Introduction to Report Designer

The VisualVault Report Designer allows you to create reports, preview them, and export to PDF, XLXS, and other formats. As a web-based application, it can be accessed directly in your browser as you navigate VisualVault.

The VisualVault Reports page.

Navigate to the Report Designer

To navigate to the Report Designer:

1. Type in your VisualVault site URL
2. Add the suffix /VisualVaultReports

• e.g.: https://SITE.visualvault.com/app/CUSTOMER/DATABASE/VisualVaultReports
• Note: The VisualVault Reports page does not appear in the top menu by default as a security mechanism to restrict access to the Report Designer. Administrators can Add the Report Designer to the Menu:

Report Security

Additional security restrictions can also be configured at the report level. Users in the VaultAccess group are able to create or delete reports. VaultAccess users will see all reports in a customer database. This privilege cannot be restricted. 

The following security permissions for reports can also be granted to other user groups:

User Group	Definition	Icon
Owner	Users whose group has been assigned owner permission to a report have the same privileges as editors in addition to being able to configure security settings for the report.
Editor	Users whose group has been assigned editor permission to a report have the same privileges as viewers in addition to being able to edit and duplicate a report. Although VaultAccess users are the only users who can create blank new reports, users with at least editor permission can create new reports by duplicating existing reports.
Viewer	Users whose group has been assigned viewer permission to a report are only able to view the report. A group must be assigned at least viewer permission if they need to view or generate a report, even when they access the report from a link elsewhere in VisualVault.

Assigning Security Permissions

Users in the VaultAccess group or users whose group has been given owner permission to a report can assign security permissions to reports. 

To configure report security:

1. From the VisualVault Report page, select the Security icon under the Options column to open the report's Details and Security window.
2. Select the appropriate groups or users under the Available Users column.
   1. Note: It is best practice whenever administering security that you assign groups rather than users. This helps to minimize administrative tasks when a user quits or changes roles in your business processes.
3. Select the appropriate security level button to set security for the group (see image for details). You will see the group or users moved to the Assigned Users column.
4. Select the Save button to commit the changes.

A report's Details and Security window is also where VaultAccess users or owners can modify the Name and Description of a report.

Steps 1-4

 

Add the Report Designer to the Menu

For users who will access the Report Designer regularly, it is convenient to have access from the top menu. An administrator will need to create a custom menu and give the appropriate security restrictions on each menu item. 

To create a menu item for the Report Designer:

1. Add a Menu Set
2. Add a Menu Item
3. Select VisualVault Reports from the Action in the Menu Node Properties.The Action for adding a menu item for the VisualVault Report Designer in the Menu Node Properties window is VisualVault Reports. This should not be confused with the action Report Server, which provides access to a legacy report engine that is no longer used in current versions of VisualVault.
4. Label the menu node as 'Report Designer' or 'VisualVault Report Designer'.
5. Select Save and Close.
6. Apply Security to Menu Item

Security configurations can be modified for menu items on the Security tab.

Only the groups assigned to a menu item will be able to see that item. For example, in the configurations shown above, only users in the VaultAccess group will be able to see the Report Designer menu item. When no security is configured on a menu item, all users who have access to your system will see the menu item.

VisualVault Reports Page

Once you have navigated to the VisualVault Report Designer page, either by navigating to the URL directly or by selecting the respective menu item from a custom top menu, you will be brought to the following screen.

VisualVault Reports Page with labels.

Element	Definition	Image
New Report	Clicking the New Report button opens a window that allows you to create a new report by entering the name and description of the report.
Delete	The Delete button allows you to delete a report by first selecting the report(s) to be deleted using the check boxes on the side of each row.
Report Information	The other columns of this dashboard display the Name, Description, Created By and Last Modified information about each report.
Share Report	The email icon under the Share column opens an email draft that contains links to the report.
View Report	Clicking the picture icon under the Options column opens the report.
Edit Report	Clicking the pencil icon under the Options column opens the Report Designer in edit mode.
Copy Report	Clicking the copy button under the Options column will open a window that will allow you to duplicate the report. When a report is copied, the user who copied the report will be assigned as Owner to the report. Any security permissions that existed on the original report will not be carried over to the duplicate.
Modify Security	Clicking the lock icon under the Options column will allow you to modify the security permissions of the report. This is also where you can modify the name and description of the report.

From the VisualVault Reports page, you can access the Report Designer by selecting the Edit icon in the Options column next to a report.

The Report Designer

The Report Designer is a DevExpress™ web application that is directly integrated and accessed within VisualVault. When you select the Edit icon on any report found on the VisualVault Reports page, the report will be opened in the Report Designer.

