We have updated our Power Tools branding. Any references to software/feature naming conventions may no longer be accurate in this article.

With the Enterprise Deployment Tool for Tableau Beta release just around the corner, we thought we’d take the time to talk about it just a bit more. We’ve given you some background on what the EDT does and includes, but we wanted to take our explanation of it one step further.

Let’s start by explaining what the EDT is/does in layman’s terms:

EDT deploys workbooks from a “source” Tableau Server instance to a “destination” Tableau Server instance. It’s essentially workbook copy/paste for enterprises. That said, it goes much deeper than that. For now, let’s walk through the basics of how the EDT works.

A Use Case for the EDT

In reality, when you have to deploy a workbook from a staging Tableau Server to a production Tableau Server, you have to make slight modifications to the workbooks. You might:

Modify data connections to point to your production database instead of your staging database

Rename Tableau workbooks or move them to new projects

This is where the EDT shines. It automates these processes, saving you an incredible amount of time and effort when you need to deploy various Tableau workbooks across your enterprise. The EDT does this all through an easily-navigable graphic user interface (GUI).

The EDT GUI

The GUI lets you configure:

What the “source” Tableau Server is What the “destination” Tableau Server is What workbooks should be deployed All workbooks? All workbooks from “X” project or with “X” tags All workbooks modified since last deployment? Whatever other characteristics you want to filter by What changes should be made to each workbook during deployment Data source connection changes or replacements Other modifications to workbooks

Above: A peek at the EDT GUI as of right now. Details and layout subject to change.

Save Your Configurations

After working its magic, the EDT allows you to save these configurations in a convenient *.edt file. You can open, edit and run this file at any time. The EDT also features a command line tool that enables you to run your *.edt files from a server on scheduled tasks.

Version Control

Finally, EDT gives you a basic rendition of version control. If you are developing “Workbook X” and there is already a “Workbook X” on the destination server, you can have the EDT “backup” the existing workbook before overwriting it. EDT will copy that existing workbook into a separate project on the “destination” server and mark it with a time stamp.

More to Come

There you have it! The EDT brought down to earth. It’s hard to put everything that the EDT does into words, which is why it’s best to explore it for yourself when we release the EDT Beta. It’s deceptively simple, but underneath it all, incredibly powerful. We have much more planned for the EDT in the future. Our goal is to make it the ultimate enterprise tool for Tableau.

Interested in learning more about the Enterprise Deployment Tool for Tableau? Contact us today!

Contact us!