I am currently evaluating reporting solutions for use within my organization and one of the requirements of the solution must be 'ad hoc reporting' and is defined as 'given an existing report the user will be permitted to modify the data points of the report and, additionally, save the report for later viewing'.
I worked through a basic report using SSAS and SSRS; this certainly worked but I found it to be a little bit to involved with needing to open report builder, specify the cube that should be used, and so on not to mention that the Report Builder (SSRS2K5) is pretty vanilla. The people that will be looking at these reports are certainly not technical people and my concern is that this process will be completely overwhelming. I did find this component and it is much more user friendly since the data source can be set dynamically at runtime and all the user has to focus on is what data they want to see.
Does SSAS/SSRS offer any other methods for ad hoc reporting other than using Report Builder to connect to cubes and going from there? Does anyone know of, or used, any products similar to Active Analysis that they might recommend? Any help would be greatly appreciated!
Excel 2007 and 2010 actually has connection ability to adhoc query and analyze data from an SSAS cube. Excel have a host of features that allows interaction with the cube including using pivot tables and data mining plugins to analyze the data.
simple example here:
http://www.mssqltips.com/sqlservertutorial/2016/using-excel-and-creating-a-pivot-table-report/
SSRS2012 Power View in Sharepoint mode (soon in Excel) - overview is here: http://social.technet.microsoft.com/wiki/contents/articles/3726.power-view-overview-en-us.aspx
Not quite sure what is meant by "user can modify the data points of the report" but with Excel 2007 / 2010 you can use the What If Analysis feature to modify the data in a pivot table. You can also combine that with Analysis Services writeback feature to enable some pretty cool data modelling functionality.
If you're looking for what I call "exploratory analysis" (i.e. you don't know what you're looking for in the analysis) then a product like our ActiveAnalysis component, PowerPivot, or Tableau are all good tools (note that a key difference being that our ActiveAnalysis is a developer component that you can cheaply embed into applications, and the other two are strictly end user tools).
However, if you have users who want to be able to create an "operational report" or they might want to customize existing reports those are probably not ideal tools. We actually created ActiveReports Server specifically for this type of scenario. It is a drag & drop business-user-friendly ad-hoc reporting tool that sounds like it might be more appropriate for the "not technical people" that it sounds like you're dealing with. It does not depend on SSAS and works all inside of a web browser, so nothing to deploy.
Scott Willeke
Product Manager | ActiveReports Server
GrapeCity
Related
I am just curious to know the capabilities of PowerPivot(SharePoint) when it comes head on with SSRS (SharePoint) . I have worked extensively on SSRS but I am new to PowerPivot .
PowerPivot clearly wins when it comes to filters and slicers as in SSRS we have to use VB code to populate unique SPList Column values into the filter drop down.However I am not able to see how PowerPivot can be used to implement drill down or subreport functionalities as in SSRS .
Is it possible to do so in PowerPivot ? Is PowerPivot just a data model which can be used along with Power View or Can PowerPivot be used for hardcore reporting requirements as in SSRS ?
Thanks,
Raj
To tackle the question "I am not able to see how PowerPivot can be used to implement drill down or subreport functionalities as in SSRS". It is possible to create a drilldown in PowerView, to do this you need to create a hierarchy. This webpage will give you some details on how to do that. Subreports as implemented in SSRS, so far l have not been able to re-create that in Power View.
I would also suggest looking at the new dashboard capabilities that have just been released see - powerbi-dashboards. I've been playing with it for a few days, some really nice new features. IMHO still not a replacement for SSRS. My personal opinion at this moment in time, Power View cannot do all that SSRS is capable of. It might be a replacement for SSRS in the future, when will that happen ? At the moment l cannot find any roadmap indicating the future for PowerBI or SSRS, much to my frustration.
As BobF mentioned, you can create drilldown views in PowerPivot via the use of hierarchies. One note on this is that hierarchies are only available in PowerPivot 2013 (not 2010): https://support.office.com/en-gb/article/Whats-new-in-Power-Pivot-in-Microsoft-Excel-2013-930be6c5-e839-4860-8c74-8a5e2cba1279?ui=en-US&rs=en-GB&ad=GB
I am also a big fan of PowerView & the PowerBI dashboard capabilities offered by PowerPivot - these have helped my team gain a lot of traction in our organization and with our clients.
While I don't have much first-hand experience with SSRS, here's some feedback from our team (who is well-versed in both):
PowerPivot is fast & flexible
PowerPivot allows you to easily develop tools that enable users to self-service on most requests
PowerPivot puts some dependencies on the user (e.g. access to SharePoint or appropriate version of Excel)
PowerPivot is not necessarily as robust as SSRS, but can be less work
As BobF mentioned, Microsoft hasn't been great about communicating the roadmap or future of PowerBI, so it's tough to know where it's going
The Dev process can be a bit painful for PowerPivot if you aren't doing the development in a tabular server (e.g. trying to do the Dev in Excel itself)
We are planning to use SQL Reports in our company and we are currently evaluating the ways to expose the reports to end users. Should we use a reporting web service and then render the reports through a .NET Application? Should we use a report viewer or should we expose the SQL GUI to the users? What are the pros and cons of these over each other? Could anyone please help? I couldn't find any information anywhere for this.
The simplest is to use the Report Manager website that is enabled by default with an SSRS installation it's very quick and easy to get running and the security/ snapshot(cache) / subscription (email etc) options are easy to configure on a per site /per folder /per report basis. It's drawbacks are:
It's ugly - although if you are good with CSS it is possible to mess
with it, but I wouldn't. Newer versions e.g. 2008R2 and 2012 are less ugly
It has an ugly URL - although you could use a DNS alias to get
around that
It doesn't let you control how parameter drop-downs and other
objects appear on the page, but that's minor
I usually use Sharepoint (MOSS not WSS) (if the company has that) with the report viewer web-part. It doesn't require any special Sharepoint SSRS integrated mode - you can read about that but it's that's not a path I recommend taking.
The reports then appear to be embedded within the company's existing intranet site which looks professional IMO. Powerview for sharepoint is also a good option (or performance point in older versions of Sharepoint)
I would definitely NOT go down the road of webservice, that would entail a huge amount of unecessary programming. If you have a lot of spare .NET developers around I still wouldn't do that.
Rather to use the report viewer object in Visual Studio to display a report in an .NET web application. Designing reports using the BIDS (2008R2 and earlier) or SSDT (2012) is much easier than programming, particularly if you've used other reporting tools such as crystal reports or even Access. Using that report viewer object is a much better option than rolling your own.
I've written my response in order of easiness and work required. Hope that is helpful.
The company I work for is looking for a reporting solution with the following requirements:
Must be able to generate a set of reports nightly.
Must give the client the ability to create reports dynamically.
Must have robust export features.
Must have a viewer that can be displayed within a web application.
The company is looking at utilizing Crystal Reports and/or SSRS. Our company is mainly .NET developers using VS2k8 and SQL Server 2k8.
What are some of your experiences with each product and which one do you think would meet our requirements? It seems both products offer the requirements I mentioned, but they both feel robust in different areas.
If you plan on using .net and sql server why bother with Crystal Reports? It is definately the wrong route to take. Take advantage of Reporting Services as it is very very very easy to use, setup, and deploy.
The web placeholder for hte reports has automatic export to excel, pdf, rtf, html, etc.
It is very robust and a very clean intuitive tool. The use of stored procedures within datasets makes it all the better.
We initially went the CR route and it was nothing but trouble and not as easy to build and deploy simple reports. We moved to RS and it is night and day...
From my own personal experience, SSRS is much simpler to set up and use - it also seems to be the way MS are going. In addition to that, if you're already using MS SQL server, you have no further license costs.
