Report Sudio : Layout Component References

Report Sudio : Layout Component References

This is in continuation with my previous article about the advantages of using Layout Component References. Creating and using Layout Component References is very easy. You create a report, let us call this the source report, that has all the components like Header items, Footer items that you would be frequently using across various reports. Name all the components in the reports.



In the target report, drag and drop the Layout Component Reference object. Choose the source report and the components you wish to use.



If you wish to override some of the objects pulled in then select the object and click on the "Overrides" property and choose the named sub-component that you wish to over-ride. For example, for some reports you would like a different Logo to be displayed. You can override the report title but continue to use the styles, fonts set for that table cell.

Templates vs Layout Component References

Often I have been asked if it is a best practice to create report templates and have developers use them for basing their reports. But instead I would suggest going with layout component references and using them in reports. Layout Component References offer a lot of advantages over the traditional Template approach. The references can be used as a base and can be over-ridden for particular report requirements. And any time there is a change to the layout component the reports will all reflect the changes unless the object has been over-ridden. This saves developers a lot of time making the changes across reports.

In my next article, I will touch base on creating and using Layout Component Objects.