Publishing to Tableau Server - Real Business Scenario

Scenario Mode

👤 Your Role: You are a business intelligence analyst at a retail company.

📋 Request: Your manager wants you to share the monthly sales dashboard with the sales team through Tableau Server so they can access it anytime.

📊 Data: You have a Tableau workbook with a dashboard showing monthly sales trends by region and product category.

🎯 Deliverable: Publish the Tableau workbook to Tableau Server with proper permissions so the sales team can view the dashboard online.

Sample Data

Month	Region	Product Category	Sales
January	North	Electronics	12000
January	South	Furniture	8000
February	North	Electronics	15000
February	South	Furniture	7000
March	North	Electronics	13000
March	South	Furniture	9000
April	North	Electronics	14000
April	South	Furniture	8500

1

Step 1: Open your Tableau workbook containing the monthly sales dashboard.

No formula needed.

Expected Result

Your dashboard is ready to be published.

2

Step 2: Click on 'Server' in the Tableau menu and select 'Sign In'. Enter your Tableau Server credentials.

No formula needed.

Expected Result

You are signed in to Tableau Server.

3

Step 3: Click on 'Server' again and select 'Publish Workbook'.

No formula needed.

Expected Result

Publish Workbook dialog opens.

4

Step 4: In the Publish Workbook dialog, enter a name for the workbook, select the project folder on Tableau Server, and check 'Include External Files' if needed.

No formula needed.

Expected Result

Workbook details are set for publishing.

5

Step 5: Set permissions by clicking on the 'Permissions' button. Add the sales team group and give them 'Viewer' access.

No formula needed.

Expected Result

Sales team can view the dashboard on Tableau Server.

6

Step 6: Click 'Publish' to upload the workbook to Tableau Server.

No formula needed.

Expected Result

Workbook is published and accessible on Tableau Server.

7

Step 7: Share the Tableau Server URL of the published dashboard with the sales team.

No formula needed.

Expected Result

Sales team can open the dashboard in their browsers anytime.

Final Result

-----------------------------------------
|           Monthly Sales Dashboard      |
|---------------------------------------|
| Month | Region | Product Category | Sales ($)  |
|---------------------------------------|
| Jan   | North  | Electronics     | 12000     |
| Jan   | South  | Furniture       | 8000      |
| Feb   | North  | Electronics     | 15000     |
| Feb   | South  | Furniture       | 7000      |
| Mar   | North  | Electronics     | 13000     |
| Mar   | South  | Furniture       | 9000      |
| Apr   | North  | Electronics     | 14000     |
| Apr   | South  | Furniture       | 8500      |
-----------------------------------------
Dashboard is published on Tableau Server with viewer access for sales team.

✓The sales dashboard is now accessible online via Tableau Server.

✓The sales team can view monthly sales trends anytime without needing Tableau Desktop.

✓Permissions are set to ensure only authorized users can see the dashboard.

Bonus Challenge

Set up a scheduled refresh on Tableau Server so the dashboard data updates automatically every week.

Show Hint

Use Tableau Server's data source scheduling feature to refresh extracts on a set schedule.