Using Report Filters

On the Report Filters page, you can view, edit, and create report filters, which you can use to limit report results according to a set of pre-defined conditions in one or more reports. With report filters, you can define report search criteria once, and then reuse the same criteria across several different reports. This means when you create or edit reports in Work Center, you can select an existing report filter on the Search Filter tab instead of having to define the same report conditions multiple times in multiple reports.

Report filters also simplify report maintenance. For example, if a user leaves the company, you can remove the user's name from a single report filter instead of editing each report that uses a similar Search Filter with the user's name and removing the name multiple times.

Business rules that designers create in SBM Composer can be reused as report filters throughout your reports in SBM. Report filters that are tied to rules defined in SBM Composer do not have an Author, and cannot be edited or deleted like other report filters in Work Center.

Each report filter is assigned an Access level that determines who can view, edit, and delete the report filter. Note the following about each access level:

You can view, edit, and delete Public and Private report filters that you create.
Only a user who has Remote Administration privilege can edit and delete Public report filters for which he or she is not the author.
Report filters that are tied to rules defined in SBM Composer have a System access level, and cannot be deleted from Work Center.

Creating a Report Filter

To create a new report filter:

Use one of these options to open the Report Center:
- In the navigation menu, click Report Center.
- Click the Manage Views icon () located in the navigation menu, and then click the Reports menu header.
Click Create Filter. The New filter dialog box appears.
In the Filter name field, enter a name for the new filter that clearly identifies the filter that you are creating. For example, if you intend to use the filter to limit report results to active items that are assigned to the development team, you might call the report filter Active Items with Development.
In the Filter description field, enter a description that summarizes or explains the filter's conditions.
In the Access drop-down list, set the access level for the report filter. Public filters are available to all users; Private filters are only available to the current user.
In the Filter Conditions group box, define the conditions that the filter will use to limit report results. For guidance on working with basic search conditions, refer to "Using Basic Conditions in SBM Reports" in the SBM Reporting Guide.
Click Save filter. The new filter appears and it is now available to use when you select (Filters) from the Fields drop-down list in the Field Specification portion of a report's search filter.

Editing Report Filters

To edit an a report filter:

Use one of these options to open the Report Center:
- In the navigation menu, click Report Center.
- Click the Manage Views icon () located in the navigation menu, and then click the Reports menu header.
Click Report Filters. A list of available report filters appears in the right pane.
Use the Search field to find a report filter by name. Use the Author, Application, and Access facets to refine the list of report filters that are displayed.
Click anywhere on a report filter row to open a read-only view. Hover over the row, and then click the pencil icon to edit the report filter. The Edit filter dialog box appears.
Make any necessary changes to the report filter. When you change an existing report filter, a list of reports that currently use the filter is displayed at the bottom of the dialog box. This provides an immediate view into the impact of changing the filter. Click a report name to launch an impacted report.
Click Save filter to save your changes. The filter is updated and any report that uses the filter will now use the new search criteria.

Removing Report Filters

To remove a report filter:

Use one of these options to open the Report Center:
- In the navigation menu, click Report Center.
- Click the Manage Views icon () located in the navigation menu, and then click the Reports menu header.
Click Report Filters. Your report filters are listed in the right pane.
Use the Search field to find a report filter by name. Use the Author, Application, and Access facets to refine the list of report filters that are displayed.
Click anywhere on a report filter row to open a read-only view. Hover over the row, and then click the trash icon to delete the report filter. The Delete filter dialog box appears.
A list of reports that currently use the filter is displayed at the bottom of the dialog box. This provides an immediate view into the impact of changing the filter. Click a report name to launch an impacted report. Otherwise, if you are sure you want to delete the filter, click Delete filter. The filter is deleted. Associated reports will no longer use the filter as part of their search criteria.