Working with Scheduled Jobs

Webtrends Analytics and Webtrends Visitor Data Mart share the concept of a “job” as a unit of work such as an analysis or a report export, or a backup. Scheduled jobs are used to schedule report distribution and to configure and troubleshoot backups, data retention, and other maintenance jobs. You can see a complete list of scheduled jobs to which you have user rights by clicking Administration > Job Scheduler > Scheduled Jobs.

You can use scheduled jobs to:

• Back up individual Webtrends Analytics profiles and profile configuration data. For more information, see “Understanding Scheduled Backups,” below.
• Create and deliver Webtrends Analytics reports in different formats, such as Microsoft Word, PDF, and Excel. For more information, see “Understanding Scheduled Reports,” below.
• Run scheduled queries against a Visitor Data Mart and export the results in a CSV file. For more information, see “Visitor Data Mart Data Exports,” below.

Understanding Scheduled Backups

You can use a scheduled backup to create an archived copy of your profile data as well as configuration data such as the templates, session tracking settings, and custom report settings.

Each profile can only support one scheduled backup job. If you want to create backup jobs automatically for all the profiles you create after enabling this setting, click Administration > System Management > Backup/Restore > Backup Options and select Backup State For New Profiles. Use the Scheduled Jobs dialog to create backup jobs for individual profiles that have not had a backup job auto-created.

Scheduling a Backup Job

To schedule a backup job:

1. In the left pane, click Administration > Scheduler > Scheduled Jobs.
2. Click New.
3. Click Backup Job.
4. In the Profile dialog, select the profile for which you want to schedule reports.
5. Provide a job description to identify the backup job in the Scheduled Jobs dialog.
6. If you want to create the job and enable it later, select the Disable this job check box.
7. In the Host Binding and Priority dialog, specify the priority for the job and what computers it can run on.
8. In the Schedule dialog, specify when and how often you want to back up the profile.

Understanding Scheduled Reports

Scheduled reports provide a method of exporting report data in a variety of formats on a schedule you select. They also provide the capability to distribute reports and report data to users who do not have access rights to Webtrends Analytics Reports.

Based on your existing profiles, scheduled reports can export Webtrends Analytics data to the following formats:

• Microsoft Word
• Adobe PDF
• Webtrends SmartReports (based on a Microsoft MDB database using Microsoft Excel)
• Comma-separated value (CSV)

Scheduled reports can also distribute Webtrends Analytics reports by saving them to a specified file location, sending them as an email attachment, or transferring them using an FTP server.

Visitor Data Mart Data Exports

You can use scheduled reports to export data from a Visitor Data Mart in the form of a CSV file. Each scheduled export can export data for a single named query that has been associated with your Visitor Data Mart profile. For more information, see “Configuring a Visitor Data Mart Scheduled Export,” below.

Exporting Data Directly from Analytics Reports

If you do not want to create a scheduled report, or if you do not have rights to the Job Scheduler module, you can export data directly from a Webtrends Analytics report. You can also schedule report exports directly from the Webtrends Analytics report interface.

Direct exports from Analytics have the following limitations:

• You cannot schedule FTP exports
• You cannot export a summary report
• You cannot export data from a Visitor Data Mart.

Preparing to Create Scheduled Reports

Scheduled Reports User Rights

Scheduled reports configuration uses the following user rights:

• To grant access to create and edit scheduled reports, use the Scheduled Export To Database and the Scheduled Word, CSV, PDF Reports user rights.

• To grant access to the Scheduler module, including the Job Queue, Status, and Options dialogs, use the Scheduler Module user right. Access to this user right is required if you need to set the SMTP server used to send reports as email attachments.

• To grant access to all profiles (and the ability to create scheduled reports based on them) use the Profiles user right.

• To grant access to selected profiles only, edit the profile and click Administration > Profile Access to add the user to the profile.

To enable a user without administrative rights to run a scheduled report from the Webtrends Analytics Reports interface, you can assign the scheduled report to that user in the General dialog of the scheduled report creation wizard.

Setting Up Secure FTP Encryption

If you plan to use FTP to deliver scheduled reports, you may want to secure your FTP delivery. To use SFTP, select the Use secure FTP check box when you configure your scheduled report. You also need to set up public-private key encryption to ensure secure delivery.

Setting up standard FTP without a SSH server does not require any additional setup outside your scheduled report settings.

To set up public-private key encryption for secure FTP:

1. In the left pane, click Administration > Application Settings > Options.

2. Click FTP Encryption Key Management.

3. Select an encryption key type.

4. If you selected RSA, select the key size you want to use for encryption. For most users, 1024-bit encryption provides an effective balance between security and performance.

5. In the Passphrase text box, type a passphrase Webtrends Analytics can use to access the private key. This passphrase is used internally to provide an additional layer of security. Leaving the Passphrase text box blank is an option, but could create a security problem.

6. Click Generate Key Pair. Webtrends Analytics updates the public key for the scheduled report server.

7. Click Download Public Key to download the Webtrends_pub.txt file. This file contains the key.

8. Add the contents of Webtrends_pub.txt file to the authorized_keys file on the SSH server where you plan to transfer scheduled reports.

