Fixing WinCC Unified V20 PDF Report Including All Template Sheets

Problem Details

In WinCC Unified V20 (TIA Portal V20, Update 4 and equivalent cumulative updates), engineers frequently author report templates as multi-sheet Microsoft Excel workbooks. A canonical pattern looks like this:

• Sheet 1 ("Report Sheet") — summary KPIs, key values, and an embedded chart intended for executive review and PDF distribution.
• Sheet 2 ("Data Sheet") — raw tabular logging data that feeds the chart on Sheet 1, retained in the workbook so that analysts can drill into the underlying measurements.

The intent is to produce two artifacts from a single report job:

• A PDF file containing only Sheet 1 for shift handover, quality review, and long-term archival.
• The full XLSX file containing both sheets for downstream investigation, audit trails, and engineering analysis.

The defect observed: despite configuring an Excel print area on Sheet 1, the resulting PDF generated by the WinCC Unified Runtime report job contains every sheet of the template workbook — not just the printable summary sheet. The XLSX export behaves as expected, but the PDF export ignores the intended print scope.

This behavior persists across:

• WinCC Unified PC Runtime (PC RT) and Unified Comfort Panel Runtime targets.
• Manual "Print" actions invoked from the Reports control on the HMI screen.
• Scheduled report jobs triggered by tag events or time schedules.
• Both "Save as PDF" and "Print to PDF" job configurations defined in the report designer.

Observable Symptoms

• Generated PDF is multi-page and contains every worksheet of the source XLSX template.
• Tab names from the template appear at the bottom of the PDF in viewers that support sheet-style navigation.
• The Excel desktop print area set on Sheet 1 appears ignored at Runtime.
• XLSX output of the same template contains all sheets (this is correct — the issue is specifically with the PDF rendering path).
• The WinCC Unified diagnostic viewer shows the report job completing successfully, with no warning about print-area violation.

Environment Constraints

Root Cause Analysis

WinCC Unified V20 PDF generation does not honor the workbook-level print-area selection authored in the Excel desktop client. The PDF rendering path uses a server-side rendering pipeline (independent of the local Excel COM automation used for XLSX export), so the print-area metadata authored in the desktop client is not always translated into the rendering instructions consumed by the Runtime.

Two contributing factors are documented in Siemens official guidance for the V20 reporting add-in:

1. Excel add-in metadata persistence. Report templates are imported into the WinCC Unified V20 engineering project via the Excel add-in "RT Unified". If the local Excel build is below 16.0.6769, the print-area property may not be persisted in a format that the add-in recognizes when the template is registered as a report layout. The XLSX may still display a print area in Excel desktop, but the add-in reads a separate set of metadata.
2. Print scope semantics in RT Unified. The Runtime treats the print settings configured inside the RT Unified Excel add-in (Page Setup, Scaling, Page Breaks, Print Scope) as authoritative for PDF generation — not the Excel desktop's "Set Print Area" command. When the add-in's print scope matches "Entire Workbook" (the default when no explicit scope is set in the add-in), every sheet of the workbook is rendered to the PDF.

In short: configuring the print area only in Excel desktop is necessary but not sufficient. The RT Unified add-in must also be configured to constrain the print scope to the intended sheet(s). This distinction is the root cause of the symptom and is documented in the official "Tips on Design and Layout (RT Unified)" reference for WinCC Unified V20.

Confirmed Background Behavior

Per Siemens official documentation for "Basics of Reporting (RT Unified)" in WinCC Unified V20:

• A report (production report) is an XLSX file or PDF file generated when a report job is executed in Runtime.
• The report files are stored in the Runtime and can be retrieved by downloading them through the Runtime file browser or the report control on the HMI.
• Files are available in both the original template format (XLSX) and as PDF.
• Report templates are authored in Microsoft Excel using the WinCC Unified Excel add-in (RT Unified).
• Print settings configured in the report template are applied at Runtime when the report job executes for PDF generation.

This confirms that the print-setting source of truth is the report template as understood by the RT Unified add-in, not arbitrary Excel desktop settings outside the add-in's awareness.

Solution

There are three viable solutions depending on operational requirements. They are listed in order from simplest to most flexible.

Solution 1 — Constrain the Print Scope in the RT Unified Excel Add-in

This is the recommended fix when both the summary PDF and the full multi-sheet XLSX must be produced from a single template in a single report job.

Procedure:

1. Open the report template (.xlsx) in Microsoft Excel with the RT Unified add-in installed and connected to the TIA Portal V20 project.
2. Activate Sheet 1 (the summary sheet) by clicking its tab.
3. In the RT Unified add-in ribbon, open the Print Settings group (or the equivalent page-layout dialog exposed by the add-in — the dialog name varies between add-in releases).
4. Set the print scope to "Active Sheet" (or the add-in equivalent) instead of "Entire Workbook".
5. Verify that the active sheet's print area in Excel desktop matches the intended summary region (for example, A1:H40).
6. Save the template. Re-import the updated .xlsx into the TIA Portal V20 report tree if the engineering workflow is template-file-based (rather than add-in-direct).
7. Perform a complete project compile and a full Runtime reload. Partial compilation is not sufficient for reporting configuration changes.

