Troubleshooting
Problem
User runs a report (e.g. a BI report or a Controller 'standard report', also known as a 'system report'). By default, this displays in HTML initially. This works OK. User then clicks the dropdown box to modify it to appear as PDF. The display changes to an Adobe Acrobat Reader-style GUI, and there is a progress bar showing the PDF loading. After a few seconds, the progress bar stops/hangs. The PDF report never appears. The problem is intermittent - sometimes the report displays OK, but sometimes it fails. The problem only seems to affect 'large' reports (i.e. when the system has to download larger PDFs, for example around 1Mb).
Symptom
The symptoms vary depending on the version of Acrobat Reader version installed on the
client device:
- Adobe Reader 9.5 - a completely empty white page appears with white
thumbnails below - Adobe Reader 10.1.4 - a progress meter appears within the Reader
frame but never finishes (see below for example):
The amount of the report downloaded (in the example above 347.0 Kb) varies each time the same report is run. Sometimes it will hang/stop at a higher figure, sometimes at a lower figure/amount.
- In one real-life example, these 'large' files are typically approximately 1Mb, and the download stream stalled at various points such as 282KB, 440KB and 968KB.
Cause
There are several possible causes for PDF reports to fail to work correctly with BI (or associated products like Controller).
- For example, see separate IBM Technotes #1673565 & 1671436.
This Technote specifically relates to the scenario where the cause is a limitation of Adobe Acrobat Reader.
- Specifically the cause is related to the settings for how Adobe Reader displays PDF files inside internet browsers:
Diagnosing The Problem
Ask the end user to launch Adobe Acrobat Reader in their client device.
- If using Citrix (to deliver the Cognos program), this means that the end user will need to have Adobe Reader delivered to them (via a Citrix published application).
Resolving The Problem
Ask the end user to modify their Adobe Acrobat Reader internet settings.
Steps:
The exact steps will vary depending on the environment (for example version of Adobe Reader). In one real-life example the solution was:
1. Launch Adobe Reader
2. Click "Edit - Preferences"
3. Click section "Internet"
4. Untick the following boxes:
- Display on Read Mode by default
- Allow fast web view"
- Allow speculative downloading in the background
5. Click OK, and test.
Related Information
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Document Information
Modified date:
15 June 2018
UID
swg21672938