Sage Intelligence Reporting - Beginner Training Manual

Sage Intelligence Reporting Version 7.3 Beginner Manual

2014 Sage Intelligence Reporting Sage Intelligence 7.3 Reporting Beginner Manual Page 2 of 48

Contents

WELCOME .................................................................................................................................... 4

Course Pre-Requisites .................................................................................................................. 4

Course Objectives ......................................................................................................................... 4

How to Use the Curriculum ............................................................................................................ 4

Document Conventions ................................................................................................................. 4

Course Outline .............................................................................................................................. 5

Sample Company Information ....................................................................................................... 5

LESSON 1: OVERVIEW OF SAGE INTELLIGENCE REPORTING ............................................... 6

An Overview of Business Intelligence ............................................................................................ 6

How Sage Intelligence Reporting Fulfils Business Intelligence Needs ........................................... 7

The Sage Intelligence Reporting Modules ..................................................................................... 8

Report Manager ......................................................................................................................... 8

Report Viewer ............................................................................................................................ 9

Report Designer ......................................................................................................................... 9

Connector ................................................................................................................................ 10

Security Manager ..................................................................................................................... 11

License Manager ...................................................................................................................... 12

LESSON 2: NAVIGATING WITHIN THE REPORT MANAGER ................................................... 13

Object Window ............................................................................................................................ 13

Object Level Hierarchy ............................................................................................................. 14

Properties Window ...................................................................................................................... 15

Accessing Commands ................................................................................................................. 16

LESSON 3: TYPES OF SAGE INTELLIGENCE REPORTS ........................................................ 17

Standard Reports ........................................................................................................................ 17

Union Reports ............................................................................................................................. 17

Dataless Reports ......................................................................................................................... 18

Sub Query Reports ...................................................................................................................... 18

LESSON 4: ORGANIZING REPORTS ........................................................................................ 19

Adding a Folder ........................................................................................................................... 20

Copying a Report ........................................................................................................................ 20

Renaming a Report ..................................................................................................................... 21

Locking a Report Template .......................................................................................................... 21

Unlocking a Report Template ...................................................................................................... 22

LESSON 5: CREATING A STANDARD REPORT ....................................................................... 23


Adding a Folder ........................................................................................................................... 24

Adding a Report .......................................................................................................................... 25

Defining the Properties of the Report ........................................................................................... 27

Columns ................................................................................................................................... 27

Filters ....................................................................................................................................... 28

Parameters .............................................................................................................................. 28

Sort Fields ................................................................................................................................ 29

Aggregate Filters ...................................................................................................................... 29

Running the Report ..................................................................................................................... 30

Formatting the Report .................................................................................................................. 31

Saving the Excel Template .......................................................................................................... 33

LESSON 6: SAVING FORMATTING CHANGES IN EXISTING REPORTS ................................. 34

LESSON 7: CREATING A REPORT THAT INCLUDES DATA FROM MULTIPLE REPORTS .... 36

When to Use Union Reports ........................................................................................................ 36

What a Union Report is ............................................................................................................... 36

Examples of Union Reports ......................................................................................................... 37

Creating a Union Report .............................................................................................................. 37

Changing the Order of Union Worksheets ................................................................................... 38

Hiding Sub Reports ..................................................................................................................... 39

Showing Hidden Reports ............................................................................................................. 40

Re-Hiding Hidden Reports ........................................................................................................... 40

LESSON 8: RUNNING MULTIPLE REPORTS ............................................................................ 41

LESSON 9: SUMMARIZING OR GROUPING DATA IN A REPORT ........................................... 42

Types of Aggregation Used in Sage Intelligence Reporting ......................................................... 42

Example of an Aggregate Function .......................................................................................... 43

Example of an Aggregate Filter ................................................................................................ 44

Adding Aggregate Functions and Filters ...................................................................................... 45

Adding an Aggregate Function ................................................................................................. 45

Adding an Aggregate Filter ....................................................................................................... 46

Editing an Aggregate Filter. ...................................................................................................... 47


Welcome

The Sage Intelligence Beginners course is designed to introduce you to Sage Intelligence Reporting.

