Do not use the Report Creation Wizards in the Crystal Reports application (except for adding any subreports). This is because the wizards produce new reports, rather than modify the current report. Instead, you use a series of ‘Expert’ windows that allow you to configure various features in your reports.
You should configure your primary reports using the Design tab of the Crystal Reports application. You can view the resulting report layout using the Preview tab (you will need to retrieve the ClearSCADA data in order to view the resulting report—see Decide Whether to Refresh Data or Use Saved Data). (If your reports include subreports, configure the ‘definition’ of each subreport using the relevant subreport tab. You can Use a Subreport to Include Unrelated Data in the Same Report.)
When configuring large or complex reports, or reports that query historic table(s), take care to adhere to the Important Guidelines on Configuring and Generating Reports. Inappropriately configured reports, especially complex reports, can affect system performance.
You can add static text, lines, charts, maps, pictures and so on, to your reports. You can use rulers, guidelines, and grids to help you to align the elements that you add to your reports. For information, see the documentation supplied with the Crystal Reports application.
To produce much of the report content within the Design tab, you add fields to your reports (typically by ‘dragging’ them from the Field Explorer Bar). For information on how to use fields to display ClearSCADA data, see Adding Fields and Data to a Report. For further information on configuring fields, see the documentation supplied with the Crystal Reports application.
In order to add the required information to your reports, you need to have an understanding of the ClearSCADA database structure, and an appreciation of the naming conventions used for ClearSCADA database tables and fields (see Working with ClearSCADA Database Tables).
To update a report in the ClearSCADA database, ViewX has to remain running while the report is being edited in the Crystal Reports application. As each report has to be saved using its original file name, we advise that you use the Crystal Reports’ Save, rather than the Save As option, to store your reports.
For further information and examples on using reports to display ClearSCADA data, see as appropriate: