Distribution of reports over LANs 4

[jworley]

Hi,

Does anyone know of a way I can distribute reports across a LAN without having to go around each workstation running the Setup for the normal CR distribution ?

BTW, each workstation already has the runtime installed (V7)

Jim Worley
jim@aits-uk.net

http://www.aits-uk.net

15 years practical IT experience from sales to support to development plus B.Sc. (Hons) Computer Studies, fluent German speaker, willing to have a go at anything and don't suffer fools gladly !

 

[kenhamady]

You can compile the reports.
If the runtime engine is already installed on the client than you should be able to simply point a shortcut to the compiled exe on a network drive and run the report that way. The exe, rpt, and crf will all have to be in the same folder, but the report can be run from the network.

You can also bring these three files locally and run them simply by double clicking the exe on the client drive. Ken Hamady

http://www.kenhamady.com/

Crystal Reports Training/Consulting and a
Quick Reference Guide to VB/Crystal (including ADO)

 

[dcm]

Jim: Have a look at the new Crystal Enterprise product coming out any day now. This uses Web technology for report distribution and could be an extremely easy method if you set up an intranet server David C. Monks
david.monks@chase-international.com

http://www.chase-international.com

Accredited Seagate Enterprise Partner

 

[kenhamady]

Easy - maybe ... but the licensing plans I have heard about may make it pretty pricey to distribute, especially when compared to the compiler option (which is free and unlimited). Ken Hamady

http://www.kenhamady.com/

Crystal Reports Training/Consulting and a
Quick Reference Guide to VB/Crystal (including ADO)

 

[MalcolmW]

The compiler option is also on the last version - it will not be available in subsequent releases of SCR. A cheaper route, but also a technological dead end.
This doesn't mean you shouldn't do it, but just be aware that it is not a solution that will likely work for the next SCR release.
Malcolm

 

[dcm]

Ken: Whilst you are correct that the current version 8 compiled report method is a much cheaper option than Enterprise, this is scheduled to disappear in version 8.5, currently in beta, anytime now.

A detailed comparison of future licence costs between Info/Enterprise and stand alone CR can show an advantage for the former route as well as bringing other benefits so I personally still feel this to be the correct solution long term David C. Monks
david.monks@chase-international.com

http://www.chase-international.com

Accredited Seagate Enterprise Partner

 

[kenhamady]

dcm,

I think several of us would be interested in the detailed comparison of future license costs.

Where do we find that? Ken Hamady

http://www.kenhamady.com/

Crystal Reports Training/Consulting and a
Quick Reference Guide to VB/Crystal (including ADO)

 

[dcm]

Ken: I'm not sure what information Seagate provide to you but we have a detailed quote generator over here in EMEA which enables us to play 'what-if' type scenarios with mixes of licences. The use of this tool reveals some interesting 'break points' in the Seagate pricing model. David C. Monks
david.monks@chase-international.com

http://www.chase-international.com

Accredited Seagate Enterprise Partner

 

[kenhamady]

Can you give us some rough ideas?

The most common scenario I have run into is that one or two people in an organization want to create reports that a dozen other people need to run at their desktops.

With V8, that is one or two professional licenses and compiled reports everywhere else. How would that work in the new environment? What about that fee they were considering for each copy made of an exported file? I hope that sank quickly. Ken Hamady

http://www.kenhamady.com/

Crystal Reports Training/Consulting and a
Quick Reference Guide to VB/Crystal (including ADO)

 

[dcm]

Ken: I woudl agree that in v8 to meet the scenario you outline, this can be accommodated by 2 copies of CR (1 Developer and 1 Professional is I think the least cost) and after downloading the Compilation and Distribution Expert from the website that the dozen or so viewers can use runtime.

However, as I assume you are aware, compilation will cease to be available from v8.5 (announced yesterday here) and so this will no longer be a viable solution.

Due to the minimum licence requirements of Seagate, the only way forward with 8.5 will be to make use of the in-built 5 user Standard licences of Crystal Enterprise and then to find another solution for the remaining viewers.

The way forward I believe is to advise clients on a mix of paid for and free licences (Seagate Analysis) and to look v.v. carefully at the Broadcast licence which Seagate introduced with v8 and are continuing with v8.5 and Enterprise. I regret that there is no sign of them dropping the requirement for the purchase of either additional viewer licences if you distribute to more than 5 concurrent users (the current v8 licence conditions) or the purchase of a Broadcast licence is you automatically generate reports which can be viewed by more than 50 viewers (whether or not they actually do so). This latter appears to catch both VB based and Web based applications but I think as I said a careful consideration will enable some savings to be made at the expense of increased management of the report process.

