Sharing Reports - FAQ

What is the best way to store reports when multiple users are accessing the same reports?

Recommendations

The recommendation is to have a central repository of reports. There are multiple ways of accomplishing this:

• A simple network file share. While this option does not have built-in version control, you can at least ensure everyone is working off the same version of the reports

• A cloud-based service such as OneDrive or SharePoint.  This is included with Office 365, so most businesses have access to it.  It does track changes and revisions to file, you can control access easily for internal/external parties, and a big bonus is that you can have multiple concurrent users working off the same file with full commenting and change tracking capabilities

In addition, you can set permissions in Excel to make specific areas of a spreadsheet password protected. One option is to lock everything except the area where the viewer can change options for the financial period, project, branch, etc. Using this method, users can run and refresh the report, but cannot modify the important formulas (be sure to store an unlocked backup of the file in a safe location, in case the password is forgotten)

How do I share Velixo reports with non-Velixo users?

Velixo reports can typically be opened for viewing within any installation of Excel (even when Velixo Reports is not installed).  As soon as we try to make a change, however, Excel will recalculate and - if Velixo is not installed - will display #NAME? in any cell containing a Velixo function.

Similarly, if our report includes any of Excel's volatile functions [ such as =TODAY() ], Excel always recalculates the workbook as soon as it is opened (presenting the same #NAME? issue).

Solution

There are two options available to us for sharing our Velixo reports without requiring the viewer to have Velixo installed:

Copy Workbook Without Formulas

Using the Copy Workbook without Formulas button on the Velixo ribbon, we can create an Excel copy of our report, in which all Velixo function calls are replaced by the values they return.

We can then send the copy to anyone who, in turn, can then make changes and recalculate the workbook, even though they do not have Velixo installed.

(Velixo Classic only) Using a Distribution List

If we need to share our report on a regular basis or to multiple people, we can use Velixo's Distribution List feature.  This allows us to make copies of the entire report or individual sheets (in either Excel or PDF format) and even automatically email the copies, if desired.