Common Reports Issues

Solution:

1. Determine exactly which data you want.

   • Writing down exactly what data you want can help you pinpoint how to find your solution. 

     • Ex. "I need the number of circulations for my library between this date and that date, but exclude my Park Passes." 

   • Stating what you want (or don't want) can help you find appropriate elements in the reporter. 

     • In this example, you want to display a count of circulations and limit the report to your library, your chosen dates, and only a few circulation modifiers.

2. Find an appropriate report source or clone a template that is close to what you want.

   • Equinox has some shared templates that can be modified or run as-is. Other libraries in the region also have useful shared templates to clone and use.

3. Modify the template or report to include your desired fields and filters.

4. Investigate your output. Are you getting the results you expect? Do the numbers make sense? Are you seeing blank fields or errors?

   • This is when trial and error starts. Take notes on what you have and haven't tried in the report name or description as you iterate through different options.

   • You may need to modify your original intention to be more specific or less specific. Consider trying a report that's the opposite of what you want. It seems counterintuitive, but finding exactly what you don't want can pave a path to what you do want.

5. Ask for help. Other libraries may have developed similar reports, so we recommend reaching out to evergreen@selco.info. Tell the group your report's goal, what you've tried, and your current display fields, filters, and output. Screenshots are also helpful. If this doesn't help, reach out to the Help Desk.

Solution: 

Add top-level folders for Templates, Reports, and Outputs in order to start cloning and running your own reports.

Solution:

Click more carets, not folder names, in order to expand the full folder tree.

Solution:

Select the branch level library (ex. WES or West Concord Public Library) instead of the system-level (ex. WES-SYS or West Concord Public Library System).

Solution:

This bug should be fixed as of an update on July 23, 2025. There may still be errant reports floating about (feel free to let us know), but no new ones should be created.

Old text:

This is a known bug (#2096672) in Evergreen that happens when switching between Simple Reports and Advanced Reports. If you want them removed, email the Help Desk with the report name and folder location and we’ll have Equinox clean them up when they have time. This should be fixed in a future patch.

Solution:

Solutions will vary depending on the error message you get. (Don't see an error message in your Output folder? Go to the Settings cog icon and ensure that the Error Text checkbox is selected.)

Most commonly, errors happen when trying to pull data that Evergreen doesn’t know how to appropriately display. You may need to select a different data type, apply field transforms, or apply specific operators and filters.

Solution:

Use the Date transform whenever you want to work with dates. Otherwise, the reporter will not gather data for the end date.

Solution:

You may need to dig deeper into the data types of your fields in order to find a different value. Trying to display a link type object may cause the report to error out, while selecting text or id could display more meaningful results.

Solution:

Items loaned and items borrowed will be two separate reports. This is because each report will filter on either the Destination/Receiving Library or the Sending Library. In Reports, use the Hold Transit source to gather this data.