NPrinting 17 - Dynamic Recipient List with User/Recipient and Report Level Filters

[LazyBanker]

We are trying to replicate functionality we have in NPrinting 16 in NPrinting 17 and we are having a hard time. I'm wondering if someone can help us to understand if there is a different way to accomplish what we want, or if NPrinting 17 just doesn't support it.

We have a QV document with 12+ reports that need to be run through NPrinting on a weekly or monthly basis. For each of these reports we have two tables in QV, a recipient table and a report table. The recipient table has just the recipient information we want to load into NPrinting, and it is match up to the report table that contains the data we want to deliver through a NPrinting excel report.

Each report has 100+ potential recipients (Managers of various teams), each week/month the actual number of recipients for each of the 12+ reports varies based on the current data in the QV Dashboard.

So NPrinting 16 runs a recipient import off recipient table #1 in the QV dashboard and pulls in say 10 recipients, who each need to receive their individual report for this week because they have items that show up in the QV report table #1. Each recipient has 1 filter associated with it, which is a filter on the recipient field in the dashboard to just their name. So that in the email delivery they only receive their report file.

Since imported recipients can’t be dynamically added directly to a NPrinting task we add them to recipient group #1. And we have already added recipient group #1 to the task #1. So as new recipients are added to the recipient group #1, and old recipients are dropped from recipient group #1 during import, we end up with just the current list of recipients from recipient table #1 in the list to receive report #1.

All other filters, besides the recipient name filter, are at the report level. And we have the report cycle through the recipient name field as it generates the reports. This creates 10 files, one file for each recipient in recipient group #1.

Then the task distributes each file to just the recipient (Manager) listed on the file. And depending on the report the recipient may have notifications (CC, BCC) to other recipients as well.

Then we do the same thing for #2. Import the recipient table #2 into recipient group #2, which adds the new and drops old recipients and modifies any recipients used previously in this or other tasks. Recipient group #2 is already added to Task #2, Task #2 cycles through the recipients to create one excel report file for each recipient, and then emails each recipient their individual file.

This goes on through each of reports.

In our testing of NPrinting 17 we tried creating a filter for each recipient in the filter import and then adding those filters to each recipient in the users import. But when it went to distribute the reports NPrinting 17 did not recognize that each recipient should only get their report and tried to send all the cycled files to all the recipients/users.

It seems like we need create 12+ connections, one for each report we want to run, because for the most part each report table has slightly different filters. Then since it looks like recipient level filters don’t work the same way as they did in 16, we would need to multiply those 12+ connections by 100+ potential recipients, since instead of adding the filter on each recipient to only use their own name we need to filter each connection to generate the report file and deliver it one user at a time. So, I’m looking at 1,200+ connections to one dashboard. And the same user might be used on several different reports with different CC’s and BCC’s attached to their reports. We need to be able to modify their information with each recipient import. So far, I can’t figure out how to add CC’s and BCC’s by individual recipient in the recipient import. In NPrinting 16 we can modify everything about the recipient with each upload, change what groups they are in, change their filters, change who gets notified on their reports, etc. But in NPrinting 17 we can’t seem to figure this out.

The whole point of this project is that QV dynamically feeds NPrinting the list of users. If I have to create a new connection for each potential recipient, then I’m going to be spending hours each month just trying to keep up with new potential recipients and removing old ones. And, this is our simple dashboard. We have another dashboard that has the potential for 5,000+ recipients.

So, if anyone has solutions to these problems please help me out. But keep in mind that the entire process from identifying the correct recipients, to importing them to NPrinting, to adjusting filters for each recipient/user and report, cycling through file creation, and individual file delivery, all needs to happen without any developer action. The only time we should be touching this NPrinting project is if a report is being created, modified or removed. There should be no involvement required from us for the regular weekly and monthly delivery of these reports. Maybe I’m just misunderstanding how NPrinting 17 is supposed to be structured, or maybe the temporary license we had limited our functionality, but from my two days of testing in it I can’t figure out how it is going to offer the same capabilities we have come to rely on in NPrinting 16.

1. Is there any way to add and modify and delete filters at the recipient level during recipient import, so multiple recipients in the same recipient group could each have individual filters for just their name/ID number/etc.? And so that if they are used in different reports you can change or remove their filters between each report?
2. Is there a way to remove recipients from a recipient group during a recipient import?
3. Is there a way to filter at the report level so multiple reports in the same connection could have their own unique filters?
4. Has anyone been able to sync up the cycling of a report with its recipient list so that each recipient receives just their own file? While all being in the same recipient group?
5. How can we add CC’s and BCC’s by individual recipient in the recipient import? And can we modify or delete them between reports?

[Lech_Miszkiewicz]

This topic lands more in consulting rather than community question however i will try to give you short hints on what is possible. When moving to NPrinting 17 you cannot just copy the same principles. There are different ways of achieving the same in NPrinting 17. I understand your current process, but it will be hard to sync/replicate it exactly the same in NPrinting 17. Now here are my thoughts:

1. Is there any way to add and modify and delete filters at the recipient level during recipient import, so multiple recipients in the same recipient group could each have individual filters for just their name/ID number/etc.? And so that if they are used in different reports you can change or remove their filters between each report?
   • Yes - it is possible - you do this in recipient import, however i do not think it is useful to do this in this way. I would setup connection based filters so you only update recipients once per reporting day (or as often as you need to update it for all reports). Keep in mind that there is no "Job" entity in NPrinting 17 so there is no dependency which you could use to trigger recipient import before each report task 
2. Is there a way to remove recipients from a recipient group during a recipient import?
   • Yes - it is one of the options in recipient import task
3. Is there a way to filter at the report level so multiple reports in the same connection could have their own unique filters?
   • Yes - Filters in NPrinitng 17 are connection specific, Reports are based on connection/(s), so if you have a report with 1 object using connection_1 and 2nd object using connection_2 and you apply filter which is created on connection_1 then only object 1 in your report will be filtered. In your case i would create different connections for different reports, so when you import recipients you only do it one time and each recipient will then have association with filters t corresponding reports/connections
4. Has anyone been able to sync up the cycling of a report with its recipient list so that each recipient receives just their own file? While all being in the same recipient group?
   • Yes- This is how NPrinitng 17 works as long as your recipients have individual filters. Do not mix filtering of reports based on recipient filter with "Enable cycle" functionality - they work differently. 
5. How can we add CC’s and BCC’s by individual recipient in the recipient import? And can we modify or delete them between reports?
   • This is the issue - at the moment NPrinting 17 and higher does not support recipient based CC/BCC. If this is your current requirement - then NPritnting 17 is not ready for you yet! 

Did you do your testing based on NPrinting February 2019? Each version brings a lot of new features so make sure you test it on the latest one!

cheers

Lech