Highlights include an overview of the modules, how to run reports, as well as how to make minor formatting

changes to the reports and save them for subsequent runs of the report.

Course Pre-Requisites

A basic understanding of Microsoft Excel and Microsoft Windows is required.

Course Objectives

The objective of this course is to provide you with an overview of basic report writing techniques for Sage

Intelligence Reporting. You will explore the power of this tool and gain insight into your business.

Topics covered include:

Overview and purpose of each module

Navigating within the Report Manager

Types of Sage Intelligence Reports

Organizing Reports

Saving Report Templates

Creating Reports

Running Reports

Filtering Report Data

How to Use the Curriculum

In addition to this course been completed, an online assessment will be required to be passed in order to

obtain your course certificate. Your login details will be provided to you on completion of the course.

Document Conventions

Sage Alchemex uses the Microsoft Manual of Style (MMOS), Third Edition, as its corporate authority for

technical terminology and references to user interface elements as well as terms approved by the Sage

Softwares Training Council or the CSC for references to specific training types, individual roles, certification

terms, and specific elements of the curriculum.


Course Outline

This course is divided into lessons. Each lesson is designed to provide you with practical knowledge and

experience that can be applied to your specific needs.

This course includes the following lessons:

Lesson Purpose

Lesson 1: Overview of Sage Intelligence Reporting

This lesson introduces you to the Sage Intelligence Reporting product and its functionality.

Lesson 2: Navigating within the Report Manager This lesson introduces you to the Report Manager.

Lesson 3: Types of Sage Intelligence Reports This lesson introduces the different types of reports.

Lesson 4: Organizing Reports This lesson introduces the basic tasks used when organizing reports.

Lesson 5: Saving Formatting Changes in Reports This lesson demonstrates the Save Excel Template function.

Lesson 6: Creating a Standard Report This lesson demonstrates the steps to create a standard report.

Lesson 7: Creating a Report That Includes Data From Multiple Reports

This lesson demonstrates the steps to create a union report.

Lesson 8: Running Multiple Reports This lesson demonstrates how to use the Run all Reports function.

Lesson 9: Summarizing or Grouping Data in a Report

This lesson introduces aggregation functions and filters.

Sample Company Information

The exercises have been created based on the sample company RKL Trading provided with Sage

Intelligence Reporting software.


Lesson 1: Overview of Sage Intelligence Reporting

Objective: This lesson will familiarize you with the following:

What is Business Intelligence?

How Sage Intelligence Reporting fulfils Business Intelligence needs.

The different modules Sage Intelligence Reporting offers and their functions.

An Overview of Business Intelligence

Business Intelligence (BI) refers to skills, technologies, applications and practices used to help a business

acquire a better understanding of its commercial context.

BI may also refer to the collected information itself and the knowledge developed from this information.

BI applications provide historic, current and predictive views of business operations. One of the key

objectives of BI is to provide the information businesses need in order to make better decisions.


How Sage Intelligence Reporting Fulfils Business Intelligence Needs

Sage Intelligence Reporting is classified as a BI application because the data extraction and manipulation

tools, coupled with Microsoft Excels ability to render the output into user-friendly reports, represents the level

of abstraction required to produce meaningful information supporting decision-making from endless sets of

data which are mostly meaningless to the business decision-maker.

Sage Intelligence Reporting is focused on businesses whose market dictates that BI solutions are rapidly

deployed in a cost effective manner so that companies realize their returns early. Sage Alchemex is well

placed to deliver on this initiative as its product suite, training and service offerings grow.

With Microsoft Excel as the front-end for Sage Intelligence Reporting, it is well-placed to take advantage of

the enhanced functionality available in Microsoft Excel 2007 and beyond. Microsoft is serious about Business

Intelligence and has boosted this functionality supporting its vision of Excel as a platform for intelligence

delivery in the future.

Companies typically begin to suffer from one or many of the following types of symptoms in their business

which leads them to the realization that they need a solution like Sage Intelligence Reporting to give them

proper insight into their business.

Need a business dashboard with sales and customer information to help them quickly understand the

health of their business

Require customized reports tailored to answering their business needs without manually formatting the

report each time they use it

Need access to additional information (such as inventory usage and collections issues) without learning

a new reporting tool.

Sage Intelligence Reporting not only creates real value beyond standard offerings, but also helps companies

make sense of what is going on in their businesses to make better decisions and become more profitable.

The end result is better information, better decision making and better companies.


The Sage Intelligence Reporting Modules

There are six modules of Sage Intelligence Reporting: Report Manager, Report Viewer, Report Designer,

Connector, Security Manager and License Manager.

Report Manager

The Report Manager provides an interface to create and modify reports. Reports can be grouped into folders,

and properties of reports can be reviewed and edited as necessary. The Report Manager is the primary focus

of the Sage Intelligence Beginners course.


Report Viewer

The Report Viewer provides a read-only interface to run the reports directly.

Report Designer

The Report Designer is launched from within Microsoft Excel and is a component of Sage Intelligence

Reporting that allows you to fast track the building of powerful financial reports via the Layout Generator which

provides an easy-to-use, drag-and-drop interface to allow for flexible financial reporting with multi-level

groupings according to your unique business needs.


The Report Designer Add-in is the newest addition to the Report Designer module which presents an

alternative to the current report layout generator to empower users to take control of all design aspects of their

reporting layouts within Microsoft Excel.

The Report Designer is covered in detail in the Sage Intelligence Advanced Course.

Connector

The Connector maintains the connectivity between Sage Intelligence Reporting and the data sources. The

groups of connections are called containers, and the administration of these is the primary focus of the

Intermediate course.


Security Manager

The Security Manager controls the accessibility of the reports by the various users.


License Manager

The License Manager maintains the licenses installed for Sage Intelligence Reporting.


Lesson 2: Navigating within the Report Manager


Navigating within the Report Manager

Viewing the advanced options

Using the ribbon

Opening the help file

Expanding and collapsing objects

Accessing the shortcut menu

To effectively use the Sage Intelligence Reporting Report Manager, you need an understanding of the

interface and how to perform actions.

The layout of the interface is divided into two main areas: the object window on the left, and the properties

window, on the right. Each is described in detail below.

Object Window

The object window is on the left and shows the different objects available for selection. Youre able to select

objects using your mouse from the object window in order to either view the objects' properties or perform a

task with the object. For example, youre able to select a report in the object window and rename it just as

youd rename a file in Microsoft windows explorer.

Object Window Properties Window


From the object window, you can also double-click on an object to expand or collapse the objects.

Object Level Hierarchy

The Report Manager object hierarchy uses the following method to open and collapse levels:

Source Container / Columns/ Filters/ Parameters/ Sort fields/

Aggregate Filters (Level 4)

Report (Level 3)

Report Folder (Level 2)

Home (Level 1)

Values (Level 5)


Properties Window

The properties window on the right displays the properties of whichever object is selected on the left in the

object window. Youre then able to view and update the properties of the selected object. For example, you

can add your own custom description of a report.

The various Report Manager properties windows are used to setup and display object configurations. To view

and configure any objects, select the relevant object (i.e. Home, Report Folder, Report etc.) in the object

window. Certain fields across all properties windows are read-only and subsequently display with a shaded

background.

1. From the object window, select the desired object.

2. From the properties window, view the desired properties.

3. All report properties windows have a Show Advanced option to display more options.

4. To save any changes made in the property window, click Apply.


Accessing Commands

There are two ways to access commands within the Report Manager:

Using the Ribbon.

There are additional tabs which will give you access to more options. For example, in the Tools tab,

options are available to export and import reports as well as run all the reports in a folder. From the Help

tab, you can open the help file, connect to the online academy or the knowledge base.

Using the Shortcut menu.

Depending on your current selection in the object menu, the right-click options shown will differ.


