Running MIS reports

A separate UNIX login called report is provided for running Perl reports. You must be logged as the user report or talis to run MIS reports. The basic syntax for running a Perl report is:

The -p argument is mandatory for every report and identifies the report parameter file.

There are a number of other optional arguments, which vary according to which report is being run. The command

will display a summary of all the switches which can be applied to a given report. Some common switches are shown below:

Argument	Description
-a	Appends the data to the file name stated, rather than overwriting it.
-b	Defines the beginning of a range. Usually this will be a date or a number of days in the past.
-e	Defines the end of a range. Usually this will be a date or a number of days in the past.
-h	Will display a summary of all the switches which can be applied to a given report.
-o	Renames the output file to the name given. The default name is [script_name].out
-s	Determines where the output file will reside. The default directory should be /usr/opt/blcmp/data/mis.
-d	Determines which database is used. The default is prod_talis.
-n	This argument varies in meaning/usage from script to script, but is commonly used. Use the -h command to determine the exact use.
-q	This argument varies in meaning/usage from script to script. Use the -h command to determine the exact use.
-r	Names the report directory where the process will create its report file. If the option is not given, then the default is defined by the TAL_REP_DIR environment variable.
-t	This argument varies in meaning/usage from script to script. It typically defines a type of processing. For example, it might be used to specify an Overdue Letter Number (-t1,2) or Order Format (-t8x4).

Output files

By default, both the output file and the report file are file are written to the directory /usr/opt/blcmp/data/mis. Subsequent runs of the report overwrite neither the output file nor the report file. They are preserved by the addition of a date/time suffix to the last output and report file.

Example

To produce a file of all orders created since 1st September 2004, you would enter the command:

This would create a file of orders in the directory /usr/opt/blcmp/data/mis called orr_order_letter.out with a corresponding report file orr_order_letter.rep.