You can use the Template Builder in connected mode or disconnected mode. In connected mode, log in to the BI Publisher server from Excel. The connection enables you to browse the BI Publisher catalog and load sample data from an existing report or data model. When your template is complete, you can upload it directly to the report definition in the BI Publisher catalog.
In disconnected mode, you must download a sample data file from the data model to your local client.This section includes the following topics about using the Template Builder for Excel:. The process flow for creating or editing a template in connected mode is:. Open Excel with the BI Publisher Template Builder for Excel Add-in installed. Log on to the BI Publisher server. Select the report or data model for which you want to create a new layout; or, select an existing layout to modify. Design your template in Excel. Preview your template using the View Report or Preview command.
Templates For Field Data Center
Use one of the upload template commands to upload your completed template to the BI Publisher catalog. By logging in directly to BI Publisher you can browse the catalog to choose the report to which to add the Excel template; or, if no report has been created, you can select the data model and create the report in the catalog from your Excel session.To log on to the BI Publisher server:. In Excel, on the BI Publisher tab in the Online group, click Log On. In the Login dialog, enter your BI Publisher username and password and the URL to the BI Publisher server.
The URL to the BI Publisher server takes the form www.:/xmlpserver. The Login dialog is shown in the following illustration.Modify an existing Excel template.When you select a report in the Reports region, any existing Excel templates or Excel Analyzer templates (deprecated) are displayed in the lower Layout Templates region. To modify an existing template, select the template name and click Open Layout Template. The Template Builder loads the sample data from the report's data model and opens the existing template in Excel.Create a new template for an existing report.Select the report name in the Reports region and click Open Report. The Template Builder loads the sample data for this report's data model.Select a data model to create a new report.When you select a data model from the catalog, the Create Report button is enabled. Click Create Report and you are prompted to enter a report name and select the location in the catalog to save the new report.
In disconnected mode the commands in the Online group are not enabled. The process flow for working in disconnected mode is:. Log in to the BI Publisher server and download sample data from the data model for which you want to design a template. Open Excel with the BI Publisher Template Builder for Excel Add-in installed. Load the sample data to the Template Builder. Design your template in Excel.
Preview your template using the Preview command. Log in to the BI Publisher server and use the report editor to upload your template. For information on saving sample data from the report data model, see in Data Modeling Guide for Oracle Business Intelligence Publisher.If you do not have access to the report data model, but you can access the report, then you can alternatively save sample data from the report viewer.To save data from the report viewer:. In the BI Publisher catalog, navigate to the report. Click Open to run the report in the report viewer. Click the Actions menu, then click Export, then click Data.
You are prompted to save the XML file. Save the file to a local directory. For EachSelect the element that for each occurrence, you want the loop to repeat. When you select the For Each data field you are telling BI Publisher that for each occurrence of the selected field in the data you want the elements and processing instructions contained within the loop to be repeated.For example, assume that the data contains invoice data for customers and you want to create a table with each customer's invoices. In this case, for each customer number you want the table to repeat.
You would therefore select the customer number in the For Each field to create a new loop (or group) for each customer.Note the following about creating repeating groups:.For loops and groupings not inside another group (that is, outer groups) you must select the repeating data element to be used. For example if the data set is flat, the only repeatable element is /DATA/ROWSET/ROW. In cases with multiple data sources or hierarchical XML you can choose the data set.If you are creating nested groups (inserting a loop or group inside of another loop in the template), the On Grouping checkbox is selected and the For Each field is not editable because it is already defined by the preexisting outer loop.
The For Each field is displayed as 'Group Item' to inform you that an outer group is already defined.Absolute PathSelect this check box to use the Absolute Path to the element in the XML structure. This is important if the data contains the same element name grouped under different parent elements.Group BySelect a field from the list by which you want to group the data.
Templates For Field Data Plan
To create a simple loop, do not select a group by element. Selecting a group by element regroups the data into a new hierarchy based on the group by element.On GroupingWhen creating a nested for-each loop, select On Grouping to repeat the for-each loop only when the element appears within the parent loop.
Deselect On Grouping to repeat global data (outside the parent loop) within the nested loop. When you have completed the dialog options, click OK to insert the BI Publisher code to define the groupings. An Excel defined name is assigned to the cell range using the BI Publisher syntax XDOGROUP? And the code is written to the XDOMETADATA sheet as shown in the following illustration.
When you select a line of code in the Field Browser, the corresponding cells in the template are highlighted, so you know which field you are editing, deleting, or viewing.To edit or delete a field using the Field Browser:. On the BI Publisher menu, in the Tools group, click Field Browser. The Field Browser displays the BI Publisher commands that are present in the template. Select the field or command to view. The code for the selected command displays in the lower Edit region.