Progress Data Cloud (PDC) can be a bit daunting with the different screens and things you are being asked to do/remember. This post contains some useful information on how to manage PDC on a day-to-day basis.

Managing Your API Keys

"API Keys" are used to programmatically access PDC and/or any services hosted in PDC. These keys are unique to each user so should be managed very carefully as with it anyone can access the platform with the same level of permissions you have, indeed, they will be you.

You can access your personal API key after logging into your PDC tenancy in your "Account Settings" screen. This is available by clicking on the "user" icon in the top right and clicking on your account name in the drop down menu shown. At the top of the screen shown you will see the details of any API key you may have already generated along with the associated expiry date/time. To generate a new API key OR "revoke" (invalidate) your existing API key in the case of a security incident click on the "Manage your API Key" link. 

A "service account" can be used to access the PDC APIs and if this is being used then anyone assigned the "Tenant Administrator" or "Tenant Co-Administrator" PDC roles will be able to manage the API keys on the "Users" page.

Note that for security reasons, all API keys have an expiry date. Similarly, any session tokens created using an API key also have an expiry date. 

See Manage an API key for further details. Note that there is a useful script found at API key management script that automates the management of API keys and session tokens.

Managing Your Account

If you can't receive email sent to your login account (e.g. noemail@company.com) you can update your configuration in PDC to send it to another email address on the "Account Settings" screen (click on the user icon in the top right and click on your account in the drop down menu shown) in the "Contact Email Address" field near the bottom. Note that an email will be sent to this address to confirm that it should be used and a separate email will be sent to the original account name to confirm this also.

The "Account Settings" screen also allows you access to your API key, shows you your permissions and even allows you to add another login method to your account (if you have one). This is useful if your organization has multiple authentication providers or you regularly use multiple accounts. Associating additional login methods allows you to login using any of them and still have the same level of access to PDC. Simply click on the relevant "Add" button in the "External logins" section of the screen and you will be asked to login with the new account you wish to associate with your PDC account.

Monitoring Platform Status and Upcoming Maintenance

The status of the PDC platform is regularly monitored with updates posted to https://status.data.progress.cloud/ It is strongly encouraged to "Subscribe" to updates using the "Get Updates" button in the top right corner which will send you information immediately when the status changes.

The status site is also updated with details of any upcoming platform maintenance and how this might impact you. The current policy is that maintenance is only performed during the hours of 7-10 am UTC on Tuesdays and Thursdays but obviously in the case of an issue we may take action immediately so it is important you regularly monitor the site for updates.

Note that scheduled upcoming maintenance information can also be seen within your tenancy under the "notifications" button in the top right (the "bell" button).

If you are interested in statuses about your specific services they can also be programmatically accessed via the PDC platform API using the "GET /api/tenant/status" API call but this is only available to users assigned the "Tenant Administrator" or "Tenant Co-Administrator" PDC roles.

Documentation

"Progress Data Cloud" has a section on the "docs.progress.com" web site where you can find all public documentation for the product. The direct URL for this section is https://docs.progress.com/category/pdc-content-hub otherwise simply go to https://docs.progress.com/ and click on the "Progress Data Cloud" link. Documentation includes a general use guide, release notes (lists of changes included in the various updates regularly performed on the platform), as well as information about how to use/configure "Semaphore for SharePoint Online".

Please also be aware that there are a series of short 5-6 minute videos available on YouTube about how to use PDC. See Progress Data Cloud for the playlist.

Who do I need to talk to?

Here are some common questions/issues along with what you need to do:

I can't login to PDC

Contact your tenant administrator(s). Use the link for this under the "help" (question mark) menu.

I am supposed to be able to access service X but I can't see it?

Contact your tenant administrator(s) as it is likely a permissions issue. You will need to be assigned the relevant role(s) to access the service. Use the link to contact your tenant administrator(s) under the "help" (question mark) menu.

I try to access the tenancy URL but I get a weird error?

Raise a ticket with our Technical Support team (see "Contacting Support" below).

I can't see/access the service endpoints

Contact your tenant administrator(s) as it is likely a permissions issue. You will need to be assigned the relevant role to see/access the endpoints.

Where is the documentation for the PDC API?

In your tenancy, use the "Management API" link under the help menu (the "?" icon in the top right of the screen). See also API Integration in our documentation.

How can I access a service's API?

Assuming you have permissions to the service (see above) then if you go to the "Services" page in your tenancy (use the "cog" icon in the top right of the screen and select "Services") you will see a list of services in your tenancy. Click the "down arrow" button for the service you are interested in accessing and select the "API Details" option in the menu. 

I have a great new idea for PDC, who do I share it with?

Add it to Data Platform Ideas, we would love to hear it!

Contacting Support

The Progress technical support team are well-trained professionals who will be able to help resolve any issues or concerns you might have. They can be contacted using the Progress "SupportLink" site. You will be required to have a "ProgressID" to log a support ticket but this can be created quite easily by using the "Login" button and following the prompts.