Report property storage

The comments, verifications and approvals for a report can be viewed in the RtReports editor and the Report Viewer window in RtReports generator.

PI tags for reports

RtReports creates a PI tag to store the report properties for each report that is generated against a report template. The format for tag names is the ReportPropertyTagPrefix value from the web.config file appended with two dollar signs and the report template name.

For example, running a report using a report template named TestReport would create the tag __RtReportsProperties$TestReport for storing report properties.

Report key

The report key is the string value in the report's PI tag used as the unique identifier for each report that has been run against a report template.

The report key stores attributes as XML annotations to the string value and lists:

• Comments

• Verifications

• Approvals

Each generated report and its report properties exist entirely within one value contained in the PI tag.

Multiple Report Key error

If the PI Server goes offline, as is the case during a PI archive shift, RtReports cannot access the report properties.

If the report is run again while the PI Server is offline, no report properties will be shown, and a new report key value will be created on the PI tag for this report on the current PI Server archive.

If the archive containing the original report property collection is then brought back online, rerunning the report will return the “Multiple Report Key” error. This error will identify the time stamps of the report key string values on the PI tag that are in conflict.

For example, you would see system output similar to that in the following error message:

Error saving Verification Comment.
Report Properties Write Error:
ReportPropertiesAnnotationsBase::PiPointValueExist
Multiple report keys found. report key "batch report for approval 1.0 97ba4235-743e-4ae9-787a716b337d"
on tag "_RtReportsProperties$RicoRtr32batch report for approval" found
2 times , Time 05-Mar-2014 02:31:55 PM, Time 05-Mar-2014 02:35:19 PM :
Parameters : Server "RtTestPIServer", Tag Name "_RtReportsPropertise$RicoRtr32batch report for approval",
Report Key 'batch report for approval 1.0 97ba4235-743e-4ae9-8715-

You can investigate these values in PI System Management Tools to determine which collection of report properties you wish to keep for this report.

Report properties in PI Module Database

Reports that were generated in versions of RtReports prior to version 3.2 have their report properties stored in the PI Module Database. The report properties will remain there for these reports unless the report is rerun in RtReports 3.2 or later. By rerunning your report, all report properties that were written to the PI Module Database in the previous version will be migrated to an annotated PI tag, along with any new comments or verifications entered for the report.

Known issues with storing report properties on the PI Module Database include:

• File sizes for report data becoming too large for the PI System

• Audit log files becoming too large for the PI Module Database

• Excessive consumption of PI Modules

Creating new report properties and migrating report properties on regenerated reports to annotated PI tags resolves these issues.