Improved Print Archive

Built-in Print archive

When printing reports you can choose to archive them at the same time. Such reports are saved to Organization administration > Inquiries and reports > Print archive.
Built-in Print archive is pretty limited – you can search reports only by their caption and view them as PDF. It has the following features:

The Type field: always set to SQL Server Reporting Services report (probably the matter of legacy)
The Description field: set to the report caption, which is the caption of the report menu item, e.g. Show invoice for the Customer Invoice report; or set to the report ID, e.g. Report.
Couple of additional fields: Date and time of the report creation, user which created the report, number of pages is always set to 0 except when the report was printed to a printer
The Print preview button: download and view printed reports as PDF files

Learn how to save reports in Print archive >>

No matter if you are using Free or Full Edition, you can use all new features that Docentric adds to built-in Print archive.

Improved Print archive

From the version 3.3.0 Docentric improves built-in Print archive by adding some interesting features such as:

Instant document preview (from v3.4.5).
View executed reports' print destination settings, e.g. an email message sent to a customer primary contact.
Use dynamic placeholders to control what is written into the Description field; the Type field in the grid is hidden.
Bring relations to a source table (e.g. sales/purchase order), a journal table (e.g. invoice journal), a customer or vendor, etc.
Search by report name, document ID (e.g. Invoice ID), source table ID (e.g. Sales/Purchase ID), Customer/Vendor account number, etc. You can also navigate to these entities by clicking the related fields in the form.
Download zipped, merged or encrypted report files.
Configure Document type for archiving per company, report and report execution. Learn more >>
Search by report parameters and Print archive note, which can be configured per report execution. Learn more >>
Open Print archive from Customer and Vendor cards. Learn more >>
Access Print archive from common journals. Learn more >>
Saving proforma reports in Print archive (from v3.4.8). Learn more >>
(Coming in v3.5.0) Print archive cleanup: Configure a Print archive clean-up job for deletion of the chosen Print archive table records and optional deletion of the corresponding archived report documents from their storage location (Azure Storage or SharePoint), based on the Document Type used for archiving.

You can save a report to improved Print archive only if you print it using a Docentric print destination with the Save in print archive turned on, or if you select Docentric’s Print archive as the target print destination.

Long-term archiving

If you generate and save millions of reports, such as invoices and customer account statements, in Print archive over time, it could lead to increased database storage consumption and less efficient searches. In such cases, it’s best practice to use Document types for archiving that point to a SharePoint location.

Use distinct Document types for archiving configured per report or report execution, which are linked to SharePoint. Store the archived documents in SharePoint document libraries with metadata - matching or similar to the metadata provided by Print archive improved by Docentric. Learn more >>

When the Print archive table in the database grows too large, you can run a Print archive clean-up job to remove database records while keeping all archived documents accessible and searchable on SharePoint using their metadata.

Instant document preview

In 3.4.5 version we have added a document preview window to Print archive so you can now view the archived reports while browsing through Print archive without having to download them. The preview window can be toggled on or off via the Hide/Show preview button, to allow for more columns to be shown as needed.

The built-in Print preview button is now hidden, however downloading one or more archived report files is possible via the Download button added by Docentric.

View report print destination settings

Viewing of an executed report's print destination settings works out-of-the-box for any report saved to Print archive.

Download email message

If an archived report was emailed, you can also download and view the sent email message.

Download zipped, merged or encrypted files

You can download single or multiple archived reports, zipped or merged into a single PDF document. Moreover, you can download archived reports printed in file format different from PDF. You can also download reports encrypted with passwords, if they were printed with PDF security applied.

Populate Print archive with report metadata

To populate Print archive with the report metadata you will need to use custom DSP classes, which will fill so called Docentric archive contract. They are provided OOTB in the Docentric AX SSRS Replicas model.

How to fill Docentric archive contract

If you are not using DSP classes from the Docentric AX SSRS Replicas model or you just want to fill up Docentric archive contract for a report which is part of this model, the procedure is very simple.

In the overrideReportRunSettings() method of the report custom DSP class add the following X++ code if applicable:

public DocPlaceholderManager overrideReportRunSettings(DocReportRunContext _reportRunContext, boolean _replaceStandardPlaceholders = true)
{
    // Replace standard placeholders.
    DocPlaceholderManager placeholderMng = super(_reportRunContext, _replaceStandardPlaceholders);
        
    // Replace custom placeholders:
    // -- Placeholder @InvoiceId@
    placeholderMng.replacePlaceholderInCurrentPrintDest(#InvoiceId, placeholder_invoiceId);

    ...
    
    // Fill the Print archive contract.
    _reportRunContext.archiveContract().setCustAccount(placeholder_invoiceAccount);
    _reportRunContext.archiveContract().setSalesId(placeholder_salesId);
    _reportRunContext.archiveContract().setDocument(placeholder_invoiceId, placeholder_invoiceDate);
    _reportRunContext.archiveContract().setJournal(this.custInvoiceJour().RecId, DocJournalType::CustInvoiceJour);
    
    return placeholderMng;
}

public DocPlaceholderManager overrideReportRunSettings(DocReportRunContext _reportRunContext, boolean _replaceStandardPlaceholders = true)

{

// Replace standard placeholders.

DocPlaceholderManager placeholderMng = super(_reportRunContext, _replaceStandardPlaceholders);

// Replace custom placeholders:

// -- Placeholder @InvoiceId@

placeholderMng.replacePlaceholderInCurrentPrintDest(#InvoiceId, placeholder_invoiceId);

...

// Fill the Print archive contract.

_reportRunContext.archiveContract().setCustAccount(placeholder_invoiceAccount);

_reportRunContext.archiveContract().setSalesId(placeholder_salesId);

_reportRunContext.archiveContract().setDocument(placeholder_invoiceId, placeholder_invoiceDate);

_reportRunContext.archiveContract().setJournal(this.custInvoiceJour().RecId, DocJournalType::CustInvoiceJour);

return placeholderMng;

}

This is a code snippet from Customer Invoice’s DSP class that should be adjusted to cover your scenario.

Description field in Print Archive

The Description field is automatically set up to the report caption.

Report caption is by default overtaken from SSRS framework and this is most of the time a caption of the report menu item. Sometimes, this is not provided and the report ID, i.e. report technical name, i.e. report name in AOT is used instead.

You can change the report caption in the report DSP class in X++, but starting from the version 3.3.0 you can change report caption without coding, by entering the report caption in Docentric report setup. You can even use placeholders to make it dynamic. Learn more about setting up a report caption >>

File name when previewing/downloading report

From the version 3.3.0 when you preview, i.e. download a report from Print archive, the downloaded report filename will be the same as the Description field (i.e. the report caption) of the report in Print archive.

From the version 3.4.5 the built-in Print preview button is hidden - it became redundant because of the new feature Instant document preview. However, the archived report files downloaded via the Download button still use the Description field as the filename.

X++ Hooks

We created a couple of hooks, i.e. delegates which will enable you to change writing record to Print archive using Docentric archive contract and other report execution information.

[SubscribesTo(classStr(DocReportRunDelegates), delegateStr(DocReportRunDelegates, saveToPrintArchive))]
public static void DocReportRunDelegates_saveToPrintArchive(DocPrintJobHeader _printJobHeader, DocReportPrintArchiveInfo _printArchiveInfo, DocEventHandlerResult _result)
{
    DocArchiveContract ac = _printArchiveInfo.getArchiveContract();
    DocPrintReportSettings reportSettings = _printArchiveInfo.parmPrintReportSettings();
	
    // You can use customSettings (a container) from reportSettings which can
    // be set in the overrideReporRunSettings() method of the report DSP class.
    container customSettings = reportSettings.parmCustomSettings();
    str reportDescription = conPeek(customSettings, 1);

    // Update the built-in table for Print archive.
    PrintJobHeader pjh;
    ttsbegin;
    select firstonly forupdate pjh where pjh.RecId == _printJobHeader.PrintJobHeaderRecId;
    pjh.jobDescription = reportDescription;
    pjh.doUpdate();
    ttscommit;

