Embedding Overview

Embedding refers to either including Birst content in external applications, or including content from external applications in Birst Dashboards 2.0. In addition, Dashboards 2.0 supports two-way communication between Birst and 3rd party applications.

Embedding is often an aspect of OEM use cases. OEM projects may also include theming, white labeling, and user profiles.

See:

Embedding External Content in Birst Dashboards 2.0

There are three approaches to embedding external content into Birst dashboards:

Embedding External Web Pages in Dashboards 2.0

Dashboards 2.0 can display content from other websites within dashlets. You specify the URL of the website and optionally use dashboard filters as URL query parameters. Use the Insert Web Page feature and pass parameters if you're embedding external content within Dashboards 2.0 that does not require the use of JavaScript callback event handling, such as embedding a video.

See Embedding External Web Pages inDashboards 2.0.

Using JavaScript to Embed External Content in Dashboards 2.0

The best way to embed Javascript code, such as D3 or Google charts, is to enter your JavaScript code directly inside Dashboards 2.0 using the Add HTML Editor feature. A benefit of using the Add HTML Editor feature is that you can invoke JavaScript callbacks to dynamically control bi-directional filtering or drill-to-dashboard based on an onclick event of the embedded external visual. See Embedding HTML and JavaScript.

Embedding Birst Content in External Applications

Birst provides a general mechanism for embedding reports and dashboards within web applications, such as for an OEM embedded analytics scenario. In addition there are specific methods for embedding within the Salesforce cloud applications. It is possible to embed multiple Visualizer reports and Dashboards (from the same space) onto an external web page.

Note: Embedded Visualizer reports (via iframe using JavaScript) now respond to external filters applied from the parent content web page and adjust to any re-sizing efforts made by the parent content container.

Embedding in an External Web Application

You can embed reports and dashboards in other web applications using a single sign-on (SSO) mechanism. This allows your own authentication mechanism to authenticate the user within your application, after which your application requests an authentication token for the user to access embedded Birst reports and dashboards, for example, in an HTML Iframe. See Setting Up Single Sign-On.

If you require SAML authentication, see Integrating Birst with SAML.

Embedding in Cloud Applications

There are specific methods for embedding Birst in Salesforce.com.

See:

Using the JavaScript API for Two-Way Communication

Use the Embedding API and JavaScript to embed Dashboards 2.0 dashboards in your web pages. You can also pass data from a web page embedded in Birst to the Birst application.

See Embedding API for JavaScript.