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Excel reporting (Printing)

Karl Sjöstrand avatar
Written by Karl Sjöstrand
Updated this week

Astrato transforms Excel reporting with its live query capabilities, enabling seamless collaboration on financial data. Our BI tool streamlines workflows, allowing users to make real-time adjustments, add commentary, and manage approvals with ease. Once finalized, reports can be exported to Excel or PDF, complete with the latest data and professionally formatted, all powered by Astrato's continuous live data connections.

Upload predefined and formatted Excel templates to the Astrato Media Gallery and populate them with data from Astrato, without any complicated templating language or syntax. Just pure Excel formulas.

Import the new Excel demo workbook to your tenant by clicking on this button below.

Note for BETA users - Import data and Get Export data from object blocks have been updated for better performance, date handling and now respecting column order of tables. If you been part of the beta version of Excel template reporting the beta blocks have been deprecated and needs to be updated to get the benefits of the new improvements.

Report [Report name] template [Template name]

The Report [Report name] template [Template name] block defines the Excel report and triggers the execution of the connected block stack during report generation.

Excel template files (xlsx) are uploaded to the media gallery. Only .xslx file formats are supported.

Example of a report definition block with report parameters.

Example usage of a the Open report block with report parameters.

Configuration

Inputs

Description

Report name

The name of the report.

Template name

Select an Excel template (.xlsx) that is added to the Media Gallery of Astrato. Workbook or Tenant templates are supported.

+ Report inputs

Add additional report inputs to pass inputs to the report that can be access during report generation. Inputs can be of String, Number, or Boolean type.

Perfect if you want to reuse the same report for multiple schedules, by filtering on different dimensions and values.

Report input block contains report inputs passed to the report from the scheduler or the Open report and the Send report blocks. The input blocks to be placed inside the Report definition block.

Excel reports can be scheduled in the report section of Astrato lobby, the same way as PDF reports. See PDF reporting for more information

Supports

Feature

Description

Embeds

Yes, workbook embeds only.

Reporting

Yes

Import data

The Import data block appends or replace data in the Excel template in a table or named range.

Configuration

Inputs

Description

Data

The data to import. Must be a List, where each item represents a row, and each row contains a list of cell values. For example, data retrieved using the Get Export Data from Data Object block.

Table or named range

Specifies the table or named range where to insert or replace the data into.

Replace

True or False. If true the data in the table of the table will be replaced. If false the date will be appended to the table or named range.

Supports

Feature

Description

Embeds

Yes, workbook embeds only.

Reporting

Yes, only inside Excel or PowerPoint Report block

Insert value

The Insert value block allows you to insert a specific value into a particular cell on a given sheet.

Configuration

Inputs

Description

Value

The value to be inserted into the cell.

Cell reference

Specifies the cell (e.g., A1) where the value will be inserted. A named range that references a single cell is also accepted.

Sheet

Specifies the sheet where the cell is located.

Supports

Feature

Description

Embeds

Yes, workbook embeds only.

Reporting

Yes, only inside Excel or PowerPoint Report block

Insert hyperlink

The Insert hyperlink block allows you to insert a specific hyperlink into a particular cell on a given sheet.

Configuration

Inputs

Description

Hyperlink

The hyperlink to be inserted into the cell.

Cell reference

Specifies the cell (e.g., A1) where the hyperlink will be inserted. A named range that references a single cell is also accepted.

Sheet

Specifies the sheet where the cell is located.

Supports

Feature

Description

Embeds

Yes, workbook embeds only.

Reporting

Yes, only inside Excel or PowerPoint Report block

Insert note

The Insert note block allows you to insert a note into a particular cell on a given sheet.

Configuration

Inputs

Description

Note

The note to be inserted into the cell.

Cell reference

Specifies the cell (e.g., A1) where the value will be inserted. A named range that references a single cell is also accepted.

Sheet

Specifies the sheet where the cell is located.

