Customizing Managed Reporting

In this section:

As a Managed Reporting Developer, you can customize Managed Reporting for user access. When you create a new Managed Reporting domain, WebFOCUS automatically creates the Profile and Help components, which you can then edit to customize the reporting environment:

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Using Domain Profiles

How to:

WebFOCUS executes the profile associated with a domain each time a user opens a Managed Reporting domain. You create a domain profile by either writing a WebFOCUS procedure (.fex) or defining an HTML page (.htm). For example, you can write a WebFOCUS procedure that displays a report or defines an HTML page that displays company information each time a user opens a particular domain. The profile is not run each time a user submits a request to the WebFOCUS Reporting Server.

In addition to creating a new profile, you can import an existing procedure to the Managed Reporting Repository to use as a domain profile. You can import a procedure, created on any platform and version of WebFOCUS, using the Other Files folder to add the profile to the selected domain.

To use the Other Files folder to import a profile, you must first add the profile to the Import directory of the domain, then include the profile in the Other Files folder. After you have added the profile to the Other Files folder, you can use the toolbar to move or copy the profile to the profile icon.
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Procedure: How to Add a Profile to a Domain

  1. From the Managed Reporting Applet in Domain Builder, expand the domain to which you want to add the profile.

    Tip: Open the Other Files folder to verify that the file you want to add as the profile is listed in the directory. If the file is not listed, see How to Import a Profile for instructions about adding files to the Other Files folder.

  2. Under the domain to which you are adding the profile, right-click Profile and select New.

    The New Profile dialog box opens.

  3. In the Name field, type the name of the file (for example, filename.htm or filename.fex) that you want as a profile and click OK. The WebFOCUS text editor opens.
  4. In the text editor, create the procedure for the profile. When the profile is complete, select Save.

When creating a profile in Developer Studio, you can use either the Procedure Viewer or the text editor to create the profile procedure.

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Procedure: How to Import a Profile
  1. Use the Web server operating system commands to copy the existing profile file into the WebFOCUS domain Import directory.

    Note: Domain directories reside under the /install_directory/basedir directory on the Web Server. You can review the domain properties to determine the domain directory. The name of the domain directory contains only the first eight characters of the domain description.

  2. Expand Managed Reporting in the Developer Studio WebFOCUS Environment area, then expand the Domain.
  3. Right-click the Other folder and select New Other File, then Import External File(s).

    The Add Files dialog box opens and lists the contents of the domain Import directory.

  4. Select the files you want to add to the domain from the Available Files list.
  5. Click Add.

    The Add Files dialog box closes and you return to the Managed Reporting Repository window. WebFOCUS lists the added files under the Other Files folder.

  6. Select an imported file, under the Other Files folder, and click either the Cut or Copy icon in the toolbar.
  7. Select the Profile icon, then click the Paste icon in the toolbar.

    The profile is added to the domain.
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Procedure: How to Edit a Profile
  1. Expand the domain that contains the profile you want to edit.
  2. Right-click the Profile icon and select Edit as Text.

    The Text Editor window opens for you to edit the profile. You can use standard text editor functions, such as cut, copy, and paste to edit the profile source file.

  3. Save the profile and exit the editor.

Note: Syntax and error checking are not performed on the profile until the profile is executed.
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Procedure: How to Review Profile Properties

  1. Expand the domain folder that contains the profile you want to review.
  2. In the right pane, right-click the Profile file and select Properties.

    The Profile Properties dialog box opens and displays the name of the profile, the date and time it was created, and the Prompt for Parameters check box.

  3. Click OK to close the Profile Properties dialog box.

    You return to the Managed Reporting Repository window.
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Using Domain Help Files

How to:

A domain help component specifies an HTML help file that users can access from the Managed Reporting domain. The HTML file that you create can provide users with company specific information for a Managed Reporting domain. The user accesses this customized help by clicking Help in the Managed Reporting domain tabbed dialog boxes. This HTML file can provide additional information, such as descriptions or detailed explanations of Standard Reports and Reporting Objects, specific to the Managed Reporting domain.

In addition to creating a new HTML help file, you can import an existing help file to the Managed Reporting Repository, to make them available to users. You import an HTML help file using the Other Files folder to add the help file to the selected domain.

