[sims] CommandReporter and changing year group

[cn198]

Hi All,

 

I am having some problems running a SIMS custom made report using CommandReporter and I was wondering if you could help me diagnose the problem.

 

Basically I have created a custom made report in SIMS which returns basic pupil info, but it has a series of filters included to also return pupil results. I've also created a program in Excel (using VBA), which you set up and tell it what data you want from SIMS. The VBA program then creates an XML definition file to run CommandReporter with, which tells SIMS what year group I want data for, which subject and what aspects of data. The report returns an XML file with the pupil data in, which my VBA code reads and it adds the data to the excel spreadsheet for a HOD to analyse. I have been running this for a couple of years now and all works really well.

 

However, I'm now trying to set this system up in a different school, and it's not working. I've exported the custom report from the previous school to the new one, and it loaded in fine. The VBA code can run the report, but all that gets returned is an XML file with no data. I can run the report from within SIMS fine, but it's when I run it remotely and feed it my def file that it doesn't seem to like it. I think I've narrowed down where the issue is, and it seems to be when I try to change the year group. If I remove that from the def file the report runs, and returns the data, but if I try and feed it the year group, it just returns no data at all.

 

For the life of me I can't see what's wrong, or what I'm doing wrong. Can anyone suggest anything, or give some tips on how I can diagnose the issue?

 

My def xml file uses this code...

 

   
       Year
       Integer
       Year group 
       
           Yr 7
           1
           Yr 7
       
   

 

When I run paramdef the output I get looks like this... so I'm using the correct filter code. I've tried changing the from List to Integer (and String) but the same thing happens.

 

   Year
   List
   Year group 
   
       Yr 8
       1
       Yr 8
   

 

Any help will be much appreciated!

 

Chris

[MattMitchell]

I think the parameter I'd changes on each system, and when you change the report - have you checked it's definitely correct? Also, see if the report runs correctly from within sims.

[cn198]

Yes the Id is correct, the Id doesn't seem to change from system to system, it just changes if you change the conditions or set up of the filter. Besides, the paramdef output gives the correct ID and it does match what I'm inputting. The report does also run correctly from within SIMS.

[vikpaw]

Does your program have any hard-coded info in it. e.g. the user that runs the report. Double check permissions against their SIMS db.

Make sure the Year is exactly right, maybe the descriptions / IDs differ slightly.

Also, possibly worth re-saving your imported report under their school name, with one of their users, so it looks like they built it. Plus it might, change the param id..?

[cn198]

Hi vikpaw, I've created a new report in SIMS and it still does the same thing. So it's not an export/import issue. And the paramdef output gives me the filter ID so I know I'm using the correct one. Interestingly enough if I do fiddle with the ID, i.e. change 1 letter, it runs the report fine. So it's obviously trying to do something with the year filter and failing. As far as I can see I am matching the paramdef output, it wants it in the format of "Yr 7", I have tried various forms of it (the previous school used "Year 07"). You mention about permissions, how can I check the permissions in SIMS?

[MattMitchell]

Also, is the user account that runs commandreporter, the same account you're using in sims?

[vikpaw]

You would need the school to check their system manager setup for the user who runs commandreporter and effectively runs the report. It's passed in as a parameter to that too right?

Though if it runs without the year, i doubt it's permissions as access to the Year is basic, but you never know, especially with regards to assessment data.

I presume when you say it runs in SIMS, it runs on their sims, with one of their users logged in and it's that user that is running it through commandreporter.

[cn198]

I should clarify here, it's my account we're running on SIMS here, not someone elses. The system in my previous school ran with the /trusted command, so any teacher with a valid account could run the excel VBA program. At this school I need to use the /user and /password commands to run the report as you need to log into SIMS. But that's the only difference. And as I say, it is my account I'm using. When you go to "design report", and open the report in there, I can run the report using "Preview Report", and a window pops up asking to select the year, I select the year and sure enough all runs fine.

 

But running it remotely, if I don't specify a year the report runs fine (using the default year set up in SIMS), but if I specify a year in the def file, the output XML has no pupil data in it. It's all just very very odd. All my other filters work fine, i.e. pulling down data from SIMS. It's purely the year filter that stuffs things up.

[vikpaw]

I vaguely recall there being some issues with certain data from commandreporter it was with recent updates, but i can't find the thread where it was mentioned.

Have you logged this as a support incident, it might be worth doing that.

 

Just to be picky, you can also run the report as your user from run report, not the design report screen? It is the same, but just to be sure it's as close to run mode as possible.

Have you tried creating the def file manually, and running commandreporter manually? I'm sure you will have, just checking. Also make sure the type is back to the it wanted in the def file.

As a left field suggestion, can you check the format of year in pastoral setup, and also in Nova (i know - it's a hail mary!), only because there are short and long versions and maybe, when you run it interactively, it asks for the long, but uses the short or something like that. I know with Nova for options to work i used to have to fiddle the way the Y9 was coded, so it looked different to the others.

 

My other hail mary is to call on @LosOjos and @David_Grashoff to see what they think.

[cn198]

Hi vikpaw,

 

Thanks so much for persisting with help, it's much appreciated! I ran the report in the "run report" bit and it runs fine. However, I just managed to replicate the problem on my previous school system (the one where I'm having no problem with command reporter). So, on that previous system, if I run it as normal I get all the data that I expect. But if I alter the def file first before I run commandreporter and change the year group to gibberish (i.e. change "Year 07" to "Year XX") it does exactly the same as what's happening in the new school and returns an output xml file with no pupil data. This leads me to think then I'm purely just getting the year string wrong.

 

When I look at the year options on the report filer they are all in the format of "Yr 7", on the paramdef output it also gives the same format of "Yr 7", and when I look on the student details it also gives the same. However, on the student details there is a "Year taught in" option and that shows "Curriculum Year 7", but that doesn't work either. I can't see anywhere else that shows a year group listing. Where can I see the pastoral setup you're talking about, not sure I know about that, I also don't think I have access to Nova, certainly haven't come across it.

[cn198]

Sorted! I dug around SIMS and found the pastoral structure of the school, and sure enough after digging around, I found the short and long name of the years. Short is "Yr 7", long is "Yr 7", a double space instead of a single space! Oh my god that little space has wasted me so much time! I guess I've learn't a bit more about SIMS though so that's no bad thing. But thanks vikpaw, you've helped me solve the problem!

[vikpaw]

Focus school pastoral I think cant remember the right terminology off the top of my head.

It's where you set up the year groups and reg groups , form tutors, house etc. there may be options for short name or long name or there could be unsuppressed spaces in there.

Write a report to export to word / excel and see if you notice anything strange in the year groups.

[vikpaw]

Sorted! I dug around SIMS and found the pastoral structure of the school, and sure enough after digging around, I found the short and long name of the years. Short is "Yr 7", long is "Yr 7", a double space instead of a single space! Oh my god that little space has wasted me so much time! I guess I've learn't a bit more about SIMS though so that's no bad thing. But thanks vikpaw, you've helped me solve the problem!

 

Dang! i was too late but it was very late here. I thought it had to be something like that.

Glad it's sorted now )

Edited October 28, 2014 by vikpaw