White Paper

BMC Remedy Action Request System 7.6.04

Using a BIRT Editor to Create

or Modify Web Reports

September 2012

www.bmc.com

Contacting BMC Software

You can access the BMC Software website at http://www.bmc.com. From this website, you can obtain information
about the company, its products, corporate offices, special events, and career opportunities.

United States and Canada

Address

BMC SOFTWARE INC

2101 CITYWEST BLVD
HOUSTON TX 77042-2827
USA

Telephone

713 918 8800 or

800 841 2031

Fax

(01) 713 918 8000

Fax

713 918 8000

Outside United States and Canada

Telephone

(01) 713 918 8800

If you have comments or suggestions about this documentation, contact Information Development by email at
doc_feedback@bmc.com.
Copyright 2012 BMC Software, Inc.
BMC, BMC Software, and the BMC Software logo are the exclusive properties of BMC Software, Inc., are registered with the U.S. Patent
and Trademark Office, and may be registered or pending registration in other countries. All other BMC trademarks, service marks, and
logos may be registered or pending registration in the U.S. or in other countries. All other trademarks or registered trademarks are the
property of their respective owners.
IBM, DB2, and AIX are registered trademarks of International Business Machines Corporation in the United States, other countries, or
both.
Linux is the registered trademark of Linus Torvalds.
UNIX is the registered trademark of The Open Group in the US and other countries.
Oracle and Java are registered trademarks of Oracle and/or its affiliates. Other names may be trademarks of their respective owners.
BMC Software considers information included in this documentation to be proprietary and confidential. Your use of this information is
subject to the terms and conditions of the applicable End User License Agreement for the product and the proprietary and restricted
rights notices included in this documentation.

Restricted Rights Legend

U.S. Government Restricted Rights to Computer Software. UNPUBLISHED -- RIGHTS RESERVED UNDER THE COPYRIGHT LAWS OF
THE UNITED STATES. Use, duplication, or disclosure of any data and computer software by the U.S. Government is subject to
restrictions, as applicable, set forth in FAR Section 52.227-14, DFARS 252.227-7013, DFARS 252.227-7014, DFARS 252.227-7015, and
DFARS 252.227-7025, as amended from time to time. Contractor/Manufacturer is BMC Software, Inc., 2101 CityWest Blvd., Houston, TX
77042-2827, USA. Any contract notices should be sent to this address.

Customer Support
You can obtain technical support by using the Support page on the BMC Software website or by contacting Customer
Support by telephone or email. To expedite your inquiry, please see Before Contacting BMC Software.

Support Website
You can obtain technical support from BMC Software 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at
http://www.bmc.com/support_home. From this website, you can

Read overviews about support services and programs that BMC Software offers.
Find the most current information about BMC Software products.
Search a database for problems similar to yours and possible solutions.
Order or download product documentation.
Report a problem or ask a question.
Subscribe to receive email notices when new product versions are released.
Find worldwide BMC Software support center locations and contact information, including email addresses, fax
numbers, and telephone numbers.

Support by telephone or email

In the United States and Canada, if you need technical support and do not have access to the Web, call 800 537 1813 or
send an email message to customer_support@bmc.com. (In the Subject line, enter
SupID:<yourSupportContractID>, such as SupID:12345.) Outside the United States and Canada, contact
your local support center for assistance.

Before Contacting BMC Software

Have the following information available so that Customer Support can begin working on your issue immediately:

Product information

Product name
Product version (release number)
License number and password (trial or permanent)

Operating system and environment information

Machine type
Operating system type, version, and service pack
System hardware configuration
Serial numbers
Related software (database, application, and communication) including type, version, and service pack or
maintenance level

Sequence of events leading to the problem

Commands and options that you used

Messages received (and the time and date that you received them)

Product error messages

Messages from the operating system, such as file system full
Messages from related software

White Paper

Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web

Reports

This white paper explains how to use BIRTTM reporting tools with BMC Remedy
Action Request System Web reports. BIRT is an open source, Eclipse-based
reporting system.
Using Web reports and the BIRT Report Designer, you can:

Create reports based on BMC Remedy AR System data in the BIRT Report
Designer, and then deploy those reports to the AR System server using the
Report form.

Modify out-of-the-box Web reports in the BIRT Report Designer, and deploy
those reports to the AR System server using the Report form.

IMPORTANT

This white paper is intended for administrators with expertise using BMC Remedy
AR System Web reports and the BIRT Report Designer.
This white paper is only intended to document what is specific or different to
modify reports for BMC Remedy AR System.
For information and tutorials about using the BIRT Report Designer, choose Help
> Help Contents in the BIRT Report Designer. For additional information about
the BIRT Report Designer, see http://www.eclipse.org/birt.
For information about Web reports, see the BMC Remedy Mid Tier Guide.
This white paper guides you through the following process:
Step 1 Install the BIRT Report Designer to work with Web reports
Step 2 Enable BIRT to access your BMC Remedy AR System data by setting resource and

templates preferences in the BIRT Report Designer

Step 3 Create or modify reports with the BIRT Report Designer

Step 4 Deploy BIRT reports to the AR System server using the Report form

Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports W 5

White Paper

This white paper discusses the following sections:

Installing the BIRT Report Designer to work with AR System Web reports
(page 6)

Enabling BIRT to access your BMC Remedy AR System data by setting BIRT
preferences (page 7)

Creating a new report with the BIRT Report Designer (page 10)

Modifying an out-of-the-box Web report with the BIRT Report Designer

(page 18)

Deploying BIRT reports to the AR System server using the Report form
(page 23)

Examples for modifying reports with the BIRT Report Designer (page 27)

Installing the BIRT Report Designer to work

with AR System Web reports
Before you can modify or create reports using the BIRT Report Designer, you must
perform the following high-level steps:
Step 1 Download version 2.5.1 the BIRT Report Designer.
Step 2 Copy three BMC Remedy AR System plug-ins into their proper location.
Step 3 Specify the BIRT library and template location in the BIRT Report Designer.

