# Create a report that runs on a schedule

Build a report template, schedule it with a workflow rule, and know exactly where the output lands — including the one choice you can't change later.

Product: content-central · Versions: 7.x · Audience: system-administrator · Time: 25 minutes · Last verified: 2026-09-05

Canonical: https://help.ademero.com/content-central/reports-and-exports/create-a-report

**At the end of this guide a report builds itself on the schedule you chose — a CSV of exactly the documents and columns you defined — and you know where it lands and how to pick it up.**

A report in Content Central is two pieces: a **report template** (what goes in it) and a **workflow rule** (when it runs). The template alone never produces anything — both halves below are required.

## Step 1: Build the report template

1. Open the menu, go to **Administration**, and choose **Report Templates**. Click **New Template**.

2. Enter the **Report Name** and choose the **Report Type**:
   
   | Report Type | What each row is |
   |---|---|
   | **Documents** | A document, with the field values you choose |
   | **Documents by Approval Process** | A document on an approval process |
   | **Documents in Work Queue** | A document sitting in a work queue |
   | **Total Documents** / **Total Pages** | Capture volume counts |
   | **Incomplete Packets** | A packet still missing documents |
   
   > important: **Report Type is locked once the template is created** — it's the one choice you can't change later. If you picked wrong, you'll be creating a new template, so decide this first.

3. Narrow what's included under **Filters** (**Add Filter** — catalog, document type, date ranges like *this month* or *previous 7 days*, and more). With no filters, the page says it plainly: *No filters exist for this report. All documents will be considered.*

4. Choose the columns under **Output Columns** (**Add Output Column**) — fields, system fields, or report-type columns, each with an optional **Header Text**. Optionally group rows into **Segments** (with **Create Segment Headers** for group headings).

5. Under **Report Output**, check the **Filename** (it's filled in from the report name, as a `.csv`) and pick the **Write mode**:
   
   | Write mode | Each run… |
   |---|---|
   | **Append** | Adds rows to the same file (what the editor starts on) |
   | **Replace** | Overwrites the file |
   | **Keep All** | Writes a new time-stamped file, keeping every prior run |

6. Leave **Enabled** on and click **Apply**.

*[Screenshot: Name and Report Type are the two required choices; with no filters added, the Filters section says plainly that all documents will be considered.]*

> **NOTE:** Reports output as CSV — it opens directly in Excel. If you need grouping headings inside the file, that's what Segments produce.

## Step 2: Schedule it — a trigger, an action, and a rule

Reports are scheduled from the *global* workflow area — **Administration** > **Workflow** — not from any catalog's workflow pages. Three small pieces connect there:

1. **The schedule.** Open **Triggers** > **New Trigger**. Set the type to **Reports** (its sub-type is **Report Scheduler**), then set **Process Interval** (how often) and **Process Start**. Save.

*[Screenshot: Reports is a scheduled trigger: Process Interval says how often it fires, Process Start says when the clock begins.]*

2. **The action.** Open **Actions** > **New Action**. Set the type to **Generate Report** and pick your template under **Report Template**.

*[Screenshot: One decision: which report template runs. If this selector is empty, the template from Step 1 wasn't saved or was disabled.]*

3. **The rule that ties them together.** Open **Rules** > **New Rule**, name it, click **Add Trigger** and pick your scheduler, then **Add Action** and pick Generate Report (the action button unlocks once a trigger is chosen). Click **Apply**, leaving **Enabled** checked.

> **NOTE:** Building the rule needs the **Workflow** admin permission — it's separate from the **Report Templates** permission. If you can build templates but can't reach the Rules page, that's the missing piece to ask your administrator for.

## Step 3: Pick up the output

Each run writes the file **on the server**, under the Reports folder, in a subfolder named after the report — it doesn't arrive in your browser or messages.

The easy pickup: back on **Administration** > **Report Templates**, the template's row gains a **Download Report** action once the report has run at least once. Click it to download the latest file.

**Success check:** after the first scheduled time passes, the **Download Report** action appears on the row and the file contains the columns you defined. If it never appears, check that both the template *and* the rule show as enabled.

> **IMPORTANT:** With the default **Replace** write mode, each run overwrites the last file. If anyone needs history — month-end snapshots, audit trails — set **Keep All** before the second run, not after.

## If the report is missing columns or rows

Blank columns and missing documents in report output almost always trace to field-level causes, not the template — work through [A report or export is missing fields](/content-central/reports-and-exports/report-or-export-missing-fields) before rebuilding anything.

## What's next

- [A report or export is missing fields](https://help.ademero.com/content-central/reports-and-exports/report-or-export-missing-fields)
- [Export documents and metadata](https://help.ademero.com/content-central/administration/export-documents-and-metadata)