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Quick Start > Create a Spreadsheet with ExcelApplication

ExcelApplication is not
available in ExcelWriterSE.

Create a Spreadsheet with ExcelApplication

To create generate an Excel workbook from code - without using an ExcelWriter template - use ExcelApplication, which is the main class for pure code-based workbook generation. This class is an engine used to open, create, and write (save or stream to a browser) workbooks. A single instance of ExcelApplication can generate multiple workbooks.

Step 1: Import ExcelApplication

The ExcelApplication class is in the SoftArtisans.OfficeWriter.ExcelWriter namespace. The class can be referenced as SoftArtisans.OfficeWriter.ExcelWriter.ExcelApplication. To minimize typing and errors, import the namespace to the aspx page, and reference the class as ExcelApplication, without the namespace prefix. If you are coding directly in the .aspx page, following the Page directive, include:

<%@ Import Namespace="SoftArtisans.OfficeWriter.ExcelWriter" %>

If you are coding in the code-behind page (.aspx.vb or .aspx.cs), include an Imports or using statement at the top of the code-behind page:

In VB.NET:		`Imports SoftArtisans.OfficeWriter.ExcelWriter`
In C#:		`using SoftArtisans.OfficeWriter.ExcelWriter;`

Step 2: Create an Instance of ExcelApplication

To create an instance of ExcelApplication, use:

In VB.NET:		`Dim xla As New ExcelApplication()`
In C#:		`ExcelApplication xla = new ExcelApplication();`

Step 3: Create a Workbook

A Workbook object represents an Excel workbook. To return a Workbook object:

Call ExcelApplication.Open to open an existing Excel workbook, for example:

In VB.NET: Dim wb As Workbook = xla.Open("C:\Reports\Report.xls")

In C#: Workbook wb = xla.Open(@"C:\Reports\Report.xls");

Or,
Call ExcelApplication.Create to create a new Excel workbook, for example:

In VB.NET: xla = New ExcelApplication Dim wb As Workbook = xla.Create()

In C#: ExcelApplication xla = new ExcelApplication(); Workbook wb = xla.Create();

Step 4: Get a Worksheet and Set Cell Values

A Worksheet object represents a single Excel worksheet. To return a Worksheet object use the Workbook.Worksheets property, specifying the sheet by index or name:

In VB.NET:		`Dim ws As Worksheet = wb.Worksheets(0)`
In C#:		`Worksheet ws = wb.Worksheets[0];`

A Cell object represents a single cell in a worksheet. To return a Cell object, use Worksheet.Cells, specifying the cell by 0-based row and column indexes or by Excel-style reference. Use Cell.Value to enter a cell value. The first parameter of the Cells property is the row index, the second is the column index.

In VB.NET:		`ws.Cells(0, 0).Value = "Welcome to SoftArtisans OfficeWriter" ws.Cells("A3").Value = "Jan" ws.Cells("B3").Value = "Feb" ws.Cells("C3").Value = "Mar"`
In C#:		`ws.Cells[0,0].Value = "Welcome to SoftArtisans OfficeWriter"; ws.Cells["A3"].Value = "Jan"; ws.Cells["B3"].Value = "Feb"; ws.Cells["C3"].Value = "Mar";`

Step 5: Generate the Workbook

When the workbook is complete, you can save it to the server's hard disk, return it in memory, stream it to the browser, or return it as an ExcelTemplate object (for more information, see Output Options. For example, to stream the workbook to the browser, use:

In VB.NET:		`xla.Save(wb, Page.Response, "myfile.xls", True)`
In C#:		`xla.Save(wb, Page.Response, "myfile.xls", True);`