AX2300

Control Sheets

Every Axiom file has a Control Sheet (tab name: Control_Sheet). The Control Sheet contains settings for each sheet in the workbook.

Control Sheet settings define the following:

  • Save to database options
  • Sheet display and protection options
  • Sheet filters
  • Axiom queries

Control Sheet settings can be configured manually on the sheet, or you can use the Sheet Assistant task pane to edit most common settings. Some settings, such as save-to-database settings, are only available on the Control Sheet.

Most sheets in an Axiom file are set up on the Control Sheet. However, if a sheet does not need to use any of these Axiom file features, then that sheet does not need to be configured on the Control Sheet.

Viewing the Control Sheet

By default, the Control Sheet is automatically visible or hidden based on the current user's Allow Sheet Assistant security permission for the file (as configured on the Files tab of security):

  • If you are an administrator or you have the Allow Sheet Assistant permission, and you open the document as read/write, then the Control Sheet is visible. This behavior is intended to provide report writers with easy access to configuration settings on the Control Sheet.

  • Otherwise, the Control Sheet is hidden.

If instead you want the Control Sheet to start as hidden for all users, you can use the Hide Control Sheet on open setting. This setting is located on the Control Sheet, in the Workbook Options section.

  • If Hide Control Sheet on open is set to On, then the Control Sheet is hidden for all users when the file is opened.

  • Otherwise, the default behavior applies, where the Control Sheet is automatically visible or not based on Sheet Assistant security permissions. This default behavior also applies if the Hide Control Sheet on open setting is blank or not present.

If Hide Control Sheet on open is not enabled, but the Control Sheet is still being hidden for all users when the file is opened, this may be happening because the file was saved in an earlier version where the default behavior was different (or because the Control Sheet was manually hidden using Excel functionality). In this case, you can open the file, unhide the Control Sheet, and then save the file. The next time the file is opened, the Control Sheet should behave as previously described.

NOTE: In plan files, the Control Sheet is always hidden by default and the workbook is always protected, regardless of the Control Sheet settings. It is rarely necessary to access the Control Sheet in plan files, because any configuration changes for plan files need to be made in the template.

If the Control Sheet is hidden, and the workbook is protected, users with the appropriate permissions can unhide it as follows:

  • Users with access to the Sheet Assistant can double-click a property name in the Sheet Assistant to be taken to the corresponding property in the Control Sheet. For example, you can double-click Query Name to be taken to the name of the Axiom query on the Control Sheet. This will also unhide the Control Sheet if it is hidden.

  • Users with permission to unprotect workbooks can manually unprotect the file and unhide the sheet. Administrators can also use the Show Everything feature on the Axiom Designer ribbon tab.
See also