How to Create Reports

A report saves a date range, a date field, datapoints, and datasets, then exports the results on a schedule and emails them to the recipients you choose. You build and manage reports under **Analytics** > **Reports**.

### Overview

**Analytics** sits in the top navigation bar, and its tab strip holds **Reports**, **Dashboards**, and **Datapoints**. Opening a report gives you one screen with four parts: the **Report Settings** card, the **Report Datapoints** card, the datasets you create, and the **Exported Reports** card.

- Start from the **Create Report** card, or import a ready made report from **Import Sample Reports**.
- Add up to 20 datapoints, each of which calculates a single number for the report period.
- Add datasets, each with its own columns and filters, and preview the matching records on the report screen.
- Send every export to roles, staff, or a typed address, with the file attached to the notification email.

### Prerequisites

- The create_reports permission to create a report, create a dataset, and run **Export Now**
- The update_reports permission to change a report or a dataset, and trash_reports to trash one
- Alternatively, a super admin account, which passes every one of these permission checks
- Data already in your agency for the period you report on, such as messages, clients, or events

### How-To Steps

#### Import a sample report

1. Go to **Analytics** > **Reports**.
2. Find the **Import Sample Reports** card in the left column.
3. Click **Import** on the sample you want.
4. Open the new report from the reports list to customize it.

An imported sample sets your own email address as a recipient and creates any datasets the sample defines.

#### Create a report from scratch

1. Go to **Analytics** > **Reports**.
2. Enter a name in the **Report Name** field of the **Create Report** card.
3. Click **Create**.

eCourtDate opens the new report. It starts on a monthly export schedule covering last month, with your email address as the recipient and eight message datapoints already added.

#### Update the report settings

1. Enter a description in the **Report Description** field so recipients know what the file holds.
2. Select a range in the **From Date** list.
3. Select a range in the **To Date** list.
4. Select a column in the **Date Field** list, which offers message, client, and event date columns.
5. Select a schedule in the **Export Frequency** list, or select **None** to turn scheduled exports off.
6. Select who receives the file in **Export Recipients**, a list grouped as **Roles** and **Users**.
7. Leave **Attach File to Emails** checked to attach the export file to the notification email.
8. Click **Save**.

**Export Recipients**, **Add an Email**, and **Attach File to Emails** appear only once the report has an **Export Frequency**. A report saved without a **Date Field** falls back to messages.scheduled_at.

Check the **Date Range** panel at the top left after any date change. It shows the exact start and end the report uses.

#### Add an outside email address

1. Confirm **Attach File to Emails** is checked.
2. Enter the address in the **Add an Email** field.
3. Click **Add Email**, which appears once the address is a valid email.
4. Click **Save**.

#### Use a fixed date range

1. Select **None** in the **Export Frequency** list, because **Custom** is offered only while the report has no export schedule.
2. Select **Custom** in the **From Date** list.
3. Set the **Custom From Date** field.
4. Set the **Custom From Time** field.
5. Select **Custom** in the **To Date** list.
6. Set the **Custom To Date** field.
7. Set the **Custom To Time** field.
8. Click **Save**.

#### Add datapoints

1. Select a metric in the **Add Datapoint** list in the **Report Datapoints** card.
2. Drag a row by its handle under **Selected Datapoints (Drag to reorder)** to change the order.
3. Click the X on a row to remove that datapoint.
4. Click **Save**.

The card counts your datapoints against a limit of 20, and the **Add Datapoint** list is disabled once you reach it. A metric already on the report is left out of the list.

#### Create a dataset

1. Enter a name in the **Dataset Name** field of the **Create Dataset** card.
2. Click **Create Dataset**.

#### Choose the dataset columns

1. Click **Edit** on the dataset to open the **Edit Dataset** window.
2. Choose columns in the **Dataset Fields** list, or click **Set Default Fields** to load a standard set of message columns.
3. Rename a column in its **Field Name** field under **Customize Fields**.
4. Drag a field to change the column order.
5. Click **Save**.

**Set Default Fields** shows only while the dataset has no fields chosen.

#### Filter a dataset

1. Click **Edit** on the dataset.
2. Select a column in the **Field** list.
3. Select a comparison in the **Operator** list, which offers **Equals**, **Does Not Equal**, **Greater Than**, **Greater Than Equal**, **Less Than**, **Less Than Equal**, **Between**, and **Like**.
4. Enter the value to match in the **Condition** field.
5. Click **Add Filter**.
6. Click **Save**.

