Category: Ripplestone

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Crystal Reports new release Ripplestone

What’s New in Ripplestone Version 3.3

Ripplestone 3.3 – Summary

Home Page

Home Page Data Caching

Most of the data used by the home page is now being cached by the system. This increases the performance of the home page by reducing the number of calls to the Ripplestone database. This option can be controlled by the administrator in the web.config file.

Fixed a problem when updating the home node

When changing the root/home node on the home page there was a bug that would not allow the administrator to change the node name.

 

Scheduler Changes

New FTP Library

Ripplestone is now using a new and improved FTP library and provides more options

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Fixed bug to display the Schedule time correctly

When a scheduled job was set to run between 1 – 9 minutes after the hour the display would not display the 0 (zero) before the minute. It would look like 4:5 PM; in the new version it is displayed as 4:05 PM.
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New Output type

A new output type has been added to the scheduler. The Editable RTF Export type has been added to the Output Format dropdown.
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Fixed bug for Jobs between midnight and 1:00 AM

There was a bug for any jobs scheduled between midnight and 1:00 AM. The job would not always get started at the correct time.

 

New icons on the list schedule page

The Scheduled Documents page now uses icons to save space on the page. The page also added a Run Now button (the Green Arrow) to run a scheduled job now and bypass the scheduler. This is good for testing or when you need to run a job outside of the scheduled time.

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Fixed a problem when Emailing a scheduled job to multiple addresses

There is an option in the System Setup and Configuration page to turn on an option to email messages from the scheduler one at a time. If this is turned on then emails are sent to each recipient as a separate email. If the option is unselected then all the email addresses are added to the email and the email is sent once. All recipients can see who else the email was sent to. There was a bug in the system that stopped the email from being sent. This bug has been fixed and all email addresses will be added to a single email.

Below is the option from the System Setup and Configuration page.
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Database Connections

Added new fields to allow new Server and database

The Database Connection page has been change to allow the administrator to change the database server and the database name that the report will use. This helps when the Crystal Report need to get the data from a new server or from a new database name without needing to change and republish all the Crystal Reports that use that database connection.

The example below shows the original database connection using the RipplestoneTestServer and then with the new option the reports will login and use the RipplestoneProduction server.

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Alternate Database Login and Password

This new option is set on the Edit Document page and allows the Crystal Report to have a different database login and password that will override the login and password stored in the database connection for that report.

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Security

Windows Integrated Security Users

If the Ripplestone application is configured to use Windows Integrated Security the users are required to have the checkbox checked for Integrated Security to work. If the user does not have the checked box checked then they will be redirected to the sign on page.

Categories
Email Ripplestone Ripplestone Tips

Changing the Ripplestone SMTP Mail Server

The default configuration of Ripplestone uses an SMTP server that is hosted by Ripplestone. This will work for most users, but can be changed to use a different SMTP server or corporate mail server like Microsoft Exchange.

The web site and the scheduler both have their own configuration files that will need to be changed.

Web Site:

The web site configuration file is the web.config located in the C:SitesRipplestone folder

Scheduler:

The scheduler configuration file is the RSScheduler.exe.config located in the C:SitesRipplestonebin folder

Both files have the same section that will need to be updated. Below is the section with the default settings. The line starting with <network host= is the line that will need to be updated. The host will change to be your SMTP server or Exchange server; it can either be the URL, Name or IP Address. If you do not need a user name and password you can remove those fields from the line.

After the changes have been made you will need to restart the scheduler service for the changes to read. The website will restart the next time a user uses the Ripplestone application.

<system.net>
    <mailSettings>
        <smtp deliveryMethod="Network" from="support@ripplestone.net">
    <network host="smtp.1and1.com" userName="emailsender@ripplestone.com" password="rs!email" port="25"/>
        </smtp>
    </mailSettings>
</system.net>

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Categories
IIS Ripplestone Ripplestone Tips Windows Server 2008

Accessing Ripplestone From The Server

 

There are times when the URL \localhostripplestone will not work on the server.  If this happens you can try the following to allow the server to run the Ripplestone website locally.