NOTE
For information about system requirements for the BIRT Report Designer, see the
Eclipse documentation.

To download and open the BIRT Report Designer

1 Download the BIRT Report Designer 2.5.1 zip file:
http://www.eclipse.org/downloads/download.php?file=/birt/downloads/drops/
R-R1-2_5_1-200909220630/birt-rcp-report-designer-2_5_1.zip

NOTE
The BIRT Report Designer is a 32-bit application, and requires a 32-bit Java
installation.
2 Extract the BIRT Report Designer zip file to a destination directory

(BIRTInstallDir).

3 To open the BIRT Report Designer application, click the BIRT.exe executable file.

6 X Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

To copy BMC Remedy AR System plug-ins for use with

BIRT
1 Go to BIRTInstallDir, and create in it a plugins subdirectory.
2 Copy and paste the following plug-ins from your BMC Remedy AR Server Mid

Tier plugins directory (MidTierInstallDir/WEB-INF/platform/plugins) to

BIRTInstallDir/plugins:
com.bmc.arsys.oda.designtime_7.6.4.nnnnnnnn.jar
com.bmc.arsys.oda.runtime_7.6.4.nnnnnnnn.jar
com.bmc.arsys.studio.api_7.6.4.nnnnnnnn.jar

3 In the BIRTInstallDir directory, launch BIRT.exe.

The BIRT Report Designer application opens. Now, proceed to Enabling BIRT to
access your BMC Remedy AR System data by setting BIRT preferences on page 7.

Enabling BIRT to access your BMC Remedy AR

System data by setting BIRT preferences
Before you can create new BIRT reports or export and import .rptdesign files, you
must first download and extract resource and template zip files from the
AR System Resource Definitions form, and then configure resource and template
preferences in the BIRT Report Designer. The Resource library files contain
resource files for localized labels that you use for new labels to add to a report. The
BIRT library files contain the BIRT library (for example, stylesheets) and out-ofthe-box templates that you can use as you modify out-of-the-box reports or when
you create new BIRT reports.

To specify the BIRT library and template location in the

BIRT Report Designer
1 To open the AR System Resource Definitions form, type the following URL into

your browser:

http://midTierServer/arsys/forms/ARSystemServer/AR System Resource

Definitions

2 In the Type field, select BIRT Library, and then click Search.

Enabling BIRT to access your BMC Remedy AR System data by setting BIRT preferences W 7

White Paper

Figure 1-1: AR System Resource Definitions form

3 In the search results, select BIRT Resource File.

4 In the Resource section, select the Resources.zip file, and click Save to Disk.
Figure 1-2: AR System Resource Definitions form

5 Go to BIRTInstallDir, and create a Library subdirectory.

6 Copy the Resources.zip file to the BIRTInstallDir/Library directory.
7 In the search results, select BIRT Report Library.
8 In the Resource section, select the BIRT_Library.zip file, and click Save to Disk.

8 X Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

9 Copy the BIRT_Library.zip file to the BIRTInstallDir/Library directory.
10 Create a Resources subdirectory in the BIRTInstallDir/Library directory.
11 Extract the BIRT_Library.zip file into the BIRTInstallDir/Library/Resources

directory.

This creates the BIRTInstallDir/Library/Resources/Images and BIRTInstallDir/

Library/Resources/Templates directories. This also places the DateParameter.js
and bmc_library.rptlibrary files in the BIRTInstallDir/Library/Resources
directory.

12 Extract the Resources.zip file into the BIRTInstallDir/Library/Resources

directory.

This creates the BIRTInstallDir/Library/Resources/Resources directory with

*.properties files as content.
13 Open the BIRTInstallDir/Library/Resources directory, and copy its path. For

example:

BIRTInstallDir/Library/Resources

14 In the BIRT Report Designer, choose Windows > Preferences.

15 In the Preferences box, choose Report Design > Resources, and copy the path for

the Resources directory into the Resources folder field, and then click OK.
Figure 1-3: Resource panel for Preferences in the BIRT Report Designer

16 Open the BIRTInstallDir/Library/Resources/Templates directory, and copy its

path.

17 In the BIRT Report Designer, choose Windows > Preferences.

Enabling BIRT to access your BMC Remedy AR System data by setting BIRT preferences W 9

White Paper

18 In the Preferences box, choose Report Design > Templates, and copy the path for

the Templates directory into the Template folder field, and then click OK.

Figure 1-4: Template panel for Preferences in the BIRT Report Designer

You can now do the following tasks:

Creating a new report with the BIRT Report Designer on page 10

Modifying an out-of-the-box Web report with the BIRT Report Designer on

page 18

Creating a new report with the BIRT Report

Designer
After installing BIRT, you can start creating new reports in the BIRT Report
Designer. Perform the following workflow to create a new report in the BIRT
Report Designer:

Create a new report file in the BIRT Report Designer (page 11)

Add a data source for the new report (page 11)

Add a data set for the new report (page 13)

Preview and save the new report (page 17)

10 X Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

To create a new report with the BIRT Report Designer

1 In the BIRT Report Designer, choose File > New > New Report.
2 Enter a file name. Use the default file location or browse to a different file location.
a If you want to use a blank report template, click Finish.
b If you want to select a report template, click Next, select a report template, then

click Finish.

The new report appears in the Layout editor pane of the BIRT Report Designer.
Figure 1-5: New report in the BIRT Report Designer

To enable data access for a BIRT report by creating a data

source
Before creating new BIRT reports, you must build a BIRT data source to connect a
BIRT report to a data source, such as an AR System database. A BIRT data source
allows you to access data for a BIRT report.
1 In the BIRT Report Designer, go to the Data Explorer tab, right-click Data Sources,

and select New Data Source from the submenu.