Lesson 3: Types of Sage Intelligence Reports


The different types of Sage Intelligence Reports

There are four report types: Standard, Union, Dataless and Sub-query. In this section, we discuss each of

these and how Sage Intelligence Reporting utilizes them. Reports are depicted by different icons.

Standard Reports

Standard Reports are indicated by the blue chart icon in the Report Manager. This report uses data from a

single data container.

Union Reports

A Union Report, indicated by the green chart icon, is used to merge rows of data from dissimilar sources, or

different reports as with the Dashboard report, into a single report. The Union Report runs out the raw data

from specified reports (referred to as Union Sub Reports when referenced in a Union Report) sequentially into

a single workbook. The Union Report can have its own template file.

The following is an example in the Report Managers object window:

NOTE: The two arrows indicate the two Union Sub Report sources.


Dataless Reports

A Dataless Report is used for the purpose of consolidating data from various sources. The Dataless report

doesnt access any database but rather activates a Microsoft Excel workbook that contains macros designed

to consolidate information from workbooks that you have stored previously in other reports.

Sub Query Reports

A Sub Query report, indicated by the black chart icon on the Report Managers object window, is used to

generate report data that is then used in a filter of an outer parent report. These reports should not be

confused with Sub Union Reports.

An example might be where a Sub Query report is first used to generate a unique list of client names whose

purchases to date, sum to a value larger than $100,000. The outer report might then want to pull out

information of the terms of these same customers from a different container but specifically for the client

subset generated by the Sub Query report. A Sub Query report has always only one display field so that a

parent report can reference it in a filter.


Lesson 4: Organizing Reports


how to organize reports into folders

how to copy and rename reports

how to lock and unlock reports

You may want to organize reports within the Report Manager so that you can group reports together. For example, you may want to group sales reports, financial reports and inventory reports separately or you may want to group reports which you run on a weekly and monthly basis separately.


Adding a Folder

You will first need to add a folder to group reports. For example a Month End folder to group all reports run

at the close of a month.

1. Open the Report Manager.

2. Click on Home.

3. Select Add Folder.

4. Type the desired name of the folder and click OK.

The folder appears in the list.

Copying a Report

1. Ensure that the relevant report is selected in the Report Manager by clicking on it (you will notice that the

report will be highlighted in blue).

2. On the Home tab, click Copy (or right-click and then select Copy).

3. Click on the relevant folder in the Report Manager where you want to paste the copied report (folder

should be highlighted in blue).


4. On the Home tab, click Paste (or right-click and then select Paste).

Your copied report is prefixed with Copy of followed by the original report name.

You have now successfully copied a report.

Renaming a Report

1. Select the report.

2. Click Rename on the Home tab and name your report. This also gives you the option of renaming the

template to match the report name.

Locking a Report Template

To prevent unauthorized changes to a report, you can lock the report. Locking a report hides all report properties so that it cant be modified. You can then only run the report, or copy and paste it to another folder to remove the lock.

1. Select the Report.

2. Click Lock/Unlock on the Home tab.

3. When this option is selected, a message is displayed to enter a password in the event the report may

later need to be unlocked.

NOTE: You cant save an Excel template to a locked report.


Unlocking a Report Template

If a report has been previously locked and you need to make changes to it, you will need to unlock the report.

The following is an example of the message which is seen when a locked report is selected:

1. Select the Report.

2. Click Lock/Unlock on the Home tab.

3. When this option is selected, a message is displayed prompting for the unlock password. This is the

password that was set during the locking procedure.

NOTE: Some reports which are shipped with Sage Intelligence Reporting are locked by default. If you

need to make any changes to these reports, they will need to be copied first.


Lesson 5: Creating a Standard Report


the six basic steps to create a standard report

how to add a report

how to define the properties of a report

how to run a report

how to format a report

how to save an Excel template

A report defines fields, filters, and parameters, as well as sort and summation criteria. Reports are listed in

folders in the Report Manager and can later be modified as required.


There are six basic steps to create a standard report:

Each of these steps is discussed in more detail next.

Adding a Folder

If you dont already have a folder to add your new report in, add the folder first.

1. Open the Report Manager.

2. Click on Home icon in the Object window.

3. Select Add Folder.

4. Name the folder and click OK.

The folder will appear in the list.


Adding a Report

Adding a report creates the actual report which is connected to a Container in the Connector module and

has fields selected to show in the report.

1. Click on an existing folder.

2. Select Add Report.

3. Click OK to create a Standard Report.

4. Type a name for the report and click OK.

5. Select a data container to use for this report and click OK.

WARNING: Be sure to select a container that connects to the appropriate parent connection.

NOTE: The RKL Trading Demo connection is a sample database that can be used for running some

reports to review the functionality of Sage Intelligence Reporting.

NOTE: Only one container can be assigned to a report; however, if multiple containers are needed,

several reports (each attached to a different container) can be created, and then joined together as a

Union report.


6. Select the fields to use in the report and click OK.

7. (Additional fields can be added to the report later, if required.) To add all fields to the report, click Select

All.

TIP: It is often recommended to select more fields rather than less when creating a report. While it can

add processing time to the report, having more fields on a report allows the user to more easily select

additional fields if later required.

8. The report will be listed in the folder.


Defining the Properties of the Report

Properties can be defined for a standard report which allows filtering and sorting of the report, amongst other

options, to further customize the reports for the specific requirements needed. For example, filters can be

used to limit the number of records that are exported, and parameters can be used to prompt the user for

additional information at run-time, such as a date range.

The property tabs can be accessed by first selecting the relevant report and then selecting the relevant

report tab on the right:

Columns

Columns tab lists the fields you selected when you created the report. You can add, remove or change the

order of the fields.


Filters

Used to limit the number of records in the report. There is no user interaction for this as the filtering is done

automatically when the report is run.

Parameters

Adding parameters allows you to refine or limit the rows of data that will be displayed in the report based on

selections you make when running the report, for example selecting the date for the required report.


Sort Fields

Displays the report records in a specified sequence. You can have multiple sort fields but then you must

ensure the order of the sort fields are correct, for example, you can first sort according to name and then ID

within similar name records.

Aggregate Filters

Enables the use of comparison values such as Equal To, Greater Than, Less Than and many others, when

setting up filters on the report.


Running the Report

To run reports from within Report Manager, do the following:

1. Double-click the folder which contains the report. This expands to show the reports in the folder.

2. Select the desired report.

3. On the Home tab, select Run to run the report. After a report is run, it is displayed in Microsoft Excel. Its'

format is very basic and not organized for easy analysis, as shown below:


Formatting the Report

Using the raw data, (source data), on the first worksheet of the workbook, a Pivot Table or other type of layout

can be added to the workbook making analysis of the raw data easier and more efficient. One of the most

common tools used in Microsoft Excel is the PivotTable. PivotTables are an interactive way to quickly

summarize large amounts of data.

1. Beginning on the raw data worksheet of the workbook (typically Sheet1, or the first worksheet on the

left), click inside the table and click the Insert tab, and from the Tables group, click PivotTable.

2. The Create PivotTable window appears, requiring information to identify the source of data to be used

for the PivotTable and the location of the PivotTable.

For Sage Intelligence Reporting, it is recommended that the range RawData (press F3 to retrieve a list of

range names) be selected, to ensure that the full range of data is always included in the PivotTable. By using

this range name, the next time the report runs, any additional rows of data (or records) are automatically

included in the analysis, as well as additional columns which might be added in the Report Manager.

WARNING: If specific rows or columns are used instead of the range name, when you next run the report

any additional records and columns will not automatically be included in the report.

3. Select the location of the new PivotTable, usually Existing Worksheet, then browse to Sheet3 (or a

blank worksheet), then click OK.

WARNING: Be sure NOT to select New Worksheet when on the first worksheet of the workbook,

because Microsoft Excel will place the new worksheet to the left of the first worksheet. This will cause the

PivotTable to be overwritten when the report is run the next time, unless you move it after it is created.


