Tableau Pulse Utilities

A comprehensive web application suite for managing Tableau Pulse with eight powerful utilities, built with Python Flask and featuring a modern, responsive UI.

🚀 Available Utilities

1. 📊 Copy Pulse Definitions

Transfer Tableau Pulse definitions between different sites

• Copy individual definitions by ID or all definitions from a datasource
• Cross-site copying with full authentication support
• Preserves all definition metadata and configurations

2. 👥 Bulk Manage Followers

Add or remove followers from Pulse metrics using email addresses

• Bulk operations on multiple metrics simultaneously
• Email-based user identification (converts emails to user IDs automatically)
• Support for both adding and removing followers

3. 🔄 Swap Datasources

Copy definitions with new datasources and migrate all metrics + followers

• Creates new definitions with different datasources
• Migrates all associated metrics and their followers
• Optional cleanup of old metric followers

4. ⚙️ Update User Preferences

Update Tableau Pulse user preferences for single or multiple users

• Configure cadence settings (daily, weekly, monthly)
• Manage email and Slack channel preferences
• Set metric grouping and sorting options
• Bulk update preferences for multiple users

5. ✅ Check Certified Metrics

View all certified metrics and optionally remove certifications from unauthorized users

• List all metric definitions with certification status
• Filter by group name (automatic group ID lookup)
• Automatically remove certifications from non-group members
• Comprehensive reporting with certification details

6. 📊 Bulk Create Scoped Metrics

Create multiple scoped metrics from a source metric with CSV upload support for advanced features

• 📄 CSV Upload Mode: Upload a CSV file with dimension name, filter values, and follower emails
  • Column 1: Dimension name (e.g., "Region")
  • Column 2: Comma-separated filter values (e.g., "East, West" creates a metric with BOTH values)
  • Column 3: Comma-separated follower emails (optional)
• ✏️ Manual Entry Mode: Simple text input for single filter value per metric
• 👥 Auto-assign Followers: Automatically add followers by email when creating metrics
• 🔍 Multiple Filters: Create metrics with multiple dimension values in a single filter
• Each new metric includes all filters from the source plus the new dimension filter(s)

7. 📈 Pulse Analytics

Get comprehensive insights and analytics about Pulse metric usage across your site

• 📊 Overall Statistics: Total definitions, metrics, subscriptions, and unique followers
• 🏆 Top Metrics: See which individual metrics have the most followers
• 📈 Top Definitions: Discover which metric definitions are most popular across all their metrics
• 🗄️ Datasource Usage: Understand which datasources are driving the most engagement
• ✅ Certification Insights: Track how many definitions are certified
• Interactive Dashboard: Visual cards and sortable tables for easy analysis

8. 📑 Export Definitions

Export all Pulse metric definitions to CSV for documentation or analysis

• 📋 Basic Mode: Export essential fields - Name, Measure, Time Dimension, Definitional Filters, Datasource Name
• 📊 Verbose Mode: Export all configuration details including extension options, comparisons, certification status, and more
• 🎨 Viz State Support: Handles Viz State definitions appropriately (marks measure/filters as embedded)
• 📥 Download CSV: Tab-delimited CSV file with one row per definition
• 🗄️ Datasource Names: Automatically resolves datasource IDs to names

✨ Common Features

• 🔐 Multiple Authentication: Supports both username/password and Personal Access Token (PAT) authentication
• 🌟 Modern UI: Beautiful, gradient interface with glass morphism effects and animations
• 🚀 Real-time Progress: Live updates during operations
• 📱 Responsive Design: Works seamlessly on desktop and mobile devices
• ✨ Error Handling: Comprehensive error reporting and validation
• 🏠 Utility Selector: Easy-to-use front page for choosing which tool to use

Project Structure

hello-world-app/
├── app.py              # Flask application with Pulse API integration
├── requirements.txt    # Python dependencies (Flask, requests)
├── README.md          # This file
└── templates/
    └── index.html     # Web UI with form and progress tracking

Setup and Installation

Prerequisites

• Python 3.7+ installed on your system
• pip (Python package installer)

Installation Steps

1. Navigate to the project directory:

   cd hello-world-app

2. Create a virtual environment (recommended):

   python -m venv venv

3. Activate the virtual environment:

   • On macOS/Linux:

     source venv/bin/activate

   • On Windows:

     venv\Scripts\activate

4. Install dependencies:

   pip install -r requirements.txt

Running the Application

1. Start the Flask server:

   python app.py

2. Open your web browser and visit:

   http://localhost:3000
   

3. You'll see the Pulse Definition Copier interface with:

   • Welcome tab with overview and features
   • Copy Definitions tab with the main form
   • Real-time progress tracking during operations

📋 Usage Guide

Getting Started

1. Start the application and visit http://localhost:3000
2. Choose one of the three available utilities from the home page
3. Fill in the required connection and configuration details
4. Monitor real-time progress and results

