CSV Downloader: A Step by Step Guide (Setup and Configuration)

This article will walk you through the process of setting up the MachineMetrics CSV Downloader. Through the use of a PowerShell script and the Windows Task Scheduler, you can take advantage of the powerful data provided by the MachineMetrics Production API without the need to write complex code. When you are done with this step by step guide, you will have automated the process of downloading the exact data you want on the schedule that is important to you.

Prerequisites

• A Windows PC or Server that is reliably on during the times that you need the report to run
• PowerShell installed
• Administrator privileges to configure Task Scheduler

Download the Script

Click here to download the mm-csv-exporter.ps1 script.

Obtain an API Key

The API Key is a crucial component required by the script to fetch data from MachineMetrics. Follow the steps below to generate an API Key:

1. Log into your MachineMetrics account.
2. Navigate to Settings and select API Keys.
3. Click on Create API Key.
4. In the scope section, select reporting.
5. After generating the new API key, make sure to copy it and store it securely. We do not save a copy of the key in its original form. If you lose it, you will need to generate a new one. The API key has the same level of access as a password.

The PowerShell Script

The mm-csv-exporter.ps1 script requires several arguments. Below are details of the arguments you need to provide:

• API_KEY: The API key you generated from MachineMetrics.
• OUT_PATH: The full path to the file where the CSV output should be written. This location will be watched by other tools for changes to pick up the new file when it gets updated.
• LOG_PATH: The full path to the file where the script logs will be written. This file gets appended after each run of the script, logging both successful runs and errors.
• CONFIG_PATH (Optional): The full path to the configuration file that includes the query for the data and the period of time to be queried.

Configuration File Format

The configuration file determines the data to be gathered and the period of time to be queried. Here's an example:

{
  "ProductionQuery": {
    "exactRange": false,
    "data": [
      { "metric": "goodParts" },
      { "metric": "totalParts" }
    ],
    "groupBy": [
      { "group": "day" },
      { "group": "machine" },
      { "group": "jobOperation" }
   ],
    "filter": {}
  },
  "Days": 7
}

For more details on the options available for the ProductionQuery property, refer to the Production API documentation.

Please note that start, end, startDay, and endDayshould be left out of the ProductionQuery property. These are automatically filled in by the script based on the value provided for the Days property in the configuration file.

The next step isn't required. If you want to use the mm-csv-exporter.ps1 in your other projects, take it and use it as you see fit. It is a great starting point for many projects.

Configure Task Scheduler

To set up the script so it runs in an automated fashion, use the Task Scheduler in Windows. You can set this up to run the PowerShell script at specific intervals.

1. Search for Task Scheduler in your Windows search bar and open the application.
2. Click on Create Basic Task... and fill in the task name and description.
3. In the Trigger section, define how often you want the task to run.
4. In the Action section, select Start a program. For the program/script field, browse and select powershell.exe. See below for a detailed example of what to put in the Add arguments field.
5. Click on Finish to save the task.
6. You can configure the task to run more often than Daily by first saving the task with the Daily option selected, editing the task and configuring the Repeat task every: section under Advanced settings. for a duration of should be set to Indefinitely.

Note: This should not be configured to run more frequently than once an hour.

Setting the Add Arguments field

Here is a detailed example of the value of that should be entered into the Add arguments field.

-ExecutionPolicy Bypass -File "C:\path\to\mm-csv-exporter.ps1" -API_KEY "YOUR_API_KEY" -OUT_PATH "C:\path\to\output\output.csv" -LOG_PATH "C:\path\to\log\log.txt" -CONFIG_PATH "C:\path\to\config\config.json"

Now your script is set to run at the specified interval, downloading the data from MachineMetrics and saving it in the location you have specified. Configure your other tools to watch the output file for changes and use MachineMetrics data to drive other business systems!