How to Create Crystal Reports in Visual Studio.Net from Scratch! Part 1

Crystal Reports is a software that is used commercially to design and generate reports from a wide range of data sources. This reports have been used in other applications, including Microsoft Visual Studio, at one time bundled an OEM version of Crystal Reports as a general purpose reporting tool.

 

Crystal Reports allows users to graphically design data connection(s) and report layout.

In the Database Expert, users can select and link tables from a wide variety of data sources, including MS Excel spreadsheets, Oracle databases, Business Objects Enterprise business views, and local file system information

Database supported by Crystal reports are as follows:

  • Databases such as PostgreSQL, Sybase, IBM DB2, Ingres, Microsoft Access, Microsoft SQL Server, MySQL, Interbase and Oracle
  • Btrieve
  • Spreadsheets such as Microsoft Excel
  • Text files
  • HTML XML files
  • Groupware applications as Lotus Notes, Microsoft Exchange and Novell GroupWise
  • SAP: BW, Info Sets, Tables, and Business Objects Universes
  • Any other data source accessible through a web service, ODBC, JDBC or OLAP.