SQL Server Reporting Services – SSRS

SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS) augments the ability of SQL Server, and other Relational Database Management Systems, to seamlessly deliver reports to customers, partners, suppliers and employees across the enterprise. In this course, you will gain the knowledge required to author reports to extract Business Intelligence out of your data, deploy reports to a Report Server for centralized access and administration, and share reports throughout the organization by deploying to SharePoint. A series of extensive hands-on exercises help you acquire the skills to exploit the full power of Reporting Services, and teaches you how to go beyond the physical limitations of your organization to deliver data and share information with others; when you want and how you want.

This course explains advanced techniques for working with Business Intelligence, Data Visualizations and much more.

Key Takeaways

  • Leverage SSRS to extract Business Intelligence from your data
  • Integrate Parameters, Filters and Interactive components into Reports
  • Work with Solutions and Projects
  • Design Basic Reports
  • Work with Table, Matrix, and list Report items
  • Enhance Reports with formatting and images
  • Effectively Group and Summarize data
  • Working with Key Performance Indicators (KPI)
  • Work with Parameterized Reports
  • Produce Reports with Enhanced Visualization Features
  • Incorporate Charts and Custom Maps
  • Work with Drillthrough Reports
  • Manage Reports
  • Utilize Report Builder
  • Deploy Reports through Report Server and SharePoint
  • Create reports on SSAS cubes with Report Builder and Report Designer
  • Producing customized reports with expressions
  • Employing Tablix to produce new report formats
  • Leveraging advanced reporting charts
  • Creating cached instances, snapshots and subscriptions
  • Deploying reports to the Report Server
  • Configuring and testing security on report items

Coverage

Module 1: SSRS Overview and Tools

  • Reporting Services Features
  • Tools Available with SQL Server
  • SQL Server Documentation

Module 2: Working with Solutions and Projects

  • Working with SQL Server Data Tools
  • Understanding Solutions and Projects
  • Working with the Visual Studio Interface
  • Creating and Managing a Project

Module 3: Creating Basic Reports

  • Understanding Data Source
  • Understanding Dataset
  • Using the Report Wizard
  • Understanding Tablix
  • Creating a Tabular Report
  • Creating a List Report
  • Understanding Matrix
  • Deploying a Project
  • Creating Shared Data Sources and Datasets
  • Using the Report Wizard
  • Building a Basic Matrix Report

Module 4: Formatting Reports

  • Working with Text Boxes
  • Rich Text Formatting
  • Managing Text Boxes
  • Drawing Lines and Boxes
  • Images
  • Page Headers and Footers
  • Adding a Document Map
  • Rendering Reports
  • Formatting a Tablix Data Region
  • Enhancing a Report

Module 5: Custom Expressions

  • Understanding Expressions
  • Defining Expressions
  • Working with Report Variables
  • Understanding Lookup, LookupSet, and Multilookup Functions
  • Expression Samples
  • Using Expressions to Work with Dates
  • Using Expressions to Manipulate Data

Module 6: Summarizing and Sorting

  • Creating Groups
  • Working with Groups
  • Adding Parent Groups to a Report
  • Parent/Child vs. Adjacent Groupings
  • Adding Totals and Aggregations
  • Creating Aggregates of Aggregates

Module 7: Add Flexibility with Parameters

  • Adding Parameters to a Report
  • Report Parameters vs. Query Parameters
  • Manage Report Parameter Properties
  • Use Parameters with SQL Queries and Stored Procedures
  • Work with Cascading Parameters
  • Sort Based on a Parameter Setting
  • Filtered Reports
  • Adding Parameters

Module 8: Safeguarding Reporting Services

  • Structuring content security – Leveraging existing Windows authentication
  • Structuring content security – Establishing permission levels on report items
  • Ensuring the RS system – Instituting varying levels of administrative roles
  • Ensuring the RS system – Granting and revoking system-level permissions

Module 9: Creating reports on Analysis Services Cubes

  • Exploiting cubes as intuitive data sources for nontechnical and power users
  • Generating parameterized reports with MDX Builder

Module 10 : Enhanced Report Items

  • Charts
  • Gauges
  • Add a Map to a Report
  • Data Bar, Indicator, and Sparkline Report Items
  • Nesting Data Regions
  • Subreports and Drillthrough Reports
  • Working with Drillthrough Reports
  • Implementing Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
  • Adding data visualization report items to a report
  • Adding a correlated sub-report

Module 11: Using Report Manager

  • Deployment
  • Navigating Report Manager
  • Understanding Permissions
  • Viewing Reports
  • Working with Shared Data Sources
  • Managing Reports
  • Creating and Deploying Projects
  • Working with Report Manager

Module 12: Using Report Builder for SQL Server

  • ClickOnce vs. Stand-alone
  • Installing the Stand-alone Version
  • Using the Report Builder Tool
  • Creating Datasets
  • Creating Reports
  • Creating Reports Using Wizards
  • Creating Reports Without a Wizard
  • Opening Existing Reports
  • Working with Report Parts
  • Creating a basic report by using Report Builder
  • Adding data visualization report items to a report
FAQ

Who will benefit from this course?

This course is valuable for database developers, data analysts, application developers, administrators, managers, and anyone responsible for designing, creating or using reports. Those who need to understand Reporting Services, or plan to employ Reporting Services within their organization, will also greatly benefit.

What background do I need?

It is assumed that you have a working database knowledge (SQL statements, relational model concepts) at the level of Expertizing SQL Server course, or equivalent experience on other relational database management systems such as Access or Oracle. A basic understanding of the Windows environment is assumed. Visual Studio knowledge and a fundamental programming background are helpful, but not required.

I am currently using a database other than SQL Server. Will this course benefit me?

Yes! While SQL Server is the database used on the course, you will find that the material in this course is applicable to any OLE DB-compliant relational database management system (RDBMS), such as Access or Oracle. One of the primary advantages of SQL Server Reporting Services is that it supports any RDBMS.

My organization uses multidimensional cubes to Analyze data. Why do I need Reporting Services?

SQL Server Reporting Services provides a centralized server-based solution with deployment options such as subscription-based delivery of reports, centralized management, enhanced security and snapshots, that exceed the feature set of Access. This course has a hands-on exercise that will show you how to create reports that are based on an Analysis Services cube.

I’m a manager, will this course be too technical for me?

Although there are strong technical elements of this course, as a manager, the more you understand about the capabilities and advantages of Reporting Services, the better you will be able to work with your team on an effective product implementation.

I’m not a programmer. How much programming is done on this course?

There is no programming on the course. However, the ability to write VB expressions would be beneficial.

At Future in Hands, every attendee is provided with wide range of hands-on exercises. You also have the opportunity to collaborate with classmates during the exercises, which our experience has shown helps you accomplish the activities with more speed and depth of learning.