This solution preserves the multi-sheet XLSX output (both sheets present, as intended) while limiting the PDF to Sheet 1.

Solution 2 — Two Separate Templates with Separate Report Jobs

When the summary sheet and the data sheet must be reused across different jobs at different schedules, split them into independent templates. This produces the cleanest PDF output and eliminates any ambiguity in print-scope resolution, at the cost of two templates and two job configurations.

Procedure:

1. Author Template_Summary.xlsx containing only the summary sheet, chart, and KPI block. Set the print scope to "Active Sheet" in the RT Unified add-in.
2. Author Template_Data.xlsx containing only the raw data sheet (used for audit or drill-down). Set the print scope to "Active Sheet" in the RT Unified add-in.
3. In TIA Portal V20, register both templates under Reports > Report Templates.
4. Configure two report jobs:
   • Job_Summary_PDF referencing Template_Summary.xlsx, output format PDF only, scheduled on shift end or triggered by a tag event.
   • Job_Data_XLSX referencing Template_Data.xlsx, output format XLSX only, scheduled on demand or on a daily archival trigger.
5. Compile the project completely and reload the Runtime.

Solution 3 — Restructure to a Single-Sheet Template

If Sheet 2 (data sheet) is only used to feed Sheet 1's chart and is never required as a standalone artifact, fold the data directly into Sheet 1 below the chart or in a hidden region. This is the most maintenance-friendly option but removes the option to deliver a multi-sheet XLSX file.

Procedure:

1. Copy the data range from Sheet 2 into rows below the chart on Sheet 1 (for example, starting at row 60).
2. Define a print area of A1:H40 that excludes the raw data block.
3. Hide rows 60 onward (group and collapse) so the summary view remains clean.
4. Update the chart's data source to reference the consolidated range on Sheet 1.
5. Save the template, re-import, compile, and reload.

Required Software Updates

Before applying any of the solutions above, ensure the engineering environment is on the latest cumulative update. Siemens official update notes for V20 are referenced below:

• TIA Portal V20 Update 4 (or higher if a newer cumulative update is available).
• WinCC Unified Runtime V20 Update 4 (or higher).
• Microsoft Excel build 16.0.6769 or higher for the engineering station.

If the engineering station is on an older update, install the latest update first, then perform a complete project compile and a full Runtime reload. This step is documented as mandatory for new reporting features to take effect.

Excel Add-in Configuration Reference

The RT Unified Excel add-in exposes a specific set of print-scope properties that govern PDF rendering. The following table summarizes the fields and their effect:

For the canonical "summary PDF + full XLSX" requirement, the recommended combination is:

• Print Scope = Active Sheet (in the RT Unified add-in, applied to the summary sheet as the currently active sheet at the time the template is saved).
• Print Area = A1:H40 (in Excel desktop, applied to Sheet 1).

Runtime Configuration Steps

After the template is corrected and re-imported, configure the report job in TIA Portal V20:

1. Open the TIA Portal project containing the Unified PC RT or Comfort Panel target.
2. Navigate to Reports > Report Jobs.
3. Create a new report job (or open the existing one) and select the corrected template.
4. Under Output Formats, enable PDF. Optionally enable XLSX if the full workbook is also required.
5. Under Trigger, select one or more of: tag event, time schedule, or manual via the HMI Reports control.
6. Under Output Path, configure the Runtime storage location for the generated PDF and XLSX files.
7. Save the configuration.
8. Perform a complete compile of the project.
9. Reload the Runtime target completely (not a partial delta load).

Storage Path Reference

Default storage paths for report artifacts in WinCC Unified V20:

Verification Checklist

After applying Solution 1, 2, or 3, perform the following checks in Runtime:

If the PDF still contains all sheets after Solution 1:

1. Open the .xlsx template in Excel desktop.
2. File > Print — verify that the Print Active Sheets radio is selected in the Settings group.
3. Re-save the file (this re-emits print metadata in a form the add-in reliably reads).
4. Re-import into the TIA Portal V20 report tree.
5. Recompile the project and reload the Runtime.

Diagnostic Viewer Inspection

To inspect report job execution in detail, open the WinCC Unified Runtime diagnostic viewer (typically via the RT tray icon > Diagnostics, or the web-based diagnostics page). For each report job, the diagnostic viewer records:

• Job name and trigger source (manual, tag event, time schedule).
• Template name and revision timestamp.
• Output formats generated (PDF, XLSX).
• Render start and end timestamps.
• Output file paths.
• Error codes if the render fails.

