WPF Report Viewer

The WPF Report Viewer is a Bold Reports® reporting component that embeds directly into WPF desktop applications to display SSRS, RDL, RDLC, and Bold Report Server reports. It lets you add full-featured report viewing to a XAML-based desktop application without building a separate web viewer or depending on a browser runtime.

This page introduces the WPF Report Viewer, its key capabilities, and where to go next to add it to your application, connect data, and customize the viewing experience.

What is the WPF Report Viewer?

The WPF Report Viewer is distributed as a native WPF control that you add to a XAML window or user control and reference through NuGet packages. It renders reports using a local processing engine, so you can display RDL and RDLC reports with or without connecting to SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS) or Bold Report Server. When a connection is configured, it can also retrieve and render reports published to SSRS, SharePoint, or Bold Report Server directly inside the desktop application.

Because it runs inside the WPF application process rather than a browser, the Report Viewer integrates with standard WPF patterns such as data binding, dependency properties, and routed events, making it straightforward to wire into existing desktop application architectures.

With the WPF Report Viewer, you can

  • Bind report data sources and parameters programmatically from your WPF application.
  • Render reports with drill-down, drill-through, hyperlinks, and interactive sorting.
  • Display reports with or without a connection to SSRS or Bold Report Server®.
  • Export reports to PDF, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Word, CSV, and HTML formats.

Key features

Interactive report rendering

  • Drill down and drill through navigation.
  • Hyperlinks and interactive sorting.
  • Explore report data without leaving the viewer.

Extensive customization

  • Customize each element of the Report Viewer.
  • Use exposed events to adjust how reports load, render, and respond to user actions.

Flexible data connectivity

  • Pull data from local data sources bound in code.
  • Connect to reports already published to SSRS, SharePoint, or Bold Report Server®.

Multi-format export and printing

  • Export to PDF, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Word, CSV, and HTML.
  • Print directly from the WPF application for offline distribution.

Common use cases

Embedding reports in line-of-business desktop applications

  • Add report viewing to internal WPF applications used by finance, operations, or field teams.
  • Skip standing up a separate reporting web application.

Working in offline or air-gapped environments

  • Display RDL and RDLC reports locally, without a live report-server connection.
  • Suits desktop deployments in restricted or disconnected networks.

Migrating existing SSRS-based desktop viewers

  • Replace or modernize legacy WPF report viewer implementations.
  • Keep existing RDL and RDLC report definitions intact.

Distributing exportable, printable reports

  • Give desktop application users a consistent way to review, export, and print reports.
  • Support daily reporting workflows.

Who should use this guide?

This guide is intended for:

  • .NET developers building or maintaining WPF desktop applications.
  • Teams adding SSRS, RDL, or RDLC report viewing to an existing desktop product.
  • Developers migrating a Syncfusion® Essential Studio WPF Report Viewer implementation to Bold Reports®.
  • Administrators evaluating how reports can be delivered inside a desktop application without a browser-based viewer.

Prerequisites

Before you begin:

  • A WPF application targeting a supported .NET Framework or .NET version.
  • Visual Studio with the WPF development workload installed.
  • The Bold Reports® WPF NuGet packages added to your project.
  • An RDL or RDLC report file, or access to reports published on SSRS, SharePoint, or Bold Report Server®, if you plan to connect to one of these sources.

No server installation is required to get started if you only need to view local RDL or RDLC reports.

Considerations and limitations

  • The Report Viewer does not support the RDL specification used by SQL Server 2000 and SQL Server 2005.
  • Connecting to SSRS, SharePoint, or Bold Report Server® requires valid credentials and network access to that server from the desktop application.
  • Some report item behaviors and shared data source credential handling have known limitations; review the dedicated limitations page before relying on advanced report features.

FAQ

Does the WPF Report Viewer require SSRS or Bold Report Server?

No. It can render RDL and RDLC reports locally without connecting to SSRS or Bold Report Server®. A server connection is only needed if you want to load reports already published there.

Can the WPF Report Viewer display both RDL and RDLC reports?

Yes. It supports both report formats, along with reports retrieved from SSRS, SharePoint, and Bold Report Server.

What export formats does the WPF Report Viewer support?

Reports can be exported to PDF, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Word, CSV, and HTML directly from the viewer.

Can I migrate an existing Syncfusion® Essential Studio Report Viewer to Bold Reports®?

Yes. Bold Reports® provides updated client and server-side assemblies to migrate an existing Syncfusion® Essential Studio WPF Report Viewer application.

Where do I install the NuGet packages needed for the WPF Report Viewer?

Configure the Bold Reporting NuGet feed and install the required packages as described in the NuGet packages page linked below.

Getting help

If you run into an issue while setting up or using the WPF Report Viewer, check the FAQ and limitations pages linked below first, since they cover many common integration questions. If you still need assistance, reach out through the Bold Reports® support portal with details about your application setup and the report you are trying to display.