Manage Exporting Capabilities in ASP.NET Core
- 7 minutes to read
The Web Dashboard allows users to export an entire dashboard or individual dashboard items.
Server-Side API
Control’s Options
The ASP.NET Core Dashboard control’s server-side API allows you to customize the default export options, customize export documents at runtime, etc.
- DashboardExportOptionBuilder.AllowExportDashboard
- Specifies whether end-users can export a dashboard.
- DashboardExportOptionBuilder.AllowExportDashboardItems
- Specifies whether the dashboard items can be exported by end-users.
- DashboardExportOptionBuilder.PdfExportOptions
- Contains options which define how the dashboard item is exported to the PDF format.
- DashboardExportOptionBuilder.ImageExportOptions
- Contains options which define how the dashboard item is exported to the Image format.
- DashboardExportOptionBuilder.ExcelExportOptions
- Contains options which define how the dashboard item is exported to the Excel format.
- DashboardExportOptionBuilder.OnExportDialogHidden
- A handler for the event that occurs when the export dialog is hidden.
- DashboardExportOptionBuilder.OnExportDialogShowing
- A handler for the event that occurs before the export dialog is shown.
- DashboardExportOptionBuilder.OnExportDialogShown
- A handler for the event that occurs after the export dialog is shown.
AspNetCoreDashboardExporter
The AspNetCoreDashboardExporter class allows you to implement server export for the ASP.NET Core Dashboard Control. AspNetCoreDashboardExporter uses information stored in a dashboard sate to determine the currently selected filters, drill-down levels and parameter values. The state overrides default values specified in dashboard items and parameters. An empty state for the AspNetCoreDashboardExporter means that an end-user has cleared all filters and parameters, and canceled all drill-down operations. The AspNetCoreDashboardExporter inherits members of the WebDashboardExporter class.
Pass the default instance of the DashboardConfigurator to the AspNetCoreDashboardExporter constructor and call the inherited WebDashboardExporter methods:
- WebDashboardExporter.ExportDashboardItemToExcel
- Exports the dashboard item to the specified stream in Excel format.
- WebDashboardExporter.ExportDashboardItemToImage
- Exports the dashboard item to the specified stream in Image format.
- WebDashboardExporter.ExportDashboardItemToPdf
- Exports the dashboard item to the specified stream in PDF format.
- WebDashboardExporter.ExportToExcel
- Exports a dashboard to the specified stream in Excel format.
- WebDashboardExporter.ExportToImage
- Exports a dashboard to the specified stream in Image format.
- WebDashboardExporter.ExportToPdf
- Exports a dashboard to the specified stream in PDF format.
DashboardExporter
You can use the non-visual DashboardExporter component to implement server-side export of a dashboard or dashboard items without referencing dashboard UI controls ( DashboardDesigner, DashboardViewer, ASPxDashboard, and so on) or DashboardConfigurator.
To integrate the DashboardExporter into a service, register the DevExpress NuGet feed as a package source and install the DevExpress.Dashboard.Core package. See the DashboardExporter class description for details.
Implement Server-Side Export
The WebDashboardExporter class allows you to implement server export for the ASP.NET MVC Dashboard extension and ASP.NET Core Dashboard control. You can specify a dashboard state and export options to be applied to the resulting document. Refer to the WebDashboardExporter class description for more information.
Client-Side API
You can use the Web Dashboard’s client-side API for exporting to various formats, customizing export options, etc. For this, use the members of the DashboardExportExtension:
- exportToPdf
- Exports the entire dashboard to a PDF file.
- exportToImage
- Exports the entire dashboard to an image.
- exportToExcel
- Exports the entire dashboard to an Excel file.
- exportDashboardItemToPdf(itemName)
- Exports a dashboard item to a PDF file.
- exportDashboardItemToImage(itemName)
- Exports a dashboard item to an image.
- exportDashboardItemToExcel(itemName)
- Exports a dashboard item to an Excel file.
- getPdfExportOptions
- Returns options related to exporting a dashboard/dashboard item to PDF format.
