Overview
In this 2-day course, students are introduced to the foundations of business intelligence (BI) report writing with SQL Server Data Tools (SSDT) Report Designer and SSRS. The focus will be on report writing by connecting to a database and manipulating the data for presentation including: creating table and matrix reports, formatting reports, grouping report data, creating simple and complex expressions, displaying aggregated data, sorting and filtering data, charting data, and preparing reports for printing and exporting. Report Designer is available for all supported versions of Microsoft SQL Server.
At the end of this course, students will be able to:
The primary audience for this course is persons who are new to reporting with SQL Server Data Tools Report Designer and SSRS, persons who are transitioning from another reporting software application, and persons who are existing Report Designer and SSRS report authors.
Objectives
Topics
Prerequisites
Audience
The secondary audience for this course is persons who are using Report Builder.
Course participants may be business analysts, programmer analysts, data analysts, database administrators, or IT professionals and may or may not have experience with Microsoft SQL Server Report Designer and SSRS, programming (Visual Basic), and/or Transact-Structured Query Language (T-SQL) experience.
Course duration
2 Days
Course outline
Module 1: Exploring the Report Designer environment
This module introduces the Report Designer application and its features. You will explore the Menu bar, the Toolbox, and the available Window panes for creating and manipulating reports, and the report design surface using Design and Preview modes.
Lessons:
Lab: Exploring the Report Designer Application
After completing this module, students will be able to:
Module 2: Adding Data to Table Reports
This module introduces report writers to populating a report with data and displaying the data in a table data region on the report. We will begin with defining the data source and continue with query building through data sets to bring data into the report. Next, we will explore the elements of the Tablix including rows, columns, cells, handles, and field choosers.
Lessons:
Lab: Creating Table Reports
After completing this module, students will be able to:
Module 3: Formatting Data and Creating Expressions in Reports
This module introduces report formatting techniques which allow a report writer to control how and where data displays in the report. Additional data may also be required and this can be accomplished by adding data from a source or adding a calculated field to the dataset. Simple and complex expressions will also be introduced in this topic.
Lessons:
Lab: Formatting Reports
After completing this module, students will be able to:
Module 4: Grouping Report Data
This module introduces data groupings in reports using dataset fields and expressions. This module also discusses group hierarchies and adding aggregates to summarize grouped data.
Lessons:
Lab: Creating Reports with Groups and Aggregates
After completing this module, students will be able to:
Module 5: Matrix Reports
This module introduces matrix data regions which are used in reports to control how cross tabular data can be used. While table reports rely on rows and columns, matrix reports rely on row groupings, column groupings, and aggregated values.
Lessons:
Lab: Creating Matrix Reports
After completing this module, students will be able to:
Module 6: Charts
This module introduces charting and the ability to create and add charts to reports. Chart reports allow us to visualize data with or without the details.
Lessons:
Lab: Creating Charts and Chart Reports
After completing this module, students will be able to:
Module 7: Printing and Exporting Reports
This module introduces report printing and exporting. Reports can be created for electronic display, paper display, or display in another application. This module covers the basics of those three scenarios.
Lessons:
Lab: Printing and Exporting Reports
After completing this module, students will be able to: