Deployment involves moving applications from one installation to another. In Cognos 8, you deploy packages, top-level folders, or the entire content store from a source environment to a target environment.
Typically, deployment transfers entries, such as folders, reports, and report views, from a development environment to a test environment and then to a production environment. You can also deploy between operating systems.
It is important to plan your deployment to ensure that you deploy the correct information and that you do not disturb the target environment. It is also important to consider security in the source and target environments.
You can upgrade entries from previous releases, by running the deployment import wizard. For more information, see Import to a Target Environment.
You can use an operating system or scripting mechanism to perform deployment from a command line. You can use the Cognos 8 software development kit (SDK) to automate the deployment process to
create, update, and delete a deployment specification
load a deployment specification from a deployment archive
submit deployment export and import requests
access deployment history
For more information, see the Cognos 8 Developer Guide.