Run a saved import or export specification

When you run an import wizard or export wizard in Access, you can save the settings you used as a specification so that you can repeat the import or export operation at any time.

You must first run an import or export operation to save a specification; however, you can use an existing specification for an operation that you have never performed before if your operation meets either of the following conditions:

• If the only difference between the operation you want to run and an existing specification is the name of the source file (in case of an import operation) or destination file (in case of an export operation), then you can change the name of the source or destination file mentioned in the existing specification and run the specification.

• If you need to export formatted data and the only difference between the operation you want to perform and an existing specification is the column or filter settings, you can change the column and filter settings in the specification. The current column and filter settings will always determine what gets exported, not the settings that were in effect at the time of creating the specification.

Run a saved import or export specification from Access

After you save the details as a specification, perform the following steps when you want to repeat the operation.

Run the specification

1. Open the Access database that contains the specification, if it is not already open. When you run an import specification, the current database is the destination database. When you run an export specification, the current database is the source database.

2. If the specification exports formatted data to an Excel workbook or a Word document, open the object and make sure the fields that you want to export are not hidden in the view. Similarly, review the filter settings to make sure all the records you want exported are visible in the view.

3. On the External Data tab, click Saved Imports or Saved Exports to open the Manage Data Tasks dialog box.

4. In the Manage Data Tasks dialog box, on the Saved Imports or Saved Exports tab, click the specification that you want to run.

5. If you want to change the source file (when you are running an import operation) or the destination file (when you are running an export operation), click the path of the file to edit it.

   It is important to note that you can change the source or destination files, but the new file you specify must satisfy all the requirements essential for successfully completing the operation.

6. Before you click Run, you must make sure that the source and destination files exist, the source data is ready for importing, and that the operation will not accidentally overwrite any data in your destination file. Do everything that you would do to ensure the success of a wizard-driven operation before running any saved specification.

7. Click Run.

   Access displays a message that communicates the status of the operation. If the operation failed, troubleshoot the error the same way you would if you were using the wizard.

   Tip: If the message does not pinpoint the cause of the failure, try starting the import or export wizard and stepping through the dialog boxes to perform the same operation.

Run a saved import or export specification from Outlook

If you have set up the specification as an Outlook task, you can start the operation from within Outlook.

Note: You cannot change the path or file name of the external file in the specification before starting the operation when you run the specification from within Outlook. To change the file name in the specification, start the operation from within Access instead of as a task from Outlook.

Before you start the operation in Outlook, make sure that Access is installed on your computer and that the source and destination files exist. Do everything that you would do to ensure the success of a wizard-driven operation before you run any saved specification.

Run the specification

1. Start Outlook and click Tasks in the Navigation Pane. Double-click the task to open it.

2. On the Task tab, in the Microsoft Office Access group, click Run Import or Run Export. Click OK on the confirmation message to confirm.

   If the operation runs successfully, no message is displayed. If the operation fails, Access displays a message explaining the likely cause of the error. Try troubleshooting the error the same way you would if you were using the wizard.

   Tip: If the message does not pinpoint the cause of the failure, try starting the import or export wizard and stepping through the dialog boxes to perform the same operation.

What else should I know?

• For information on how to schedule specifications to run at specific times, see the article Schedule an import or export operation.

• For information on how to change a specification name, delete specifications, or update the names of source files in specifications, see the article Manage Data Tasks.

PerformancePoint Dashboard Designer Help

We have detailed information available on TechNet about how to create, edit, and publish dashboards by using Dashboard Designer. Please see Create Dashboards by using PerformancePoint Services (SharePoint Server 2013) on TechNet.

Help for Management Reporter (PerformancePoint Server 2007)

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Page Setup dialog box

Use the Page Setup dialog box to specify options for how project views and reports are printed. You can set margins, headers and footers, scale the printed page, add and format legends, and more.

There are six tabs in the Page Setup dialog box.

Which Page Setup tab do you want to learn about?

Page Setup dialog box, Page tab

Page Setup dialog box, Margins tab

Page Setup dialog box, Header and Footer tabs

Page Setup dialog box, Legend tab

Page Setup dialog box, View tab

Use the IIf function to test conditions in a query or expression

The IIf function has the following syntax:

IIf(logical test, value if true, value if false)

For example, to calculate sales tax in a text box on a form, you might enter the following expression in the Control Source property for the text box:

=IIf([StateProvince] = "WA",[OrderTotal] * 0.095, 0)

Translation: if the StateProvince field contains "WA", calculate the sales tax as OrderTotal times 0.095. Otherwise, just return a zero.

Nested IIfs

Once you get the hang of the IIf function, you'll find that nesting them can be very powerful. "Nesting" is when you use an IIf function inside another IIf function, either as the "value if true" or the "value if false" argument (or both). For example, suppose you want a Status column on a report to display "Past Due" if the Due Date has passed for an item. If the Due Date is today, you want to display "Due today". If the Due Date hasn't arrived yet, you want the Status column to be blank. Assuming today's date is February 9, 2012, you'd want to see something like this:

This can be accomplished by using two IIf functions, one nested as the "value if false" argument of the other:

=IIf([DueDate]<Date(),"PAST DUE",IIf([DueDate]=Date(),"Due today"))

The outer IIf compares the DueDate field to today's date (which is returned by the Date() function). For the first two tasks in the report shown above, the due date comes before today's date, so the outer IIf's logical test evaluates to True and it displays "PAST DUE". For the third task (Paint garage), the outer IIF evaluates to False so the nested IIf function tests to see if the due date is equal to today's date. It is, so the nested IIf displays "Due today". For the fourth task (Trim trees), neither of the IIf functions evaluates to "True", so nothing displays because there's no "value if false" argument for the nested IIf. Of course, you could add an argument if you wanted something to display in this case.

A word to the wise

Nesting IIf functions is fun, but you generally don't want to go more than one or two levels deep. The expressions can quickly become hard to read and maintain. If your nested IIfs are getting out of hand, you might consider using the Switch function, which provides a similar "if – then" kind of logic.

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