Supports

Feature

Description

Embeds

Yes, workbook embeds only.

Reporting

Yes, only inside Excel or PowerPoint Report block

Copy sheet

The Copy sheet block allows you to make a copy of a sheet.

Configuration

Inputs

Description

Sheet

The sheet to copy.

New name

The new name for the copied sheet. The name must be unique within the workbook and cannot contain any of the following characters: \ / ? * [ ]. Additionally, the length of the name must not exceed 31 characters or be empty.

Supports

Feature

Description

Embeds

Yes, workbook embeds only.

Reporting

Yes, only inside Excel or PowerPoint Report block

Rename sheet

The Rename sheet block allows you to rename a sheet.

Configuration

Inputs

Description

Sheet

The sheet to rename.

New name

The new name for the specified sheet. The name must be unique within the workbook and cannot contain any of the following characters: \ / ? * [ ]. Additionally, the length of the name must not exceed 31 characters or be empty.

Supports

Feature

Description

Embeds

Yes, workbook embeds only.

Reporting

Yes, only inside Excel or PowerPoint Report block

Delete sheet

The Delete sheet block allows you to delete a sheet.

Configuration

Inputs

Description

Sheet

Specifies the sheet to delete

Supports

Feature

Description

Embeds

Yes, workbook embeds only.

Reporting

Yes, only inside Excel or PowerPoint Report block

Move sheet

The Move sheet block allows you to move a sheet to new position within the workbook.

Configuration

Inputs

Description

Sheet

Specifies the sheet to move

Position

The new position for the sheet.

Supports

Feature

Description

Embeds

Yes, workbook embeds only.

Reporting

Yes, only inside Excel or PowerPoint Report block

Show sheet

The Show sheet block allows you to show or hide a sheet.

Configuration

Inputs

Description

Sheet

Specifies the sheet to change visibility of.

Show

True or false.

Supports

Feature

Description

Embeds

Yes, workbook embeds only.

Reporting

Yes, only inside Excel or PowerPoint Report block

Set sheet tab color

The Set sheet tab color block allows you to set the tab color a sheet.

Configuration

Inputs

Description

Sheet

Specifies the sheet to change the tab color of.

Tab color

The new name color for the sheets tab. Supports hex, rgb and named css colors.

Supports

Feature

Description

Embeds

Yes, workbook embeds only.

Reporting

Yes, only inside Excel or PowerPoint Report block

Get cell value

The Get cell value block allows you to get the value from a cell on a sheet.

Configuration

Inputs

Description

Cell reference

Specifies the cell (e.g., A1) where the value will be inserted. A named range that references a single cell is also accepted.

Sheet

Specifies the sheet where the cell is located.

Outputs: String, Number or Boolean - The value from the specified cell on the specified sheet.

Supports

Feature

Description

Embeds

Yes, workbook embeds only.

Reporting

Yes, only inside Excel or PowerPoint Report block

Set [Primary/Secondary] Axis [Min/Max] Range to [Value] for Chart [Name] in Sheet [Name]

Sets the minimum or maximum range of either the primary or secondary axis for a specific chart in an Excel worksheet.

This allows fine-tuned control of how the chart displays values, ensuring consistent scaling across reports.

Configuration

Inputs

Description

Axis

Select whether to update the Primary or Secondary axis of the chart.

Range type

Choose whether to set the Minimum or Maximum value of the axis.

Value

The numeric value to assign as the axis minimum or maximum.

Chart name

The name of the chart to update within the worksheet.

Sheet

The worksheet containing the chart.

Supports

Feature

Description

Embeds

Yes, workbook embeds only.

Reporting

Yes, only inside Excel or PowerPoint Report block

Set Print Area [Range] of [Sheet]

Defines the print area of a specific Excel worksheet.

Only the specified cell range will be included when printing or exporting the sheet.

Configuration

Inputs

Description

Range

The cell range to set as the print area (e.g. A1:D20).

Sheet

The name of the worksheet to update.

Supports

Feature

Description

Embeds

Yes, workbook embeds only.

Reporting

Yes, only inside Excel or PowerPoint Report block

Get Print Area

Retrieves the current print area of a specific Excel worksheet.

This shows which cell range is currently set to print or export.

Configuration

Inputs

Description

Sheet

The name of the worksheet to check.

Outputs: Text – The current print area range (e.g. `A1:D20`).

Supports

Feature

Description

Embeds

Yes, workbook embeds only.

Reporting

Yes, only inside Excel or PowerPoint Report block

Get data from table or named range

The Get data from table or named range block block retrieves all data from a specified Excel table or named range.

The output is a list of rows, where each row itself is represented as a list of values.

Configuration

Inputs

Description

Table or named range

Specifies the table or named range where to get the data from.

Outputs: List - A list of rows from the table or named range. Each row is returned as a list of cell values.

Supports

Feature

Description

Embeds

Yes, workbook embeds only.

Reporting

Yes, only inside Excel or PowerPoint Report block

Get Number of Pages in Sheet

Retrieves the total number of printable pages in a specific Excel worksheet, based on the current page setup and formatting.

This is useful for reporting workflows where page count matters, such as preparing exports to PDF or PowerPoint.

Configuration

Inputs

Description

Sheet

The name of the worksheet to check.

Outputs: Number - The number of pages that the sheet will span when printing.

Supports

Feature

Description

Embeds

Yes, workbook embeds only.

Reporting

Yes, only inside Excel or PowerPoint Report block

Open report

The Open report block downloads the report in the browser when the block is executed.

Configuration

Inputs

Description

Report

Specifies the report to send.

Custom file name

Specifies the file name of the report.

Filetype

Specify which document type the export will use.

  • XLSX - Excel document

  • PDF - PDF document, as if the Excel document was printed as PDF. Print settings from the template will be respected.

  • PPTX (BETA) - PowerPoint document.

Use applied filters

If the users applied filter and variable state should be passed along to the report generation or if they should be ignored.

Max resolution (px)

The maximum resolution for the height and width of the browser window used for screen captures in reports. If a locked aspect ratio is applied on the sheet, the larger dimension, either height or width, will be set to this maximum resolution in pixels.

For example, with a 16:9 locked aspect ratio on a sheet and a maximum resolution of 1700, the width will be set to 1700 and the height to 956.

DPI factor

Enhances the pixel density of captured images. A DPI factor of 2 quadruples the total pixel count, enriching image quality. Note that a higher DPI factor extends the report generation time.

Supports

Feature

Description

Embeds

Yes, workbook embeds only.

Reporting

No, not supported inside report blocks.

Send report

The Send report block sends the report the specified email recipients when the block is executed.

Configuration

Inputs

Description

Report

Specifies the report to send.

Recipients

List of email recipients.

Custom file name

Specifies the file name of the report.

Subject

Email subject

Email body

Email body. Supports HTML.

Encrypt password

Password for Excel file encryption.

Filetype

Specify which document type the export will use.

  • XLSX - Excel document

  • PDF - PDF document, as if the Excel document was printed as PDF. Print settings from the template will be respected.

  • PPTX (BETA) - PowerPoint document.

Use applied filters

If the users applied filter and variable state should be passed along to the report generation or if they should be ignored.

Max resolution (px)

The maximum resolution for the height and width of the browser window used for screen captures in reports. If a locked aspect ratio is applied on the sheet, the larger dimension, either height or width, will be set to this maximum resolution in pixels.

For example, with a 16:9 locked aspect ratio on a sheet and a maximum resolution of 1700, the width will be set to 1700 and the height to 956.

DPI factor

Enhances the pixel density of captured images. A DPI factor of 2 quadruples the total pixel count, enriching image quality. Note that a higher DPI factor extends the report generation time.

Supports

Feature

Description

Embeds

Yes, workbook embeds only.

Reporting

No, not supported inside report blocks.

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