Configuring CAM Security in Pulse

This article explains how to configure Pulse to use CAM (Cognos Access Manager) security, enabling users to authenticate via IBM Cognos and Active Directory.

Prerequisites

• IBM Cognos BI 10.1 or later, already configured with an appropriate authentication provider.

• Pulse 5.0.22 or later installed and running.

• The Cognos Dispatcher URL available (e.g. http://cognosserver:9300/p2pd/servlet/dispatch).

Configuration Steps

Step 1 — Set the Cognos Dispatcher in Pulse

1. Log in to Pulse as a user with Administrator rights.

2. Go to Administration → Configuration.

3. Under the Settings section, locate the Cognos Dispatcher field.

4. Enter the full Cognos Dispatcher URL for your environment.

5. Click Save and wait for the confirmation message.

Step 2 — Create CAM-enabled Pulse Users

Once CAM is configured, users can be created in Pulse with their CAM namespace and username. See Configuring Users to Log In with CAM Credentials for the full steps.

Step 3 — Verify CAM Login

1. Log out of Pulse.

2. On the login screen, a CAM login option will now be available.

3. Enter your CAM namespace credentials to verify the connection.

CAM Namespace

The CAM Namespace is case-sensitive and must match exactly the namespace configured in IBM Cognos. Common namespace values include:

• LDAP

• AD (Active Directory)

• CognosEx (for Cognos Series 7 namespaces)

If the namespace is incorrect, the user will receive an authentication error even with valid credentials.

Combining CAM with Windows SSO

Pulse can be configured to use both CAM security (for TM1 authentication) and Windows SSO (for Pulse login). In this scenario:

• Windows SSO handles the Pulse login — users are automatically logged in with their Windows account.

• CAM is used to authenticate against the TM1 instance when connecting via Pulse.

This setup requires both WindowsAuthentication = true in the [Password] section and the Cognos Dispatcher configured in Administration → Configuration.

Troubleshooting