Working with reports
You use the Active Roles Collector to prepare data for reporting. The data are stored in the database you specify when configuring the data collection job. For more information, see Collector to prepare data for reports. In order to make the data available to the report server, the data source on the report server must be configured to connect to the database that holds the report data. Then, you can generate and view Active Roles reports.
Configuring the data source
You have the option to configure the data source when deploying Active Roles reports to the report server. For more information, see Deploying reports to the Report Server. If you have not configured the data source, or need to change the data source, you can do this by using Report Manager on the report server on which the Active Roles reports were deployed.
To configure the data source by using SSRS Report Manager
-
Start SSRS Report Manager from your web browser.
Report Manager is installed during setup of SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS) on the same computer as the report server. To start Report Manager, open your web browser and type the Report Manager URL in the browser address bar. By default, the URL is http://<ComputerName>/reports.
-
Perform the following steps on the Contents page that appears:
-
Click Active Roles. The Version and SharedDataResources components are displayed.
-
Click SharedDataSources.
-
Click the data source named Active Roles Report Data.
If the SharedDataSources item is not displayed, click Details View.
-
In the Connection string box on the Properties page that appears, specify the database server instance, database type, and the name of the database that holds the report data prepared by the Active Roles Collector.
For example, if the name of the database is ARServerReporting and the database is on the SQL Server instance named MyServer\Enterprise, the connection string is as follows:
data source = MyServer\Enterprise; initial catalog = ARServerReporting
-
Click Apply.
Generating and viewing a report
You can generate and preview Active Roles reports using SSRS Report Manager. This section provides basic instructions on how to use Report Manager for this purpose.
The following instructions assume that:
-
You have report data prepared, by using the Active Roles Collector.
-
The data source on the report server is configured to connect to the database containing the report data.
To view a report by using SSRS Report Manager
-
Start SSRS Report Manager from your web browser.
To start Report Manager, open your web browser and type the Report Manager URL in the browser address bar. By default, the URL is http://<ComputerName>/reports.
-
Click Active Roles on the Contents page that appears.
-
Find a report by browsing folders or searching for a report by name.
Browse folder contents by clicking a folder name or folder icon on the Contents page. Search for a report by typing all or part of the report name in the Search text box at the top of that page.
-
To view a report, click the name of the report.
Some reports require you to provide parameter values. You can also apply filters to specify what data you want the report to include.
-
Click View Report at the top of the page.
For detailed instructions on how to use Report Manager, refer to Microsoft SQL Server Books Online.
Contents of the Active Roles Report Pack
This section lists the reports provided by the Active Roles Report Pack. The list is organized into subsections. Each subsection heading identifies the path to a certain report folder, with the reports contained in that folder being listed under the subsection heading.