Reporting & PDF/CSV Exports from Grafana

Reporting & PDF/CSV exports from Grafana empower DevOps engineers and SREs to automate dashboard sharing, generate scheduled PDFs for stakeholder updates, and export CSV data for offline analysis. This feature streamlines observability workflows by turning dynamic dashboards into static, distributable artifacts without manual screenshots or exports.

Why Reporting & PDF/CSV Exports Matter for DevOps and SRE Teams

In high-stakes environments, timely insights drive decisions. Grafana's Reporting & PDF/CSV exports from Grafana enable automated emails with embedded dashboard images, PDF snapshots, or CSV tables—perfect for weekly on-call recaps, executive summaries, or compliance audits. Changes to source dashboards automatically propagate to future reports, ensuring accuracy without rework[1].

For SREs, this means exporting table panels as CSVs for root-cause analysis in tools like Pandas or Excel. DevOps teams can schedule PDF exports of infrastructure metrics (e.g., CPU utilization across clusters) to share with non-technical stakeholders. Public preview features like PDF appendices for table data extend visibility beyond dashboard limits[1].

Prerequisites for Reporting & PDF/CSV Exports from Grafana

• Grafana Enterprise or Cloud: Reporting requires the newShareReportDrawer feature toggle enabled in grafana.ini or Grafana Cloud support activation[1].
• Email Configuration: SMTP setup for scheduled sends.
• Permissions: Editor or higher on target dashboards; organization-level reporting access.
• Branding: Optional organization-wide settings via Dashboards > Reporting > Report settings[2][5].

Step-by-Step: Creating Reports for PDF/CSV Exports

To initiate Reporting & PDF/CSV exports from Grafana, navigate from any dashboard:

1. Click Dashboards in the main menu and select your target dashboard.
2. Click the Share dropdown (top-right) > Schedule report. The Schedule report drawer opens, listing existing reports[1].
3. Configure via the three-step wizard: Dashboards, Schedule, Email settings.

Step 1: Dashboard Configuration

Select source dashboard(s), time range, and variables. Key options:

Practical Example: For a Kubernetes cluster dashboard, set time range to "Last 7 days" and variable cluster=eks-prod to capture weekly trends.

Step 2: Scheduling Reports

Define frequency and timing:

Actionable Tip: For SRE on-call handovers, schedule daily PDFs at 9 AM UTC, weekdays only, with timezone "UTC".

Step 3: Email and Export Settings

Customize delivery and formats:

• Subject/Message: Custom text; defaults to report name[1].
• Recipients/Reply-To: Comma-separated emails.
• Links/Images: Embed dashboard images or URLs[1].
• Formats: PDF (default), CSV (per table panel), Image[3].
• PDF Options: Portrait/landscape, grid/simple layout, combine multi-dashboard PDFs, show variables, table data appendix[1][3].

Preview with Preview PDF or Download CSV, then Schedule report or Save draft[1].

<!-- Example report preview actions in UI -->
Download CSV | Preview PDF | Send preview | Schedule report

Managing Reports in Grafana

Access all reports at Dashboards > Reporting. From here:

• Edit, pause, or delete reports.
• View history and logs.
• Open Report settings for org-wide branding (logos, colors)[2][5].

Dashboard-specific lists link to the full Reporting page[1].

Programmatic Reporting & PDF/CSV Exports via API

For automation in CI/CD pipelines or Terraform, use the Reporting HTTP API (beta, under active development)[3].

Creating a Report

POST to /api/reports with JSON payload:

{
  "name": "Weekly Cluster Metrics",
  "recipients": "sre-team@company.com",
  "frequency": "weekly",
  "timeZone": "UTC",
  "formats": ["pdf", "csv"],
  "orientation": "landscape",
  "layout": "grid",
  "dashboards": [{
    "dashboard.uid": "abc123",
    "timeRange": {"from": "now-7d", "to": "now"},
    "reportVariables": "{\"cluster\": \"prod\"}"
  }]
}

Schedules PDF/CSV exports weekly[3].

Sending an Existing Report

POST to /api/reports/{id}/send:

{
  "id": "report-456",
  "emails": "manager@company.com",
  "useEmailsFromReport": false
}

Overrides recipients for ad-hoc sends[3].

DevOps Workflow Example: Integrate into GitHub Actions—trigger API on merge to main for prod dashboard PDFs, attach to Slack/Email for release reviews.

Advanced Tips for PDF/CSV Exports

• Multi-Dashboard Reports: Combine PDFs into one file; ideal for service overviews[1].
• Table Data Appendix: Exports full CSV-like data in PDF for dense tables (public preview)[1].
• Azure Managed Grafana: Same UI flow; start at Reporting > Reports > + Create[4].
• Troubleshooting: Ensure reporting enabled; check SMTP logs for email failures.
• SEO Note for Searches: Optimize dashboards for exports—use table panels for CSV, avoid heavy animations in PDFs.

Best Practices for SREs Using Reporting & PDF/CSV Exports

1. Version reports with dashboard UIDs, not names, for stability.
2. Test previews rigorously—variables must resolve correctly.
3. Combine with alerts: Auto-export dashboards on incident resolution.
4. Monitor report quotas in Grafana Cloud; scale via Enterprise.
5. Secure recipients: Use teams distribution lists, not personal emails.

Mastering Reporting & PDF/CSV exports from Grafana transforms observability from real-time to reportable intelligence. Implement today: pick a high-value dashboard, schedule your first report, and iterate based on previews. For API deep dives, reference official schemas[3].

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