How Report Scheduling Works

You can schedule SAS reports using either Platform Suite for SAS, an in-process scheduling server (through version 4.3 of SAS Web Report Studio), or a distributed in-process scheduling server (versions of SAS Web Report Studio after 4.3), and by using either SAS Web Report Studio or SAS Management Console.
The scheduling process from SAS Web Report Studio is as follows:
  1. Users create reports using SAS Web Report Studio. The report definitions (.srx files) are stored in the WebDAV repository or on a file system, and metadata about the reports (including permissions information) is stored in the metadata repository.
  2. Users create schedules for particular reports using SAS Web Report Studio. Information about the scheduled report jobs is stored in the metadata repository. The job information is also passed to the in-process scheduling server or to the Process Manager Server. The command for the job is created using information from the SAS Java Batch server definition.
  3. Jobs and flows are automatically created when the report is scheduled in SAS Web Report Studio. Users can use the Schedule Manager in SAS Management Console to reschedule the flow and change the report schedule.
  4. Depending on the scheduling server used, either the Platform Process Manager server submits the job for execution or the in-process scheduling server submits the job to SAS Web Report Studio for execution at the designated time (or after the designated dependent event).
  5. The Batch Generation Tool, running on the scheduling server, executes the report and places the output in the location designated by the repository (the WebDAV server or the file system). Metadata about the report output is stored in the metadata repository. If you are scheduling using Platform Suite for SAS, information about the job status is stored on the Process Manager Server. Administrators can use Platform Flow Manager to view the status of the job.
    If report distribution has been set up, then the report output is also sent to the appropriate destinations when the user bursts the report. For information about report distribution, see “Scheduling and Distributing Pre-generated Reports” in the SAS® 9.3 Intelligence Platform: Web Application Administration Guide.
  6. Users can view the static output by using SAS Web Report Studio (or another application, such as the SAS Information Delivery Portal).
To schedule reports, you must install and configure Platform Suite for SAS or configure a SAS in-process scheduling server.