Overwrite User Agent and IP Address in Adobe Analytics?

[Buzzelle]

Hello,

I am implementing Adobe Analytics in a server environment and then invoking it with a 1st party data collector on the client-side.

The issue is that when I fire AA on the server-side, Adobe is using the User Agent and IP Address from my servers as opposed to the actual data from the visitor's browser. To fix this, I am looking for ways I can tell AA to use User Agent and IP from a source I specify as opposed to those provided by the virtual server environment.

I should back up and also ask, is it certainly User Agent and IP Address that AA uses to geo-locate visitors or is there something else I need to consider? If so, can I access it?

The end result I need is, when I open my report suite for the server-side version of AA, I need to be able to select things like 'Visitor Profile --> Geo Segmentation' and have AA show me the data based on the geo data I syndicate from the client-side (Assuming it's UA and IP) as opposed to my server environment.

Any tips or guidance is much appreciated!

Thanks!

[vibhatna]

@Buzzelle,

Geo reports capture the data based on IP. For server side implementation you would have to send the user agent and IP along with other variable to make sure the geo data is collected as per your need otherwise it will keep on picking up your User agent and IP information.  

User agents are not responsible for Geo reports. UA helps in getting data for Devices, OS, Browser etc. reports. 

[Buzzelle]

Hi @vibhatna!

I really appreciate your reply. In terms of sending those data, I have recently learned the only way to do that is through use of the Data Insertion API. I don’t understand how I would otherwise map IP to something in Adobe so that Adobe would use the IP I map as opposed to the IP from the browser in the server environment. Adobe does not expose or make available an overwrite option for things like IP and UA, like Google does. I could push the IP into an eVar but Adobe won’t then refer to that for use with GEO segmentation reports, etc.. So, if I did push it to an eVar, is there a way I can then tell Adobe to use that eVar for the GEO segmentation reports?

thanks!!

[vibhatna · Accepted solution]

@Buzzelle,

Adobe only uses IP variable to classify data for Geo reports. Sending an IP to evar won't work to populate data in Geo reports.

If you are using Data insertion API and have the IP information you can actually use it. You can use <ipAddress> tag to send IP info.

<ipAddress>192.168.1.1</ipAddress>

https://github.com/AdobeDocs/analytics-1.4-apis/blob/master/docs/data-insertion-api/sample_code/r_sa...

If you would like to use evar to send IP to Adobe, you can later create classification of that evar and upload Geo data manually to that evar classification.