SUMMARY
Paginated reports are part of the Microsoft data platform and are a complementary product to Power BI reports. Originally known as SSRS reports (for SQL Server Reporting Services), paginated reports differ from Power BI in that they are less interactive and best suited for spreadsheet reporting or reporting that spans multiple pages, whereas Power BI reports tend to be highly interactive and utilize charts and maps, and are best suited for summarizing data in a single page. Despite the fact that paginated reports are an older product than Power BI, their pagination features give them a distinct advantage, and thus they remain a critical part of Davidson’s business intelligence portfolio.
Popular examples of paginated reports at Davidson include the Monthly Budget Report, Vendor Lookup report, and the class/adviser rosters that are accessed through Banner Self-Service.
AVAILABILITY
✓ Paginated reports can be shared either in the cloud via the Power BI Service (app.powerbi.com) or using Davidson’s on-premises report server (data.davidson.edu). The vast majority of Davidson’s paginated reports are hosted on the report server. Both platforms are friendly to macOS and Windows devices.
✓ Building paginated reports is done using a Windows app called “Report Builder,” which is a free download from Microsoft.
DESIGNED FOR
✓ Reporting
✓ Data analytics and visualization
✓ Business intelligence
SUPPORT
→ The T&I Data Management team provides support for paginated reports. Please submit a ticket to ti@davidson.edu if you want to access or have questions about any specific paginated reports.
FEATURES
✓ Paginated reports can be exported in several formats such as Excel and CSV, as well as print-friendly formats like PDF and Word.
✓ Paginated reports can be run on-demand or delivered via subscription service. With a subscription, a paginated report can be automatically delivered on a schedule to individuals or groups via email or file share.
✓ Some paginated reports can be embedded inside larger paginated reports. These smaller reports are known as “subreports.”
✓ Paginated reports can also be programmed to navigate from one to the other, sometimes passing parameters or variables between them. This is known as “drill through.”
DATA SECURITY
In the cloud, paginated reports are organized into workspaces, and each workspace is secured so it is only accessible to particular users. Workspace admins are limited to T&I employees only. Non-T&I users can have either Viewer permissions (read-only) or Contributor permissions (read and write) to one or more workspaces.
On the Power BI Report Server, reports are organized into folders. Access to these folders is governed by security groups which are created and maintained by the T&I department. For example, the ability to see the “Departmental Budget Reports” folder is determined by the user being a member of the corresponding security group. T&I admins have full control over folders and reports on the report server, and non-T&I users have read-only access.
RATES
Paginated reports are available free of charge when shared via Davidson’s report server.
When deployed to the cloud via the Power BI Service, paginated reports require a Power BI Pro license. Premium licenses are $2.10 per user per month, or $25.20 per user annually.
LEARN MORE
What are paginated reports in Power BI Premium? - Power BI | Microsoft Docs
A Step-by-Step Overview of Paginated Reports in Power BI (bluegranite.com)