# NAME

Database::BI - Web-based Business Intelligence viewer for flat data files

# VERSION

0.003.2

# SYNOPSIS

**Start the development server (restarts automatically when you edit a file):**

    morbo script/database-bi

**Start the production server:**

    hypnotoad script/database-bi

**Use a different data directory:**

    # In database_bi.conf (create this file in the same folder as script/):
    { data_dir => '/home/user/data' }

**Change the language used for templates:**

    # In database_bi.conf:
    { data_dir => 'data', language => 'fr', platform => 'web' }
    # Then create templates/web/fr/ and put your French .html.tt files there.

**Run the test suite to verify everything is working:**

    make test

**Generate the Makefile for the first time or after editing Makefile.PL:**

    perl Makefile.PL

# DESCRIPTION

`Database::BI` is a [Mojolicious](https://metacpan.org/pod/Mojolicious) web application that reads arbitrary
flat data files (CSV, PSV, SQLite, XML, etc.) via [Database::Abstraction](https://metacpan.org/pod/Database%3A%3AAbstraction)
and presents them as styled, sortable, reorderable HTML tables.

Key features:

- **File picker** - the home page scans `data_dir` and shows a card for
every supported file.  Recently opened filesystem files appear in a
"Recently opened" section powered by `localStorage`.
- **Filesystem browser** - `/browse` lets the user navigate the entire
filesystem and open any supported data file, not just files in `data_dir`.
- **Column sort and reorder** - clicking a header sorts the table; headers
are draggable to reorder.  Both settings are persisted in `localStorage`
by column name and survive page reloads.
- **Left join** - the "Merge data / Filter results" panel on any table view
lets the user join one or more additional tables on a shared key.  Every
left row is kept; right-table columns are appended for matching rows.
- **Result filters** - the same panel lets the user add filter conditions
(column / operator / value) that are applied server-side after all joins.
Operators: `eq`, `ne`, `contains`, `starts`, `lt`, `le`, `gt`,
`ge`, `empty`, `notempty`.  Active filters are shown as chips in the
toolbar with a one-click "Clear" link.
- **Drag-and-drop upload** - any supported data file can be dropped directly
onto the application.  On the home page the file is opened immediately;
when the join panel is open the dropped file populates the right-table
path field.
- **Export** - the toolbar on any view offers an export panel that writes
the current logical view (after joins and filters) to a chosen filesystem
path as CSV (`.csv`) or SQLite (`.sql`).

# ROUTES

- `GET /`

    Scans `data_dir`, renders a card grid of available tables.

- `GET /view/:table`

    Opens the named table from `data_dir`.  Accepts `?f=col:op:val`
    (repeatable) to pre-filter results.

- `GET /browse`

    Filesystem navigator.  Accepts `?path=` to set the starting directory
    (defaults to `$HOME`).

- `GET /open`

    Opens any supported file by absolute path (`?path=`).  Accepts `?f=`
    filters.

- `GET /join`

    Performs one or more left joins and renders the merged table.  Parameters:

        l=<spec>               left table: "table:name" or "path:/abs/path"
        j=<spec>|<lk>|<rk>    join step (repeatable): right-spec, left key, right key
        f=<col>:<op>:<val>     result filter (repeatable)

- `GET /api/columns`

    Returns `{ "columns": [...] }` for a table (`?table=name`) or file
    (`?path=/abs/path`).  Used by the join UI to populate the right-key
    dropdown without a page reload.

- `GET /export`

    Exports the current logical view (same `l=`, `j=`, `f=` parameters as
    `/join`) as a file download.  Additional parameter:

        format=csv      (default) - RFC 4180 CSV; UTF-8; CRLF line endings
        format=sqlite   - SQLite 3 database with a single table named "data"

    The download filename is derived from the left table label with
    non-alphanumeric characters replaced by underscores.

- `POST /export`

    Writes the current logical view to a chosen filesystem path.
    Body params: `l=`, `j=`, `f=` (same as GET), plus
    `dir=` (target directory) and `filename=` (name including extension;
    extension determines format: `.csv` or `.sql`).
    Returns JSON `{ saved: "/abs/path" }` or `{ error: "..." }`.

- `GET /api/dirs`

    Returns a JSON directory listing (subdirectories only) for the export
    panel's inline directory browser.  Accepts `?path=` (defaults to
    `$HOME`).  Returns `{ path, parent, dirs: [{name, path}] }`.

- `GET /api/stat`

    Returns filesystem metadata for a file path (`?path=`).
    Returns `{ exists, path, mtime, size }`.  If the file does not exist,
    `exists` is `false` and the remaining fields are absent (HTTP 200).
    Returns HTTP 400 when `path` is missing.

- `POST /upload`

    Accepts a multipart file upload (field name: `file`), validates the
    extension, saves to a managed `.uploads/` subdirectory under the app
    home, and returns JSON `{ url, path }`.

