Learn how to use the Nextcloud Hub built-in data analytics tool, which can represent your data with charts and more.
Nextcloud Hub is the latest iteration of the Nextcloud on-premises cloud server software and it offers a lot of features businesses of all sizes can use. One such feature is the new built-in data analytics tool.
With this analytics tool you can create reports that will display data visualizations of all sorts. Because it’s ready to go out-of-the-box, all you have to do is log in and start creating your reports.
I’m going to show you how to create a simple report using the new Nextcloud Analytics tool, so you can get the most out of your company’s cloud server software.
SEE: Serverless computing: A guide for IT leaders (TechRepublic Premium)
What you’ll need
- A running instance of Nextcloud Hub
- A user account on that cloud server
- Some data
You can follow the same instructions for installing Nextcloud 16 (they haven’t changed for the 18th release) in the article: How to install Nextcloud 16 on Ubuntu 18.04.
How to create a report in Nextcloud Hub
Log in to your instance of Nextcloud Hub. Once logged in, you should see the Analytics icon at the far right of the icon toolbar (Figure A).
Figure A
The Analytics icon in the toolbar.
” data-credit rel=”noopener noreferrer nofollow”> The Analytics icon in the toolbar.
Click that icon and then click New Report (Figure B).
Figure B
The Analytics window.
” data-credit rel=”noopener noreferrer nofollow”> The Analytics window.
You should see a report titled New listed. Click the menu button and then click Basic Settings (Figure C).
Figure C
Accessing the settings for the new report.
” data-credit rel=”noopener noreferrer nofollow”> Accessing the settings for the new report.
In the resulting window (Figure D), start filling out information for the report.
Figure D
Filling out information for the report.
” data-credit rel=”noopener noreferrer nofollow”> Filling out information for the report.
In this tab you’ll want to at least name the report, title the column headers, and select the type of visualization you want to use.
Once you’ve filled out the basic information about the report, click the Data tab and then start adding data to the report (Figure E).
Figure E
Adding data to the report.
” data-credit rel=”noopener noreferrer nofollow”> Adding data to the report.
You can add data manually, or import it from a file. To manually enter data, fill out the necessary values and click Save Data. You can then continue to add data to the report until you’re finished.
If you then click on the report name in the left navigation, you can view the chart and manipulate the data as you see fit (Figure F).
Figure F
Our newly generated chart.
” data-credit rel=”noopener noreferrer nofollow”> Our newly generated chart.
From the chart menu (Figure G), you can download the chart as an image, CSV list, or XLS spreadsheet; print the generated chart; view the data table; or open the chart in Highcharts Cloud.
Figure G
Downloading the chart in various formats.
” data-credit rel=”noopener noreferrer nofollow”> Downloading the chart in various formats.
Not perfect, but still useful
It does take a bit of chart experience to get the most out of this feature. And the Nextcloud Hub Analytics tool isn’t 100% perfect. For instance, it seems you are limited to only three data columns and you cannot change the data type for those columns.
But, even with these limitations, this tool is an outstanding addition to Nextcloud. Hopefully, future updates will bring a bit more flexibility to the tool. But even as is, any user who depends on data analytics will see this as a big step forward for Nextcloud.
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