Dashboards in Configuration Manager 2007 provide the ability to display multiple reports in a grid within a single Report Viewer page. Dashboards can be used with the reports included with Configuration Manager and any custom reports you have created, provided the reports do not use prompts. Dashboards are commonly used by administrators for the following tasks:
- Retrieving information about a variety of
topics.
- Comparing the results for related
reports.
- Grouping the most commonly used reports on a
single page.
- Grouping reports that show related types of
information about the hardware or software of managed
computers.
- Grouping reports that provide data for an
end-to-end process, such as the scan state, deployment evaluation
state, and deployment installation state for software updates.
Using Dashboards
Like reports, dashboards are managed in the Configuration Manager console, but they are viewed using Report Viewer. Configuration Manager dashboards can be viewed from any computer with access to a reporting point. Dashboards are not subject to Configuration Manager object security; however, users must have Read security rights to the reports that are displayed in a dashboard. When dashboards run, the following actions can be taken:
- Print the dashboard results.
- Add the dashboard to the list of
favorites.
- Open the individual reports in a separate
window.
- Open a target for an individual report in a
separate window.
Each report displayed in a dashboard has a link icon on the left side of the title bar. To display the individual report in a separate window of Report Viewer, click the icon. If a dashboard displays a report that has links, you can also click the link icons in that report to display the target in a separate window of Report Viewer. For more information, see About Report Links. You can configure individual reports to refresh automatically at a regular interval. This feature can be especially helpful for reports that you include in a dashboard.