Report Designer Elements

With its user-friendly interface, the Report Designer allows you to create reports through various tools. The Design Surface displays a report's structure and contents. Report Controls are added to the Design Surface through drag-and-drop motions from the Toolbox. The Side Panel provides a way to configure Report Controls and other elements of the report.

Components of the Report Designer.

 

Element	Definition	Image
Menu	Use the Menu to manage and set up reports.
Toolbar	Report editing commands such as copy, paste, undo, redo, and report preview can be accessed in the Main Toolbar.
Toolbox	The Toolbox contains Report Controls that can be dropped onto the design surface.
Preview Button	The preview button allows you to view the report as it will be generated.
Design Surface	The Design Surface displays a report's structure and contents.
Report Bands	A report layout consists of bands that contain report controls and define their location on document pages. The hierarchy of bands can be seen on the Report Explorer panel. A blank report contains a detail band and two margin bands by default. You can also add the following bands to your report: Report Header and Report Footer Page Header and Page Footer Group Header and Group Footer Additional Detail Bands
Side Panel	The Side Panel will show the Properties, Expression, Field List or Report Explorer panel, as selected on the far right side.
Properties	The Properties panel is used to configure the selected report control. Each section can be expanded by clicking the left arrow next to the title.
Expression	The Expressions panel is used to provide data to the report controls and conditionally shape data.
Field List	The report's data source schema can be accessed in the Field List panel. Multiple queries or data sources can be configured from this panel, as well as parameters. When designing reports, used can drag a field directly from this panel onto the report.
Report Explorer	The report's elements can be accessed in the Report Explorer panel. Report elements can be edited or deleted from this context.

The Design Process

A design process for creating custom reports is a framework that can be used in your report design approach but is not a strictly linear path. The recommended process for creating reports involves four steps:

1. Select the Data
2. Filter the Data
3. Process the Data
4. Present the Data

The Design Process Flow.

 

1. Selecting Data

First, identify what data you will be reporting on. One or many sources of data can be selected to be used in a report. To select data for your report, refer to Reporting Data Sources and/or Reporting Query Builder.

The Query Builder is one method of selecting data to be used on a report.

 

2. Filtering Data

Next, filter the data either the Data Source Level or at the Report Level. Both options have their advantages and basic usage.

Shaping and filtering data at the Data Source Level is recommended when dealing with comparatively large data sources. The primary reason for this is that the retrieval process may cause your report to render slowly when large amounts of unneeded data are pulled into your report. 

By contrast, filtering data at the Report Level is more appropriate when dealing with relatively small data sources, when data load times are acceptable. Filtering data at the Data Source Level can be accomplished through the use of the Query Builder. Filtering data at the Report Level happens within the Report Designer as you configure the Filter String property of individual report controls.

The Filter Editor can be used to filter data at the Report Level.

 

3. Processing Data

Different operations can be applied to the data returned by the query. Actions such as grouping and sorting can be applied to data as well as creating calculated fields and allowing user-defined parameters. Most commonly used methods of processing data:

Component	Definition	Image
Calculated Fields	Calculated Fields allow users to pre-process a report's input data, based on a certain expression. This can be accomplished by creating a calculated field and editing the expression.
Grouping	Grouping allows for the organization and aggregation of data based on a specific field. A group can be made using one or many fields. After inserting a group band, the settings must be configured to appropriately shape the data.
Summary Data	Data that is organized into groups (as well as the report and pages) can have summary functions applied to allow for aggregate data such as the total number of records in a group or the sum of a field for the entire report.  Summary functions become available when a field is identified to contain summary data. Summary functions all have the prefix of “sum” followed by the function itself. These functions will not always show in the expression editor but are still available.  When enabling a summary function, you will need to first specify the Running property under Properties > Actions > Summary. This will select the range of your summary as a group, the page displayed, or the entire report. In this section, you can specify other summary properties as well. Once the summary is enabled, you will then need to specify the summary function from the Expression Editor.
Parameters	Parameters allow the end-user to dynamically specify filter properties when they generate a report. Parameters can be single or multi-valued, static or dynamically generated, and cascading based on another parameter. These parameters can be used in both Report Level Filtering and Data Source Filter.

4. Presenting Data

Controls and data can be formatted and arranged in many different ways, including font size, font style, and color. Most of these options can be found under the Appearance and Layout menus. Report Controls can be modified individually or Styles can be used to integrate common themes throughout the entire report. Presenting data also includes considering the layout of the report itself. When designing the presentation of the report, you will want to use the Print Preview to see how your report will appear, as the details on the Design Surface do not always reflect the final look of the report once data has been added.

The Appearance menu is open on the Properties panel, showing the configurations of a Label report control.

Details on modifying appearance settings and configuring Styles can be found in Report Designer - Report Appearance.

As you begin to design your reports, you can reference this Design Process as a simple overview of the tasks to be accomplished.