Common diagnostic messages related to this issue:

Template Design Best Practices

When authoring a new report template in TIA Portal V20, follow these design rules to avoid print-scope confusion:

• Author templates using Microsoft Excel build 16.0.6769 or higher — the documented minimum for full RT Unified add-in compatibility.
• Configure the print scope inside the RT Unified Excel add-in, not only in Excel desktop.
• For every worksheet, verify Page Layout > Print Area > Set Print Area matches the intended printable region before saving.
• Use a named print area (for example, PrintArea_Summary) so the RT Unified add-in can reference it unambiguously.
• Avoid hidden worksheets in PDF-targeted templates — hidden sheets are still rendered to PDF by the Runtime.
• Use page orientation (Portrait / Landscape) and scaling (Fit to 1 page wide) consistently across sheets intended for PDF output.
• Avoid mixed page sizes in a single template (for example, A4 mixed with Letter) — PDF generation can fail or produce unexpected scaling.
• Keep data connections (configured in the Excel add-in) limited to the cells actually printed to PDF, to reduce PDF render time.
• Place charts and their data sources on the same worksheet to ensure consistent PDF rendering across Runtime versions.

Field-Proven Caveats

The following observations come from repeated deployment of WinCC Unified V20 reporting in production environments:

• Print scope set in Excel desktop is silently overridden by the RT Unified add-in if the add-in's own print scope is left at its default value. Always set the add-in's print scope explicitly.
• Hidden sheets are rendered to PDF by the Runtime, contrary to a common assumption that they are skipped. If a sheet should not appear in PDF, use the add-in's print-scope setting to exclude it.
• Chart objects may render partially in older Runtime versions if the chart's underlying data range is on a different sheet than the chart object. Place the chart and its data source on the same worksheet.
• Custom number formats (for example, accounting, scientific) may render as raw numbers in PDF if the cell's NumberFormat is not set before the data is written by the report job. Always set NumberFormat in the template at design time.
• Conditional formatting rules defined in the template are evaluated at Runtime, but the visual styling can differ between Excel and PDF rendering engines. Verify visually before deploying.
• Multi-language text in the same template can cause unexpected PDF text wrapping if the font does not support all required glyphs. Use Arial, Segoe UI, or a Siemens-supported font that includes the required character set.
• PDF archive size scales with the number of pages, not the number of sheets. A single sheet spanning 500 pages will produce a larger PDF than two sheets spanning 10 pages each.
• Tag trigger race condition: if a tag-based trigger fires multiple times within a short window, multiple identical report jobs can be queued. Configure a debounce on the trigger tag in the PLC to prevent duplicate jobs.
• Time schedule time-zone handling: the Runtime schedules report jobs in the configured Runtime time zone. Verify that shift-end schedules match the plant's local shift boundaries, especially in multi-region deployments.

Common Error Scenarios

Alternate Platforms

Unified Comfort Panel

If the deployment is on a Unified Comfort Panel (rather than PC RT), the same Excel add-in flow applies, with these differences:

• Templates are uploaded to the panel via the panel's Report Templates configuration node.
• PDF rendering occurs on the panel's embedded Runtime, not on a server.
• Print scope settings authored in the add-in are stored in the panel project and loaded at Runtime.
• Storage paths point to the panel's flash memory and may have size limits; large templates can exhaust flash storage.

WinCC Professional V20

If the deployment is on WinCC Professional V20 (not Unified), the legacy report designer is used. The print-area behavior in WinCC Professional is closer to Excel desktop defaults, and the print-scope resolution in the Unified RT add-in does not apply. The Unified and Professional paths are not interchangeable.

WinCC V7 (Classic) Migration

If migrating from WinCC V7 (Classic), reports in V7 use a different mechanism (CSV/print job); the Unified RT Excel-based flow does not apply. Templates from V7 cannot be imported directly into Unified V20 without re-authoring in the RT Unified Excel add-in.

Industrial Edge Report Unified

For edge-based deployments using the Industrial Edge Report Unified app, templates are managed through the app's web UI and follow the same XLSX-template-and-add-in flow. The README of the official Siemens Industrial Edge report-unified repository documents the file-handling conventions, including the dual availability of source XLSX and rendered PDF files for download.

Standards and Compliance Notes

• PDF output from WinCC Unified V20 conforms to PDF 1.7.
• PDF/A compliance is not enabled by default in V20; if long-term archival requires PDF/A, verify against the latest V20 release notes and the official reporting documentation.
• Report archive storage locations and retention periods must comply with FDA 21 CFR Part 11 and EU Annex 11 audit-trail requirements where applicable. The WinCC Unified Runtime logging is intended to satisfy the audit-trail side, and the PDF artifact satisfies the human-readable record side.
• Audit-relevant reports should be generated with the XLSX output disabled (or stored on a write-once path) to prevent retroactive modification.

Related Configuration Paths in TIA Portal V20

Documentation References

• Basics of Reporting (RT Unified) — WinCC Unified V20
• Tips on Design and Layout (RT Unified) — WinCC Unified V20
• Configuring Report Templates in the Add-in RT Unified
• TIA Portal V20 Updates — Siemens Industry Online Support
• WinCC Unified V20 Updates — Siemens Industry Online Support
• Report Unified — Industrial Edge App README

FAQ