Creating a new report with the BIRT Report Designer W 11

White Paper

Figure 1-6: Data Explorer pane

NOTE
If the Data Explorer tab is not open, choose Window > Show View > Data
Explorer.
2 In the New Data Source box, make sure Create from a data source type in the

follow list (default) and BMC Remedy AR System ODA Data Source (default)
are selected, and then click Next.
Figure 1-7: New Data Source box

12 X Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

NOTE
If BMC Remedy AR System ODA Data Source does not appear as a selection in
the New Data Source box, make sure the correct BMC Remedy AR System plugin files were copied to the BIRT install directory. For more information, see To
copy BMC Remedy AR System plug-ins for use with BIRT on page 7.
3 In the New BMC Remedy AR System Designtime Data Source Profile box, enter

the User Name and Server for the AR System server data source.

Figure 1-8: New BMC Remedy AR System Designtime Data Source Profile

4 Click Test Connection.

a If the Ping succeeded! message appears, continue to the next step.
b If the Ping failed! error message appears, review the details, correct the data

source information, and then test the connection again until you are successful.

5 Click Finish, and then click OK to close the box.

To define the data available in a report by creating a data

set
After creating a new report, you must build a data set to configure the data to
extract from data source. The data set defines all data that is available to the report.
For example, the data set configuration determines which fields are displayed in
the report.

NOTE
You must create a BIRT data source before you build a data set. For details, see To
enable data access for a BIRT report by creating a data source on page 11.

Creating a new report with the BIRT Report Designer W 13

White Paper

1 In the BIRT Report Designer, go to the Data Explorer tab, right-click Data Sets, and

select New Data Set from the submenu.

2 Configure the New Data Set box by doing the following tasks:
a Enter the Data Set Name. For example, Incident Data Set.
b Under the Data Source node, select the data source, and then click Next. For

example, select a data source previously created for this report.

Figure 1-9: New Data Set box

3 Configure the Query box by doing the following tasks:

a Select a form from the Form list.

14 X Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Figure 1-10: Query box

b Click Add. The Available Fields box displays all fields in the selected form.

Creating a new report with the BIRT Report Designer W 15

White Paper

Figure 1-11: Available fields box

c Select the fields you want to include in the report, and then click OK. You can

select multiple fields by holding down Shift or Ctrl keys.

d In the Qualification field, enter the criteria to be used for the query, click Verify,

and then click Finish. Enter the qualification using the format 'field' operator
For example, 'Status' !="Closed" for the incidents that are not
closed.

"Parameter".

e Click Finish.

NOTE
BMC recommends using query for a data set instead of filters. Data set filters are
applied to the entire result set, and can impair performance. Use the qualification
in the query configuration to filter data.
4 If you want to change a column label in a report (for example, change the Short

Description column heading to Description), configure the Output Columns box

by doing the following tasks:
For example, you can change the Short Description column heading to
Description.
a Select the output column you want to edit.
b In the Display Name field, change the column label.

16 X Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Figure 1-12: Edit Output Columns box

c Click OK.

NOTE
For a description of the parameters that can be configured in the Data Set editor,
see the BIRT online help.

To preview and save a new BIRT report

1 In the Edit Data Set box, preview the data for the new report by clicking Preview

Results in the left navigation area, and then click OK.

The data that fills in the criteria of the data set appears in the right pane of the Edit
Data Set box.
Figure 1-13: Preview Results in Edit Data Set

Creating a new report with the BIRT Report Designer W 17

White Paper

2 Save the new BIRT report by choosing File > Save As, and then enter a meaningful

file name in the File name field.

3 Click Finish.

NOTE
To deploy the newly created BIRT report to the AR System server using the Report
form, see To import the .rptdesign file from the BIRT Report Designer to the
Report form on page 21 and Deploying BIRT reports to the AR System server
using the Report form on page 23.

Modifying an out-of-the-box Web report with

the BIRT Report Designer
This section explains how you can export the .rptdesign file of a Web report from
the Report form, modify the report in the BIRT Report Designer, and then import
the modified .rptdesign file back to the AR System server using the Report form.

IMPORTANT
Before modifying an out-of-the-box Web report with BIRT, BMC recommends
saving a copy of the report definition file (.rptdesign file) and its corresponding
record in the Report form.
To make sure that future upgrades do not overwrite your modified Web report, set
Status to Pending or Inactive.
You can also import your original exported Web report (.rptdesign file) to a
different AR System server. For details, see Importing a Web report to a different
AR System server on page 22.

To export a .rptdesign file from the Report form to the

BIRT Report Designer
1 To open the Report form, type the following URL into your browser:
http://midTierServer/arsys/forms/ARSystemServer/Report

2 Search for an out-of-the-box Web report that you want to edit, and select the report

from the search results.

3 In the Instance ID field, copy the Instance ID value of the report you want to edit.

18 X Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Figure 1-14: Copying the Instance ID in the Report form

4 Open the Report Definition form, paste the Instance ID you copied in the previous

step from the Report form into the Report Definition GUID field, and then click
Search.

5 In the search result, right-click the attached .rptdesign file, and then click Save.
6 Save the .rptdesign file to a folder where you store reports.

Modifying an out-of-the-box Web report with the BIRT Report Designer W 19

White Paper

Figure 1-15: Saving the report file in the Report Definition form

To modify an imported report in the BIRT Report

Designer
NOTE
Make sure the Report Definition GUID does not change during editing. If the
GUID of the report definition changes, the GUID will not be associated with the
correct report.
1 In the BIRT report tool, choose File > Open File, and open the .rptdesign file you

exported from the Report form.

2 Edit the report using the BIRT Report Designer, and then Save the edited file.

NOTE
For details about modifying reports with the BIRT Report Designer, such as adding
a row or column, see the BIRT Report Designer help.
Modifying reports with BIRT Report Designer is discussed further in Examples
for modifying reports with the BIRT Report Designer on page 27.