I haven't used the SSRS report builder heavily, but it certainly allows the creation of relatively simple reports by (somewhat skilled) end users.
EDIT: Should note that my personal experience of crystal reports has been akin to repeatedly shooting myself in the foot...
One downside to both Crystal Reports and SSRS is that report-viewer controls have COM dependencies. Moreover, much of the BusinessObjects .Net SDK has COM dependencies. Probably not a big deal if you plan to host the site internally, but worth mentioning.
I had a client whose hosting division wouldn't allow for COM installations on the shared server. Fortunately, I was able to use the BusinessObjects WebServices SDK in combination with BusinessObjects OpenDocument URL SDK to build a custom interface to BusinessObjects Enterprise.
Hope this helps.
Crystal and Reporting Services are both similarly capable tools despite what people say. Each tool can do most of what the other can with each one having particular areas in which it excels.
However, rather than installing Crystal you can try installing Reporting Services and just set fire to piles upon piles of used bank notes - the end result will be the same.
I'm after a tool to generate decent-looking documents from templates, that needs to:
be invoked through code (not interactively)
run on Windows, ideally invoked from code within a web-server
process standalone* report files that contain their own internal data definitions, query options, etc (i.e. ideally so that we can push simple report files to the server, and it simply work - where report/document maintenance is not necessarily a developer activity)
access data from a database (SQL Server 2005) based on parameters (ids etc) that we pass in
export (again, through code) to pdf or similar
*= where standalone simply means that the report is fully self-describing; it is fully expected that additional reporting runtime components will be required to execute the report. Contrast to rdlc which uses the data-sets from the local VS project.
I looked at the rdl/rdlc options (Visual Studio 2008), but rdlc seems to be coupled to the assembly (not standalone), and rdl seems to lack the code-based export ability. The version of Crystal Reports included in VS2008 seems very similar to rdlc - presumably the full Crystal Reports offering has more functionality, but has a non-trivial price tag too...
I'd welcome any suggestions for an appropriate, professional looking tool that might be suitable and recommended...
I think SQL Reporting Services fully support all of your requirements.
I have build some sophisticated solutions myself with SSRS.
(Example)
Fully manageable through code (via SSRS WS) (Upload, execute and export Reports)
Used SQL Server as database
Queries are defined in RDL (or Stored Proc) and based on parameters
There are other solutions like Telerik Reporting or Data Dynamics ActiveReport, but they are not free.
Let me know if you need more informations
SSRS WS: With that I mean the Web Service Interface (Report Server Web Service
). There is also a URL Access method, but I don't think it's a solution for you
I dont think you can satisfy all requirements. Number 3 especially is the killer.
On one reading, I see it as adhoc reporting generating it's on SQL. On another, it is giving users "empowerment" to do roll their own within some limits you define?
You may have looked already... but have you thought about using the ReportBuilder functionality to set up the basics and leave users to do the rest? You'll need a report monkey at some point anyway to set soemthing up.
Edit, after comment:
Reporting Services it is then.
It comprises a web service that renders RDL files uploaded from VS.
Report Builder is a template for users to hack and bash their own within the limits and environment you set.
Architecture of RS 2008
Our Data Dynamics Reports product sound like it is for you. It is a fully programmable reporting component for .NET / Visual Studio. View the documentation on the API here. You can export the reports to any of our various formats, including PDF, HTML, and Excel and it also includes an end user designer control that you can embed into your own applications to let end users modify or create their own reports.
The reports are stored in RDL - the same XML dialect that Reporting Services uses - in fact you can take any existing RDL files and open them in Data Dynamics Reports. In addition to compatibility with RDL, we add many more features, such as "themes" to consistently style your report, master reports (think ASP.NET master pages for reports), and several other built in controls such as a calendar, barcode, and dashboard controls to name a few.
