SQL Server 2005 Reporting Services | MSBI Tutorial pdf

SQL Server 2005 Reporting Services

SQL Server 2005 Reporting Services (SSRS) uses flexible subscription and delivery mechanisms to help make it easy to create both traditional and interactive reports and deliver them to a wide range of people. SSRS combines the benefits of a centrally managed reporting system with the flexibility and on-demand nature of desktop and Web-based programs.
Embedded and managed through Web Services, SSRS offers a server-based enterprise reporting environment. You can personalize and deliver reports in a variety of formats, with a range of interactivity and printing options. Complex analyses can reach a broad audience through the distribution of reports as a data source for downstream business intelligence.

Wizard-Based Report Design
With SSRS you can rapidly build reports with easy-to-use wizards and designers. Report on data from multiple data sources including Relational and Multidimensional cubes. Specify flexible report layout and behavior. Preview and publish reports directly from the Report Designer. The wizards and designers make it all simple and convenient for you.

                               Fig : Report Designer for designing and publishing reports.

Embedded Reporting
ISVs can use SSRS to deliver predefined or ad hoc reports as part of a packaged application. The customer's information services (IS) organization can access these reports as-is, customize the reports, or create new ones for specific business needs.

End-User Authoring
Report Builder, a new feature of SSRS, enables you to modify and author your own reports by using a simplified model of your data. Report Builder is a ClickOnce application that is deployed through the browser.

                                    Fig : Report Builder interface for ad hoc reporting.
The Report Builder enables users to:
=> Add text and formatting to reports.
=> Create new fields and defined calculations using the model.
=> Preview, print, and publish reports.
=> Export report data to formats such as Office Excel 2007.

Web Services Support
SQL Server 2005 provides SOAP/HTTP access, an open and documented protocol that enables a broader range of clients to access SQL Server, including Web Services applications. Because this new connectivity is based on well-known technologies such as XML and HTTP, it facilitates interoperability with Microsoft .NET, SOAP Toolkit, and other protocols on a variety of platforms. Any device that can parse XML and submit HTTP requests can now access SQL Server 2005.

Managing Reports
SSRS includes a Web-based tool for managing reports, the Report Server Web Application. Administrators can use Report Server Web Application to define role-based security for reports and resources, schedule report execution and delivery, and track reporting history. This can be tailored to meet a wide variety of security needs. It includes extensible interfaces for integrating other security models if desired. An enterprise or ISV can use the Reporting Services Web Services APIs to write customized management tools.
Because the report definitions, folders, and resources are stored in a SQL Server 2005 database, you can use other tools such as SQL Server Management Studio to manage metadata, or use third-party applications that take advantage of published APIs.

                                 Fig : Report Manager for Managing Reports.

Scalability
The modular, Web-based design in SSRS scales easily to support high-volume environments. For example, you could create a reporting server farm with multiple report servers accessing the same core reports, serving thousands of Web-based clients.