20 X Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

To import the .rptdesign file from the BIRT Report

Designer to the Report form
1 In the Report Console, open the Report form, and search for the same Web report

you retrieved in step 3 on page 14.

2 In the Report Definition File area, right-click the .rptdesign file, and click Add.
Figure 1-16: Adding a file in the Report form

3 In the Confirm Save Request window, click Yes.

Figure 1-17: Confirm Save Request window

4 In the Add Attachment window, click Choose File, then browse and select the
.rptdesign

file you edited in the BIRT Report Designer, and click OK.

Modifying an out-of-the-box Web report with the BIRT Report Designer W 21

White Paper

Figure 1-18: Add Attachment window

Modifying an out-of-the-box ITSM report

Modifying an out-of-the-box ITSM application report is similar to modifying a
Web report. For example, an existing Print Incident report can be modified to add
an additional Work Detail field by doing the following procedure.

To modify an out-of-the-box ITSM application report

1 Follow the same procedure as Modifying an out-of-the-box Web report with the

BIRT Report Designer on page 18, with the following exceptions:

a When you search for an out-of-the-box report in the Report form, select the Print

Incident report.

b In the BIRT Report Designer, open the Print Incident report.

c Right-click the data set, choose Edit > Query > Add, and select Work Detail in

the Available Fields box.

d Import the report back into an AR System server.

Importing a Web report to a different AR

System server
This section explains how to export a Web report and then import it to a different
AR System server.

NOTE
BMC recommends the process in this section instead of the one detailed in
Modifying an out-of-the-box Web report with the BIRT Report Designer on
page 18.

22 X Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

To import a Web report to a different AR System server

1 In the Report form, select the Web report that you want to export.
2 Export the Web report to an .arx file. The report attachment will be part of this
.arx

file.

3 Import the .arx file to the target AR System server using the BMC Remedy Data

Import Tool.

To make sure that duplicate report entries are not created in the target AR System,
import the report file using the following fields as key fields: Report Set Name,
Locale, and Report Type. This is a concern when a report has been modified and
a fixed report is being moved.

Deploying BIRT reports to the AR System

server using the Report form
The reports you create or modify in the BIRT Report Designer must have a record
in the Report form in order to be available in the Report Console. Creating a record
for your report in the Report form includes:

Storing the .rptdesign file

Configuring how the report is filtered by the Category menu in the Report
Console

Before you start, determine where in the Category menu hierarchy you want the
report to appear. As shown in Figure 1-19, this affects how you complete the
Category 1 (for example, Incident), Category 2 (for example, Open Incidents), and
Category 3 (for example, Count by Assignee Group) fields in step 3 on page 24.
You can complete up to three Category fields, or you can create your own
categories, using the Category fields.
Figure 1-19: Category menu in the Report Console

Deploying BIRT reports to the AR System server using the Report form W 23

White Paper

To deploy a report to the AR System server using the

Report form
1 To open the Report form, type the following URL into your browser:
http://midTierServer/arsys/forms/ARSystemServer/Report

2 In the Report form, click New Request to create a record for the report.
3 Complete the required fields of the form and the Category fields. Enter unique,

meaningful names for the Report Name and Report Set Name.

Figure 1-20: New request in Report form

4 Attach the report definition file for the report to the request by doing the following:
a Click Add.
b Attach the .rptdesign file for the report.
c Click OK.
Figure 1-21: Attaching the .rptdesign file to a new request in Report form

24 X Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

5 Click Save, and then search for the report you just saved.
6 Copy the Instance ID of the report.
Figure 1-22: Instance ID of the report in the Report form

7 To open the Report Definition form, type the following URL into your browser:
http://midTierServer/arsys/forms/ARSystemServer/Report Definition

8 In the Report Definition form, paste the Instance ID you copied for the report in the

Report form into the Report Definition GUID field.

Figure 1-23: Report Definition GUID field in the Report Definition form

9 Click Search. The search results show the report design file for the report you are

deploying to the AR System server using the Report form.

Deploying BIRT reports to the AR System server using the Report form W 25

White Paper

Figure 1-24: Report Definition form with file attachments

10 Go to the Report Console, and refresh the browser.

11 In the Category menu, locate the report you deployed.
Figure 1-25: Category menu in the Report Console

12 Click the report to open it, and run the report.

Figure 1-26: Deployed report in the Report Console

26 X Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Examples for modifying reports with the BIRT

Report Designer
This section provides example scenarios for modifying reports in the BIRT Report
Designer.

NOTE
The procedures in this section are also discussed in the BIRT Report Designer
online help.
This section discusses the following topics:

Applying styles to customize report appearance (page 27)

Sorting and grouping results by a parameter to organize random results

(page 31)

Adding a column to report results (page 36)

Adding a parameter to filter report results (page 37)

Editing a Parameter box field to filter report results (page 39)

Using subreports to link reports together (page 42)

Using dynamic drill down reports to provide a series of detailed reports

(page 44)

Converting a currency type with a computed column (page 52)

Displaying Status History data in the body of a report (page 54)

Grouping results in multiple groups by using grids (page 54)

Using a stacked bar chart to compare different series of results (page 60)

Applying styles to customize report appearance

This example explains how to customize the appearance of a new report by doing
the following tasks:

Modify the style elements of the report

Edit the table header of the report

To apply table styles to a report

1 Open the file of a report in the BIRT Report Designer by choosing File > Open File,

and then selecting the file. The report opens in the Layout tab of the layout editor.

2 In the Data Explorer tab, right-click a data set under the Data Sets node, and drag

and drop it into the layout editor.

