Reports Forms (Reference)

Reports → Tutorial | Concept | How-to Guide | Reference

Configuration Properties

Creating Report Forms

1. Navigate to Reports → Forms
2. Click first row to create new form
3. Configure:
   • Name: Unique identifier
   • SaveFormat: Select output type
   • SaveFileName: Target file path
4. Double-click to open Forms Editor

Forms Editor

Text Formatting

• Font selection and sizing
• Bold, italic, underline
• Text alignment
• Color selection
• Bullet points and numbering

Dynamic Content

Insert tag values:

Production Report
Date: @Info.Date@
Shift: @Tag.Shift_Number@
Total Units: @Tag.Production_Count@
Quality Score: @Tag.Quality_Score@%

Tables

| Product | Quantity | Status |
|---------|----------|--------|
| @Tag.Product1@ | @Tag.Qty1@ | @Tag.Status1@ |
| @Tag.Product2@ | @Tag.Qty2@ | @Tag.Status2@ |

Output Formats

Text Format

Plain ASCII text:

• Fixed-width fonts
• No formatting
• Smallest file size
• Universal compatibility

HTML Format

Web-ready reports:

• Full formatting support
• Images and links
• CSS styling
• Browser viewing

PDF Format

Professional documents:

• Exact layout preservation
• Print-ready output
• Digital signatures
• Security options

File Naming

Static Names

C:\Reports\DailyReport.pdf
\\Server\Reports\Production.txt

Dynamic with Tags

C:\Reports\Report_@Tag.Date@.pdf
C:\Reports\@Tag.Shift@_@Tag.Line@.txt

Using Macros

@ExecutionPath@\Reports\Current.pdf
@SolutionPath@\Output\Report.txt

Runtime Display

Windows WPF Clients

• ReportViewer Control - Native report display
• PdfViewer Control - PDF rendering

Web HTML5 Clients

• PdfViewer Control - Browser-based viewing

Control Configuration

xml

<ReportViewer ReportName="ProductionReport" />
<PdfViewer Source="@Report.Form.DailyReport.FileName" />

Triggering Reports

Manual Generation

csharp

// Generate report on button click
@Report.Form.ProductionReport.Generate();

Scheduled Generation

Using SaveTrigger property:

csharp

// Trigger at shift change
@Tag.ShiftChange = 1;  // Triggers if SaveTrigger = Tag.ShiftChange

Script-Based

csharp

public void GenerateDailyReport()
{
    // Set report data
    @Tag.ReportDate = DateTime.Today;
    @Tag.TotalProduction = CalculateTotal();
    
    // Generate and save
    @Report.Form.DailyReport.Generate();
    @Report.Form.DailyReport.Save();
}

Headers and Footers

Header Template

Create standard header:

========================================
     ACME Corporation
     Production Report
     @Info.Date@ @Info.Time@
========================================

Footer Template

Standard footer:

----------------------------------------
Page @Page.Number@ of @Page.Total@
Generated by: @Client.UserName@
========================================

Linking Templates

1. Create header/footer forms
2. Reference in main report:
   • Header: Select header form
   • Footer: Select footer form

Padding Options

Security Configuration

EditSecurity

Control who can modify reports:

• Set user groups with edit rights
• Restrict runtime modifications
• Protect report templates

File Permissions

Ensure write access to:

• Report output directories
• Network shares
• Temporary folders

Best Practices Checklist 

• Use templates - Create reusable headers/footers
• Test paths - Verify file locations exist
• Handle errors - Check generation status
• Archive reports - Implement retention policy
• Validate data - Check tags before generation
• Schedule wisely - Avoid peak load times
• Monitor disk space - Clean old reports

Troubleshooting

Report not generating:

• Verify form configuration
• Check SaveTrigger conditions
• Confirm file path exists
• Review user permissions

Missing data:

• Check tag names
• Verify tag values populated
• Review timing of generation
• Confirm data availability

Format issues:

• Match SaveFormat to viewer
• Check padding settings
• Verify encoding (ASCII/Unicode)
• Review template formatting

File access errors:

• Check write permissions
• Verify network connectivity
• Close open report files
• Review antivirus settings

In this section...