Introduction > What is OfficeWriter Reporting Services Integration?

What is OfficeWriter Reporting Services Integration?

OfficeWriter Reporting Services Integration enhances Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services by allowing users to design and deliver their reports in native Word and Excel. Reporting Service Integration is a two part solution:

• The OfficeWriter Designer
  The OfficeWriter Designer is a toolbar add-in for Microsoft Excel and Word. It allows the user to design a report template in Excel or Word instead of Visual Studio. The template is then integrated into the Reporting Services xml-based RDL format for publishing on the reporting server.
  
  
• The OfficeWriter Renderer
  The renderer runs on the Reporting Services server. The renderer interprets the template information that was added to the RDL file with the OfficeWriter Designer, and populates the template with data supplied by Reporting Services.

Using Reporting Services without OfficeWriter, the report designer uses a tool such as Visual Studio to design queries, specify data sources, and generate an RDL file that will be published on the Reporting Services server. Since Visual Studio is a development tool, the report designer is more likely to be a developer. Using OfficeWriter Reporting Service Integration, two workflow options exist:

Option 1: Adding a Template to an Existing Report

The OfficeWriter Designer can open existing RDL files. When an RDL file is opened in Word or Excel, only its database queries are available for use. The query fields will appear in a drop-down list on the OfficeWriter toolbar. The user will be able to insert these fields as data placeholders in the report template, and will not be able to create additional queries. When the user saves the file, the OfficeWriter template information will be added to the RDL file. The advantages of adding a template to an existing RDL file are:

• Two Display Formats
  Render the original report design, or view the report as a Word or Excel file.
  
  
• Separation of Report Design Roles
  A developer may be responsible for creating shared data sources on the server and defining SQL queries in RDL files. A business user can then open an RDL, insert field placeholders from the predefined queries, and design a report.

Option 2: Create a New Template Report

When you create a new template report without an existing RDL file, the OfficeWriter Designer allows you to set a data source and create database queries in Word and Excel. With this approach, the business user can be entirely responsible for both creating queries and designing the report.

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