  1. Click Start, click Run, type regedit, and then click OK.
  2. In Registry Editor, locate and then click the following registry key: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESYSTEMCurrentControlSetControlLsa
  3. Right-click Lsa, point to New, and then click DWORD Value.
  4. Type DisableLoopbackCheck, and then press ENTER.
  5. Right-click DisableLoopbackCheck, and then click Modify.
  6. In the Value data box, type 1, and then click OK.
  7. Quit Registry Editor, and then restart your computer.
Categories
Crystal Reports General Performance Tips Ripplestone Ripplestone Tips

Ripplestone Performance Tips

When publishing Crystal Reports to Ripplestone; there are a few simple options within the Crystal Reports designer that can be checked to increase the performance of the reports when they are run from within Ripplestone.

Page Setup

The first is to set the No Printer option on the Page Setup dialog box. This will stop the report from looking for the selected printer each time the report is run. It also has the added bonus of making the report look better within the web viewer. Open the Page Setup by clicking on Files and then Page Setup

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Figure 1 – Page Setup Dialog Box

 

Report Options

The report option dialog box has several options that can help the report process quicker. Open the Report Option by clicking on File and then Report Options.

  • Perform Grouping On Server – This works with the “Use Indexes Or Server For Speed” option to allow the server to perform much of the processing for the report. This reduces the processing and memory used by the Ripplestone server.
  • Use Indexes Or Server For Speed – Using this option will allow the SQL query to use the database indexes and can increase the speed when selecting large amounts of data.
  • Verify on First Refresh –Unchecking this option will stop the report from first checking the database to refresh the schema. This will save a trip to the database.
  • Verify Stored Procedure on First Refresh – Unchecking this option will stop the report from first checking the stored procedure to refresh the schema. This will save a trip to the database.
  • Save Data With Report – Unchecking this option will keep the file size small and will allow the report to be loaded by the Crystal Report engine quicker.
  • Perform Query Asynchronously – Check this box to allow the report to execute the SQL statement without requiring Ripplestone to wait for the select statement to finish.

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Categories
Crystal Reports General new release Ripplestone Ripplestone Tips Tutorial

Ripplestone 3 – Home Page Tour

With the release of Ripplestone version 3, we have added many new features to the home page and to how you view and interact with Crystal Reports.

Below is a quick tour of the new features.

 

Performance and Usability Improvements

 

Two new links have been added to the top menu bar.

  • Favorites allows users to quickly get to the documents marked as favorites. The favorites view loads quicker than the home page and is simpler to use.  There is an option to have the Favorites view be the default view when starting Ripplestone.
  • Scheduled History give the users a quick way to view all the scheduled history without needing to click on each Crystal Report on the home page.  This is helpful for the users that need to check the history of many reports.
    The navigation tree on the home page has been updated with AJAX and Data Caching to allow a smoother and quicker navigation experience.  The page will no longer flash as the user is clicking on the folders and documents in the tree.

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          Multiple Reports

        With the new version of Ripplestone users can open multiple reports from the home page and then switch between them using the tabs.  The reports also open within the home page and not as a new browser window allowing the user to view the report more easily.  The reports new feel more integrated in the Ripplestone application.

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      New Crystal Reports Viewer

       

      Ripplestone 3 is using a new web viewer and new parameter page for running Crystal Reports.  Below is an example of the new parameter page, this opens within the home page and not as a separate web browser window.  It has a more integrated feel and a new indicator is displayed to let the user know that the report is being run.

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      The new web viewer allows the user to refresh the report and they will be prompted to enter new parameter values or if the report is written in Crystal Reports 2008 or 2011 they will have the option to open the Parameter Panel shown below.  This new panel will allow the user to view and change the parameter values without closing the report.

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      With these new features the home page of Ripplestone has become easier to use and more productive in viewing your Crystal Reports and Office Documents.

