Action Buttons

You can create an Action Button in IBM® Planning Analytics Workspace that lets you execute a TurboIntegrator process and/or open a new destination with a single click.

You can configure a button to:
  • Execute a TurboIntegrator process
  • Open a sheet in the current book
  • Open a sheet in a different book
  • Open a URL
  • Run a watsonx AI job
When you configure an Action Button to execute a TurboIntegrator process, you can also set the button to open a new destination after the process is complete.
Note: There are some differences between the behavior of Action Buttons in Planning Analytics Workspace and buttons in Planning Analytics for Microsoft Excel/TM1 Websheets:
  • In Planning Analytics Workspace, the execution of a TurboIntegrator process from a button does not lock the tab or book. You can continue to work in the book or tab while the process is running. In contrast, executing a process from a button in Planning Analytics for Microsoft Excel or a TM1 Websheet locks the sheet; you cannot perform any actions until the process finishes running.
  • You can't use Excel cell references to supply process parameter values in Planning Analytics Workspace.

Procedure

  1. To add an Action Button to a sheet, you must be in edit mode.
  2. Click the Action Button icon Button icon.

    If your sheet does not use a template (free form), a new button is placed in the first open area of the sheet. If your sheet uses a template, the button is placed in the first open defined region of the template. You can drag the button to other locations of your sheet.

  3. Use the handles on the perimeter of the Action Button to resize the button as required.
  4. Click the Properties icon, then click a category to set the display or action properties for the button.
    • Text details - Sets the style, font, alignment, and color of the button text.
    • General - Sets the fill color, border color, opacity, position, and size of the button.
    • Navigation - Sets the process that is executed and/or the destination that is opened when you click the button.

      Enable Navigate to destination to open a new destination when the button is clicked.

      To open a tab in the current book, click Tab in this book, then select the tab you want to open from the list of available tabs.

      To open a sheet in a different book:
      1. Click Other book.
      2. Click Select a book.
      3. In the Location list, locate and open the folder containing the book you want to navigate to.
      4. In the Books list, click the book containing the tab you want to open.
      5. In the Tabs list, click the tab you want to open.
      6. Click Select.
      7. Optionally, click Pass context to pass context for any items that have synchronization enabled in both the current tab and the destination tab.

      To open a URL, click Hyperlink, then enter a fully qualified URL.

    • Run Process - Sets the process that is executed when you click the button.

      To execute an existing TurboIntegrator process:

      1. Enable Run process.
      2. Select the database on which the process resides.
      3. Select the process you want to run.
      4. If the process includes parameters that must be set prior to execution, click Set parameters to set the parameter values or configure user prompts that can be answered to set parameter values.
      5. Select Refresh after execution if you want to refresh the current book after the process finishes running. The refresh updates any views, websheets, visualizations, or selectors in the target book.
      6. If you want the process to use a file when it is run, select Allow file upload. This option allows you to upload a file to the database when you click the Action Button.
        Note: The process runs only if the file is uploaded successfully.
      7. Select one of the following Additional click options to configure the action button for additional clicks:
        Cancel process
        When an action button that is already running a process is clicked again, the process is canceled, and a related message is displayed. This is the default behavior, which is known from previous versions of the product.
        Do nothing
        When an action button that is already running a process is clicked again the process continues to run. A new process is not started.
        Run processes in parallel
        When an action button that is already running a process is clicked again a new process is started, and the previous process or processes continue to run. This option is useful when the book user wants to run a series of overlapping processes by using the same action button.
        You can run a maximum of 5 processes in parallel. If you attempt to run the 6th process, a message about this limit is displayed.
  5. Click Save to save the book with the new Action Button.

Results

Users can now click the Action Button to execute the action you defined.

If the button executes a process, a visual progress indicator is displayed while the process is running. If the process runs successfully, the progress indicator closes, but you won't receive an explicit confirmation of process execution. If the process fails, you'll receive notification of failure directly in the sheet.

If you configure an Action Button to navigate to a tab in another book, you can rename the target book and/or sheet without having to update the button properties. The button automatically resolves any name changes to target tabs or books.