Datasheet

❑ Hyperlinks to navigate the web browser window to a report.
❑ Hyperlinks to open reports in a separate web browser window, with control over report display
and browser features.
❑ Embedding reports into a page using a frame, IFrame, or ReportViewer web control.
❑ Programmatically feeding report content to an Active Server Page (ASP or ASPX) using server-
side custom code.
❑ Programmatically writing reports to files available for downloading from a web site.
❑ Using a web part to embed reports into a SharePoint Web Portal.
The fact is that there are a lot of creative ways to integrate reports into a web application. These tech-
niques range from very simple, requiring little more than a little HTML script, to very complex, custom
methods. And if it’s not enough to be able to embed reports into custom web pages, it’s also possible to
use custom program code to embed additional content into reports. Imagine the possibilities . . . actually,
you don’t have to imagine anything. Just keep reading!
Portal Integration
As web technologies and products have matured, a new breed of web applications has evolved. Most
web sites consist of several HTML page files, which contain mainly text content. Portal frameworks, like
Microsoft SharePoint Portal Server, Plumtree, E-Portal, K-Station, and DotNetNuke have replaced many
large, complex web sites. A portal server takes much of the programming out of web site construction by
providing a framework and the building blocks to assemble an intricate web site from modules. Most of
the content is managed in a database rather than in physical pages.
A Reporting Services report can integrate with portal sites in some of the same ways that it integrates
standard web pages: by using IFrames and hyperlinks. SharePoint integration is particularly easy for
nondevelopers because it involves the use of simple menu options rather than writing script or program
code. Adding the report viewer web part to a portal site page is as easy as dragging and dropping it into
a page zone and then setting some simple properties. Microsoft offers a simple portal framework with
limited features with Windows Server, called Windows SharePoint Services (WSS.) The full-featured,
corporate-scale edition, SharePoint Portal Server, is a separate product that adds features and advanced
scalability to the WSS foundation.
Windows Application Integration
Reports may be viewed in custom Windows desktop applications using one of two techniques. The
ReportViewer control or embedded web browser may be used to view server-based reports in a form.
These reports are still managed on the Report Server and maintain all of the security settings and config-
uration options defined by an administrator. Queries and data access are still performed on the server.
The other option is to embed these reports directly into the client-side application. The Windows forms
ReportViewer controls can act as a lightweight report-rendering engine. This means that reports built
into a custom application can run independently from the report server. Figure 1-7 show a report ren-
dered on a Windows form using the ReportViewer control.
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What Can You Do with Reporting Services?
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