Setting Up Email Delivery Defaults for Reports

If you plan to use scheduled reports to distribute reports by email, you can specify all the required information in your scheduled report settings. However, you can also specify a default SMTP server and sender address to populate these settings for users who are creating new scheduled reports. These settings can be changed during scheduled report configuration. However, providing default settings saves users the step of finding the name of the SMTP server and alerts them to your organization’s standard sender address for scheduled reports.

If you want users to be able to export reports and send them as email attachments directly from the Analytics Reports interface without using Webtrends Administration, specifying default email settings also makes email visible as a report export option in Analytics Reports. Analytics Reports users cannot specify a different SMTP server.

To set email delivery defaults for report exports:

1. In the left pane, click Administration > Scheduler > Options.
2. Click Email Settings.
3. Specify an SMTP server name and a sender address for emailed reports.

Configuring Scheduled Reports

You configure scheduled reports using the Scheduled Jobs interface. After you create a scheduled report, you can use the Scheduled Jobs dialog to check scheduled report status, edit scheduled report settings, and troubleshoot report generation problems.

The method for creating a scheduled report varies depending on the type of scheduled report you create.

• For information about exporting a summary scheduled report, see “Configuring a Summary Scheduled Report,” below.
• For information about exporting a standard report, see “Configuring a Standard Scheduled Report,” below.
• For information about exporting scheduled query data from a Visitor Data Mart, see “Configuring a Visitor Data Mart Scheduled Export,” below.

Configuring a Summary Scheduled Report

A summary report includes basic statistics about recent activity, including the total and average statistics for visits, visitors and page views. Summary reports are only available in simple HTML and TXT format. To select specific standard or custom reports from a template, see “Configuring a Standard Scheduled Report,” below.

To create a summary scheduled report:

1. In the left pane, click Administration > Job Scheduler > Scheduled Jobs.
2. Click New.
3. Click Scheduled Report.
4. In the Report Type dialog, click General Summary Report. Click Next.
5. In the Output Type dialog, click HTML to output an HTML document, or Text to output a .txt file.
6. In the Time Range dialog, select the range of data you want to export.
7. In the Schedule dialog, specify when and how often you want Webtrends Analytics to generate the report.

Configuring a Standard Scheduled Report

A standard scheduled report contains the full range of available report information.

To create a standard scheduled report:

1. In the left pane, click Administration > Job Scheduler > Scheduled Jobs.

2. Click New.

3. Click Scheduled Report.

4. In the Report Type dialog, click Standard Report.

5. In the Profile dialog, select the profile for which you want to schedule reports.

6. In the General dialog, provide a description and owner for the scheduled report job.

7. In the Report Destination dialog, specify how you want to deliver the scheduled report.

   Note

   If you want to deliver the report using secure FTP, you may need to configure public-private key encryption. For more information, see “Setting Up Secure FTP Encryption,” above.

8. In the Templates dialog, select the report template containing the report(s) you want to export. The templates you see depend on the profile you selected in Step 5.

9. In the Reports dialog, select the reports you want to export. Press Ctrl and click to select multiple reports.

10. In the Time Range dialog, select the range of data you want to export.

11. In the Schedule dialog, specify when and how often you want Webtrends Analytics to generate and and export the report.

12. In the Host Binding and Priority dialog, specify the priority for the job and what computers it can run on.

Configuring a Visitor Data Mart Scheduled Export

You can use scheduled exports to export data from a Visitor Data Mart in the form of a CSV file. Each scheduled report can include data from a single named query. For more information about creating and using named queries, see the Visitor Data Mart User’s Guide.

Predefined named queries and any user-configured named queries that have been created in Webtrends Administration are available for export using scheduled reports. To configure named queries or see a list of user-configured named queries, click Web Analysis > Visitor Data Mart > Named Queries in the left pane. For a list of predefined named queries, see "Accessing Visitor Data Mart Data Through Named Queries."

To create a scheduled report that exports data from a Visitor Data Mart:

1. In the left pane, click Administration > Job Scheduler > Scheduled Jobs.

2. Click New.

3. Click Scheduled Report.

4. In the Profile dialog, select a Visitor Data Mart profile.

5. In the General dialog, provide a description and owner for the scheduled report job.

6. In the Report Destination dialog, specify how you want to deliver the scheduled report.

   Note

   If you want to deliver the report using secure FTP, you may need to configure public-private key encryption. For more information, see “Setting Up Secure FTP Encryption,” above.

7. In the Queries dialog, select the name of a named query.

8. In the Time Range dialog, select the range of data you want to export. This dialog is only available if the named query you selected includes a date parameter.

9. In the Query Parameters dialog, specify values for any query parameters associated with the named query.

10. In the Schedule dialog, specify when and how often you want Webtrends Analytics to run the named query and export the results.

11. In the Host Binding and Priority dialog, specify the priority for the job and what computers it can run on.