Using Workspaces

This topic explains how to use workspaces in the NaviPlex Client to organize and manage your working environment. It describes how to configure, save, and switch between different workspace layouts to match your tasks and preferences.

A workspace is a special container in the report tree that allows you to group reports so that you can launch, view, and terminate them as one entity. The Workspaces container appears at the bottom of the Available Reports area.

NaviPlex provides these two types of workspaces:

  • Multiple document interface (MDI) workspaces run all the reports contained in the workspace in a single MDI window. The MDI workspace imposes some restrictions on the reports within the workspace:
    • It works with tabular and graphical reports.
    • Reports cannot be customized while they are running in the workspace. They must be customized before you add them to the workspace or when you launch them individually. To run a report outside the workspace, expand the Workspaces icon and double-click the report icon.
  • Non-MDI workspaces run all the reports contained in the workspace in separate windows; however, it does ensure that they are started, stopped, and managed as a single unit. There are no restrictions on the type of reports that you can place into a non-MDI workspace or on customizing them
To add a workspace
  1. Right-click Workspaces, and click Add Workspace. The New Workspace dialog appears.
  2. Provide the information required on the New Workspace dialog:

    Field

    Description

    Workspace Name

    Provide a descriptive name for the workspace.

    Run Workspace Reports

    Select a method for running the reports in your workspace.

    • The In a Single Window as MDI Children option allows you to run your reports in a single MDI window. This option supports only tabular and graphical reports. Do not select it if you want to add summary reports to the workspace. Also, do not select this option if you want to customize the report after you place it in the workspace.

    • The In Separate Windows option allows you to run your reports in separate windows; however, they are managed as a single unit.

    Overrides

    Specify a common report refresh interval, in hh:mm:ss format, for all the reports in the workspace. This value overrides all other report refresh intervals that may be specified.
  3. Click OK. The Select location dialog displays asking whether this workspace is for current user or for all users.
  4. After you have completed the information on the Select location dialog, click OK. A plus sign (+) appears to the left of the Workspaces container.
  5. Now that you have created your workspace, expand the container by pressing on the + to the left of the Workspaces container. The new workspace name appears in the tree. You can:
    • Add reports to the workspace
    • Delete reports from the workspace
    • Modify workspace properties
    • Run all the reports in the workspace
    • Run a single report in the workspace
    • Set it up to launch the workspace at NaviPlex Client startup
To add reports to the workspace
  1. Make sure the Workspace container is expanded.
  2. Drag and drop the reports from the report tree into the appropriate workspace.
Note: If you drag to a MDI window, it gets converted to the workspace.
To delete reports from the workspace
  1. Expand the workspace that contains the report that you want to delete.
  2. Right-click the report that you want to delete, and select Remove from Workspace.
To modify workspace properties
  • Right-click the workspace icon, and select Properties. The Modify Workspace dialog appears.
    Note: If the workspace already contains summary reports, the In a Single Window as MDI Children option is not available.
To launch all the reports in the workspace
  • Double-click the workspace icon.

    All the reports contained in the workspace are launched as a single unit. The specified workspace properties are applied to all the reports. When you stop one report, all the reports are terminated.

    When a report is running in an MDI workspace, certain functions (for example, subreport launching and drilldown) are not available. To access these functions, select the appropriate window running in the workspace and click Breakout. The window temporarily appears outside the workspace and allows you access to a wider range of functions. When you have finished using the functions that you need, click Return to dismiss the temporary window. Even though a breakout window appears outside the workspace, it is still an MDI workspace member and cannot be customized. If you want to customize it, you can launch it separately by expanding the Workspaces icon and double-clicking the report icon.
To launch a single report in the workspace
  • Double-click the report icon in the workspace.

    The report is launched as an independent report and does not inherit any of the workspace properties.

To launch your workspace when you start NaviPlex Client
  • Drag and drop the workspace to the Launch At Startup folder.
Note: If you drag to a MDI window, it gets converted to the workspace.