Automatic SQL Report Delivery

There are two major things about data reporting - scheduling and distribution.

Usually SQL report creation does not require any special skills, but at the same time can turn out to be a boring time-consuming task. The aim of a good data reporting tool is to let people create required reports quickly and easily without special training, and afterwards deliver these reports to their recipients. The next stage of the tool's usability is automation of this process.

dbForge Studio for SQL Server includes SQL Report Builder that allows creating ad hoc data reports, sending them to their recipients, and automating the whole process.

Report lifecycle

Depending on the purpose of your SQL report, you can choose its type and the way in which it will be created and distributed.

Report creation begins with designing a data report template from scratch or using a special wizard supplied with the application.

After the report file is ready, you can save it as an *.rdb file and use it every time you need to report on the same data and in the same format, export it to one of the supported formats (PDF, HTML, MHT, RTF, XLS, XLSX, CSV, Text, Image), print, or send it by e-mail/FTP.

Designing data report

First of all, you will need to create a data report template that can be used in the future - either in the command line or in the Windows Task Scheduler. This will be your first step towards automation in the data report production cycle.

dbForge Studio for SQL Server can help you create different types of data reports. After you've decided what kind of report you need, you can open a blank report document and design your SQL report from scratch customizing even the smallest details or run the wizard. Both ways enable you to select the data source, adjust the report layout, add charts, etc.

When the report file is ready, you can use it continuously to create SQL reports and deliver them to the needed recipients by typing several lines in the command line. It's also possible to specify additional parameters in the command line interface, overriding those specified in the *.rdb SQL report file.

The same report file template can be applied many times to different tasks, making report creation a routine. To do this, you can schedule the corresponding task in the Windows Task Scheduler. This way, creating and sending a report will not take any time at all - you'll just have to reap the fruits of the nicely done work and let your authorities enjoy comprehensive and professionally-looking reports.

SQL report delivery

SQL report delivery is the last step in the data report lifecycle.

With dbForge Studio for SQL Server, created data reports can be delivered to their recipients via e-mail or FTP. SQL report delivery can be performed using the application interface or command line. In both of these cases, you can choose the format in which the report should be sent (PDF, MHT, RTF, XLS, XLSX, CSV).

If you schedule a task as described in the previous paragraph, you can get you reports sent to users when needed and in the required format automatically.