Creating a Finished Report in VDM

Finished Reports allow you to create polished, presentation-ready reports from VDM View results.

Using the Finished Reports Designer, you can add grouping, labels, summaries, headers, footers, charts, and other report elements to control how the final report is presented.

Before You Begin

Before opening the Finished Reports Designer:

1. Create or open the View you want to use.
2. Save the View.
3. Run the View to generate the data used by the Finished Report.

Step 1: Open and Run the View

Open the View you want to use and select Run View.

Running the View makes the current data available to the Finished Reports Designer.

Step 2: Open the Finished Reports Designer

Open the Finished Reports Designer from the VDM interface.

Step 3: Add Grouping

If the report needs grouped sections, select Add a Group and choose the field you want to group by.

Repeat this process to create additional grouping levels as needed.

Tip: Rename group headers and footers when needed so they are easier to identify while designing the report.

Step 4: Add Fields and Labels

Drag fields from the Field List into the appropriate report bands.

Fields can be added to areas such as:

• Report Header
• Page Header
• Group Header
• Detail
• Group Footer
• Report Footer

You can also add report controls such as labels, images, and other elements from the Designer toolbox.

Step 5: Format and Align Report Elements

Select report elements to adjust their formatting and placement.

You can modify settings such as:

• Font
• Alignment
• Borders
• Padding
• Size
• Position

To select multiple report elements, hold Ctrl while selecting them.

You can also copy and paste report elements between bands when you want to reuse existing formatting.

Step 6: Add Report Headers and Footers

To add a Report Header or Report Footer, right-click in the Designer and add the required band.

• Report Header appears once at the beginning of the report.
• Report Footer appears once at the end of the report.

These bands are commonly used for report titles, introductory information, totals, or closing information.

Step 7: Add Column Headers and Summaries

Add labels for column headings and configure summary calculations where needed.

Finished Reports can display calculations such as:

• Sum
• Count
• Average
• Minimum
• Maximum

Summary values can be added at the group level or report level depending on where the control is placed.

Step 8: Save and Preview the Finished Report

After configuring the report:

1. Select Save.
2. Select Preview.
3. Review the layout, grouping, formatting, and summary values.
4. Return to the Designer and make any required changes.
5. Save the Finished Report again when complete.

The saved Finished Report can then be viewed, printed, exported, or used with other VDM reporting features.

Related Articles

• Understanding Finished Reports in VDM
• Choosing a Data Source in Finished Reports
• Creating Group and Report Level Totals in Finished Reports
• Group-Level Charting in Finished Reports
• Creating a Cross Tab in Finished Reports
• Adding Labels in Finished Reports