I'll be happy to talk to you about this off-line if you'd like to.


David C. Monks
david.monks@chase-international.com

http://www.chase-international.com

Accredited Seagate Enterprise Partner

 

[kenhamady]

I am glad you had me reread the V8 license agreement. There is a part that most of us would have missed. Tell me if my math is correct.

Starting with V8 they have defined a "report" as any document created with CR regardless of format. That was an insidious move. So an export to a text file brings the text file itself within control of Seagate's License. If I send that text file to a list of 50 or more people each month, then each reader need s to be licensed by Seagate under a broadcast license. Bill Gates could learn from Seagate here; licensing each copy of the document created, even when saved in another format.

And the cost to license 50 readers of a monthly text file generated with CR? $10,000 per year according to the web site, unless I missed something.

Ken Hamady

http://www.kenhamady.com/

Crystal Reports Training/Consulting and a
Quick Reference Guide to VB/Crystal (including ADO)

 

[dcm]

Ken: Not quite as bad as you fear - the first 50 are free! But you are quite correct if you move the number of readers up to 100 and if your clients are organisations with large number of report readers then hold onto your hat because over 500 the cost rised to $25K and over 1500 to $50K David C. Monks
david.monks@chase-international.com

http://www.chase-international.com

Accredited Seagate Enterprise Partner

 

[kenhamady]

Actually, the wording is not clear about 50. One line says 50-500 is $10K, but another line says over 50. In either case 51 is clearly expensive. I can't imagine the average user realizes this if I didn't.

But, it gets better. Reading the license again seems to say that simply posting exported files onto a web site (which makes it available to an unlimited number of readers) requires a broadcast license. So, I can export to HTML for free, but to post that file on a web site each month will cost me at least 10K per year and probably more? That seemes ridiculous but the wording is pretty clear. Am I missing something? Ken Hamady

http://www.kenhamady.com/

Crystal Reports Training/Consulting and a
Quick Reference Guide to VB/Crystal (including ADO)

 

[dcm]

Ken: Nope! Sorry but that's how I read it - you can produce your HTML copy of the report but putting it on your Web server costs you $10k a year! The good news is that the licence comes into its own when you have 1,000's of potential viewers as it is worded that you only need licences for the number you could 'reasonably expect' to access the report ;-)) David C. Monks
david.monks@chase-international.com

http://www.chase-international.com

Accredited Seagate Enterprise Partner

 

[LMRollins]

I have a machine that runs Windows 2000 Professional. I set it up to use IIS. I use the web reports option from version 8.0 and it works great. The reports are run through IE and I don't have to go to everyone's machine.

 

[jvd4c]

LMRollins,

We are also using the web reports option from version 8.0. If we run in on our LAN it works fine. From the moment we try to access the reports from outside (internet). The only thing we receive is a blank page.

Have you ever tried to access your reports from outside your LAN and what is the result you get from it?

 

[LMRollins]

No, we only use them from inside. Sorry.

 

[chelseatech]

Have a look at

http://www.chelseatech.net/demo.htm

That has some reports delivered via CR8.0 web component server on a publicly visible server. The NT security is the tricky thing as your external users are arrive as the IIS GUEST account. So that user needs to have access to the ActiveX libraries, etc.
Editor and Publisher of Crystal Clear

http://www.chelseatech.co.nz/pubs.htm

 

[rpolunsky]

On the other hand, if my organization posts the reports (in HTML format, let us say) on the web site, to which over 200 employees have access, but only 15 employees would find the report of interest and be reasonably expected (by us) to view it, are we required to get the broadcast license?

"Reasonably" is generally the kind of word that engenders expensive lawsuits.

Richard

 

[Roadkill150]

Just a note from my own views, but it seems to boil down to greed. The phase out of compiled reports to that of a fee by user based system seems more motivated not so much as a technological standpoint, but rather just to get more money out of the users. When I did work for Seagate tech support it was very rare to hear people bitching about the compiled reports, and I know it is used by a lot of companies over web reporting.. So why the phaseout? Secondly, the fact that Crystal decisions no longer provides free tech support only bolsters my view on the greed issue. The company now charges an arm and a leg to answer any question by the user. I honestly think that this envelope can only be pushed so far before customers find cheaper alternative reporting solutions.
As to relevant issues of this thread, you can use compiled reports, or web based reports (need a web server).. and yes, v.8 will pump out reports fine directly to the web.. as chelseatech states, the issue lies in your NT security most likely.
-Bruce Seagate Certified RCAD Specialist.
-Bruce Thuel-Chassaigne
roadkill150@hotmail.com