Examples for modifying reports with the BIRT Report Designer W 27

White Paper

Figure 1-27: Data set element dragged into layout editor in the BIRT Report Designer
Data set in Data Explorer tab

Same data set dragged into layout editor

After you drop the data set into the layout editor, the table is automatically created
with the fields you selected for the data set.
Figure 1-28: Table for an unformatted report

3 In the bottom left corner of the table, click the Table icon. The icons for other parts

of table appear on the left, such as Table-Header, Table-Detail, and Table-Footer.

28 X Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Figure 1-29: Table icon and table element icons

4 Right-click the icon of the report element to which you want to apply a style, then

choose Style > Apply Style, and select a style appropriate for the report element.
For example, apply the bmcReportTheme:TableHeader theme to the Table-Header.
Figure 1-30: Selecting a style

5 Save the report.

6 Preview the report by choosing Run > View Report > In Web Viewer.
Examples for modifying reports with the BIRT Report Designer W 29

White Paper

Figure 1-31: Previewing a report

To rename the report header

1 In the Layout tab of the layout editor, right-click the report header, then choose

Edit.

Figure 1-32: Layout editor

2 Type the updated title of the report.

Figure 1-33: Layout editor

30 X Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

3 Click Save.

Sorting and grouping results by a parameter to organize

random results
To sort results by a parameter
If the results of a report are random, this procedure helps you sort or reorder the
data by a parameter.
Using the parameters used in the previous example, this example sorts the results
in the far left column by Status.
1 With the report open in the Layout tab of the layout editor, go to the Data Explorer

tab and double-click a data set under the Data Sets node.

2 In the Edit Data Set box, click the Sorting tab.

Figure 1-34: Edit Data Set - Sorting tab
Sorting tab

3 Click Add to open the Available Fields box.

Figure 1-35: Available fields box

Examples for modifying reports with the BIRT Report Designer W 31

White Paper

4 In the Available Fields box, select the fields you want to sort by in the report, and

then click OK. For example, select the Status and Assignee Groups fields.

5 Preview the report to make sure the report is sorted by the parameter you added

to the Sorting tab.

a Save the report.

b Run the report.
c Close the report after reviewing its content.

If the report is not sorted as expected, review step 2 through step 4. In the
following figure, the report is sorted by the Status parameter.
Figure 1-36: Example: report sorted by a Status parameter

To group results by a parameter

This example shows how to group sorted results by a parameter.
1 Go to the Layout tab of the layout editor, select the Table icon of the table, right-

click the table header row, and select Insert Group in the submenu.
Figure 1-37: Layout editor

32 X Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

2 In the New Group box, in the Group On list, select the parameter with which you

want to group the results, and then click OK. In Figure 1-38, the Status parameter
is selected in the Group On list so that the results are grouped by status.

Figure 1-38: New Group box

3 Preview the report to make sure the results are grouped by the parameter you

configured in the New Group box. To preview the report (Save, Run, and Close),
repeat the procedures in step 5 on page 32. If the report is not grouped as expected,
review step 2.
In Figure 1-39, the report is grouped and sorted by the Status parameter. The first
Assigned row has no data, then the next Assigned rows contain records. Then the
first In Progress row has no data, then the following In Progress rows contain
records.
Figure 1-39: Report sorted by a parameter

Examples for modifying reports with the BIRT Report Designer W 33

White Paper

4 To apply a style to the group header, go back to the report file in the Layout tab,

and right-click the group header row.

Figure 1-40: Group header row in report Layout tab

5 Choose Style > Apply Style > bmcReportTheme:GroupHeader1.

6 Preview the report (Save, Run, and Close) to check the group header style.

In Figure 1-41, the style selected resulted in a bold group heading.

Figure 1-41: Report with stylized group header

To aggregate results by a parameter

You can configure your report results to display aggregated data. In other words,
instead of displaying simple values, you can perform calculations on sets of values.
This example shows you how to configure a report that counts the number of
incidents.

34 X Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

1 In the Layout tab of the layout editor, select the Table icon, right-click a cell in a

Table Group-Header row, and choose Insert > Aggregation.

Figure 1-42: Inserting an aggregation

2 In the Aggregation Builder box, configure a report row by doing the following

tasks:

a In the Function list, select COUNT.

b In the Expression list, select Incident Number.
c Click OK.
Figure 1-43: Aggregation Builder box

Examples for modifying reports with the BIRT Report Designer W 35

White Paper

3 Preview the report (Save, Run, Close). To preview the report, repeat the

procedures in step 5 on page 32.

This report groups results by the parameter you configured in the New Group box
in, and displays the number of incidents in the Table Group Header row for
incidents with Assigned and In Progress.
Figure 1-44: Report displaying number of incidents and sorted by group

Adding a column to report results

This section explains how to add a column to filter report results.

To add a column
1 In the BIRT Report Designer, go to the Layout pane of a report.
2 Click a column above its table header to select the entire column in a table.
Figure 1-45: Highlighting a column in the Layout pane

3 Right-click in the selected column and choose Insert > Column to the Right (or

Left).

4 Go to Data Explorer tab and drag a data set into the new column (for example, Data

Explorer tab > Data Sets > HPD_Help_Desk > Incident Number).

5 Add a label for Incident Number at the top of the column.

36 X Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

6 Preview the report (Save, Run, Close). To preview the report, repeat the

procedures in step 5 on page 32.

Figure 1-46: Report displaying new column

Adding a parameter to filter report results

This section explains how to use the BIRT Report Designer to create a parameter
that you can use to filter your report results. In this example, the License type
field is added to the Parameter box for reports that return People records.

To add a parameter
1 In the BIRT Report Designer, go to the Outline tab and right-click Report

Parameters.

2 Select New Parameter from the submenu.

3 In the Name field, type a name for the new parameter.
4 In the Data type field, select String.
5 In the Display type field, select Combo box.
6 In the List of value area, select Static, then click New.
7 In the New Selection Choice box, type Fixed in the Value field, click OK.

Examples for modifying reports with the BIRT Report Designer W 37

White Paper

Figure 1-47: New Parameter box

8 Click OK to close the New Parameter box.

9 To create binding between the data set and the new parameter, go to the Data

Explorer tab, right-click the appropriate data set, click Edit, click Parameters, and
click New.

10 In the New Parameter box, configure the new parameter by doing the following

tasks:

a In the Name field, type the name of the new parameter in the data set.

NOTE
Select one of the following two options as the Default Value field (see step c on
page 39) can only be edited if you do not edit the Linked to Report Parameter field.
b In the Linked To Report Parameter field, select the name of the new parameter

you created in step 3 on page 37.

38 X Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Figure 1-48: New Parameter box for Editing a Data Set

c In the Default Value field, edit the qualification query of the data set based on

the report parameter that you linked to in step b on page 38. For example, enter
the following in the Expression Builder:
'License Type' = [param:dsLicenseType]

where dsLicenseType is the data set parameter which refers to the report
parameter.
11 Preview the report (Save, Run, Close). To preview the report, repeat the

procedures in step 5 on page 32.

The Parameter box of the report appears and specifies a fixed License type
parameter. The report shows People records having a fixed License type.

Editing a Parameter box field to filter report results

You can edit an existing field in the Parameter box to narrow your report results.
When you run most out-of-the-box reports in BMC Remedy AR System or BMC
Remedy IT Service Management Suite, the Parameter box appears and requests
information to narrow the report results. For example, the Parameter box can
request the Start Date and End Date for reports with a date range.

Examples for modifying reports with the BIRT Report Designer W 39

White Paper

Figure 1-49: Parameter box

To edit the Parameter box fields

1 Search for an out-of-the-box Web report that contains date-related fields that you

want to edit, and save its .rptdesign file to a folder where you store reports. For
details, see To export a .rptdesign file from the Report form to the BIRT Report
Designer on page 18.

a In the Report form, search for a report with the words Date and Range in its

title by entering % Date Range in the Report Name field.

Figure 1-50: Report Name field in the Report form

b Select a report. For example, the Expiring Contracts by Date Range report.

40 X Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Figure 1-51: Search results in the Report form

2 In the BIRT Report Designer, choose File > Open File, and open the .rptdesign file

you exported from the Report form.

3 Go to the Data Explorer tab, click the Report Parameters node.

Figure 1-52: Report parameters

4 To edit a report parameter, right-click the report parameter you want to edit, and

select Edit from the submenu.

NOTE
For details on editing parameters, see the BIRT Report Designer online help.
For example, if you want to edit the Start Date field, right-click Start Date.
5 If you want to see how a parameter is filtered for a data set, go to the Data Explorer

tab, right-click the data set you want to examine, click Edit, then click Filters.

Examples for modifying reports with the BIRT Report Designer W 41

White Paper

NOTE
For details on editing a filter condition, see the BIRT Report Designer online help.

Using subreports to link reports together

Subreports, which are reports that are linked and appear inside another report, can
provide detailed information about a customer beyond the data provided in a
parent report. For example:

If a customer listing provides a customer ID, that customer ID can be input into
a subreport that displays details about each customer. An ID value is often the
common data between two data sets.

If a parent report displays only the amount spent (or other customer data), a
subreport can provide customer details (such as address). A subreport can show
a combined parent report and subreport.

Testing each subreport before building the next subreport can help minimize
difficulties that can arise with subreports.

NOTE
The example in this section provides high-level instructions. Subreports are
discussed in detail in the BIRT Report Designer online help.

To create a subreport
1 Design the structure of a report and its subreports. This includes details of required

data sets and how they are related, and can be a simple relationship diagram of
forms.

2 Create a data source and a required number of data sets. For an example, consider

a parent "People" report that can have an added subreport, which shows roles
attached to a particular people record.
The relationship structure is: CTM:People (Person ID) >
CTM:SupportGroupFuncRoleLookUp (Person ID)

This structure has two data sets that are required to develop the subreport. The two
required data sets are CTM:People and CTM:SupportGroupFuncRoleLookUp.
3 Create the required data sets as follows:
a Create a data set for the parent record (CTM:People).
b Create a data set for the child records (CTM:SupportGroupFuncRoleLookUp).
c In the Parameter tab of data set creation for child record, create a parameter for

the parent key based on which will pull child records. For example, the key will
be Person ID. Do not link the parameter to any report parameter.

42 X Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Figure 1-53: Parameter tab in the BIRT Report Designer

4 Click Query and modify the query as follows to pull child records having a key

value the same as parent record:

"Person ID" = [param:dsPersonID]

5 Insert a second table element inside the new detail row of table. The child table

must have the child record data set associated to it.

Figure 1-54: Second table element inside a table detail row

6 Go to the Binding tab the new child table.

7 Bind the key field of the parent data set to the parameter of the child data set

parameter.

Examples for modifying reports with the BIRT Report Designer W 43

White Paper

Figure 1-55: Binding tab of the child table

8 Click Data Set Parameter Binding.

9 Bind the parent key value to the child.
Figure 1-56: Data Set Parameter

10 Preview the report (Save, Run, Close). To preview the report, repeat the

procedures in step 5 on page 32.

Using dynamic drill down reports to provide a series of

detailed reports
This section provides high-level information about dynamic drill down reports.

NOTE
Adding interactive features, such as hyperlinks, to charts is discussed in detail in
the BIRT Report Designer online help.

44 X Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Drill down reports are summary reports which can be drilled through to get
related detail data in other reports at a granular level. The first report presented in
a series of drill down reports provides only required or necessary data, and then
the user decides whether they want further details. By adding hyperlinks, you
make drill down reports interactive for your user.
For example, a report first might show only a pie chart, which summarizes the
report results. When a user clicks a slice of the pie chart, a detailed report opens for
that particular slice of data.
The following scenario looks at the report development of the All incidents by
Status and assigned Group drill down report in ITSM.

