Create an Action That Publishes a Report

Click Actions in the Administration menu.

Give the action a name and click Create AWO.

From the dropdown list, select Publish a Report.

This will bring up a new page to configure the report that will be published when the action triggers.

The image below shows how the report specification page will look when the page loads. Each option is explained below.

Publish Report (as)

Reports consist of two file types: an HTML file and a Publication Parameter File (PPF). The Publish report dropdown lists all HTML pages located in the /MCS Root/www/reports/ directory. If no custom reports have been created, this list will display the default reports included with MCS.

To publish a report, select the desired HTML page from the dropdown, then enter a name into the input field to the right. The name chosen here will become the link users use to access and view the report data.

If the HTML file contains any tilde variables, a separate section will appear, which is explained in the Tilde Variables section.

The report name can also be a tilde variable.

Report Source

The report source refers to the Publication Parameter File (PPF). The Report source dropdown lists all PPF pages located in the /MCS Root/www/reports/ directory. If no custom reports have been created, this list will display the default reports included with MCS.

Typically, a PPF file will match the name of the HTML file from the section above.

If the PPF file contains any tilde variables, a separate section will appear.

To Publication Satellite

A Publication Satellite is a utility that can be installed on a remote server (outside of MCS) to enable publishing reports externally.

For this tutorial, keep the default setting (This Server), meaning the report will be published directly within MCS.

In Directory

The publication portal supports a directory structure, allowing reports to be published within subdirectories for easier organization and retrieval.

If the specified subdirectory does not already exist, it will be automatically created.

Setting the directory value to / will publish the report directly in the root of the publication portal.

Show Title As

The title entered here determines how the report will appear in the publication portal. Choose a clear, descriptive title.

This field also supports tilde variables. Tilde variables can be combined with regular text.

Add Tags

At least one tag is mandatory for a report. When there are many reports available, tags can be used to quickly filter what is available.

Report Expires In

Reports can be assigned an expiry, in days, to ensure old reports get automatically deleted.

Access Code

When the publication portal first loads, it prompts for an access code. This can be left blank, which will only show reports that do not have access codes. If an access code is entered, reports that match that code will also be shown.

Dynamic Report

If this option is checked, the report will use dynamic data. This means the report will fetch the latest data from the server each time it is accessed. Dynamic reports are ideal for situations where up-to-date information should always be displayed.

If unchecked, the report will use static data. This means the data is retrieved once at the time the report is published and then permanently embedded into the report. Each time this static report is accessed, it will display the exact data captured at publication. Static reports are especially useful for one-time tests that need to be preserved and reviewed in their original state.

Save Report and Action

Once configuration is complete, click Save Report at the bottom of the page. This will return to the action setup.

The configured report will now appear as an item within the action. If no additional action items are required, click Save AWO to finalize and save the action.

MCS includes a feature to automatically extract certain information about a report at the time of publication. This information can then be used within the report itself or its specifications. These extracted pieces of information are known as "tilde variables" because they are enclosed within tilde (~) characters.

These variables consist of:

Variable	Description
~sid~	Translates to the full session ID used for the test
~sid1~	Translates to the first barrel of the session ID
~sid2~	Translates to the second barrel of the session ID
~sid3~	Translates to the third barrel of the session ID

The image below illustrates the session ID format that MCS uses for results generated by a work order. The session ID consists of three segments ("barrels"):

Barrel	Description
First barrel	The name of the satellite group that the satellite belonged to when the work order was executed
Second barrel	The name of the test being performed
Third barrel	A unique identifier assigned to the work order. This segment is particularly important, as it should ideally be unique for each work order execution.

Once an action has been created, it can be assigned to a work order.