Sql Server 2005 Reporting Services

Work Around for Conditional Visibility and Page Breaks in SQL Server 2005 Reporting Services

In the world of SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS), users often encounter challenges when dealing with conditional visibility and page breaks. One prevalent issue reported by users is that the PageBreakAtEnd property is ignored when conditional visibility is applied to a table. This can be frustrating, especially when you need precise control over your report layouts.

The Problem

You may have experienced the following issues:

  • Setting the PageBreakAtEnd property to true has no effect when a visibility condition is in place.
  • Placing the table inside a rectangle with visibility conditions still results in the page break being ignored.
  • Even when attempting to use an outer rectangle for conditional visibility, the page break could still occur unnecessarily when the table is not visible.

These issues can drive you to consider creating separate reports just to handle visibility correctly, which isn’t ideal.

Proposed Solution

Step-by-Step Guide

To tackle the problems related to conditional visibility and page breaks, follow these actionable steps:

  1. Create Two Rectangles:

    • Start by placing one rectangle inside another. This stacking method allows you to separate the visibility functionality from the paging functionality.

  2. Add Your Table:

    • Insert your table inside the inner rectangle. This inner rectangle will always be visible, allowing the table to render correctly without the influence of the outer rectangle’s visibility state.

  3. Set the Page Break Property:

    • For the inner rectangle, set the Page Break option to Insert After Rectangle. This setting ensures that a page break will be triggered only if the inner rectangle (and thus the table) is visible.

  4. Control Outer Rectangle Visibility:

    • Set the outer rectangle’s visibility using your conditional expression. This outer rectangle will dictate whether the inner rectangle’s content (and its associated page break) will be displayed.

Understanding the Outcome

By implementing this solution, you effectively separate the visibility condition from the page break condition. The inner rectangle’s page break will only activate when it is visible, which resolves the previously noted issues.

Considerations

  • Preview Behavior: It’s worth noting that while this approach may not show immediate results in the Preview tab of Visual Studio, it is expected to work perfectly in Print Preview and when exporting the report to PDF. So, don’t be discouraged if it doesn’t appear to work right away in the design view.

Conclusion

Handling conditional visibility and page breaks in SQL Server 2005 Reporting Services can be quite challenging. However, by using nested rectangles as a workaround, you can achieve the desired report layout without the need to create separate reports.

This method effectively keeps visibility and paging functionalities distinct, providing you with flexible control over your reporting requirements. If you’re experiencing similar challenges, give this solution a try and enhance your report creation efficiency!