📊 Using Copy Pulse Definitions

1. Source Site Configuration:

   • Enter source Tableau Server URL
   • Provide site content URL and authentication credentials
   • Specify the source datasource name

2. Destination Site Configuration:

   • Enter destination Tableau Server URL
   • Provide destination site details and credentials
   • Specify the destination datasource name

3. Definition Selection:

   • Enter specific definition IDs (comma-separated) or "all" for all definitions

4. Execute: Click "🚀 Start Copying" and monitor progress

👥 Using Bulk Manage Followers

1. Site Connection:

   • Enter Tableau Server URL and site content URL
   • Choose authentication method and provide credentials

2. Action Configuration:

   • Select action: "Add Followers" or "Remove Followers"
   • Enter metric IDs (comma-separated)
   • Enter user email addresses (comma-separated or one per line)

3. Execute: Click "👥 Manage Followers" and monitor progress

🔄 Using Swap Datasources

1. Site Connection:

   • Enter Tableau Server URL and site content URL
   • Provide authentication credentials

2. Copy Configuration:

   • Enter the Pulse Definition ID to copy
   • Enter the new Datasource LUID to use

3. Cleanup Options:

   • Optionally remove followers from old metrics after copying

4. Execute: Click "🔄 Swap Datasources" and monitor progress

⚙️ Using Update User Preferences

1. Server Connection:

   • Enter Tableau Server URL and API version
   • Provide site content URL and authentication credentials

2. Users Configuration:

   • Enter user email addresses (comma-separated or one per line)

3. Pulse Preferences:

   • Set cadence (daily, weekly, monthly)
   • Configure email and Slack channel delivery
   • Set metric grouping and sort order preferences

4. Execute: Click "⚙️ Update User Preferences" and monitor progress

✅ Using Check Certified Metrics

1. Server Connection:

   • Enter Tableau Server URL and API version
   • Provide site content URL and authentication credentials

2. Group Configuration (Optional):

   • Enter a Group Name to filter certifications by group membership
   • The tool will automatically look up the group ID from the name
   • Leave empty to view all certified metrics without filtering

3. Certification Removal (Optional):

   • Check the box to automatically remove certifications from metrics certified by non-group members
   • Requires a Group Name to be specified

4. Execute: Click "✅ Check Certified Metrics" and view the results

   The tool will:

   • List all metric definitions with certification status
   • Show which metrics were certified by group members vs. non-members (if group specified)
   • Display certifier information and certification dates
   • Optionally remove certifications from unauthorized users

📊 Using Bulk Create Scoped Metrics

1. Server Connection:

   • Enter Tableau Server URL and API version
   • Provide site content URL and authentication credentials

2. Source Metric Configuration:

   • Enter the Source Metric ID (the existing scoped metric to use as a template)

3. Input Mode Selection:

   • CSV Upload (Recommended):
     • Upload a CSV file with 3 columns:
       • Column 1: Dimension name (e.g., "Region")
       • Column 2: Comma-separated filter values (e.g., "East, West")
       • Column 3: Comma-separated follower emails (optional)
     • Example CSV:

       Region,East,[email protected]
       Region,"East, West",[email protected]
       Department,Sales,"[email protected], [email protected]"
       

   • Manual Entry:
     • Enter Dimension Name (e.g., "Region", "Category")
     • Enter dimension values (comma-separated)
     • Creates one metric per value (no follower assignment)

4. Execute: Click "📊 Create Scoped Metrics" and monitor progress

   The tool will:

   • Retrieve the source metric and its specification
   • Create a new scoped metric for each CSV row (or dimension value in manual mode)
   • Each new metric will have all filters from the source metric plus new filter(s) for the dimension value(s)
   • Automatically add followers by email (CSV mode only)
   • Display success/failure for each created metric and follower addition

   Example: If you start with metric X that shows "Total Sales", choose dimension "Region", and provide values "East, West, North, South", the tool will create 4 new scoped metrics:

   • Total Sales (Region=East)
   • Total Sales (Region=West)
   • Total Sales (Region=North)
   • Total Sales (Region=South)

📈 Using Pulse Analytics

1. Server Connection:

   • Enter Tableau Server URL and API version
   • Provide site content URL and authentication credentials

2. Generate Analytics: Click "📈 Generate Analytics" and wait for data collection

   The tool will:

   • Retrieve all metric definitions on the site
   • Collect all subscriptions/followers data
   • Gather metrics for each definition
   • Analyze datasource usage patterns
   • Calculate statistics and rankings

3. View Results: The analytics dashboard displays:

   • Summary Cards: Quick overview of total definitions, metrics, subscriptions, unique followers, certified definitions, and unique datasources
   • Top 10 Most Followed Metrics: Individual metrics ranked by follower count
   • Top 10 Definitions by Total Followers: Metric definitions ranked by aggregate follower count across all their metrics
   • Top 10 Datasources by Usage: Datasources ranked by total followers, showing definition count and metric count