- `GET /import`

    Fetches an HTML table from a public URL (`?url=`) and renders it as a
    data grid.  An optional `?t=` parameter (zero-based integer) selects
    which HTML table on the page to display when the page contains multiple
    tables.

- `GET /combine`

    Stacks rows from two or more tables vertically (UNION ALL) into a unified
    view.  All columns from all sources appear as headers; cells are blank
    where a source file lacks a column.  Parameters:

        l=<spec>               left table: "table:name" or "path:/abs/path"
        c=<spec>               additional table to stack (repeatable)
        f=<col>:<op>:<val>     result filter applied after combining (repeatable)

# CONFIGURATION

Place a `database_bi.conf` file in the application root to override
defaults:

    {
        data_dir => 'data',   # directory scanned for data files on the home page
        platform => 'web',    # VWF template dimension
        language => 'en',     # VWF template dimension
    }

# COMMON PITFALLS

- **The configuration file is optional but must be valid Perl if present**

    `database_bi.conf` is loaded by `Mojolicious::Plugin::Config`, which
    evaluates it as a Perl data structure.  If the file exists but contains a
    syntax error, the application will refuse to start.  If the file does not
    exist, built-in defaults are used and no error occurs.  The file must return
    a hashref:

        # database_bi.conf -- correct
        { data_dir => 'data', platform => 'web', language => 'en' }

        # WRONG -- missing braces
        data_dir => 'data'

- **data\_dir is relative to the application home directory, not the process cwd**

    Setting `data_dir => 'data'` looks for a folder called `data/` in the
    same directory as the `script/database-bi` launcher, regardless of where you
    run the server from.  An absolute path works on any system:

        { data_dir => '/var/db/mydata' }

- **The download\_dir default is computed once at startup**

    When the application starts, it picks the export directory in this order:
    `~/Downloads` (if it exists), then `$HOME`, then the system temp directory.
    This value is fixed for the life of the process.  Renaming or creating
    `~/Downloads` after the server starts has no effect.  To force a different
    default, set it before starting:

        { data_dir => 'data' }   # and create ~/Downloads before starting the server

- **Adding a new language requires a template directory, not just a config change**

    Setting `language => 'de'` in `database_bi.conf` tells the controller
    to look for templates in `templates/web/de/`.  If that directory does not
    exist, the controller automatically falls back to the default language.  To
    add German support: (1) create `templates/web/de/`, (2) copy and translate
    the `.html.tt` files from `templates/web/en/`, then (3) set the config.

- **Supported data file extensions are: csv, db, sql, xml, psv**

    The application calls `Database::Abstraction` which recognises exactly these
    five extensions.  A file called `inventory.sqlite` is **not** recognised -- it
    must be renamed to `inventory.sql`.  A file called `data.xlsx` (Excel) is
    also not supported; export it as CSV first.

- **The open\_table helper lowercases the table name**

    When the router matches `GET /view/Sales` or `GET /view/SALES`, the table
    name is lowercased to `sales` before being passed to the helper.  The data
    file on disk must therefore also be lowercase (`sales.csv`, not
    `Sales.csv`).

# LIMITATIONS

- Only read operations on data files are supported.  Write-back (editing
cell values in the browser and saving them to the data file) is not
implemented.
- The left-join engine (`Dashboard::_left_join`) is an in-memory O(n\*m)
hash join.  It is suitable for BI files that fit comfortably in RAM.
For very large files, replace the `open_table` helper body with a
`Database::Join` instance (Phase 2) without changing the controller.
- The `.uploads/` directory grows indefinitely; no automatic eviction is
performed.  Users may delete `.uploads/` at any time to reclaim space.
- `Sub::Protected`/:Protected enforcement relies on the CHECK compilation
phase.  When a module is loaded dynamically at test time (e.g. via
`Test::Mojo-`new(...)>), the CHECK phase has already passed and the
"Too late to run CHECK block" warning is emitted -- the access
restriction is not enforced in that test context.  This does not affect
production (morbo/hypnotoad) deployments where modules are compiled on
startup.  Unlike the former `Sub::Private` approach, `Sub::Protected`
does not delete stash entries, so OO dispatch `$self->_method()`
works correctly in production without any special workarounds.

# SEE ALSO

- [Test Dashboard](https://nigelhorne.github.io/Database-BI/coverage/)

# REPOSITORY

[https://github.com/nigelhorne/Database-BI](https://github.com/nigelhorne/Database-BI)

# SUPPORT

This module is provided as-is without any warranty.

# AUTHOR

Nigel Horne `<njh@nigelhorne.com>`

# LICENCE AND COPYRIGHT

Copyright 2026 Nigel Horne.

Usage is subject to the GPL2 licence terms.
If you use it,
please let me know.
