Thursday, March 5, 2009

Introduction to SQL Server 2008 Report Builder 2.0

Problem
I have heard that there is a new version of Report Builder in SQL Server 2008.  Can you provide some details and examples?  What is new with Report Builder 2.0?  How does the new interface look?  What is the learning curve with this tool?

Solution

SQL Server 2008 includes a brand new version of the Report Builder which was first introduced in SQL Server 2005.  The key new features in Report Builder 2.0 are:

  • A completely new user interface that conforms to the Office 2007 look and feel
  • A local client install rather than a click-once application that you download and install from Report manager
  • Supports running reports locally or on the server
  • A Report Model is not required; you can create your own queries using a query designer, import queries from existing reports, or manually type in your queries
  • A Tablix report type which is a combination of the matrix and table reports

In this tip we will review installing Report Builder 2.0, the new user interface, developing a sample report, and deploying the report to a SQL Server 2008 report server.  I'll cover the new Tablix report in a future tip.

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