Subreports - What are they for? Would they do this?

[RRinTetons]

We have an enterprise application used throughout the resort in several lines of business. There are 6 - 10 reports that users run at the end of each day. They each have multiple parameters, some common between reports, so appearing in only one of them. Which reports need to be produced and for what parameters varies from LOB to LOB and from season to season. The users often miss a report they need to run, or run one with the wrong parameters for the location from which they're operating. That causes headaches for the auditors who have to review the reports. I've been asked to combine the separate reports into one and to embed some rules on what parameters as used in what ways in the various sections.

I have never worked much with subreports, but as I understand them they may be the right tool in this case. If they work as I think they do, I'd collect all the parameters then generate the top level report with the collection of subreports embedded, passing the right parameters to each one to create a different dataset and a different tabular report.

Would someone who's used subreports regularly comment on that plan? I'll go ahead and figure out how to use them if they're the right tool, but I'd prefer not to spend too much time barking up the wrong tree if they aren't the way to go! If there are better alternatives, please point me in some new directions, too!

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Richard Ray
Jackson Hole Mountain Resort

 

[Crowley16]

sub reports are what you want.

you can infact embed some more logic into your main report to only fire certain sub reports, or change what sub report is included based on your criterias.

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Procrastinate Now!

 

[acessn]

A sub report in SQL reporting is just another report within your main report which is triggered by one or more parameters. I typically use it to get data which is unreachable from my main dataset.

Beware that there might be performance issues with sub reports, especially if used in huge details section.

 

[RRinTetons]

The slant on subreports that helped me see them as applicable to my need was a post that likened them to frames on a web page. I'm not subreporting in a detail section, this is just a way to combine several existing reports such that users only have to enter common parameters once and will get all the reports required.


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Richard Ray
Jackson Hole Mountain Resort

 

[acessn]

If these reports of yours is independent of one another, you might try using several datasets and tables within your report, instead of/in addition to sub reports.