    // Set the values of fields of Docentric's table for Print archive.
    // Commiting the update of this table will take place after this method completes.
    _printJobHeader.AccountRole = DocAccountRole::Customer;
    _printJobHeader.AccountNum = 'US-001';
    ...
}

[SubscribesTo(classStr(DocReportRunDelegates), delegateStr(DocReportRunDelegates, saveToPrintArchive))]

public static void DocReportRunDelegates_saveToPrintArchive(DocPrintJobHeader _printJobHeader, DocReportPrintArchiveInfo _printArchiveInfo, DocEventHandlerResult _result)

{

DocArchiveContract ac = _printArchiveInfo.getArchiveContract();

DocPrintReportSettings reportSettings = _printArchiveInfo.parmPrintReportSettings();

// You can use customSettings (a container) from reportSettings which can

// be set in the overrideReporRunSettings() method of the report DSP class.

container customSettings = reportSettings.parmCustomSettings();

str reportDescription = conPeek(customSettings, 1);

// Update the built-in table for Print archive.

PrintJobHeader pjh;

ttsbegin;

select firstonly forupdate pjh where pjh.RecId == _printJobHeader.PrintJobHeaderRecId;

pjh.jobDescription = reportDescription;

pjh.doUpdate();

ttscommit;

// Set the values of fields of Docentric's table for Print archive.

// Commiting the update of this table will take place after this method completes.

_printJobHeader.AccountRole = DocAccountRole::Customer;

_printJobHeader.AccountNum = 'US-001';

...

}

Saving reports to DMS

If you have a scenario where you want to skip saving printed reports to D365FO Print archive and save them to your DMS instead, or you want to additionally save them to some other location, you can do it by using the following delegates: DocReportRunDelegates.beforeSaveToPrintArchive and DocReportRunDelegates.afterSaveToPrintArchive.

[SubscribesTo(classStr(DocReportRunDelegates), delegateStr(DocReportRunDelegates, beforeSaveToPrintArchive))]
public static void DocReportRunDelegates_beforeSaveToPrintArchive(
    container _reportContent, SRSPrintArchiveContract _archiveContract, DocReportPrintArchiveInfo _printArchiveInfo, DocEventHandlerResult _result)
{
    str reportId = _printArchiveInfo.parmPrintReportSettings().parmReportId();
    if (reportId == ssrsReportStr(CustAccountStatementExt, Report))
    {
        str accountNum = _printArchiveInfo.getArchiveContract().parmAccountNum();

        // Do something with _reportContent, a PDF file, e.g. save it to DMS.

        // Cancel saving to Print Archive if needed.
        _result.cancelExecution(true);
    }
}

[SubscribesTo(classStr(DocReportRunDelegates), delegateStr(DocReportRunDelegates, beforeSaveToPrintArchive))]

public static void DocReportRunDelegates_beforeSaveToPrintArchive(

container _reportContent, SRSPrintArchiveContract _archiveContract, DocReportPrintArchiveInfo _printArchiveInfo, DocEventHandlerResult _result)

{

str reportId = _printArchiveInfo.parmPrintReportSettings().parmReportId();

if (reportId == ssrsReportStr(CustAccountStatementExt, Report))

{

str accountNum = _printArchiveInfo.getArchiveContract().parmAccountNum();

// Do something with _reportContent, a PDF file, e.g. save it to DMS.

// Cancel saving to Print Archive if needed.

_result.cancelExecution(true);

}

CONTENTS

Improved Print Archive

IN THIS ARTICLE

Built-in Print archive

Improved Print archive

Long-term archiving

Instant document preview

View report print destination settings

Download email message

Download zipped, merged or encrypted files

Populate Print archive with report metadata

How to fill Docentric archive contract

Description field in Print Archive

File name when previewing/downloading report

X++ Hooks

Saving reports to DMS

See also

IN THIS ARTICLE