Dynamically rename output file with render tool (several layouts with tables and graphs)

[ccyrs5204]

Hello everyone, I try to dynamically rename file with render (table/graph) tool.

I have several layouts with tables and graphs, then I join the layouts and render to excel file. Since I need to have the report every month, the ideal situation is that it dynamically rename the render excel file by month (specified in the data). 

I have looked at some solution some solutions. The following solution suggests use "group data into seperate report". But I failed to do so because I have several layouts, or maybe I didn't do it in the right way? 

https://community.alteryx.com/t5/Alteryx-Designer-Discussions/Dynamically-rename-output-files-with-t...

Could someone help me with it? Thank you in advance. 

[danilang · Accepted solution]

Hi @ccyrs5204 

Take a look at the attached WF.  

It has multiple elements that are joined and then passed through a render tool.  The top input has a filename that the Formula tool adds the current month to.  The Render tool uses this tool to set the output file name using the following config

If you have several layouts that you're trying to get into the same file, make sure that you've got them all one final layout.  Think of it as Lego blocks.  Lets say you want a Image as a header.  Underneath this you want a graph that's beside it's corresponding table.  Finally you finish it off with a text analysis.  Think of this a 1x2 block(header) on top of a 2 1x1 blocks(graph and table) that sit on top of another 1x2 block.  Use a Layout tool to combine the graph and table into one layout.  Then join this layout with the image and text and use another Layout tool to position them all into one final layout.  Send this layout to the render tool, configured to "Replace Filename with Group

Dan

[ccyrs5204]

THANK YOU VERY MUCH !!!

[-alana-]

I am trying to use this solution for the interactive chart but am having an issue. I am able to add the full file path in my summarize tool no problem, but my interactive chart doesn't use the full path name, so I don't see it as an option in the render tool. Am I missing something, do you have any advice? I can make sample data if you would like, but it is a very simple bar graph with 1 layer.

Thanks!

[apathetichell]

Append fields

filename to the chart prior to render.

[-alana-]

I didn't realize I could add that in there, thanks!

[Martyn]

Moving from version 2022.1 to 2022.3 and this no longer works (fully). With 2022.1 we had a single spreadsheet (dynamically named) with 2 sheets in it. The same workflow processing in 2022.3 generates a single spreadsheet (again - dynamically named) - but it only has one of the sheets in it. Has anyone else seen this? And is this a bug in the latest version - or were we exploiting a bug in the previous version (logically I think it is a bug in the latest version)?