Arena: Edit Existing Reports (Course A27) Presented by: Ben Lane Senior Staff Trainer 2017 Shelby Systems, Inc. Other brand and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of the respective holders.
Objective Take a report off the Arena Community, The HUB, or from another Arena client and make it your own. This session presents the following topics: Correlation among Arena, Report Manager, and Visual Studio Three requirements for a workable report Where to find reports to edit Tools used to edit reports How to open an existing report in Visual Studio How to edit an existing report How to deploy reports for use in Arena How to create a subscription 2
What Is SSRS? Report Requirements DataSource: A connection string defining the SQL instance where your ArenaDB resides and the login and password needed to gain access DataSet: One or more SQL queries providing fields from one or more tables in your ArenaDB database for use in populating report DataRegions DataRegion: An object in a report that displays data from a report dataset. Report data can be displayed: o As numbers and text in a table, matrix, or list (a.k.a. Tablix); o Graphically in a chart or gauge; o Against a geographic background in a map. 3
Where to Find Editable Reports Your Report Services installation (There may be reports deployed to the RS during Arena installation that are not visible on the navigation structure.) The HUB: Several reports that mimic v.5 structures are available here. The Community: http://community.shelbysystems.com o This is a vital resource! Chances are there is someone out there who has already solved a problem similar to yours and has a solution that is very close to what you need. Friends and others in your circles. Download the report and save it to an accessible location. It is saved as a report definition language (rdl) file, a specialized form of XML. The method of download depends on the source of the report. Report Editing Tools Any text editor (If you can edit at this level, you should be presenting this!!) Visual Studio (part of your SQL installation) o SQL Server 2008 R2: Business Intelligence Development Studio (BIDS) o SQL Server 2012: SQL Server Data Tools (SSDT) Also called Data Shell o SQL Server 2015: SQL Server Data Tools (SSDT) Also called Data Shell Report Builder: A client side extension of Report Manager (RS web interface) WORKS BEST WITH INTERNET EXPLORER! Visual Studio is developer level. It requires deployment layout setup but also allows "offline editing", meaning the report is not deployed to the Report Server until you are satisfied it is the way you want it. It also means your report layout is saved in a separate location and can be re deployed to Reporting Services at any time. 4
Report Builder, on the other hand, requires no deployment and thus no corresponding deployment layout setup; as soon as you save the file it is ready for use whether you're finished editing or not. Thus, before editing a report with Report Builder, it is good practice to copy your original report layout to a safe location. Using the method described in a subsequent section, you might want to create an additional folder on SQL Server Reporting Services called Templates. You can then store originals of reports in that folder without fear of their being overwritten during the editing process. As described below, neither Visual Studio nor Report Manager knows anything about the Arena user interface; they only see the Database behind Arena. All SSRS reports are stored in a separate database, and Arena accesses those reports via a Report Viewer Module. 5
Report Editing Tutorials Need expert help creating or editing reports in SSRS? https://www.youtube.com/wiseowltutorials/playlists There are 26 individual videos from basic to advanced topics, and they are free! Understanding Your Reporting Services Layout Check with your IT Department for the URL of your report server and instance, which is something like http://{servername}/reportserver_{instance name}. (It is also listed in Arena s Report Services Configuration menu under Administration.) Reporting Services is a slightly different URL, however! http://{servername}/reports_{instance name} 6
Click your company folder (eg. A91028) to view installed/created reports, which may be under your Arena subfolder. (The path in this example is: Home > A91028 > Arena.) Creating a New Report Folder Create a new report folder by clicking New Folder in Reporting Services: 7
The path of this new folder is: Home > A91028 > Arena > Demo. You can make additional folders within existing folders as necessary. 8
Create a Visual Studio Project For this example we make changes to an existing Arena Check In Roster report using Visual Studio 2008. Later versions of VS work essentially the same. 1) Go to Visual Studio to set up a new Project. Click Create. 2) Enter a name for the project and a location where it is created and stored. 9
3) Once the Project is created, click on the Project menu and select the Properties option to set up the Target Areas (dataset folder, shared data source, deployment folder, etc.). 4) Verify/Select Output Paths. These paths point to the layout as described in the above sections titled Understanding Your Reporting Services Layout and Creating a New Report Folder. The report is deployed to and alive in this Reporting Services folder 10
5) Once the defaults are set, you are ready to add an existing report or create a new report for this project. Go to the Report Manager (Server) and identify the report (CheckInRoster) to download. 6) Select download from the report drop down. Save the file to a location of your choice. 11
7) Now go to Visual Studio and click the project correlating to the folder where you deploy this edited report: 8) Add or verify ArenaDB Shared Data Source. 9) If the Data Source does not exist, create the Data Source with Credentials. 12
10) Select the Project. 11) With the new project highlighted, select Properties from the Project drop down menu. 13
Verify all Report Properties are set correctly. Keep in mind you want to set the specific folder (Target Report Folder) to which you deploy the report. If needed, you can obtain the Target Server URL from Administration/Report Service Configuration. 12) Click the Solution Explorer. Right click on the Reports folder to Add an Existing Item. 13) Locate the previously downloaded report and add it. 14
The report is added to the Solution Explorer: Double click to load the report. The report is now loaded, and you can begin to edit. For this example, we remove the bar code column and add the person s cell phone number in a new column. 14) Click the cell column heading in the table to select it. 15) Right click and select Delete Columns. 16) Right click the column to which you add the new column and select Insert Column/Right. 17) Click the header to add Cell Phone. 15
