Linking reports and documents
The link allows executing a report/document from within the report even if the destination report is not related to the original report. We can execute a link from a report, grid/graph within the document, attributes, metrics, and prompts.
The components of links are as follows:
- Name: This is the descriptive name of the link, which helps in identifying the target. By default, it is
Link1
for the first link. - Target: This is the report or document that we want to execute from within the report.
- Prompt based on target: Gives the user a way to answer the prompt in a target, if any.
To create a link:
- Open the report on which you want to create a link.
- To create a link, right-click the object (attributes, metrics, and hierarchies) and select Edit Links.
- If this is the first link, browse for a report or a document under run this report and document heading, and select target report/document.
- Select the target prompt from the drop-down.
- Select Prompt Answer Method from the drop-down. The options displayed are:
- Answer with the same prompt from the source: Source reports and prompt answers are used for the target. It is only applicable if both source and target use the same prompt.
- Prompt user: While executing a target report, the user manually answers the prompts.
- Use default answer: Default answers are considered while executing the target.
- Answer with an empty answer: No prompt answer is needed or provided while executing the target.
- Repeat the steps to answer all the prompts; once completed, click OK.
- Now we can navigate from
Report 1
to Report 2
.
An example of linked reports:
Let's say we have one report, which displays the sales by region, and another report further divides it into sales by region-product and sales based on the year prompt. We have followed the preceding steps and created a link from a sales-region report to a sales-product report at the attribute level. Now, right-clicking on the attribute points to the link and shows the report sales-product as follows:
Selecting sales category executes that report and displays the result as follows:
Similarly, we can create a link to a document from metrics or hierarchies.