Configuring the Excel Add-in Distribution Worker

Important

This section only applies if the SEI Add-in Distribution is not already configured.

Note

We do not support the distribution of macro files that contain a direct reference to Excel Add-in.

If you want to generate and distribute reports of the SEI Add-in for Excel files, you need to make some configuration changes on the server hosting the Distribution Worker.

  1. Ensure you have a custom account (basic or advanced installation) already set up on the BIService.SEI service.

  2. Install Microsoft Excel on the same server as the SEI Distribution Worker.
  3. Install the corresponding version of Excel Add-in on the same server.

  4. For Excel 2013 and later, you need to add the registry key Excel2010Later.reg to the file located in C:\Program Files\Sage\SEI Server\WebClient.

    • If you are running Microsoft Office in 32-bit on a 64-bit computer, run the mmc command with parameter 32: mmc -32 to launch the 32-bit version ofDCOMCNFG.

    • Otherwise, run mmc.

  5. In the File menu, select Add or Remove Snap-ins.
  6. In the list, select Component Services and click Add so it appears in the Selected snap-ins list.

  7. Click OK to return to the primary window.

  8. In the tree menu on the left-hand side, expand the tree as follows: Component Services > Computers > My Computer > DCOM Config and select Microsoft Excel Application 2010 and later.

    If you do not find the Microsoft Excel Application 2010 and later component , it might not be registered or is registered under the Class ID number (CLSID) instead of the Application Name.

    In such a case, rebooting the computer may be enough to get it registered properly. If not, you might need to open the register (using the RegEdit command) and find the Class ID where those permissions are set up under HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Excel.Application\CLSID. The same class ID should be available under DCOM Config in the mmc tool and that’s where you should configure the permissions described below.

  9. Right-click the Microsoft Excel Application 2010 and later component and select Properties.

  10. In the Identity tab, select The launching user option.

  11. Go to the Security tab.

  12. In the Launch and Activation Permissions section, select Customize and click Edit.

  13. Add a user with all the permissions as shown on the screen below and click OK.

  14. Repeat the two previous steps for Access Permissions and Configuration Permissions sections.
  15. Click on OK in the Microsoft Excel Application 2010 and later properties window to apply changes.
  16. Lastly, make sure the following path exists on the server where the Distribution Worker is running, and that the user used for the BI Service has Full Control on them:

    • For a 64-bit computer system:

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

    • For a 64-bit computer system and from C:\Windows\SysWOW64\config\:

      • systemprofile\Desktop
      • systemprofile\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows\INetCache
  1. Before doing the other steps, log out of the server and log back in using the same user credentials as the user that is set up on the BI Service.
  2. Open Excel (the Excel license must be activated) and configure the Add-in for Excel:
    1. Go to Add-in Configuration (File > Options > Add-in).
    2. Next to the Manage drop-down list, click Go....
    3. In the Add-ins window, click Browse... and select SEI Add-in for Excel.xla in C:\Program Files\Sage\SEI Add-in for Excel. (You can refer to First Time Configuration for detailed instructions.)
  3. Configure your Central Point:
    1. Force Excel to log in by clicking the Add-ins tab.
    2. Click Change User. If no Central Point is configured, click the + sign and enter your Central Point path.
    3. Click Add to validate and register your Central Point.
  4. Select an Excel file to distribute, open the file, and test that the Data Extraction works properly.

  5. Before testing the Add-in Distribution, perform these checks:

    1. Use the server’s Task Manager and verify if the Process tab has no other Excel.exe instances open, If there is, close them. Otherwise, some configurations done in the previous steps will not be completed because of Excel Add-in instances that have remained open.
    2. Make sure your SMTP server is properly configured in the Web Central Point Configurator.
    3. Make sure that the email address of your ADMIN user is valid.