After the infrastructure is in place for reporting in Microsoft System Center 2012 Configuration Manager, there are a number of operations that you typically perform to manage reports and report subscriptions.

Use the following sections in this topic to help you manage the operations for reports and report subscriptions in your Configuration Manager hierarchy:

Manage Configuration Manager Reports

Configuration Manager provides over 400 predefined reports that help you gather, organize, and present information about users, hardware and software inventory, software updates, applications, site status, and other Configuration Manager operations in your organization. You can use the predefined reports as they are, or you can modify a report to meet your requirements. You can also create custom model-based and SQL-based reports to meet your requirements. Use the following sections to help you manage Configuration Manager reports.

Run a Configuration Manager Report

Reports in Configuration Manager are stored in SQL Server Reporting Services, and the data rendered in the report is retrieved from the Configuration Manager site database. You can access reports in the Configuration Manager console or by using Report Manager, which you access in a web browser. You can open reports on any computer that has access to the computer that is running SQL Server Reporting Services, and you must have sufficient rights to view the reports. When you run a report, the report title, description, and category are displayed in the language of the local operating system.

Note
In some non-English languages, characters may not appear correctly in reports. In this case, reports can be viewed using the web-based Report Manager or through the Remote Administrator Console.
Warning
To run reports, you must have Read rights for the Site permission and the Run Report permission that is configured for specific objects.
Note
Report Manager is a web-based report access and management tool that you use to administer a single report server instance on a remote location over an HTTP connection. You can use Report Manager for operational tasks, for example, to view reports, modify report properties, and manage associated report subscriptions. This topic provides the steps to view a report and modify report properties in Report Manager, but for more information about the other options that Report Manager provides, see Report Manager in SQL Server 2008 Books Online.

Use the following procedures to run a Configuration Manager report.

To run a report in the Configuration Manager console

To run a report in a web browser

Modify the Properties for a Configuration Manager Report

In the Configuration Manager console, you can view the properties for a report, such as the report name and description, but to change the properties, use Report Manager. Use the following procedure to modify the properties for a Configuration Manager report.

To modify report properties in Report Manager

Edit a Configuration Manager Report

When an existing Configuration Manager report does not retrieve the information that you have to have or does not provide the layout or design that you want, you can edit the report in Report Builder.

Note
You can also choose to clone an existing report by opening it for editing, and clicking Save As to save it as a new report.
Security Note
The user account must have Site Modify permission and Modify Report permissions on the specific objects associated with the report that you want to modify.
Important
When Configuration Manager is upgraded to a newer version, new reports overwrite the predefined reports. If you modify a predefined report, you must back up the report before you install the new version, and then restore the report in Reporting Services. If you are making significant changes to a predefined report, consider creating a new report instead. New reports that you create before you upgrade a site are not overwritten.

Use the following procedure to edit the properties for a Configuration Manager report.

To edit report properties

Create a Model-Based Report

A model-based report lets you interactively select the items you want to include in your report. For more information about creating custom report models, see Creating Custom Report Models in SQL Server Reporting Services.

Security Note
The user account must have Site Modify permission to create a new report. The user can only create a report in folders for which the user has Modify Report permissions.

Use the following procedure to create a model-based Configuration Manager report.

To create a model-based report

Create a SQL-Based Report

A SQL-based report lets you retrieve data that is based on a report SQL statement.

Important
When you create an SQL statement for a custom report, do not directly reference SQL Server tables. Instead, reference reporting SQL Server views (view names that start with v_) from the site database. Starting in Configuration Manager SP1, you can also reference public stored procedures (stored procedure names that start with sp_) from the site database.
Security Note
The user account must have Site Modify permission to create a new report. The user can only create a report in folders for which the user has Modify Report permissions.

Use the following procedure to create a SQL-based Configuration Manager report.

To create a SQL-based report

Manage Report Subscriptions

Report subscriptions in SQL Server Reporting Services let you configure the automatic delivery of specified reports by email or to a file share at scheduled intervals. Use the Create Subscription Wizard in System Center 2012 Configuration Manager to configure report subscriptions.

Create a Report Subscription to Deliver a Report to a File Share

When you create a report subscription to deliver a report to a file share, the report is copied in the specified format to the file share that you specify. You can subscribe to and request delivery for only one report at a time.

Unlike reports that are hosted and managed by a report server, reports that are delivered to a shared folder are static files. Interactive features that are defined for the report do not work for reports that are stored as files on the file system. Interaction features are represented as static elements. If the report includes charts, the default presentation is used. If the report links through to another report, the link is rendered as static text. If you want to retain interactive features in a delivered report, use email delivery instead. For more information about email delivery, see the Create a Report Subscription to Deliver a Report by Email later in the topic.

When you create a subscription that uses file share delivery, you must specify an existing folder as the destination folder. The report server does not create folders on the file system. The folder that you specify must be accessible over a network connection. When you specify the destination folder in a subscription, use a UNC path and do not include trailing backslashes in the folder path. For example, a valid UNC path for the destination folder is: \\<servername>\reportfiles\operations\2011.

Reports can be rendered in a variety of file formats, such as MHTML or Excel. To save the report in a specific file format, select that rendering format when creating your subscription. For example, choosing Excel saves the report as a Microsoft Excel file. Although you can select any supported rendering format, some formats work better than others when rendering to a file.

Use the following procedure to create a report subscription to deliver a report to a file share.

To create a report subscription to deliver a report to a file share

Create a Report Subscription to Deliver a Report by Email

When you create a report subscription to deliver a report by email, an email is sent to the recipients that you configure, and the report is included as an attachment. The report server does not validate email addresses or obtain email addresses from an email server. You must know in advance which email addresses you want to use. By default, you can email reports to any valid email account within or outside of your organization. You can select one or both of the following email delivery options:

  • Send a notification and a hyperlink to the generated report.

  • Send an embedded or attached report. The rendering format and browser determine whether the report is embedded or attached. If your browser supports HTML 4.0 and MHTML, and you select the MHTML (web archive) rendering format, the report is embedded as part of the message. All other rendering formats (CSV, PDF, Word, and so on) deliver reports as attachments. Reporting Services does not check the size of the attachment or message before sending the report. If the attachment or message exceeds the maximum limit allowed by your mail server, the report is not delivered.

Important
You must configure the email settings in Reporting Services for the Email delivery option to be available. For more information about configuring the email settings in Reporting Services, see Configuring a Report Server for Email Delivery in the SQL Server Books Online.

Use the following procedure to create a report subscription to deliver a report by using email.

To create a report subscription to deliver a report by email

See Also