[Ignore:]UPDATED

Ignore (i.e. do not process macros) a section of your input document


Purpose

Ignore (i.e. do not process macros) a section of your input document. This is particularly useful when testing macros using Report Studio, if you want to temporarily disable large chunks of input processing. Blocks can be nested: an [Ignore:] block ends at its own [EndIgnore:], not at the first one inside it.


Compatibility

The macro can be used in all input document types and in Report Studio.


Updates

v4.622 days ago · September 2026

An [Ignore:] block can now contain another [Ignore:] and [EndIgnore:] pair: everything up to its own [EndIgnore:] stays ignored, instead of the block ending early and the macros after the inner pair running. A missing [EndIgnore:] is now reported as an error.

History (1)
v4.623 days ago · September 2026

When this macro removes part of a Word document, blank lines straight after its own line, and straight after a table in the removed part, are now removed with that part instead of being left behind.


Parameters (12)
Behaviour (9)
Parameter TypePresencePurpose Options Default
desiredExecutionResult
List<ExecutionResult>OptionalIf specified, asserts the expected execution result of the macro. Accepts a single value or a semicolon-separated list of acceptable values (e.g. 'Success;Warning'). The macro executes normally; if the actual result matches any of the desired values, the result is converted to Success. If the actual result does not match, the result is converted to MacroError with a descriptive message. This is primarily used for testing and diagnostic purposes. Valid values are: 'Unknown', 'Success', 'MacroError', 'WorkerStopped', 'Running', 'Warning', 'NeverRun', 'Cancelled', 'Pending', 'Paused', 'SystemError', 'Deferred' and 'Stopped'.
  • Cancelled
  • Deferred
  • MacroError
  • NeverRun
  • Paused
  • Pending
  • Running
  • Stopped
  • Success
  • SystemError
  • Warning
  • WorkerStopped
N/A
errorOnOverflow
BooleanOptionalShould NCalc expression evaluation throw error on Overflow
  • true
  • false
true
expectedType
StringOptionalIf specified, asserts the expected output type of the macro result. The macro executes normally; if the actual type does not match, a macro error is generated. Requires 'storeAs', 'storeAsHidden', or 'storeFormattedValueAs' to be set for typed validation. Valid types include CLR names (e.g. Int32, Int64, Single, Double, Boolean, String, JArray, JObject) and C# keyword aliases (e.g. int, long, float, double, bool, string, uint, ulong, short, ushort, byte, sbyte, decimal, char, object). The special value 'Number' matches any numeric type. N/A N/A
expectedValue
StringOptionalIf specified, asserts the expected output value of the macro result. The macro executes normally; if the actual value does not match, a macro error is generated. When 'storeAs' or 'storeAsHidden' is set, the stored variable value is compared. Otherwise, the document output text is compared. N/A N/A
hidden
BooleanOptionalWhether to hide the ignored section.
  • true
  • false
false
if
StringOptionalThe condition that must be true in order for the macro to be executed/evaluated. Must either evaluate to true or false, for example: "3+5=8" or "contains('abcd', 'z')". N/A true
mode
MacroModeOptionalThe mode in which variables are stored. In legacy mode (default for Schedules), the variable created is a string and formatted. In normal mode (default for Report Studio), the output variable is stored as a strongly-typed object, e.g. an Int32 or a JArray etc., rather than a formatted string.
  • Legacy
  • Normal
Legacy
obfuscation
ObfuscationTypeOptionalObfuscation type. Use obfuscation to write reports where sensitive data is hidden. When used, ReportMagic guarantees that the same input string will map to the same output string for the whole of the report (but the next time the report runs, it will most likely map to a different value). If you use obfuscation, the property in your macro will not show up and instead, you will see a fake item of the obfuscation type chosen.
  • None
  • UkTown
  • DeviceName
  • Company
  • IpAddress
  • PrivateIpAddress
None
warning
StringOptionalIf specified, adds a warning message for this macro. This is processed as an NCalc, and the warning message will ALWAYS be present and will be the value of the evaluated NCalc expression. N/A N/A
Output (2)
Parameter TypePresencePurpose Options Default
failureText
StringOptionalThe text to display should the macro fail to execute. Note that a poorly-specified macro (e.g. omitting mandatory parameters) will still result in an error message. N/A N/A
failureVariable
StringOptionalThe name of a variable to create should the macro fail to execute. The variable will be a text variable, and will contain either the failure text (only if the failureText parameter is set), otherwise it will contain the exception / failure message. N/A N/A
General (1)
Parameter TypePresencePurpose Options Default
comment
StringOptionalAdd a comment to make your document template more readable. The comment is discarded in the output document. N/A N/A

Examples (2)

Example 1

Do not execute macros between the [Ignore:] and [EndIgnore:] macros:

[Ignore:][String:value=test][EndIgnore:]
Outputs: [String:value=test]

Example 2

Do not execute macros between the [Ignore:] and [EndIgnore:] macros and also hide the contents:

[Ignore:hidden=true][String:value=test][EndIgnore:]

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