Use Information Console to run or schedule BIRT designs, using file jobs. A file job generates a new document file version. When a file job runs, data appearing in the new document version is updated. Parameter values defined in the design are used to limit any data queries in the design to request a specific set of data.

Running or scheduling a file job makes a query request to the external data sources and applies any selected parameters to the query. When a file job is finished, a new document file is either available for viewing in a temporary cache or saved to the Encyclopedia volume. The finished document file can be viewed or downloaded. A document file generated from some Actuate file types can be converted to other document formats such as Adobe PDF, IBM Advanced Function Printing (AFP), or Microsoft Office formats such as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.

Table 3‑1 shows supported items for which a user can run or schedule a file job, the file format of generated output and which items support saving output in third‑party file formats.

Users can schedule jobs to run immediately, in the future, or on a recurring basis. Parameters, if the file designer requires them, control data selection and formatting. For example, a document design that makes monthly sales reports can request which month and year to use when creating the report.

An Information Console user can track or cancel a scheduled file job that appears in My Jobs. Users can also select e‑mail and channel notifications for successful file jobs. All users who subscribe to the selected channels receive these notifications with links to the new file.

BIRT document files do not run as a file job. BIRT documents support scheduled conversion to save as third-party file formats such as Adobe PDF, IBM Advanced Function Printing (AFP), and Microsoft Office formats such as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.

Running a file job can be done in the following ways: