doc/help/Session-Reports.md
Serial Studio Pro can export any recorded session as a self-contained HTML report or a PDF. The report includes a cover page, session metadata, per-parameter summary statistics, and one interactive Chart.js plot per numeric dataset. It's a share-ready artifact for teammates, customers, or a lab notebook, generated from the same SQLite session database used by the Session Explorer.
A progress dialog appears while charts render and (for PDF) the page is rasterized. The output format depends on the build: builds with the embedded browser engine produce a PDF, and builds without it produce a self-contained HTML file. The Save dialog is pre-filled with a suggested path:
<Workspace>/Reports/<Project Title>/
The workspace root is the Workspace Folder set in Settings → General. Project titles are sanitized so the suggested filename is always safe.
The report has four sections, each independently toggleable:
| Section | Contents |
|---|---|
| Cover page | Logo, company name, document title, project name, session ID, duration, sample count, parameter count, start/end timestamps, author, generation date |
| Test information | Project title, session ID, start/end times, duration, sample count, parameter count, tags (as chips), and session notes |
| Measurement summary | Per-parameter table with sample count, min, max, mean, and standard deviation. Non-numeric datasets show — for numeric columns |
| Parameter trends | One Chart.js line chart per numeric dataset, stacked one per row (each chart starts its own page when printed). A screen-only overlay chart (hidden on print) plots all parameters on shared axes for shape comparison |
All options are persisted between runs, so you only configure them once per project.
Toggle each of the four sections on or off independently. An extra Annotate min, max, and mean values on plots checkbox overlays those statistics on each chart. Turning off Parameter trends produces a text-only summary report that renders instantly and prints to a few pages.
Pick which datasets feed the Measurement summary and Parameter trends sections. A search box filters the list, Expand All and Collapse All toggle group visibility, and each group, folder, or individual dataset has its own checkbox. At least one dataset must stay selected to enable export.
Both formats ship the same content, rendered from the same template.
| HTML | ||
|---|---|---|
| Single file | Yes | Yes |
| Self-contained | Yes (Chart.js, CSS, JS, and logo are inlined) | N/A (rasterized) |
| Interactive charts | Yes (hover, tooltip, overlay toggle) | No (charts are rendered as images) |
| File size | Larger (embeds Chart.js + raw data) | Smaller, fixed per page count |
| Best for | Internal review, web sharing, debugging | Customer deliverables, regulatory submissions, printing |
Which format you get is determined by the build: builds that include the embedded browser engine export a PDF, while builds without it export the self-contained HTML.
Charts use Chart.js 4.x, bundled inside Serial Studio. No network access is required, since the full library, stylesheet, and client runtime are embedded in the HTML at render time.
Long sessions are downsampled to a maximum of 10,000 points per chart using first/min/max/last bucket decimation across 2,500 equal-count buckets. This preserves the signal envelope (peaks and valleys survive) while keeping charts responsive even for sessions with millions of samples.
If you need the full-resolution data, export the session to CSV from the Session Explorer instead.
Tick labels use scientific notation for values with magnitude below 10⁻³ or at or above 10⁶. Otherwise they display with three decimal places. Colors rotate through a muted HSL palette (base hue 210°, stepped by 48° per parameter) tuned for print legibility.