Tableau Server Administrator for Winter ’26

Learning Objectives

After completing this unit, you’ll be able to:

Explain how the Index and Search Server works and rebuild the search index to optimize content discovery.
Configure View Acceleration at the site level to improve load times.
Identify retired features and recommend alternative workflows.
Implement custom SSL certificates to secure Tableau Server communications.
Apply offline activation procedures to license Tableau Server in disconnected environments.
Assess OS compatibility and plan deployments or upgrades to ensure support.

In order to maintain your certification, you must complete all five units of this module.

Stay Current with Your Certification

Salesforce certifications hold the most value when you keep them relevant. To keep your Tableau certification current, complete this module by the due date.

Interested in learning more about getting certified? Check out the Tableau certifications.

While anyone can earn this badge, this module is designed for those who hold the Tableau certification.

As a participant of the Salesforce Certification Program, you’re required to accept the terms of the Salesforce Certification Program Agreement. Please review the Salesforce certification exam-taking policies in the Salesforce Certification Program Agreement and Code of Conduct Trailhead Help article for more details.

Tableau Certification Overview

As someone who works with Tableau, you deliver value when you:

Manage server performance, security, licensing, and retired feature replacements.
Build consistent, dynamic dashboards and prep data efficiently.
Use APIs, AI, and cloud tools to deliver faster, smarter insights.
Design secure, scalable Tableau environments and integrate data programmatically.
Create accurate, engaging dashboards with optimized data and visuals.

Salesforce introduced new features this year that help you sharpen your Tableau skills. In this module, we explore the most important updates.

Use Index and Search Server

Starting with Tableau Server version 2023.3, the Index and Search Server is replacing the previous Search and Browse functionality. This process centralizes and optimizes the indexing of Tableau content, including workbooks, views, and data sources. Additionally, the previously used command tsm maintenance reset-searchserver was retired, reflecting a shift to an automated approach for maintaining search indexes.

To ensure high availability, configure the Index and Search Server across multiple nodes. A best practice is to use an odd number of Index and Search Server instances. For Tableau Server clusters with three or more nodes, the Index and Search Server should be deployed on at least three different nodes

Node	Description
Process	Index and Search Server
Status	You can view the status of the Index and Search Server on the Status Page or via the TSM CLI. For details, see View Server Process Status.
Logging	Logs are stored at: C:\ProgramData\Tableau\Tableau Server\data\tabsvc\logs\indexandsearchserver For more information, see Tableau Server Logs and Log File Locations.

By maintaining a robust search index, you support faster content discovery, which drives user adoption and reduces support requests for locating dashboards or data sources.

Discover View Acceleration

The external query cache warmup was deprecated in Tableau Server 2023.1. To improve the performance of frequently accessed dashboards and reduce view load times, you should use View Acceleration at the site level.

View Acceleration helps dashboards load faster by saving the results of common queries ahead of time. Admins can choose which workbooks or views to speed up so the most important dashboards are always quick and ready for users.

When loading a view, performance can be limited by two main factors.

Querying: Retrieving data from the data source.
Rendering: Generating the visuals, such as drawing charts or rendering maps.

The overall load time of a workbook depends on the total time required for both querying and rendering.

Monitor view usage patterns and adjust acceleration settings as needed. Be mindful that accelerating very large or complex dashboards may increase resource consumption, so balance performance gains with system capacity. Faster load times improve user satisfaction and adoption, especially for executive dashboards or high-traffic operational views.

Retirement of Metrics, Data Stories, and Ask Data

As of Tableau 2024.2, Metrics, Data Stories, and Ask Data have been retired. It’s important to communicate these changes to users and guide them toward supported alternatives, such as curated dashboards, web authoring, and interactive visualizations.

Updating internal documentation and training materials helps prevent confusion, ensures workflow continuity, and maintains the integrity of analytical processes. For example, dashboards that previously relied on Ask Data can be redesigned using guided filters or parameterized views to preserve interactivity and insight discovery.

Configure Custom SSL Certificates for Index and Search Server and TSM Controller

You can configure custom SSL certificates for both the Index and Search Server and the TSM Controller. With this configuration, organizations can enforce encrypted communications between server processes and comply with enterprise security policies.

You can also generate or import custom certificates, configure trust chains, and apply them to relevant processes. Proper SSL implementation ensures secure data transmission, prevents man-in-the-middle attacks, and meets internal or regulatory security standards.

Be sure to validate certificates after deployment and schedule periodic certificate renewal to avoid service interruptions. You can work with security teams to ensure the certificate meets organizational requirements.

Custom SSL certificates enhance security posture, reduce risk, and enable organizations to meet compliance standards without sacrificing functionality.

Explore Enhanced Offline Activation

Enhanced Offline Activation, available from Tableau Server 2023.1, lets you activate Tableau Server in air-gap environments disconnected from the internet. Offline activation is especially important for organizations with strict network security policies or air-gapped environments.

You can activate the key needed for offline access directly from Tableau Server, either during installation, or later, using the Tableau Services Manager (TSM) Licenses page. This method improves flexibility for licensing in secure or restricted networks and ensures server deployment can proceed even without internet connectivity.

Enhanced Offline Activation provides organizations with reliable licensing management in high-security environments, minimizing delays in server deployment and upgrades.

Review Operating System Support

Tableau Server continually updates its supported operating systems for both Windows and Linux environments. It’s a good idea to review OS requirements before deploying or upgrading Tableau Server to ensure compatibility with new features, updates, and security patches. Unsupported OS versions can lead to installation failures, degraded performance, or lack of vendor support.

Before upgrading or installing Tableau Server, check the current OS compatibility matrix, plan for patching and updates, and test new versions in a sandbox environment to ensure smooth deployment.

Running Tableau Server on supported operating systems ensures stability, security, and full feature compatibility, providing a reliable analytics platform for the organization.

Summary

By staying current with these updates, you can deliver a faster, more secure, and more reliable analytics environment. The Index and Search Server centralizes content indexing for better discoverability, while View Acceleration ensures key dashboards load quickly for end users. Knowledge of the retirement of Metrics, Data Stories, and Ask Data helps to maintain consistent workflows and reduce confusion.

Configuring custom SSL certificates and using Enhanced Offline Activation strengthen security and support deployment in restricted environments. And, keeping Tableau Server on supported operating systems ensures stability, compatibility, and long-term performance—setting your organization up for success.

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