Overview
Excel Workbooks are incredibly versatile tools for both analysis and visualization of data. In fact, Excel formulas are now Turing Complete, giving business users the ability to create powerful applications without the need for conventional programming. As such, we often come across customers who have built visualizations or business flow automation apps on top of Extendinsights Excel products. A frequently asked question from these customers is how they can embed these customized workbooks into their NetSuite Dashboard.
🚨 Important Limitations (Read First)
Pivot Table Refresh (Microsoft Limitation)
Microsoft does not allow PivotTables to be manually refreshed in an embedded Excel file.
Workaround (Required):
The workbook owner must configure PivotTables to refresh automatically when the file opens.
Steps:
Open the Excel workbook
Right-click the PivotTable
Select PivotTable Options
Open the Data tab
Check Refresh data when opening the file
Click OK
This is expected Microsoft behavior and not a limitation of ExtendInsights or NetSuite.
When to Use This Feature
Common use cases include:
Embedding ExtendInsights Analytics dashboards into NetSuite
Sharing Excel-based KPIs with NetSuite users
Displaying Power BI reports inside NetSuite
Reducing context switching between Excel, Power BI, and NetSuite
Video Walkthrough
Embed your Excel workbooks using the NetSuite portlet. If you don't have Excel files ready to link, utilize the ExtendInsights Analytics application to download saved searches and convert them into dashboards, pivot tables, and more.
See the guide here to see its full capability!📈
High-Level Steps
NetSuite allows you to embed custom content on the Dashboard using Custom Portlets. Here, we will guide you through the steps of embedding an Excel workbook from your Sharepoint or OneDrive for Business account in a NetSuite Portlet.
Generate an Embed link
Get the embed link for your workbook (NetSuite only allows files that are set to public)
Get the Embed Link to your Power BI Report (Depending on the access domain, reports do not have to be public)
Step 1: Create the Portlet Script File
Copy the following SuiteScript code and save it as CeligoPortlet.js (be sure to use the js extension)
Click the dropdown arrow to see the code 👈
Click the dropdown arrow to see the code 👈
/**
* @NApiVersion 2.x
* @NScriptType Portlet
* @NModuleScope SameAccount
*/
define(['N/runtime'],
/**
* @param {portlet} portlet
*/
function(runtime) {
/**
* Renders CloudExtend Analytics Portlet.
*
* @param {Object} params
* @param {Portlet} params.portlet - The portlet object
* used for rendering
* @param {number} params.column - Specifies whether portlet
* is placed in left (1), center (2) or right (3)
* column of the dashboard
* @param {string} params.entity - (For custom portlets only)
* references the customer ID for the selected customer
* @Since 2015.2
*/
function renderView(params) {
params.portlet.title = runtime.getCurrentScript()
.getParameter({ name: "custscript1" });// 'CloudExtend Analytics Portlet';
var url = runtime.getCurrentScript()
.getParameter({ name: "custscript2" });
var height = runtime.getCurrentScript()
.getParameter({ name: "custscript3" });
var content = '<iframe width="100%" height="' +
(height || 500) +
'" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" src="' +
url +
'"></iframe>';
params.portlet.html = content;
}
return {
render: renderView
};
});
Step 2: Upload the Script File (NetSuite Admin)
In NetSuite, go to Customization > Scripting > Scripts > New
Hover over the text box labeled “SCRIPT FILE” then click the + icon
Use the file picker that pops up, to select the file from your computer, then click Save to upload
CeligoPortlet.jsThe pop-up will close automatically once the file is uploaded.
Click on the Create Script Record button to proceed.
Step 3: Configure the Portlet Script
Script Record Settings
Name: Choose a descriptive name
ID: Auto-generated or custom
Portlet Type: Inline HTML
Parameters (Required)
Add the following parameters under the Parameters subtab:
Parameter Name | ID | Type |
URL | url | Free-Form Text |
Title | title | Free-Form Text |
Height | height | Free-Form Text |
🚩 IMPORTANT:
The parameter IDs that you enter should match the IDs declared in the script file.
Make sure to EDIT the script file and update the parameter IDs as needed and SAVE.
Deployment Configuration
Go to the Deployments subtab
Click Create Deployment
Enter a deployment title
Save
Once the Script record is saved, click on the link to the Deployment under the Deployments sub-tab
Click on the Edit button and select the roles you want this portlet to be available for, under the Audience sub-tab.
Under the Parameters sub-tab, you’ll have the option to set:
URL: Paste the embed URL (Excel or Power BI)
Height: Set desired height (for example:
600)Title: Optional display title
Step 4: Get the Embed Link
Excel Workbook (OneDrive or SharePoint)
❗️ Note:
NetSuite only allows embedding Excel files that are publicly accessible
At this point, you need the embeddable URL of the Workbook in your SharePoint or OneDrive for Business. You can get this by following the instructions in the following link from Microsoft's website.
ℹ️ See the article from Microsoft for the most up-to-date info on obtaining an embeddable URL.
Steps
Open the workbook in OneDrive for Business or SharePoint
Use Microsoft’s embed option to generate a URL
(refer to Microsoft documentation for the latest steps)Append the following parameters to the URL:
&action=embedview&wdbipreview=True&wdAllowInteractivity=True
What these do:
action=embedview– presents the workbook as an embedded workbookwdbipreview=True– enables features such as Power View visualizations, PivotTables, and Data Model-based slicers to work in the embedded workbookwdAllowInteractivity=True– enables interactivity with filters and Pivot tables in the workbook
Paste the URL into the URL parameter in NetSuite and click Save.
Power BI Report
❗️ Note:
There is no need to set reports to public to embed PowerBI reports. You can choose the access domain according to your preference.
Publish the report to Power BI Service
Open it at https://app.powerbi.com
Go to File > Embed report > Website or portal
Copy the first URL
Paste it into the URL parameter in NetSuite
Step 5: Add the Portlet to the NetSuite Dashboard
Open your NetSuite Dashboard
Click Personalize
Select Custom Portlet (you can learn more about creating a Portlet here on NetSuite's support site)
NetSuite will create a placeholder for the Portlet at the top of the dashboard
Click on the menu icon of the placeholder and select Set Up
Select your Portlet deployment from the Custom Content popup
Click Save
Users can use the portlet refresh button at the top right of the portlet to always have the most up-to-date version.
Best Practices
Use ExtendInsights Analytics to generate the source Excel files
Store Excel files in OneDrive or SharePoint
Avoid editing embedded workbooks directly
Test embed links in a browser before pasting into NetSuite
Limit portlet visibility by role where appropriate
Need Help?
Before contacting Support, try searching:
If you still need assistance:
💬 Use in-app chat (bottom-right of the support site)
✉️ Email cloudextend-support@celigo.com
📎 Include screenshots of the portlet setup and the embed URL you’re using.