To create a drill down report

This procedure provides high-level steps to create a drill down report. This
procedure features the example All incidents by Status and assigned Group
report.
1 Gather and analyze data to decide how to divide information into multiple stages.

For example, the example report has a high number of incidents based on their
status. The incidents have a particular status and are assigned to groups. There are
also records for the incidents. A particular record in an incident form can provide
details of that incident. Therefore, the design of this drill down report needs the
following levels:
Figure 1-57: Drill down report design example

In this example:
- A pie chart shows Incident Count categories based on Status

Examples for modifying reports with the BIRT Report Designer W 45

White Paper

- A bar chart shows the Incident Count by Assigned Group for the Status slice
selected in the pie chart
- A detailed incident report based on the Assigned Group bar selected in the bar
chart
2 Create a data source and data set required for a report (for example, HPD: Help

Desk).

3 Insert a table in the report layout area.

4 Bind the data set property of the table.
5 Insert the required fields in the details section (for example, Incident Number,

Assignee, Customer Name, and so on).

6 Insert groups in the table by right-clicking in the detail row of the table and

selecting Insert Group. Insert the first group based on Status, and the second
group based on Assigned Group.

7 Insert a chart in the table by right-clicking in a table header and choose Insert >

Chart. Insert a pie chart showing the number of Incidents categorized based on
Incident Status.
Figure 1-58: Drill down report pie chart example

8 In the Status group header (header of first group) of the table, insert a bar chart,

which will show the number of Incidents categorized based on Assigned Group.

46 X Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Figure 1-59: Drill down report inserting a bar chart

9 In the second group header, choose Insert > Grid to display details of Incident

Count, Assigned Group, and Status.

Figure 1-60: Drill down report inserting a grid

10 In the first group header, right-click and select Properties, select Bookmark in the

Property Editor, then enter the following in the Bookmark box:

row["Status"]

Figure 1-61: Bookmark box on Properties tab

Examples for modifying reports with the BIRT Report Designer W 47

White Paper

This starts the process of adding drill down functionality by hyperlinking to the
table. When clicking on a particular slice of the Status pie chart, the bar chart
should appear and show details based on the Assigned Group of that Status.
11 To set the bookmark with a hyperlink to the pie chart, right-click the pie chart

created in step 7 on page 46, and choose Format Chart > Series > Value Series >
Interactivity, then click Add in the Series Interactivity box.
Figure 1-62: Editing the pie chart
Value series

Interactivity

12 In the Hyperlink Editor box, type the name of the hyperlink in the Name field, and

then click Edit base URL.

13 In the Hyperlink Options box, select Internal Bookmark, and then select the

bookmark created in step 10 on page 47.

48 X Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Figure 1-63: Hyperlink Options box

This adds the functionality for clicking a particular slice of a pie chart, then
navigating to a bar chart that shows the incident count of a selected Status based
on the Assigned Group.
14 Create a hyperlink for a bar chart by repeating the process from step 10 on page 47

through step 13 on page 48.

To create a drill down report that links to an incident

record
This example shows how to enable a user with a list of incident records in a report
to click on a particular Incident Number to open the form (for example, HPD:Help
Desk) which includes the incident details. This allows the user to easily access and
modify an incident record starting a report.
1 Add a new report parameter, select Hidden in the New Parameter box, and click

OK. This new parameter will be used in script to fetch the mid tier URL.

Examples for modifying reports with the BIRT Report Designer W 49

White Paper

Figure 1-64: Adding new parameter

2 Select a data set. In this example, select the HPD:Help Desk data set.
3 Go to the Script tab of the report, and select the BeforeOpen event in the Script list.

The script fetches the MidTier URL at runtime and sets it to the hidden parameter
created in step 1 on page 49.
Figure 1-65: Script tab of the report

The script is as follows:

50 X Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

var request = reportContext.getHttpServletRequest();

var urlValue = null;
if (request != null) {
var session = request.getSession();
if (session != null) {
urlValue = session.getAttribute("midTierURL");
}
}
if (urlValue != null) {
params["midTierURL"].value = urlValue;
} else {
params["midTierURL"].value = null;
}

4 Go to Layout tab of the report, and select Incident Number, which was inserted in

the table details section in step 5 on page 46.

5 Select the Hyperlink properties tab, and click Edit.

Figure 1-66: Layout tab and Hyperlink property tab

6 In the Hyperlink Options box, select URL as the hyperlink type, and enter the

following value:

params["midTierURL"].value + row["Entry ID"]

choose Target = "Blank"

7 Save the report.

8 Preview the results by running the report on the mid tier, and clicking an Incident

Number. The selected incident opens in the Help Desk form.

Examples for modifying reports with the BIRT Report Designer W 51

White Paper

Converting a currency type with a computed column

You can convert a particular currency field to the type entered by your user by
creating a Computed Column in a data set.
The Open Data Access (ODA) framework in BIRT converts the Currency Field in
BMC Remedy AR System to the following fields:

<Field Name>.OBJECT

<Field Name>.VALUE

<Field Name>.TYPE

OBJECT is of type String and has currency value as well as currency type.

To convert a currency field to the user entered currency

type
1 With a report open in the Layout tab of the layout editor, go to the Data Explorer

tab and double-click a data set under the Data Sets node.

2 In the Edit Data Set box, click Computed Columns.

Figure 1-67: Edit Data Set - Computed Columns

3 Click New.
4 In the Column Name field, type a name for the computed column.
5 In the Data Type field, select Decimal.
6 In the Expression field, type the expression. For example:
if (row["Associated Cost.OBJECT"].toFunctionalValue(params["Currency
Type"].value)

52 X Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Figure 1-68: New Computed Column

The following is an example of entering an expression in the Expression Builder.

Figure 1-69: Expression Builder for a computed column

The function on the currency field object named toFunctionalValue requires input
as the expected currency type, which is obtained from the user parameter. The
function returns Decimal currency value converted to a given currency type.
7 Click OK, then click Preview Results.

