The ColdFusion Report Builder creates and edits a special ColdFusion file with a .cfr extension. Unlike .cfm and .cfc files, .cfr files cannot be edited with a text editor, and the ColdFusion Report Builder must be used. .cfr files are report templates that may be used as is, or invoked from CFML code as needed (as will be explained below). NOTE The ColdFusion Report Builder is a Windows only utility. Reports created using the Report Builder can be processed by ColdFusion on any platform, and reports can be viewed on all platforms too. However, at this time reports can only be created on Windows machines. Report Builder FeaturesKey ColdFusion Report Builder features include:
Navigating The Report BuilderThe ColdFusion Report Builder screen looks a lot like other report writing tools that you may have used. The screen contains several sections that you should be aware of:
Creating A ReportTo create a new report, click on File, New to display the ColdFusion Report Builder Gallery dialog box. (This box will be displayed automatically if the Report Builder is started without clicking on a .cfr file). You will be presented with two options:
Whichever option is used, the first task will be to specify the SQL query columns to be used within the reports. This can be via an actual SQL statement (entered manually or created via the SQL Query Builder) or a list of column names manually specified in the Fields and Parameters panel. Once query column have been defined they can be used within the report. NOTE Embedded SQL is the default report SQL statement, and it can be overridden at runtime via <cfreport query="">. TIP It is only necessary to actually embed SQL within the .cfr file if you want to support direct execution of the .cfr file (as opposed to programmatic execution via <cfreport>). However, there is one big advantage of embedding SQL (regardless of the planned invocation method), previewing of the report from within the Report Builder is only possible if a default SQL statement exists. Editing A ReportTo edit an existing .cfr file, either double-click on it (from within Dreamweaver or Windows Explorer), or launch the Report Builder and select the .cfr file from the recent list (or simply browse to it and open). Report elements may be edited and modified as needed. To rerun the wizard that created the report (assuming that the wizard was in fact used), Report, Report Wizard For This Report. TIP It is generally not a good idea to rerun the wizard after you have made changes to a report. If you need access to the SQL Query Builder portion of the wizard, use Report, Report Query. If you need access to the report orientation, margins, columns, page sizes, and more, use Report, Report Properties. |