A dataset with no filters lists a few starting points under "Sample filters", and clicking one adds it. Click **Edit** on a saved filter to load it back into the form, or **Delete** to remove it. A record has to match every filter as well as the report date range, and a **Condition** of null or 0 is read as an empty value, which is how you match records with nothing in that column.

#### Export and open a file

1. Click **Export Now** in the **Exported Reports** card to queue a one off export.
2. Enter a term in the search box of that card and click **Search** to find older files.
3. Click the period link on an export to open it in the browser.
4. Click the download button on an export to save the original file.

An opened export gives you **PDF** and **CSV** buttons, a **Tools** menu holding **Download JSON**, **Copy to clipboard**, and **Download original file**, plus search, **Sort**, and **Filters** controls over the rows.

### What to Expect

**Export Now** queues the export rather than building it on the spot, so the file lands in **Exported Reports** a short while later. That card does not refresh itself, so reload the report or run a search in it to pick up a finished file. Once a report has exported at least once it carries a **Last Active** badge with the time since the last run, and a **Not Active** badge until then. Export file names carry the period they cover, and the card shows that period as the link text with the file size beside it. The card lists the 100 most recent exports and tells you when there are older files to search for. Saving the report recalculates the datapoint tiles for the current date range.

### Best Practices

- Import a sample report first to see how settings, datapoints, and datasets fit together, then rename it and adjust it for your agency.
- Keep a relative range on any scheduled report, since **Custom** dates are unavailable while an **Export Frequency** is set.
- Add roles rather than individual addresses in **Export Recipients**, so a staffing change does not break the distribution list.
- Put the datapoints that matter most at the top of **Selected Datapoints (Drag to reorder)**, because the tiles render in the saved order.
- Click **Save** after every change, as datapoint, column, and filter edits stay local until the report is saved.

### Frequently Asked Questions

**Q: Where do reports live in the navigation?**

A: Click **Analytics** in the top navigation bar, then open the **Reports** tab. The same tab strip holds **Dashboards** and **Datapoints**.

**Q: How many datapoints can one report hold?**

A: 20. The **Report Datapoints** card shows a running count against that limit and disables the **Add Datapoint** list once you reach it.

**Q: Can a scheduled report use a fixed start and end date?**

A: No. **Custom** appears in the **From Date** and **To Date** lists only while **Export Frequency** is **None**, so a scheduled report always runs on a relative range.

**Q: How do I stop a report from exporting without losing it?**

A: Select **None** in the **Export Frequency** list and click **Save**. The report and its datasets stay in place, and you can still click **Export Now** whenever you need a file.

**Q: Can I send an export to someone outside my agency?**

A: Yes. With **Attach File to Emails** checked, enter the address in **Add an Email**, click **Add Email**, then click **Save**.

### Troubleshooting

**Issue:** The **Exported Reports** card is empty.

**Symptoms:** The card reads "No exports yet. Exports appear here after this report runs." and the report carries a **Not Active** badge.

**Solution:** Click **Export Now**, wait for the queued export to finish, then reload the report or run a search in the card so the new file is listed.

**Issue:** **Custom** is missing from the date lists.

**Symptoms:** The **From Date** and **To Date** lists offer only relative ranges.

**Solution:** Select **None** in the **Export Frequency** list. **Custom** appears in both lists straight away, and clicking **Save** keeps the report unscheduled.

**Issue:** A dataset returns nothing.

**Symptoms:** The dataset reads "No data available. Try adjusting your filters or date range."

**Solution:** Click **Edit**, remove any filter you did not intend, and confirm each **Condition** matches your data exactly, because a record has to match every filter. Then widen the **From Date**, **To Date**, or **Date Field** on the report and click **Save**.

**Issue:** The recipient fields are missing.

**Symptoms:** The **Report Settings** card shows no **Export Recipients**, **Add an Email**, or **Attach File to Emails**.

**Solution:** Select a schedule in the **Export Frequency** list. Those three fields render only while the report has an export frequency.

### Related Articles

- [How to Create Data Dashboards](/how-to-create-data-dashboards)
- [How to create datapoints](/how-to-create-datapoints)
- [How to explore data source options](/how-to-explore-data-source-options)
- [How to review your agency performance score](/how-to-review-your-agency-performance-score)