Patrice Calve

How to display a Reporting Services Report in a Winform application

Step 1: prepare yourself :)

The first step to show a report on a windows application is to figure out the url and path of the report!

Sql Reporting Services has 2 virtual directories:

• /Reports: renders the reports to the user in a user-friendly web page
• /ReportServer: executes the report

When your boss asks you to display a report in a winform application, he(she) will likely send you a url in the following forms:

• http://reportingservices/Reports (then you browse to a given report if you find it!)
• http://reportingservices/Reports/Pages/Report.aspx?ItemPath=%2fTMF+Reports%2fTMF1200+-+Project+Status

The urls above don't translate to properties that you need in a winform (or webform)...

To "consume" a report from a winform, you can't use the url above, you need another url.  Actually, you need two things:

1. The Report Server Url
2. The Path of the report

In the following two(2) steps, we'll see how to figure out how to discover that information.

Step 2: The Report Server Url

Ask your administrator, or find it for yourself!  The Reporting Server url is hidden in the report!

• Open the report in a browser (ie)
• Right click on the report's header (ex: on the report's title) -> View Source
• Locate the meta tag "Report Server", the "Content" attribute will contain the Report Server value: ex
  • <META Name="Report Server" CONTENT="HTTP://ReportingServices/reportserver">

{ReportServerUrl} = "HTTP://ReportingServices/reportserver"

Step 3: The Report Path

The Report Path is something you have to "build" manually.

• Open the ServerUrl in the browser (ie), a page with a list of folders will be shown
• Copy the text of the folder into notepad or something like that. (referred bellow as {MyFolder})
• Navigate to the folder, a page with a list of reports will be shown
• Copy the text of the report into notepad: (referred bellow as {MyReportName})

The ReportPath will be the following: /{MyFolder}/{MyReportName}

ex: {ReportPath} = "/TMF Reports/TMF1200 - Project Status"

Step 4: The ReportViewer in the Winform

Now, you're ready to add the report on the winform.

• Open the winform in Visual Studio
• Add a ReportViewer on the designer (Toolbox > Data > ReportViewer)
• Set the following properties:
  • ServerReport
    • ReportServerUrl: {ReportServerUrl} = "HTTP://ReportingServices/reportserver"
    • ReportPath: {ReportPath} = "/TMF Reports/TMF1200 - Project Status"

Run the application.

Pat

Note To Microsoft

It would nice if it was easier to discover reports from within Visual Studio.  A wizard where a dev could enter any of the following:

• The url of the reports (http://MyServer/Reports/ ) -> navigate to the report
• The url of a given report (http://MyServer/Reports/Pages/Report.aspx?...)
• The url of the reportServer (http://MyServer/ReportServer) -> navigate to the report

Thanks, Pat

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Print | posted on Friday, March 13, 2009 2:21 PM |