Microsoft Excel Prerequisities

Please ensure that the following folders are created and if doesn't, create them:

(for x86 and x64 OS)

C:\Windows\System32\config\systemprofile\Desktop

(for x64 only)

C:\Windows\SysWOW64\config\systemprofile\Desktop

This is needed to prevent "Microsoft Excel cannot access the file \'\<Temp File Location>\'".

For the latest Microsoft Excel releases it is necessary to add "TempFolder" location from the Smart.Reporting.PhdReportingServices.Configuration.xml file to the Microsoft Excel Trusted Locations. Unfortunatelly this setting is per user. By default the Smart Reporting Service runs under SYSTEM account. You have 2 options:

  1. To use special tool PsExec (part of the SysInternals's PsTools package https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/pstools.aspx) to run the Excel under SYSTEM credential and to make the change. In the appendices ("Getting a CMD prompt as SYSTEM in Windows") you can read how to run CMD prompt under SYSTEM account from where you can type and run Excel under the SYSTEM credential;

  2. To change the account under Smart Reporting Service is running and for this account the Excel settings change is made.

Hot to add add, remove, or change a Trusted Location in Microsoft Excel you can find in the appendices here.

Manually registering Smart Reporting as Windows Service

Installation package automatically registers/deregisters Smart Reporting as Windows service respectively on intall and uninstall, so you can omit this point.

Open command windows into the installation folder of Smart Reporting and type the following command:

C:\Program Files (x86)\Smartsys Ltd\Smart Reporting Service> Smart.Reporting.PhdReportingServices.exe

and press Enter. You should see the following:

Fig. 1

The Smart.Reporting.PhdReportingServices.exe is the main binary of the Smart Reporting Service. There are several commands shown:

install - this command installs Smart Reporting as Windows Service;

uninstall - this command uninstalls Smart Reporting Windows Service;

console - this command runs Smart Reporting Service like a regular console program;

help - displays more information on a specific command.

If you type 

C:\Program Files (x86)\Smartsys Ltd\Smart Reporting Service> Smart.Reporting.PhdReportingServices.exe help install

and press Enter, you should see the following:

Fig. 2

You can see detailed help information about options for the install command. If you do not specify an options, the default values will be used. For example if you do not specify service startup type, by default it will be automatic.

For example if you want to install the service, specifying a user account you can do the following:

C:\Program Files (x86)\Smartsys Ltd\Smart Reporting Service> Smart.Reporting.PhdReportingServices.exe --a User -u .\theUser -p thePassword

After typing the command above and pressing Enter you should see this:

Fig. 3

Now if you want to start the service, the only thing you need to do is to type:

C:\Program Files (x86)\Smartsys Ltd\Smart Reporting Service>net start SmartPhdReportingServices

You should see the following result:

Fig. 4

If your service fails to start you should check the server log files for errors ("C:\Program Files (x86)\Smartsys Ltd\Smart Reporting Service\Logs") and also should check windows application event logs for errors, because the fail may happen before intialziation of logging.

Remark: The user under the service is started must be elevated or to have access to the server folders to read required files and to write logs.

Remark: Stopping the service takes longer time than starting it. If you type "net stop SmartPhdReportingServices" you may receive the following:

Fig. 5

Usually this is not a problem, stopping really takes a longer time and if you check from services tab after few minutes you will see that the service really is stopped.

If you want to uninstall the service, first stop it, after that type the following in the command window:

C:\Program Files (x86)\Smartsys Ltd\Smart Reporting Service>Smart.Reporting.PhdReportingServices.exe uninstall

You should see the following:

Fig. 6

Remark: By default windows service is named SmartPhdReportingServices, but it can be changed with the "-s" option of the install command, which we do not recommend, but if it is done then you must specify the service which to be uninstalled with the "-s" option of the uninstall command.

Fig. 7

Remark: Display name of the service, which is shown in the services tab is different from the name of the service, used for starting and stopping with the "net" command.

Microsoft Excel cannot access the file \'\<Temp File Location>\'

Possible reasons:

  • The file name or path does not exist;

  • The file is being used by another program;

  • The workbook you are trying to save has the same name as a currently open workbook.

Resolution:

Create folders

(for x86 and x64 OS)

C:\Windows\System32\config\systemprofile\Desktop

(for x64 only)

C:\Windows\SysWOW64\config\systemprofile\Desktop

If it does not help try this http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2817505.

Exception from HRESULT: 0x800A03EC - Excel, .Net, SQL and Windows Server

If you have some error like System.Runtime.InteropServices.COMException (0x800A03EC): Microsoft Excel cannot open or save any more documents ecause there is not enough available memory or disk space.

