A report definition file (an RDL file) includes a set of layout instructions and a database query that gets report data when the file is executed by Reporting Services. RDL files are xml-based and are saved with the extension .rdl.
You can open a saved RDL file in Word and add OfficeWriter template information to it.
This section assumes that the RDL file being opened was created in Visual Studio and contains the following query:
To open the RDL:
If you go to Merge Fields, you will now see that the dataset is available in the DataSets drop-down and the fields from the query are available for use in the Designer. The fields can be added to the Word report as merge fields (data placeholders).
Since this report was designed in Visual Studio, the MS Query functions to Add, Edit, and Delete datasets are not available. They will only be enabled for reports that are created in the OfficeWriter Designer using MS Query. |
The next step is to design the report with the OfficeWriter Designer toolbar and regular Word functionality. We have several articles for how to develop reports with the OfficeWriter Designer in Word:
When you save the file, the OfficeWriter template information will be added to the RDL file. To save the template information to the RDL:
See Saving and Deploying your Report for more information.
Once the report has been deployed to the report server, you can view the report from within the OfficeWriter Designer by clicking View or going to Report Manager and exporting the report in the OfficeWriter for Word rendering option.
Download the .rdl file described in this section.