- getImageExportOptions
- Returns options related to exporting a dashboard/dashboard item to the Image format.
- getExcelExportOptions
- Returns options related to exporting a dashboard/dashboard item to Excel format.
- setPdfExportOptions(options)
- Sets options related to exporting a dashboard/dashboard item to PDF format.
- setImageExportOptions(options)
- Sets options related to exporting a dashboard/dashboard item to the Image format.
- setExcelExportOptions(options)
- Sets options related to exporting a dashboard/dashboard item to Excel format.
- showExportDashboardDialog(format)
- Invokes the dialog that allows end-users to export the entire dashboard to the specified format.
- showExportDashboardItemDialog(itemComponentName, format)
- Invokes the dialog that allows end users to export the dashboard item to the specified format.
Exporting Specifics on Linux and MacOS
Refer to the following article for information about exporting specifics on a non-Windows platform: ASP.NET Core Dashboard Control on Linux and MacOS.
Custom Export
The Dashboard Control raises the ASPxDashboard.CustomExport/DashboardConfigurator.CustomExport event before saving the exported document to the PDF and Image formats. The event allows you to customize the exported document.
- Use the e.GetPrintableControl and e.GetPrintableControls methods to obtain a printable control(s) for a specific dashboard item or the entire dashboard.
- Use the e.Report property to customize the underlying report.
The following table illustrates dashboard items and their corresponding printable XRControls:
Example: How to Customize Dashboard Items in the Exported Document
The following example shows how to customize dashboard items in the exported document when you handle the ASPxDashboard.CustomExport / DashboardConfigurator.CustomExport events. You can use the CustomExportWebEventArgs.GetPrintableControls method to obtain the printable controls.
using DevExpress.DashboardCommon;
using DevExpress.DashboardWeb;
using DevExpress.XtraCharts;
using DevExpress.XtraReports.UI;
using System;
using System.Drawing;
using System.Linq;
protected void CustomizeExport(object sender, CustomExportWebEventArgs e) {
foreach(var printControl in e.GetPrintableControls()) {
if(printControl.Value is XRGaugeDashboardItem) {
var gaugeItemName = printControl.Key;
var gaugeDashboardItem = e.GetDashboardItem(gaugeItemName) as GaugeDashboardItem;
foreach(var dashGaugeElement in gaugeDashboardItem.Gauges) {
foreach(var gaugePanel in e.GetGaugeContext(gaugeItemName).GetPrintableGauges(dashGaugeElement).Cast<XRDashboardGauge>()) {
if(gaugePanel != null) {
gaugePanel.MainSeriesLabel.ForeColor = Color.Red;
}
}
}
}
if(printControl.Value is XRChart) {
var chartItemName = printControl.Key;
var chartDashboardItem = e.GetDashboardItem(chartItemName) as ChartDashboardItem;
foreach(var pane in chartDashboardItem.Panes) {
if(pane.Series.Count > 0) {
foreach(var dashSeries in pane.Series) {
if(dashSeries != null) {
var controlSeries = e.GetChartContext(chartItemName).GetControlSeries(dashSeries);
if(controlSeries != null) {
foreach(var ser in controlSeries) {
LineSeriesView view = ser.View as LineSeriesView;
if(view != null) {
view.LineStyle.DashStyle = DashStyle.DashDot;
}
}
}
}
}
}
}
}
}
}
Example: How to Add Custom Information to the Exported Dashboard
The following example shows how to specify header and footer content of an exported dashboard. For this, the CustomExport event is used.
Example: How to Add a Custom Header to Each Sheet
The following example shows how to add a custom header to each sheet for the exported Excel workbook. For this, the CustomizeExportDocument event is used.
Example: How to export the Dashboard to PDF with Different Filter Values on Different Pages
The following example shows how to export a dashboard with different dashboard states (different master filter value) to separate pages and join them to a single PDF document. Multiple exported documents are joined in a single file with the help of the PdfDocumentProcessor class.
Example: Non-Visual Custom Export
This example shows how to use the DashboardExporter component in a console application to export a dashboard with a custom Funnel item.