Preview Results in Figure 1-70 shows the currency field converted into the
.OBJECT, .VALUE, and .TYPE columns.

Examples for modifying reports with the BIRT Report Designer W 53

White Paper

Figure 1-70: Preview Results for currency conversion

Displaying Status History data in the body of a report

Out-of-the-box Web reports do not support the Status History field.
The Status History field is supported by AR System reports. In other words, Status
History data can be displayed in the body of an AR System report.
All core forms across the BMC Remedy IT Service Management suite are auditable
for core fields. To include Status History data in a report, you can potentially use
the data from the Audit form by either:

Using subreports if using the BIRT Report Designer. See Using subreports to
link reports together on page 42.

Creating a join form to create a Web report. See the BMC Remedy Mid Tier Guide.

Grouping results in multiple groups by using grids

This example show how to create a report that shows grouped results, with those
grouped results being further broken down into another level of groups.
The first report shown in step 13 on page 58 of this example shows the results
grouped by their Assigned Group (for example, A SupGrp) and then grouped by
their Status (for example, Assigned, In Progress, and Pending).
The second report shown in step 20 on page 59 of this example shows a deeper
level of grouping, with the results grouped by their Assigned Group, then grouped
by each Assignee within each Assigned Group, and then grouped by their Status.

54 X Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

To add multiple groups by using grids

1 View the report in the Layout tab of the layout editor.

This report starts with the Assigned Groups field in the left column. You can merge
table group header cells and add a label to the left of the data set field as shown.
Figure 1-71: Viewing the report in the Layout tab

2 Save and run the report to preview it.

Figure 1-72: Report preview

3 In the Layout pane, add a column for the Incident Number to the right of the

Assignee column. For details on adding a column, see Adding a column to report
results on page 36.
Figure 1-73: Adding a second column

Examples for modifying reports with the BIRT Report Designer W 55

White Paper

4 Add another column for the Submit Date to the right of the Incident Number

column.

5 Save and run the report to preview it.

The report shows columns for the Assigned Groups, Incident Number, and Submit
Date.
Figure 1-74: Report preview after adding two columns

6 In the Layout pane, right-click in the Table Group Header row, and choose Insert

Group > Below.

Figure 1-75: Inserting a group

7 In the New Group box, select Status in the Group On list, then click OK. The

Status group is added to the table.

56 X Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Figure 1-76: Status group in the Layout tab

8 Right-click the Status group, and select a Group Header style for it.
Figure 1-77: Selecting a style for the Status group

9 Apply a style to the other group headers and other rows in the table.
10 For formatting, merge the Status table group header cells and add a label to the left

of the data set field.

Figure 1-78: Merging and labelling the Status table group header

11 Right-click in the Status group header row, and choose Insert > Grid.
12 In the Insert Grid box, set the grid size as 2 columns and 1 row.

Examples for modifying reports with the BIRT Report Designer W 57

White Paper

Figure 1-79: Inserting grid in Status group row

13 Save and run the report to preview it.

The report shows the results grouped by their Assigned Group (for example, A
Test Support, ABC Group) and then grouped by their Status (for example,
Assigned and In Progress).
Figure 1-80: Report preview showing grouping by Assigned Group and then Status

58 X Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

To take the grouping to another level, this example now adds the Assignee group
within the Assigned Group group.
14 Right-click in the Status table group header, and choose Insert Group > Above.
15 In the New Group box, set the grid size as 2 columns and 1 row
16 New Group box, select Assignee in the Group On list, then click OK. The

Assignee group is added to the table.

Figure 1-81: Assignee group added in Layout pane

17 For formatting, merge the Assigned table group header cells and add a label to the

left of the data set field.

Figure 1-82: Merging and labelling the Assigned table group header

18 Right-click in the Assigned group header row, and choose Insert > Grid.
19 In the Insert Grid box, set the grid size as 2 columns and 1 row.
20 Save and run the report to preview it.

The report shows the results grouped by their Assigned Group (for example, A
SupGrp), then grouped by Assignee (for example, A1 User), and then grouped by
their Status (for example, Assigned and In Progress).

Examples for modifying reports with the BIRT Report Designer W 59

White Paper

Figure 1-83: Report preview showing grouping by Assigned Group, then grouped by
Assignee, and then Status

Using a stacked bar chart to compare different series of results

This procedure provides high-level steps to create a stacked bar chart report. A
stacked bar chart compares the results for different sets of results. This example is
for a stacked bar chart for all assignees in an incident group. The details of creating
a bar chart are provided in the BIRT online help.
1 In BIRT Report Designer, create a basic new report. For details, see the BIRT online

help.

2 Configure the data set for the report by adding the Status, Assignee Groups,

Assignee, and Incident Number fields in the Query tab.

3 In the Layout pane, right-click in the report layout and choose Insert > Chart.
4 On the Select Chart Type tab of the New Chart box, select Bar as the Chart type,

and Stacked Bar chart as the Subtype.

5 On the Select Data tab of the New Chart box:

a Select Use Data from, and select Data Set from the list.

60 X Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

Figure 1-84: Select Data tab for a stacked bar chart

b Under In the Value (Y) Series, configure at least two series of data for Status

using the Expression Builder. Optionally, configure the Aggregate Expression

field to Count.

Figure 1-85: Expression Builder for configuring a Value Series

Examples for modifying reports with the BIRT Report Designer W 61

White Paper

c Under In the Value (X) Series, configure a series of data for Assignee Groups

using the Expression Builder.

6 Preview the report (Save, Run, Close). To preview the report, repeat the

procedures in step 5 on page 32.

If the bar chart needs adjustment, click the Binding tab in the Property Editor for
the chart and review the data binding settings.

62 X Using a BIRT Editor to Create or Modify Web Reports

*271662*
*271662*
*271662*
*271662*
*271662*