18) To add the field value for cell phone, hover over the cell to display the field icon. 19) Click the field icon and select mobile_phone from the list of available fields. 20) Once all the changes are made, save this as a different report file in order to save the original report. 16
21) The program automatically tries to save the report in the project folder. Change the name of the report file so the original report is not overwritten. 22) Click Save. Now that the report is saved, test the report. For this report, a Group ID is required. In order for the report to be available in Arena, you need to deploy it: a. In the Solution Explorer window, right click the report, OR b. In the menu, click Build and then Deploy {name of project}. 17
23) Select Deploy from either of the two choices in step 22. Verify the report has been deployed in Report Manager. 18
24) Also verify the report runs as expected by double clicking it in Report Manager. REMEMBER, using Visual Studio you can always return to the Project, make more changes, and re deploy the report. In addition, you do not have to go through all the project setup. Once the setup is done, it is done! 19
Connecting Reports to the Arena Menu Arena comes with specific reports at the time of installation. They are pre deployed to the Report Server. Some may not be installed in the Arena menu structure, however. The Report Manager displays all reports on the Report Server. However, unless already visible on the Arena menu structure, Arena knows nothing of these reports and must be instructed on how to access them. We now tell Arena how to reach the newly edited report. 1) From Arena s Administration menu, select Pages. 2) Determine where to add a Child Page. For this presentation we add a page under Membership. 3) Select Membership. 4) Select the Child Pages tab. 5) Click the Add New Page icon. 6) Enter a Page Name. 7) Click the Update button. 20
8) Select the Main Content tab of the new page. The new page inherits the module of the parent page, so we need to change the module. 9) Click the current Membership module. 10) In the Type of Module drop down, select the Report Viewer module. CAUTION!! There is a Report View module as well. Make the correct choice. 11) Customize the Title, if desired. 12) Enter the exact name of the Report Manager folder in the Report Folder module setting field. 21
13) Select the True radio button for Show Report Builder link to display a link to Report Builder on the Arena page. To allow specific users access to the Report Builder link, consider adding the module to the page twice and then applying module security permission for specific users for the specific module. 14) Click the Update button. 15) Verify the page and any reports in this folder display. 16) Click the appropriate report to display it. 22
Edit in Report Builder Report Builder has an option to edit reports. When you use this option, the changes apply to the existing report, or you can Save As to retain the existing report and save the new report in the same folder. At this point, you must use Internet Explorer to use this feature. For this class we add a logo to the existing 5 Fund Contribution Statement. You can make additional changes such as add or remove data fields; modify or add expressions; add, delete, or adjust columns; and change page properties such as page size. 1) From Report Manager, select Edit in Report Builder in the drop down of the report you want to edit. 2) Select Image from the Insert ribbon. 23
3) Draw an image holder and from the Image Properties window enter an image name. Then click the Import button to select and search for the image to upload. 4) Click the OK button. 5) Now you are ready to make layout adjustments. 24
6) After making all desired changes, click Run to view the modified report. If the report has parameters, as with the 5 Fund Contribution Statement, you need to enter/select required parameters in order to view the report. 7) Once the report runs as expected, you are ready to save the report. 8) You can either save the existing report with changes or use the Save As option to save with a different name. This allows you to retain both the existing and new report in the same folder or select an alternate folder. 9) If the report ran as expected, you can exit Report Builder. 25
10) Verify the report is in the correct Report Manager folder and in Arena. 26
Download a Report from the Arena Community Many reports are available on the Arena Community. Prior to selecting a report to download, it is best to understand first the report you download. Is the report written for your version of Arena? Does the report file include more than the RDL file? In general, you should be able to upload any RDL report. Some <Report>.zip folders contain a SQL file in addition to the RDL file. You first need to run the SQL successfully on the SQL Server prior to uploading the RDL file to Report Manager. Some report folders contain other files in addition to the RDL and SQL files which may be custom stored procedures (sproc) or even a text file with instructions. In this case, you want to understand better how to use the additional files. Generally speaking, you can edit a report from the community using the same procedures previously described. 1) Go the Arena Community/Download section. 2) Select a report to download. You can download RDL reports directly. For reports with a SQL file, you first need to run the SQL statement on the SQL Server prior to loading and launching the RDL report file. 27
3) Click the Download button on the desired report. 4) Click the I Accept button after reading the Agreement for download. 5) If the report you downloaded is in a zip folder, you need to unpack/unzip the folder. Consider adding the report to a new Custom folder for easy reference. 6) Once the download is complete, use the previous steps to edit and deploy the report. 28
Create a Report Subscription For all SSRS reports you can create email subscriptions to email specific recipients on an exact day and time. Check with your IT department to make sure Reporting Services is configured for connection to an SMTP server. 1) From Report Manager select Subscribe from the drop down of the desired report. 2) Complete the Report Delivery Options. 29
3) Complete Subscription Processing Options. 4) Click the Select Schedule button to set the delivery schedule. 5) Set desired Schedule details. 30
6) Click the OK button. 7) Set Report Parameter Values for length of time to run the subscription. 8) Repeat all steps for any additional subscriptions for this report. You can create more than one subscription for each report and view all subscriptions on the manage page for the specific report. 31
Ben Lane Senior Staff Trainer ben.lane@shelbyinc.com Before joining Shelby as a certified staff trainer, Ben Lane served as a youth minister and a minister of education at various churches. His desire is to help churches maximize their ministry through effective use of Shelby software. Currently he is a Senior Staff Trainer and trains on all Shelby products.