ByWater Question of the Week: Can Koha Report Runtime Parameters be Limited to Values Used by the Library?

by Hebah Amin-Headley on Jan 17, 2025

Each Friday, we will bring you a new ByWater Question of the Week. We will select real questions that we receive and share the answers with you!

Question: Can Koha Report Runtime Parameters be Limited to Values Used by the Library?

Answer: While Koha's report functionality continues to bring new quality of life improvements, one pain point of runtime parameters remains: parameters like itemtypes and shelving locations that can be limited in cataloging functions are not limited to a branch when applied as report runtime parameters.

Because a runtime parameter of shelving location in a report will provide a menu of all system- or consortium-wide shelving locations instead of one branch's locations, we recommend libraries consolidate locations/item types/collection codes as much as possible so that library staff don't have to guess whether they need to select "A Bio," "Adult Bio," or "Adult Biography" when they run a report. (The same options are displayed in advanced searches on the Koha OPAC, so if it's confusing to staff, it's definitely also confusing to patrons!)

Additional Resources

Monday Minutes: Report Parameters

Koha 21.11: New Options for Runtime Parameters