Export Process Report to Excel Smart Service

Overview

The Export Process Report to Excel Smart Service allows designers to safely export large amounts of data from process reports.

It can be used to export data from Appian that can then be imported into other third-party applications. A designer may want to export all data or just updates made within the last day.

The Smart Service returns a document in an Excel format.

Properties

• Category: Document Generation

• Icon:

• Assignment Options: This smart service can be either attended or unattended (default).

Configuration options

Data tab

Node inputs

Node outputs

a!exportProcessReportToExcel()

Exports data from a process report to Excel. This function will only execute inside a saveInto on a component or as part of a Web API.

Syntax

a!exportProcessReportToExcel( report, filters, context, documentName, documentDescription, saveInFolder, documentToUpdate, includeHeader, sheetName, sheetNumber, startingCell, customCellPositions, customCellValues, onSuccess, onError )

Parameters

Returns

Document

Example

Copy and paste an example into an Appian Expression Editor to experiment with it.

You will need to provide a constant to replace both REPORT and TARGET_FOLDER.

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a!localVariables(
  local!exportId,
  {
    a!linkField(
      labelPosition: "COLLAPSED",
      links: a!dynamicLink(
        label: "Render Excel File",
        saveInto: {
          a!exportProcessReportToExcel(
            report: cons!REPORT,
            documentName: "Report " & now(),
            saveInFolder: cons!TARGET_FOLDER,
            onSuccess: a!save(
              local!exportId,
              fv!newDocument
            )
          )
        }
      )
    )
  }
)

Usage considerations

The following configurations and expected behavior apply when using the Export Process Report to Excel Smart Service from the Process Modeler:

• You may specify either a LogicalExpression or a list of Filters in the Filters parameter but not both. If you wish to specify only one condition, specify a Filter. If you wish to specify more than one condition, use LogicalExpression or use a list of Filters.
• To create multiple tabs in the same Excel spreadsheet with data from different process reports, use multiple nodes of this smart service. You can use the Document to Update and Sheet Number parameters when exporting a second process report.
• Due to performance considerations, there is a max row limit of 10,000 rows and a max column limit of 50 columns that can be exported.
• To export your data to a preformatted spreadsheet, use the Document to Update and Starting Cell parameters. Learn how to export data to a formatted Excel sheet.

Exporting data to a formatted Excel sheet

It’s common for businesses to use standard, preformatted spreadsheets to display and share data. For instance, a preformatted spreadsheet may have a cover page with different font size and colors; instructions above a table where data will be added; formatted table headers; or a specific column width.

When you use this smart service, you can determine the cell in an existing spreadsheet where the output should begin. This is called the Starting Cell parameters. Once you specify the Starting Cell, any cells above this point will keep their original formatting, such as alignment, font, border, fill options, column width, and frozen rows and columns.

To export your data to a preformatted spreadsheet:

1. Create a spreadsheet with any necessary information and formatting. This will be the original spreadsheet where the data will be exported to.
2. Configure the smart service, and set the following parameters:
   • Set the Document to Update parameter to the spreadsheet you just created.
   • Set the Starting Cell parameter to the appropriate cell. Any cells that start at or below the Starting Cell will not maintain any formatting.
3. Execute the smart service. This will create a new version of your spreadsheet with your exported data and formatting.

Supported Excel formatting

The following table shows the formatting options supported by this smart service.

Generic formatting options apply to all data in a given sheet; whereas cell formatting options only apply to any rows that are not updated by these smart services (i.e. custom cell positions/values, starting cell).

Unsupported Excel formatting and elements

The following list displays Excel options that are not supported by this smart service:

• Charts
• Excel formulas
• Filters on columns
• Formulas
• Images
• Links
• Macros
• Any formatting options that are not listed above

Related objects

Data Types:

• Query Filter
• Logical Expression

See also

• Export Process Report To CSV Smart Service
• Smart Services Library

Feature compatibility

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