Great Plains Reports - how to create and typical design tools - Alba Spectrum

osoft Dynamics GP reporting is essential part of GPimplementation and post production ERP support. As for typical mid-size MRPapplication, you should expect multiple reporting tools, especially if you thinkabout reports genre: financial reporting, business processes specific reports, etc. Also, when Microsoft incorporated MS SQL Server Reporting Services or SRS and kindof recommended it over former tool of the choice Crystal Reports, you should doyour homework on selecting reporting tool which will do proposed and expected job. In this article we would like to review major reporting tools for Microsoft GreatPlains and give you orientation session:1. Great Plains ReportWriter or RW. This tool is incorporated into GP Dexterityenvironment, meaning that it works from the GP user interface and within GreatPlains security realm. RW is the tools you should look at first when you arecustomizing something which you call from GP interface: Sales Order Processinginvoice form, for example. Do not expect too much from Report Writer, as it hasnumerous restrictions: it can work from existing GP screens only where parametersets are predefined by GP existing standard logic. If you would like to createcustom reports in RW and call it from GP interface with custom parameter selectionform, you will have to create GP Dexterity customization and call your report fromthere2. Crystal Reports and SRS. These two report design tools are competing on themarket and in some features similar. When you base you GP reporting logic in SQLStored Procedures, the final report printing could be done with the same successfrom CR and SRS, so it probably the question which tool is the most comfortable foryou from your skills and experience. The advantage of SRS and CR is the following you can create really cross-modules and all-nightly report. You should alsoconsider comparing stored proc over SQL view, stored procedure allows you to submitparameters and create temporary tables in your SQL script code these are what youcan not do in the SQL views. However if you are looking in the creation of purefinancial reports: Profit & Loss Statement, Balance Sheet and Cash Flow you needto keep reading3. FRx. FRX Report Designer advantage over Crystal and SRS is the connection toGeneral Ledger GP interface. In FRx you can also cross company boundaries andcreate consolidated report. FRx allows you to create so called reporting trees,where you can create report by specific GP segments in multiple companies. Plus,FRx give you the link to Excel worksheet, where you have something like small branchaccounting data, which you would like to see consolidated with corporate incomestatement4. Microsoft Excel reporting options. Imagine that you recognize the fact that mostof your people in Accounting department trust to MS Excel only and do not followcorporate procedures to use complex tools, such as MS Outlook or even Microsoft CRM. In GP you can easily export data to Excel from Smart List or more advanced tool Smart List Builder, where you can create views based you custom SQL expressions5. SQL Select statement. If your reporting and data mining and discovery needs arechanging every day, and creation of permanent Crystal Reports is not feasible, andif you have decent SQL programmer and developer in staff, you should consider ad-hocSQL scripting with export to Excel to produce required reports. You should beaware, that if your managers require you to build data warehouses on the dailybasis, then you should implement SQL Analytical Services with Excel Pivoting tablesor Cognos6. Microsoft Access Reporting option. If your IT people expertise covers MS Access,consider using ODBC connection to GP database and use Access Reports7. MS Visual Studio.Net custom programming reports. If you have strong C# and VBdevelopers, you should consider training them in eConnect and then they should becapable to build web reporting applications. In the case if you would like toextend eConnect logic with direct access to GP tables, please review GP tablesstructure Microsoft Dynamics GP->Tools->Resource Description->Tables8. Archaic DB platforms. If you are still on GP 7.5 and earlier, you may be usingPervasive SQL Server 2000 or Ctree/Faircom. If this is your case, you have to useone of the following tools: MS Access, Crystal Reports (where you are restricted toODBC driver limitations to cross GP modules restrictions), or GP Dexteritycustomization. Also if you are on old version you should consider upgrade if youbusiness is in active mode current version of GP is 10.0 and you have to use GPmigration tool to MS SQL Server version9. Cross-Platform Reporting. Here we recommend you to review first MS SQL Serverlinked server concept, also you can consider similar tools from Oracle EDI.10. Generic ERP reporting. If you are on PeopleSoft, Oracle EBusiness Suite,Peachtree, MYOB. Then reporting tool requires homeworkAndrew Karasev, Alba Spectrum Group, http://www.albaspectrum.comhe lp@albaspectrum.com 1-866-528-0577, 1-630-961-5918. Serving GP customers inIllinois, Texas, California, Florida, Wisconsin, New York, Michigan and USA andCanada nation wide via remote support. Our service is popular in USA country side,where you do not expect local consultants to be available and we cover the wholecountry with travel onside with initial user training then we typically save yourbudget by convenient remote support, as we already are familiar with your key IT andaccounting personnel. Local service is available in Chicago, Houston, Naperville,Oakbrook, Wheaton, Joliet, Plainfield, Aurora, Elgin, Springfield, Morris, Ottawa,LaSalle, Channahon, Brookfield, Villa Park, Downers Grove, Lisle, Hinsdale,Lincolnwood, Zion, Kankakee, Braidwood, Niles.

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