (BI) Platform. It offers significant capabilities and enhancements over previous versions of the product. The pilot project for MicroStrategy will be the SPOT data Course Evaluation feedback from the students at the end of each term. The BIS team plans to expand the scope of reports available to include all of the subject areas that comprise the Enterprise Data Warehouse, but that will take time to develop. We will announce the new subject areas as they are made available in MicroStrategy.


How do I get MicroStrategy 9.4?

If you are a Virginia Tech employee, you have access to MicroStrategy. Use your Central Authentication Services (CAS) password which is the same password you use to log in to Hokie Spa. The web link is: https://apps.es.vt.edu/microstrategy/servlet/mstrWeb


How do I get trained on MicroStrategy?

The BIS team has created self-service training modules for you to use. The initial set of training materials provides instructions for Web Reporters those MicroStrategy users who can access existing reports and refresh the results on demand. We plan to add to the training course offerings to include Web Analysts and Web Professionals. These will become available as the subject areas in MicroStrategy expand to include subject areas beyond the initial SPOT (Course Evaluation) reports. You can find all of our training materials through Confluence at the Tutorials and Training page.  That page has links on the left for the materials.

 

Where will I find my reports in MicroStrategy?

When you log in to MicroStrategy, you will see a Shared Reports  icon in the main window of your browser. All of the SPOT reports can be found by clicking on this icon. (Talk about the folder structure and report naming conventions that will help the user find a specific report.) The BIS team has converted all of the existing SPOT reports into MicroStrategy, so all of the information you are used to seeing at the end of each semester is still available to you.

 

Can I save my report results?

Any report you run can be saved in the My Reports  folder. This capability is available for all three levels of MicroStrategy users: Web Reporter, Web Analyst, or Web Professional. You can find detailed instructions for this in the document "MicroStrategy Training 02 - Running Reports in MicroStrategy Web".  It is available on the Training Documents page.

 

What formats are available for exporting data from my reports?

Individual reports may have restrictions on the export formats as decided by the report developer. In general, you should expect to be able to export any report into any of the following formats: Excel, Comma-separated Values (.CSV), HTML, PDF. See the document "MicroStrategy Training 04 - Sorting Filtering and Exporting MicroStrategy Web Reports and Documents".  It is available on the Training Documents page.

 

How can I get help when I have questions about MicroStrategy?

Request Support

 

I am  a Mac user will MicroStrategy work for me? Do I need to install any special software?

There are no special software requirements for using MicroStrategy on a Mac. Launch your browser and log in at: https://apps.es.vt.edu/MicroStrategy/servlet/mstrWeb.  Mac users enjoy the full feature set of MicroStrategy, just like a PC user.

 

I have a question about a specific report. Who should I contact?

Request Support

 

I am having trouble distinguishing between all the icons I see in the Action Bars. How do I know which one to choose?

Each item on the MicroStrategy Menu Bar  has its own unique Action Bar  filled with icons that serve as short cuts to accomplish tasks related to the Menu Bar . The same options are available at the Menu Bar  when you click on the down-pointing triangle to the right of the Menu label. Holding your cursor over an Action Bar  icon will cause a popup window to display with the name of the icon. The BIS team has also created a Job Aid document that identifies all of the icons for each of the Menus.   It is available on the Training Documents page.  You may print this out to serve as a handy guide to help as you learn MicroStrategy.

 

 

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