   Use Cases:

   • Understand which metrics and definitions are getting the most adoption
   • Identify underutilized datasources or definitions
   • Track certification progress across your organization
   • Make data-driven decisions about which metrics to promote or retire

📑 Using Export Definitions

1. Server Connection:

   • Enter Tableau Server URL and API version
   • Provide site content URL and authentication credentials

2. Export Mode Selection:

   • Basic Mode: Exports essential fields only
     • Name, Measure, Time Dimension, Definitional Filters, Type, Definition ID, Datasource Name
   • Verbose Mode: Exports all configuration details including:
     • All basic fields plus Description, Datasource info, Running Total setting
     • Extension options (Allowed Dimensions, Granularities, Offset settings)
     • Representation options (Number Format, Sentiment Type, Units)
     • Insights settings, Comparisons, Certification status
     • Related Links count, Goals count, Created/Modified timestamps

3. Execute: Click "📑 Export Definitions" and wait for processing

4. View & Download Results:

   • Preview the first 50 definitions in an interactive table
   • Click "📥 Download CSV" to get the complete tab-delimited file
   • File is also automatically saved to the server directory

   Note on Viz State Definitions:

   • Definitions created from existing visualizations show "(Viz State)" for Measure, Time Dimension, and Filters
   • These values are embedded in the visualization and cannot be extracted separately
   • All other fields (verbose mode) are exported normally

🔌 API Endpoints

• GET / - Main utilities selection interface
• GET /api/hello - Test API connection endpoint
• POST /copy-definitions - Copy pulse definitions between sites
• POST /manage-followers - Bulk add/remove followers from metrics
• POST /swap-datasources - Copy definitions with new datasources
• POST /update-preferences - Update user preferences for Pulse
• POST /check-certified-metrics - Check certified metrics and remove unauthorized certifications
• POST /bulk-create-scoped-metrics - Create multiple scoped metrics from a source metric
• POST /pulse-analytics - Generate comprehensive analytics about Pulse usage
• POST /export-definitions - Export all metric definitions to CSV

Customization

• Modify the UI: Edit templates/index.html to change the interface or styling
• Update CSS: Modify the styles in the <style> section for custom themes
• Add new API endpoints: Extend app.py with additional @app.route() functions
• Change server configuration: Modify the port=3000 parameter in app.run() in app.py
• Adjust API version: Update the API_VERSION constant in app.py if needed

Development

• The app runs in debug mode by default, so changes to Python files will automatically reload the server
• For production deployment, set debug=False in app.run()
• All sensitive credentials are handled securely and not stored permanently

Stopping the Application

• Press Ctrl+C in the terminal where the server is running
• To deactivate the virtual environment: deactivate

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

• Port already in use: Change the port in app.py or kill the process using port 3000
• Module not found: Make sure you've activated the virtual environment and installed requirements
• Permission errors: Ensure you have proper permissions in the project directory

API-Related Issues

• Authentication failed: Verify your credentials and ensure the server URLs are correct
• Datasource not found: Check that the datasource name exists on the specified site
• Definition copy failed: Ensure you have appropriate permissions on both source and destination sites
• Network timeout: Check network connectivity to the Tableau servers

Security Notes

• Never commit credentials to version control
• Use environment variables for production deployments
• Ensure HTTPS is used for production Tableau Server connections
• Personal Access Tokens are recommended over username/password authentication

🎯 What's Included

This application suite includes eight powerful utilities for managing Tableau Pulse:

Available Utilities:

1. Pulse Definition Copier - Copy definitions between sites
2. Bulk Manage Followers - Add/remove followers from metrics
3. Swap Datasources - Copy definitions with new datasources
4. Update User Preferences - Update Pulse user preferences
5. Check Certified Metrics - View and manage metric certifications
6. Bulk Create Scoped Metrics - Create multiple scoped metrics with dimension filters
7. Pulse Analytics - Get comprehensive insights into metric usage and follower engagement
8. Export Definitions - Export all metric definitions to CSV for documentation

Benefits of the Web Interface:

• 🌐 No CLI Required: Everything runs through the web browser
• 👁️ Better UX: Visual progress tracking and comprehensive error reporting
• ✅ Validation: Form validation ensures all required fields are completed
• 🔒 Security: Credentials are handled securely without persistent storage
• 🚀 Enhanced Functionality: Same power as the original CLI scripts with improved usability
• 📱 Accessibility: Works on any device with a web browser
• 🏠 Unified Interface: All eight utilities in one convenient location

Technical Features:

• Modern Flask web framework
• RESTful API design
• Real-time progress updates via JSON responses
• Comprehensive error handling and logging
• Beautiful, responsive UI with animations
• Support for both JSON and XML API authentication methods

Transform your Tableau Pulse management workflow with this powerful web application suite! 🚀📊👥🔄⚙️✅📊📈📑