In this IBM® Redbooks® publication, we describe the role Cognos® plays in an Information On Demand (IOD) solution for IBM System z® and detail the functions of IBM Cognos 8 BI for Linux® on System z in current deployment scenarios. We show typical deployment architectures that show how to access disparate data sources both on and off the System z platform and show how the functions of the Cognos family of products provides a way to consolidate different BI solutions on System z. We provide examples of Cognos functions for resolving business requirements using reporting and OLAP capabilities as well as general deployment considerations of IBM Cognos 8 BI for Linux on System z. This publication is meant to help the Cognos Business Intelligence professional understand the strong points of System z architecture and the database specialist appreciate the Cognos family of products.