Business Intelligence 2.4.0: Easier Grafana Connect, Alert Insights, and More

We’re thrilled to unveil the public preview of Business Intelligence 2.4.0, a release from Volkov Labs that enhances the Business Intelligence platform with:

• Seamless Grafana connection via Business Studio.
• Richer alert event details for troubleshooting.
• High Availability (HA) status in the Business Engine overview.
• A simplified scheduler for alert rules.
• Data frame previews within Business Studio.
• Clearer user prompts for configuration.
• An updated Business Engine API.

Discover how these updates streamline your BI experience below.

Connect Grafana via Business Studio

Gone are the days of manually tweaking the GRAFANA_TOKEN in config files. Now, Business Studio offers a user-friendly interface to link a Business Engine to a Grafana instance:

1. Go to Business Engine > Environment page.
2. Scroll to the Grafana section and click Edit.
3. Enter the Grafana URL and Service Account token.

Link a Business Engine to Grafana directly in Business Studio.

This updates the grafana_token in the environments table. In an HA setup, editing one engine syncs all others connected to the same database—no redundant tweaks needed.

High Availability Tip

Update one Business Engine, and all others in the cluster follow automatically.

Deeper Alert Event Insights

Terminology

An “alert event” is a database record of an alert, also called an alert record.

All Alert Rules

• Navigate to a Business Engine’s Overview page.
• Check the Alert History for a unified view of all alert events.

See all alert events in one place.

Single Alert Rule

• Go to the Alert Rules page, select a rule, and review its Alert History.
• Click an event to dive into details.
  • Alerting State: The Alert Evaluations section highlights triggering values. Use View as Code for the full payload.
  • Other States: Payloads display directly in Alert Evaluations.

Alert history for a single rule.

Alerting state shows triggering values; view full payload with 'View as Code'.

Other states display payloads directly.

These enhancements make troubleshooting faster and more precise.

High Availability (HA) Status

The Business Engine Overview now flags HA status:

• Disabled: Solo engine in the cluster.
• Enabled: Multiple engines detected.

HA status at a glance.

Simplified Alert Scheduling

Creating alert rules is now easier with preset templates alongside Cron expressions. Pick a template and tweak as needed—no Cron expertise required.

Simplified scheduling with templates.

Preview Grafana Data Frames

See the data behind your alerts directly in Business Studio:

1. Open an alert rule.
2. (Optional) Confirm dashboard and panel on Alert Settings.
3. Switch to Data Preview and adjust variables if needed.
4. Review the data frame—or click View as Code for raw details.
5. (Optional) Cross-check in Grafana’s Table View under panel edit mode.

Preview Grafana data frames in Business Studio.

This transparency bridges Business Studio and Grafana seamlessly.

Clearer User Prompts

Enhanced prompts across the UI clarify parameter meanings, reducing setup confusion and boosting confidence.

Updated Business Engine API

The OpenAPI specification is refreshed, keeping third-party integrations smooth and aligned with 2.4.0’s features.

Downloads: Business Studio 2.4.0

Signed Releases

MacOS and Windows installers are signed, notarized, and built via automated GitHub workflows for top security.

• MacOS:
  • Apple Disk Image (Apple Silicon)
  • Apple Disk Image (Intel x86)
  • ZIP (Apple Silicon)
  • ZIP (Intel x86)
• Linux:
  • RPM (arm64)
  • RPM (x64)
  • Debian (arm64)
  • Debian (x86)
• Windows:
  • Executable

Getting Started

The Business Intelligence platform uses Docker containers to deliver a modular, scalable solution. Our Getting Started guide provides a detailed setup, integrating Business Intelligence with additional tools to simulate a real-world environment.

Looking for a simpler entry point? Explore the Quick Start section instead.

Tutorial Video

Watch Daria guide you through the installation process step-by-step, then learn how to create your first alert action and link it to an alert rule.

How to Get Started with Business Intelligence Platform for Grafana 2.3.0

Release Notes

Breaking Changes in Engine API

Data routes updated from /grafana to /grafana-data.

Business Studio 2.4.0

• Added Grafana connection management in Engine Environment.
• Enhanced alert event details with conditions and code view.
• Included backend query verification for panels.
• Added HA state to Engine Overview.
• Simplified alert scheduling with templates.
• Enabled data frame previews for alerts.
• Improved UI prompts for clearer configuration.

Business Engine 2.4.0

• Added API for real-time Grafana config updates.
• Added API for alert event details and HA state.
• Added API for alert data previews.
• Updated alert event structure for consistency.

We’d Love to Hear From You!

Have feedback or ideas? Get involved:

• Questions, Features, or Bugs: Open a GitHub issue.
• Join the Conversation: Subscribe to our YouTube Channel and share your thoughts in the comments.

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