Anyone successfully integrated the delivery of an Excel file with report Caster?

[robert fuschetto]

We have Report Caster running a few fexes and emailing a few charts. There is a desire for detail data for analysis. Analytic HTML reporting is not desired. They specifically want a pivot table. Personally, I do not blame them. I have an automated process to refresh such a file outside of WebFocus.

Is it possible to somehow have report Caster grab the excel file and attach it to an email. If so can you share the specifics?

[Mat Barnard]

You could try playing around with the attachment options?

See what happens if you have a dummy report but add the excel as an attachment?

Maybe have a pre-existing zip file with the excel in it?

[Patrick Huebgen]

You can use File , FTP or URL - depending on where your Excel is stored

[Mat Barnard]

Oh and there are options for WebFOCUS to create pivotted excel output. See around page 747

https://docs.tibco.com/pub/wf-wf/9.2.2/doc/pdf/IBI_wf-wf_9.2.2_cr_language.pdf

[Patrick Huebgen]

For mor Excel magic - you can try Excel templates

[robert fuschetto]

Attachment Method...where would I store my Excel Pivot. This is intriguing. I could set it to refresh on open. But it seems the attachment must somehow live in here? But How do I move it here....?

 

[robert fuschetto]

Also, I read about the Excel Pivot template option....it seems to tie into my above post....when I try to save the template under baseapp for example...it either times out or results in an error.

I am not sure how to use the FML option...thought I seem to recall an issue with this and linking files, on our Share Drive, using EDGE..our hyperlinks are not a sharepoint site.

[robert fuschetto]

Well I refreshed the xl template against an empty table and saved it under the report caster folder. I think added it as an attachment from there in the Report caster job. If successful I'd get a couple WF charts and the new attachment. The job ran but I did not receive anything. The log seems to indicate it ran though. I was hoping I'd get an email with an attachment and then the file would refresh on open...when I opened it.

Now after an usual amount of time I got an email! However...no attachment..just this..whatever the heck this..any ideas?

[robert fuschetto]

Maybe I should play with this setting?

[Patrick Huebgen]

Try "Report to zip" please

[robert fuschetto]

LOL.....it zipped the 3 little charts it used to attach from WF:

but did nothing with the excel file I tried to attach.

 

 

So the only thing the 'attach a file and zip' seems to do is created the little PK??? in the email.

[Patrick Huebgen]

You are missing the Excel - correct?

Did you tried to schedule a ZIP file - storing the Excel as ZIP - not xltx

[robert fuschetto]

Correct. No. I will save the Excel File as a zipped file in the Report Caster folder and try to attach that but...I thought WF would zip it if I used that option...

[robert fuschetto]

Well it attached the zip file but...

 

when I click open I get this....

 

I am beginning to think this feature does not work.

:(

[robert fuschetto]

the other original 3 open fine....

[Patrick Huebgen]

I tested the Excel Casting for you -

[robert fuschetto]

Well I tried with a small word file...same thing:

 

We are on version 8207v28. Are you on a later version? It simply does not work which means its the software or perhaps something on our end..which means it will never get figured out! Maybe I will have our 'support' open a case. Not holding my breath though.

I watched the video...good to hear Walter's voice again. I tried adding a task-> File as he did....I got an error....perhaps that is a security thing.

 

But the file is there:  

Again, this could be a security thing however saving the file in the report caster folder and using the Distribution tab (which I thought was originally what we were after) should work I'd think. It does not.

Sample:

[Patrick Huebgen]

Did you followed my steps as descibed in the video? The X drive is a shared network drive???

If that's case this might not work try to put it on the local drive of the server - Windows is kind of challenging with mapped network drives

[robert fuschetto]

The X drive is shared and did NOT expect that to work. There is no area they will let me park it other than Sharepoint and we never had any luck grabbing from there. Ideally I would put it in a subfolder in a baseapp subfolder or in the report caster folder and use the distribution screen (file zip etc)....but as I showed earlier..that does not work.

[Patrick Huebgen]

You could send a link to the Sharepoint location via email - or map the Sharepoint folder as APP folder in WebFOCUS -

[robert fuschetto]

perhaps but it would seem I am jumping thru hoops when I should just be able to attach the file. Maybe I'll just stick a link in the email....if I can do that. THANKS!

[robert fuschetto]

i saw your snip where you can select FTP...I'll have to get IT involved in that one...what does URL do?..I tried that yesterday and got an error but did not really know what I was doing... ....is there a spot I can just put a link to my local share in the email?

[robert fuschetto]

Last question before I open a case...is there a way I can stick a local share link in the body of an email? If not we will open a case, point out all the options that do not work for us or at least our version etc.....THANKS!

[Patrick Huebgen]

You can create a webfocus report that contains any type of code and include it als inline message.

i usually create some report based on car or systable or my real data- add my custom text to this report for example header so I get a nicely formatted email and you can use dynamic fields —.