Now lets look at your requirements one-by-one and see how Data Dynamics Reports might solve them:
be invoked through code (not interactively) - Data Dynamics Reports includes comprehensive API.
run on Windows, ideally invoked from code within a web-server - You can use Data Dynamics Reports in client-based, or ASP.NET applications, it even support medium trust ASP.NET applications (webservices are fine).
process standalone* report files that contain their own internal data definitions, query options, etc (i.e. ideally so that we can push simple report files to the server, and it simply work - where report/document maintenance is not necessarily a developer activity) - Data Dynamics Reports uses standard RDL (not rdlc) which includes all information bout how to retrieve data from your datasource. We also include an end user designer control to allow you to emebed a design environment for these standalone files into your own applications.
access data from a database (SQL Server 2005) based on parameters (ids etc) that we pass in - Data Dynamics Reports includes comprehensive support for parameters (even get the "valid values" from a query.
export (again, through code) to pdf or similar - Data Dynamics Reports supports exporting to PDF, HTML, Excel, Word, images, and XML.
I hope it works out for you, and let me know if you have any additional questions.
Scott Willeke
Data Dynamics / GrapeCity inc.
I think, based on all the criteria, you likely need to look at Crystal Reports, since you want the reports to be standalone, although, you could also create a report designer out of XtraReports or ActiveReports Pro and have much of the same functionality.
As for running it on the fly and having it generate, distribute, and archive the reports that run, check out our product at www.versareports.com. It should work with any .NET report designer you want to use and provides the enterprise-class report server framework you likely need.
I would like to use SQL Reporting Services 2008 to generate my reports, but I want to use my own UI for specifying the report type, columns, parameters and everything. I want to be able to take these criteria, and then kick off an asynchronous request to SSRS and have the report emailed to me. Is this possible? I don't want to go all the way down the road of researching SQL Reporting Services 2008 only to find that it doesn't do what I need it to do. Also, I will have a ton of DB partitions that the data will need to be pulled from. Some reports will need to pull data from only one of these, but other ones may actually need to span different databases. Is it possible when sending a report request to SSRS to specify what servername/database to pull the data from? Is it possible to tell it to take the data from multiple databases and combine it? Thanks.
Like Crystal Reports, ActiveReports and other report generators, SSRS has two basic elements behind each report: the SQL query and the report layout. No matter what tool you use for the SQL -- it can be inline SQL in the report or a call to a stored procedure -- it's going to be the same query. Multiple databases are fine as long as you can specify them up front.
You can have parameterized queries, so the user is prompted to input the relevant filters (customer ID, product group, date range, whatever).
Doing the report layout is similar to other tools -- you drag and drop controls like labels onto the report, and set their formatting.
SSRS does provide a lot of options for distributing the report, including email. You can embed the report in an ASP.Net web page, leave it on the report server site for users to browse to, run it in the wee hours of the morning and cache it so every user doesn't have to wait for the lengthy query to run.
It's a great tool. I think it will be worth your effort to experiment with it. I would wait on creating the customized UI until you've exhausted the possibilities inherent in the tool.
SSRS is not designed with this scenario in mind, for that matter I am not sure that any out of the box reporting solution is going to have an elegant solution for this. While SSRS can do what you are asking (as well as others), it is by no means quick or easy. You seem to be looking for an advanced ad-hoc solution with dynamic sourcing of the data. I would first question the requirements and determine if the business scenario really justifies such an implementation. I would weigh custom building a solution vs your learning curve with a BI reporting solution. You may find that it is easier to just build something on your own.
I think the heterogeneous dynamic database mashup is probably going to be the most challenging part.
Depending on what your scalability requirements are, one place that has that part covered, and a report writer, is Access. (Duck! Incoming!)
I think you may be creating a rod for your own back to a certain extent as RS ships with a few interfaces for report creation.
Mind you the end product is an rdl file which is nothing but xml, so you can write them by hand if you really like.
Multiple data sources are supported, but combining them on a single control/chart/etc are not, so you'll need to configure yourself a cross database capability from one of your data-sources prior to the report request if you want to do that.