Then you have to give Smart PHD Reporting Service permission:

  1. Login to the server as a administrator;

  2. Stop the service automating Excel (Smart PHD Reporting Service ) if it is running;

  3. Go to "Start" -> "Run" and enter "taskmgr";

  4. Go to the process tab in task manager and check "Show Processes from all users";

  5. If there are any "Excel.exe" entries on the list, right click on the entry and select "End Process"

  6. Close task manager;

  7. Go to "Start" -> "Run" and enter "dcomcnfg" (for 32 bit Excel run "mmc comexp.msc /32");

  8. This will bring up the component services window, expand out "Console Root" -> "Computers" -> "DCOM Config";

     

  9. Find "Microsoft Excel Application" in the list of components;

  10. Right click on the entry and select "Properties";

  11. Go to the "Identity" tab on the properties dialog;

  12. Select "The user" and enter credentials of the user accout under reporting service is running (e.g. SmartWebViewOnly);

  13. Click the "OK" button;

  14. Switch to the services console;

  15. Start the service automating Excel (Smart PHD Reporting Service);

  16. Make a test.

Creating HTTPS Certificate

You can either create your certificates by makecert or by OpenSSL. And this How to Setup a CA gives you an easy tutorial of creating certificates hierarchy by OpenSSL. First is the root CA certificate. For experimental cases, makecert is enough. But for product, you may want to use OpenSSL or apply a certificate from CA like VeriSign.

makecert -n "CN=TestCA" -r -sv TestCA.pvk TestCA.cer

And import the root certificate to the system certificate storage of Trusted Root Certification Authority. See this article.

Then create the certificate for your HTTPS web site.

makecert -iv TestCA.pvk -n "CN=TestSite" -sv TestSite.pvk -ic TestCA.cer TestSite.cer -sr LocalMachine -ss My -sky exchange --pe

If you will test your client app on a machine other than the server machine, you have to import the TestCA.cer to the client machine as well. So that the client machine trust TestCA (the root cert), it will also trust the server certificate (TestSite).

Hosting an HTTPS site, you must have a certificate with private key. But the last makecert command creates the private key in TestCA.pvk which can't be imported to the system storage directly. We have to convert it to .pfx format

pvk2pfx -pvk "TestSite.pvk" -spc "TestSite.cer" -pfx "TestSite.pfx"

You have to import TestSite.pfx into the Local Computer Personal Certificate store.

Getting a CMD prompt as SYSTEM in Windows

You will have a new CMD prompt open, as though by magic;

Type the following in the new CMD prompt to prove who you are:

WHOAMI /USER

There you go - anything that happens in that CMD prompt or is spawned from that prompt will be running as SYSTEM. You could run regedit from here, start explorer, or whatever you need to troubleshoot as that account.

For more information visit http://blogs.technet.com/b/askds/archive/2008/10/22/getting-a-cmd-prompt-as-system-in-windows-vista-and-windows-server-2008.aspx.

Add, remove, or change a trusted location in Microsoft Excel

You should use a trusted location to store a file when you don\'t want that file to be checked by the Trust Center, or if you don\'t want it to open in Protected View. This applies particularly to files with macros, data connections, ActiveX controls (what we call active content). If you think the active content in a file is from a reliable source, it's better to move the file to a trusted location, instead of changing the default Trust Center settings to a less-safe macro security setting.

Trusted Locations area of TrustCenter

Add a trusted location

  1. Click File > Options.

  2. Click Trust Center > Trust Center Settings > Trusted Locations.

  3. Click Add new location.

  4. Click Browse to find the folder, select a folder, and then click OK.

Remove a trusted location

  1. Click File > Options.

  2. Click Trust Center > Trust Center Settings > Trusted Locations.

  3. Select the location to be removed, and then click Remove, and then click OK.

Change a trusted location

  1. Click File > Options.

  2. Click Trust Center > Trust Center Settings > Trusted Locations.

  3. In the Trusted Locations list, select a location, and then click Modify.

  4. Make the modifications you want, and then click OK.

Applies To: PowerPoint 2010, Visio Professional 2013, Office 2010, Excel 2010, Word 2010, Word 2016, Access 2013, Excel 2016, Word 2013, Access 2010, PowerPoint 2013, Visio 2010, PowerPoint 2016, Visio Professional 2016, Visio 2013, Access 2016 Developer, Visio Standard 2010, Excel 2013

For more information look here.