To use the Other Files folder to import a help file, you must first add the help file to the domain Import directory, then include the help file in the Other Files folder. After you have added the help file to the Other Files folder, you can use the toolbar to move or copy the help file to the Help File icon.

The domain Help option has been implemented with context sensitive HTML tag references. You can code the domain Help file to display information about specific Standard Reports and Reporting Objects for your users. There are also tags to allow you to provide general information for My Reports and Shared Reports. The following table lists the HTML tags you can utilize when coding the domain specific help file:

Managed Reporting Item Selected

HTML Tag Names

Domain description in right pane

#standardreport

Group folder or subgroup folder

#standardreport

Procedure

#app_filename_fex

where filename is the actual file name stored in the domain app/directory with special characters (such as slashes or periods) replaced with an underscore.

HTML page or URL

#http_url

where url is the URL with slashes and periods replaced with underscores.

ReportCaster Output

#http_url

where url is the URL with slashes and periods replaced with underscores.

Note: The Filename is given as app/slolap.fex. This name is unique and it will be passed to a help file as #app_slolap_fex.

The following is a sample help file coded in HTML:

<html>
<head><title>How to Create Context Sensitive Help in the Domains View of 
Managed Reporting
</title></head>
<body>
<BR>
<HR>
<BR>
<A NAME="app_slolap_fex">This Help section is for the "Analysis Using 
OLAP" procedure [app_slolap_fex]</A>
<BR>
<HR>
<BR>
<A NAME="app_sldst_fex">This Help section is for the "%Distribution" 
procedure [app_sldst_fex]</A>
<BR>
<HR>
<BR>
</body>
</html>

Note: <HR> places a thin line between sections. To provide for a sufficient amount of space, add text after each section or add several <BR> tags. If the content for each procedure does not exceed your window size, you will see information for more than one procedure when you select help. In addition, the information from a given procedure may not appear at the top of the browser window. A Best Practice would be to include the description in Managed Reporting to easily identify and view each procedure.
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Procedure: How to Add a Help File

If an HTML help file has not yet been created for the domain Help component, then you can create it using this procedure. The help component can contain only a single HTML file.

  1. In Developer Studio or in the Managed Reporting Domain Builder, open the domain to which you want to add a help file.

    Tip: Open the Other Files folder to verify that the file you want to add as the domain help file is listed in the directory. If the file is not listed, see How to Import a Help File for instructions about adding files to the Other Files folder.

  2. Under the selected domain, right-click Help File(None) and select New.

    The New Help File dialog box opens.

  3. In the File Name input box, type a name for your help file, and click Create in Developer Studio, or OK in the Managed Reporting Domain Builder. The text editor window opens.
  4. Type the HTML code for the help file.

    You can also use standard text editor functions such as cut, copy, and paste to help create the HTML help text.

  5. Save the help file and exit the editor.

The path name for the help file appears (in parentheses) to the right of the help component. A user can now access the help file from the domain reporting environment.
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Procedure: How to Import a Help File
  1. Copy the existing help file into the WebFOCUS domain Import directory.

    Note: Domain directories reside under the /install_directory/basedir directory. The name of the domain directory contains only the first eight characters of the description of the domain.

  2. Open the domain to which you want to add the help file.
  3. Right-click the Other Files folder and select Add Files.

    The Add Files dialog box opens and lists the contents of the domain Import directory.

  4. From the Available Files list, select the help file you want to add to the domain.
  5. Click Add.

    The Add Files dialog box closes. WebFOCUS lists the added help file under the Other Files folder.

  6. Under the Other Files folder, right-click the imported help file, and select Copy.
  7. Right-click the Help File icon and select Paste.

The help file is added to the domain.
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Procedure: How to Edit a Help File
  1. In the Managed Reporting Repository window, expand the domain that contains the HTML help file you want to edit.
  2. Right-click the Help File icon and select Edit Source.

    The Text Editor window opens for you to edit the HTML help file. You can use standard text editor functions, such as cut, copy, and paste to edit the HTML help file.

  3. Save the HTML help file and exit the editor.
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Procedure: How to Review Help File Properties

  1. In the Managed Reporting Repository window, expand the domain that contains the HTML help file you want to review.
  2. Right-click the Help File icon and select Properties.

    The Help File Properties dialog box opens and displays the name of the help file, and the date and time it was created.

  3. Click OK to close the Help File Properties dialog box.
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