      Categories
      Crystal Reports General new release Ripplestone

      Ripplestone Release 2.9.12

       

      Overview

       

      With version 2.9.12, Ripplestone continues to improve Crystal Reports Parameters Page and the Scheduler.

      Report parameters

       
      Fixed issue with parameters with no value

      If a parameter has no value the parameter will still be sent to the report.

      Additional Improvements For Stored Procedure Parameters

      This version continued improvements, started in version 2.9.11, for parameters that are coming from a Stored Procedure and when to display the Set to Null checkbox.

      Fixed Issue for Parameter Default Values

      Added code to check if a Crystal Report parameter has any default values; if the parameter doesn’t have any default values Ripplestone will display a text box for the user to enter a value.

      Fixed Issue for Parameters That Allow Multiple Values

      This version improved the code that displays the parameters values that were saved for a scheduled job.

       

      Scheduler Changes

       
      A bug was Fixed to Check if the Scheduled Job Has Saved Parameters

      Fixed a bug where a Crystal Report was saved into the Scheduler without parameter values and then opened at a later time and the program would try to fill the report parameters with values. The page would get an error because there were no parameter values found in the Ripplestone database.

      A Bug Was Fixed During Saving of Parameter Values

      If a Crystal Report was scheduled in the Ripplestone Scheduler and it had parameters the parameter values were saved in the Ripplestone database. If the report was then changed and the number of parameters was changed the application would not be able match the parameter values in the database with the new parameters in the report. This fix will now attempt to match the parameters in the database with the updated parameters in the Crystal Report.

       

      General items

       
      Changed the Format for Dates

      This version changes the format for dates to allows store the dates in the database in the format of yyyy/mm/dd hh:mm:ss. This will help with countries that don’t follow the USA standard of mm/dd/yyyy.

      Added Logging When A Report Or Folder Gets Deleted Or Moved

      Added code to log in the trace logs anytime a Crystal Report, Document or Folder gets deleted or moved. With this feature there is an audit of when items are moved or deleted.

      Added new RS Express tab to the edit document page

      A new tab was added to the Edit Document page that will display the RS Express values needed to use the RS Express feature.

      Added new RS Express Option to enable the feature

      A new option was added to enable or disable the RS Express feature.

      Added new RS Express Option to enable the Unique Key Feature

      A new option was added to enable or disable using the RS Express Unique Key feature.

      Categories
      Crystal Reports General new release Ripplestone

      Ripplestone Release 2.9.11

       

      Overview

       

      With version 2.9.11, Ripplestone continues to improve the scheduler and add features to give you more information about the reports and users within Ripplestone.

      We will continually strive to look for ways to make Ripplestone the easiest tool for managing Crystal Reports and Microsoft Office Documents.

       

      Report parameters

       
      Fixed issue when Report is getting a parameter from a Stored procedure

      The parameter display was updated when a report is getting parameters from a store procedure it displays a “Set to Null” checkbox on the parameter page.

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      Fixed issue with date parameters with default values

      If a parameter is of type Date or DateTime and it has a list of values, the parameter page will display a list of the date values.

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      Fixed issue with text parameters with no default value

      If a parameter has no default value the parameter page will display a text box to allow the user to enter a value.

       

      Scheduler Changes

       
      Added option to Use the users within a role for row level security

      This allows the scheduler to loop through the users within a role and use the UserID or User ID tokens for the Row Level Security value. This simulates the process of when a user runs the report. When this report is run from the scheduler, it will be run once for each user in the role using the Row Level Security information to filter the report data for each user.

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      Adding option to use the email address stored in the user profile to send report

      This allows the scheduler to loop though the users within a role and use their email address to send the report. This allows the administrator to manage the users in the role and saves them from managing the email list in the scheduler. Additional email addresses can still be entered into the To box for people that are not in the Role.

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      General items

       
      Added field on the edit document page to display the document id

      A new field was added on the Edit Document page to display the Document ID field. This is useful when using the RS Express feature.

