Installation Guide
ReportingCloud is a hosted service: the Web API, the document engine, the template storage and the ReportingCloud portal run on Text Control's servers on Microsoft Azure, and nothing is installed on a server of yours. Setting up means three things: a ReportingCloud account, an API key that your application sends with its requests and, if you want one, an SDK for .NET, PHP, Java or Ruby. The Installation Guide walks developers through them, and through the subscription an account needs before it goes into production.
To compare ReportingCloud with an installation on your own servers first, see how it differs from DS Server and TX Text Control .NET Server in the Introduction.
What You Set Up
| Step | Where | Needed |
|---|---|---|
| An account | The registration page of the portal, https://portal.reporting.cloud/Account/Register/ | Always. It starts as a 30-day trial. |
| An API key | Manage Account in the portal, or the endpoint PUT /v1/account/apikey | For every application that calls the Web API. The Java and Ruby SDKs use the user name (the email address you signed up with) and password of the account instead. |
| An SDK | nuget.org, Packagist, RubyGems or the source code on GitHub | Optional. Any HTTP client can call the Web API. |
| A subscription | The Text Control online store, then Manage Account in the portal | Before business or commercial use, which the trial and the Free account don't allow |
Where to Start
- Check the requirements of your client: HTTPS, JSON and, if you use one, the runtime of the SDK, such as the .NET target framework or the PHP version. See Requirements.
- Sign up for the trial in the portal and verify your email address. The template storage of the new account holds the demo template
sample_invoice.tx. See Creating an Account. - Create an API key on the Manage Account page and keep it in the configuration of your application, for example in the environment variable
REPORTINGCLOUD_API_KEY. See API Keys. - Install an SDK for your language, or skip this step and call the Web API with curl or your own HTTP client. See Installing an SDK.
- Create your first document with one of the tutorials in Getting Started.
- Add a subscription before your application goes into production. See Upgrading to a Subscription.
Find the Right Page
| If you want to | Read |
|---|---|
| Check what a client and each SDK need: HTTPS, .NET target frameworks, PHP, Java and Ruby versions | Requirements |
| Sign up, verify your email address and log in to the portal | Creating an Account |
| Find out what the trial includes and what happens after 30 days | Creating an Account |
| Create, delete and list API keys in the portal or with the Web API | API Keys |
| Add the NuGet package, the Composer package, the Java library or the Ruby gem to a project | Installing an SDK |
Deal with the NU1903 warnings of the .NET package | Installing an SDK |
| Buy a subscription and add its serial number to your account | Upgrading to a Subscription |
| Compare the plans and their quotas | Plans and Licensing |
Pages in This Section
- Requirements: what every client needs, and the runtime and authentication of each SDK.
- Creating an Account: the sign-up, the email verification, the first login and the trial.
- API Keys: create, use, delete and manage keys, and keep them secret.
- Installing an SDK: install the .NET, PHP, Java and Ruby SDKs and check the installation.
- Upgrading to a Subscription: buy a subscription, find the serial number and add it in the portal.