4. A list of available fields is shown in the PivotTable Field List (circled above). This corresponds to the

columns found on the first worksheet (Source Data) of the workbook. The fields can be dragged and

dropped to the various areas of the PivotTable to create the layout youd like.

More Information: More information on creating PivotTables can be found in the Excel help file or by

attending our Excel on Steroids course.


Saving the Excel Template

Based on the design of the Pivot Table or other tools used in the workbook to analyze the data, changes to

the layout are reflected the next time the report is run. This template can now be linked to the report providing

a consistent format each time the report is run.

1. With your Microsoft Excel workbook open, select the report in the Report Manager which you have

chosen to link to a template.

2. On the Home tab, select Save Excel Template.

3. The Select Workbook window appears. Click on the file name that refers to the formatted Microsoft

Excel workbook, and then click OK.

WARNING: All workbooks that are currently open on your computer will be listed. Make sure you link the

correct template to the report.

4. The Specify Template Name window is automatically displayed. By default, Sage Intelligence Reporting

names the template using the report name you choose with a .xlt file extension (Microsoft Excel 2003

template). You can change the file type for the template for 2007/2010 compatibility. You can choose to

use the default name assigned to your template or you can rename the template.

5. When you have named the template, click OK. You have now successfully saved a template for your

report from your Microsoft Excel Workbook.


Lesson 6: Saving Formatting Changes in Existing Reports


How to make changes to existing report templates

You may want to make changes to report templates so that future report runs retain your formatting changes in Microsoft Excel. For example, you may want to change the font and colors to match your company branding or you may want to add your company logo to each report you run in the future. To achieve, this you will need to Save the Excel Template. This will already be familiar to you because we went through these steps in the previous lesson when we created the initial layout of a new report.

The procedure to make changes is as follows:

1. If your report is locked and youd like to leave the original report unaltered, make a copy of the report

youd like to change.

2. Run the copied report youd like to apply the formatting changes to.

3. You can now make any formatting changes you want to see using standard Excel functionality.

Create a template from the Microsoft Excel workbook as follows:

4. With your Microsoft Excel workbook open, select the report in the Report Manager which you have

chosen to link to a template.

5. On the Home tab, select Save Excel Template.

6. Click on the file name that refers to the formatted Microsoft Excel workbook, and then click OK.

WARNING: All workbooks that are currently open on your computer will be listed. Make sure you link the

correct template to the report.


7. By default, Sage Intelligence Reporting names the template using the report name you choose with a .xlt

file extension (Microsoft Excel 2003 template). You can change the file type for the template for

2007/2010 compatibility. You can choose to use the default name assigned to your template or you can

rename the template.

8. When you have named the template, click OK. You have now successfully saved a template for your

report from your Microsoft Excel Workbook. If you minimize the Report Manager, you will see that the

workbook has been automatically closed.


Lesson 7: Creating a Report That Includes Data from Multiple Reports


when to use a union report

what a union report is

how to create a union report

how to change the order of sub reports

how to hide and un-hide sub reports

When to Use Union Reports

You use Union Reports when you need to:

Present data together in one workbook that is unrelated, or comes from various sources.

Report data together that may be related, but cant be extracted easily via a standard query statement

for example a combination of sales history data combined with inventory levels used to determine stock

replenishment.

Consolidate information from different companies into one workbook.

Consolidate data from different databases.

What a Union Report is

A Union Report is a group of standard reports running together in a specified order, with the control to deliver

all the sub reports data into one workbook. This is useful because it eliminates the need to manually

consolidate information from multiple Excel workbooks into a single workbook.

Although Union Reports are a series of sub-reports, they are treated as a single entity. This means they can

be exported as a single report, and all of the sub reports are automatically included. The same applies when

a union report is imported; all of the sub reports are automatically imported.

A union report runs each sub report individually at the time of reporting. If you want to view the sub report,

you need to go to the sub report in the report list; however, a sub report cant be accessed from the union

report.


Examples of Union Reports

Many of the reports that come with Sage Intelligence Reporting are Union Reports. You can tell by the green

icon; however, if these reports are locked, you cant see the names of the sub reports. If you make a copy of

the report, then you can double-click on the report to see the union sub reports.

Creating a Union Report

1. From the object window, click on the folder where youd like to add the report.

2. Select Add Report on the Home tab.

3. Select Union Report.

4. Click OK.

5. Type a name for the union report and click OK.


6. Select the reports youd like to create a union with (Join).

7. Click OK.

8. Double-click the folder and then the union report, to view the two reports which make up the union

report.

Changing the Order of Union Worksheets

By default, the data from the union sub reports are displayed in the same worksheet. This can be

overridden by setting the Output Sheet property for the individual union sub reports.

If the data is configured (or defaulted) to the same worksheet for the sub reports then it makes sense that

the data is comparable. Although you could specify any reports to be the sub reports for the union report, it

only makes sense to specify union sub reports that have comparable data and with the corresponding

display fields laid out in the same order in all the sub reports to go to the same output sheet. That way in

the final workbook there is like data in each column. If the data is not similar then it should be output to

different worksheets. If the fields of each report show different information, you should send each report to

its own output sheet in the workbook.

To re-order the worksheets in a union report, do the following:

1. Double-click on the folder and then the union report.

2. From the object window, click on the union sub report.

3. From the Properties window, in the Output Sheet Number, type in the worksheet number.

4. Click Apply.


TIP: Union reports runs from the last report first to the top report last and hence the parameters need to

be on the last report in the Union Sub Report.

Hiding Sub Reports

Youre able to hide any existing report from view. This is useful for hiding reports that normally dont need to

be run as separate reports such as union sub reports.

Being able to see the hidden report doesnt remove the hidden attribute from a report.

To hide reports:

1. From the object window, select the report.

2. From the properties window, select Show Advanced.

3. Select Report Hidden.

4. Click Apply.

This report will not show in your list of available reports.


Showing Hidden Reports

To show a hidden report:

1. From the object window, right-click on the Home object.

2. Select Show Hidden Reports.

3. Refresh the folder to see any hidden reports it may contain.

Re-Hiding Hidden Reports

To re-hide hidden reports, a setting at the folder level can be set as follows:

1. In the object window, click Home.

2. On the Tools tab, click Toggle Hidden Reports.


Lesson 8: Running Multiple Reports


Setting up your reports to run in the correct sequence.

Using the Run All Reports option.

The Run All Reports option allows you to run a sequence of reports one after the other from top to bottom.

NOTE: The run sequence will always be top to bottom so it is important to name your reports in a way

that will ensure that the report you want to run first is at the top of the list. For example: if you have an

existing group of reports in a folder which will not run in the sequence that youd like, then rename your

reports numerically, i.e. 1FirstReport, 2SecondReport, 3ThirdReport.

1. In Report Manager, create a folder.

2. Copy all of the reports you would like to run into the folder.

3. Name your reports so they run in the correct order.

4. Select the folder that contains your reports.

5. On the Tools tab, select Run All Reports.

TIP: The first option Abort If No Data aborts the batch of reports if any of the reports return no data. The

second option Continue if No Data will run all reports regardless of there being no data for any of the

reports.

Once the reports are run they will appear in Excel in separate workbooks.


Lesson 9: Summarizing or Grouping Data in a Report


what aggregation is

why aggregation is used

types of aggregation

examples of aggregate functions and filters

adding aggregate functions

adding aggregate filters

Aggregation is a method of summarizing or grouping data in a report in Sage Intelligence Reporting. When

running a report on a dataset with a large volume of transactions, an aggregate function could be used to

summarize similar transactions for the same customer, month and product. Once this aggregation is done,

an aggregate filter could be used to retrieve only customers whose total sales are over a certain amount.

The result of using aggregation is that the report itself is more compact, thus running faster. While it is true

that many times Sage Intelligence Reporting reports are summarized later using Microsoft Excel functionality

such as PivotTables, the use of aggregation functions and filters affects the query that is used to get the

report, thus making it a more efficient query, and thus faster to produce or run.