       
      Added new usage tab to the edit document page

      A new tab was added to the Edit Document page that will display usage statistic for that document. The tab will display the number of times that the Crystal Report or document was run, the date that it was last run, display information on the last 10 runs and the top 10 users that run this Crystal Report or document.

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      Added new usage tab to the edit user page

      A new tab was added to the Edit User page that will display usage statistic for that user. The tab will display the last date the user logged into Ripplestone, how many times they has logged in, display the last 10 Crystal Reports or document they have run and the top 10 Crystal Reports or document they run.

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      Changed the system setup & configuration page for administrator

      Permissions were changed on the System Setup and Configuration page for Administrators. Users that are in a Role with Administrator permissions can now only change the Troubleshooting Tab. Users that are in a Role with Super User permissions can change the other options.

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      Bug Fixes

       
      Adding a new report will use the default viewer

      When publishing a new Crystal Report, the system will use the default viewer set in the System Setup & Configuration page.

      Fixed issue with logging into crystal reports that have a sub report

      Fixed an issue on some reports that had sub reports where they would not correctly login to the data for the sub report.

      Fixed issue with System using Access for the Ripplestone database

      Fixed an issue that occurred when an Administrator was creating a new Folder and needed to assign the security to the administrator and the Ripplestone application was using Access for the database.

      Fixed issue with security for administrator

      Fixed a bug when Administrators where getting a list of users that the administrator is allow to see. They were able to see all the users in the system and this is only available to the Super User.

      Fixed issue with Folder security for administrator

      Fixed a bug when Administrators where opening or viewing a folder where they didn’t have permissions to view the folder.

      Categories
      General IIS Ripplestone Ripplestone Tips

      How to Change the File Upload Size in Ripplestone

      When you publish a Crystal Report file or document to Ripplestone you are moving the physical file from the local storage to the web server. Ripplestone has a default file size of 10 MB, so report files that are larger than 10 MB will not upload.

      This size can be changed in the web.config file located in C:SitesRipplestone. The web.config file is an XML file that can be edited with any text editor or XML reader. Look for the httpRuntime section and change the maxRequestLength to whatever value you would like (1024 = 1MB).

      Below is an example of the httpRuntime section with the default values that come with Ripplestone.

      <!—Sets the max size for file uploads: 102400 = 10MB and 3600 = 1 hour –>

      <httpRuntime maxRequestLength="10240" executionTimeout="900" requestValidationMode="2.0"/>

      Categories
      IIS Ripplestone Ripplestone Tips

      Changing the Timeout Within Ripplestone

      Ripplestone has a default timeout period of 20 minutes. If the application has not been used for 20 minutes, the session will end and the user will need to login again to continue. The default value can be changed by editing the web.config file located in C:SitesRipplestone. The web.config file is an XML file that can be edited with any text editor or XML reader. Look for the authentication section and change the timeout to whatever value (in minutes) you would like.

      Below is an example of the authentication section with the default value of 20 minutes.

      <authentication mode=”Forms”>

      <forms name=”RSAuth” loginUrl=”SignOn.aspx” protection=”All” timeout=”20″/>

      </authentication>

      Categories
      Crystal Reports Ripplestone Tutorial Video

      Quick Tour of the Ripplestone Home Page

      We are starting off the New Year with a year long series of new videos, whitepapers and tip and tricks for Ripplestone and Crystal Reports.

      We will start off with a simple video of the Ripplestone Home page and how it makes it easy to manage, find and run your Crystal Reports.  This is from the viewpoint of a standard user running Ripplestone and how they can quickly find the reports they are looking for.  This video covers the following items:

      • Find a report within the tree of folders and documents on the left side of the page
      • Searching for a report
      • Adding a favorite report to the My Documents area on the right side of the home page
      • Viewing the last instance of a report that has been scheduled
      • View the history of scheduled reports
      • View a list of the last 10 reports run
      • View a list of the Top 10 reports run

         

        Quick Tour of the Ripplestone Home Page

      Let us know know other videos you would like to see in this series and we will be sure to get them on the list.