Report exports: what the Excel and PDF files contain

This page describes exactly what an export of a report contains: which rows and columns, how each value is written, and how the Excel and PDF files are laid out. How to export, the rule that sends exports of more than 500 rows by e-mail, and the file name are in Export a report. How to set up the PDF is in Set up PDF export of a report.

What an export contains

These rules apply to both Export xls and Export pdf.

Rule	Detail
Rows	Every document the report lists for you when you click the button: the report’s document types and main filter, your personal filters and your search text all apply, and every page is included, not only the one you see; see Which documents a report shows: document types, filters, search and sorting.
Order of the rows	The sort order you see on the screen.
Columns, Excel	The report’s columns, in your own column order.
Columns, PDF	The columns chosen in PDF Export settings (up to five), ordered like your own column order in the report.
Columns left out	The Delete column is never exported. The observation column is left out when the module’s workflow does not allow saving as an observation, Sent External when no step can be sent outside ABMS, and Status when the module has no statuses set.
Browser or e-mail	When the report lists 1 to 500 documents for you at that moment, after your filters and search, the file downloads in your browser. With more than 500, or with none, the export is made in the background and sent to you by e-mail.
Largest export	At most 100 000 rows. When the report lists more, the file holds the first 100 000 in the sort order, and the rest are left out without a message.

The Excel file

Part	Content
Worksheet	One worksheet, named “Basic Worksheet”.
First row	The column titles in your language, in bold.
Following rows	One row per document.
Last column	“Link to document”: a link that opens the document in ABMS.

How values are written (Excel and PDF)

Column or field type	Value in the file
Created, Last updated	The date in your language’s format, for example 16.06.2026 in Norwegian and 16/06/2026 in English. Created is the date the document was first created.
Date field	The date in the same format, with hours and minutes when the field records a time.
Responsible	The user’s full name, followed by “[Deactivated]” for a deactivated user, or “No User” when the step has no user.
Status	The status name in your language, followed by “- Waiting For Approval” while a sent step has not yet been taken over by its receiver. An archived document shows “Archived”.
Observation column	How the document was saved as an observation; empty for other documents.
Sent External	“Yes” or “No”.
Dropdown, option buttons, tick boxes	The value names in your language; several values are separated by commas.
Whole number, decimal number	The number, stored as a number in Excel.
Revision number	The revision number as a whole number.
Checklist	The number of ticked tasks and the total, for example 3/5.
Connected dropdown	The chosen values separated by commas, or the full path with “ - “ between the levels when the dropdown is set up to show the full path.
Upload field	The web addresses of the files.
Risk field	The number, or NA. When Show colors is switched on for the module, the cell has the risk colour: red, orange, yellow or green (red, yellow or green for a field with three colours), in the same order as in the document; NA is grey.
Global field	The names of the chosen values.

The PDF file

Part	Content
Page size	A4.
Top of each page	The Export name as title, or the report’s name when no export name is set; your company’s logo when one is set; and “Number of cases:” followed by the number of documents in the export.
Table	One column per PDF column, with the column titles in the first row and one row per document.
Bottom of each page	“Page” with the page number “of” the number of pages, and the text “This is an uncontroller copy printed from the Management System. Please refer to online system for latest version” (shown exactly like this in ABMS).

PDF Export settings: rules behind the controls

Rule	Detail
Columns you can choose	Every shared field and every module field except text editor fields, heading bars and information texts, also fields that are not columns in the report. Type in a column box to search by name; the names are listed alphabetically.
What Turn on pdf export needs	An Export name and at least one column.
Automatic on and off	When you change the export name or a column and leave the box, PDF export is switched on by itself if the report has both an export name and at least one column, and switched off if either is missing. You can switch PDF export off with Turn on pdf export; it then stays off until the next change to the export name or a column switches it on again.

E-mailed exports

Item	Detail
E-mail text	“Dear” and your first name, then “The export of report <report name> finished successfully. You will find it attached to this e-mail.” The report name links to the report.
No rows	An export of a report that lists no documents is also sent by e-mail, because the browser download is used only for 1 to 500 documents; the file then has no document rows.
When the export fails	You get no message and no e-mail. When no e-mail has arrived and a new request no longer gives “An export is already in progress for this report”, the earlier export has stopped; request it again. If it keeps failing, see Get help from Antenor support.
“An export is already in progress for this report”	Shown while your earlier e-mailed export of the same report in the same format is still being made. An export that has not finished after 20 minutes is stopped within about five more minutes, and you can then request it again.

Next step

Export a report