Types of Aggregation Used in Sage Intelligence Reporting

There are two types of aggregation that can be used.

An aggregate function defined on a column:

An aggregate filter defined for a report:


Example of an Aggregate Function

An aggregate function is assigned to the property of a column to summarize the unique lines of the report.

As an example, look at the following unfiltered raw data:

Product Code Customer Sales Rep Month Sale Amount

H2010 Aldred Builders, Inc. Leonard Sweet January 100.00


H2010 Aldred Builders, Inc. Leonard Sweet February 140.00

W1090 Aldred Builders, Inc. Leonard Sweet February 300.00

H2010 Armstrong Landscaping Dorothy L. Beck January 200.00



W1090 Armstrong Landscaping Leonard Sweet February 300.00

If an aggregate function of SUM is added to the Sale Amount column, the aggregation would result in:



H2010 Aldred Builders, Inc. Leonard Sweet February 140.00

W1090 Aldred Builders, Inc. Leonard Sweet February 300.00


W1090 Armstrong Landscaping Leonard Sweet February 300.00

In this example, the aggregate has added together similar lines, thus summarizing the data by Sale Amount

per customer, per product, per month and per salesman.

TIP: When using Aggregate Functions, it is best to have a report that has fewer fields, as it is

summarizing the data based on the number of lines returned by the query.


Example of an Aggregate Filter

An aggregate filter is assigned to the property of the report to filter and summarize the data coming onto the

report. As an example, look at the following unfiltered raw data:



W1090 Aldred Builders, Inc. Leonard Sweet January 120.00



H2010 Snyder Securities Dorothy L. Beck January 250.00

W1090 Snyder Securities Leonard Sweet February 300.00

If an aggregate filter was applied on Sale Amount greater than or equal to $250.00, the aggregation would

result in:




H2010 Snyder Securities Dorothy L. Beck January 250.00

W1090 Snyder Securities Leonard Sweet February 300.00

In this example, the aggregation has filtered the data to show only transactions and customers greater than

or equal to $250. The output is not affected except that transactions or customers not meeting the minimum

of $250 in TOTAL sales are excluded.


Adding Aggregate Functions and Filters

Aggregate Functions and Filters are both added to standard reports in the properties of the report.

Adding an Aggregate Function

1. Click on the report and go to the Columns tab in the properties window.

2. Right-click on the column to apply the aggregate function.

3. Select the function for the aggregate to perform on the column. Keep in mind that the same column

could be added multiple times to a report with a different aggregate used to show Count, Average or

Sum.

4. Click OK.


TIP: If more than one column requires an aggregate function, multiple columns can be highlighted at the

same time and aggregates applied at the same time. They can also be edited as required, by selecting

the properties of the column.

Adding an Aggregate Filter

1. Click on the report and go to the Aggregate Filters tab in the properties window.

2. Click Add.

The following window appears:

3. Select the field the aggregate filter will filter on, and click OK.

4. Select the comparison method the aggregate filter will use, and click OK.


5. Enter a comparison value. Use the ellipsis () to retrieve values from the database for that field, or

use the @ button to use a system variable.

TIP: Well cover system variables in the intermediate course but briefly system variables can be used with

parameters and filters to dynamically determine a comparison value at report run time. An example of

this is where a report is run and expected to return data for the current day. In this example a filter could

be set on the report for a date field and the filter comparison value (or comparator) could be set to the

system variable @DATE@. When the report is run the system variable @DATE@ in the filter comparator

will be replaced with the current date.

6. Click OK to add the aggregate filter.

Editing an Aggregate Filter.

If multiple aggregate filters are required, the use of OR or AND can be defined to create separate filters

(using OR) or cumulative filters (using AND).

To change the logic to use or to change the Aggregate Function to Average, Sum, Maximum or Minimum:

1. Right-click on the aggregate filter.

2. Select Properties.

3. Change the required option.


4. Click OK.

Documents

Sage Intelligence Reporting - Beginner Training Manual