Tablix report item in Bold Reports®
The Bold Reports® tablix report item displays paginated report data from a dataset in cells organized into rows and columns. It combines the Table, Matrix, and List report items (Table + Matrix + List = Tablix). You find the Tablix report items under the Data Regions category in the item panel of the Web Report Designer.
The following image shows the tablix items listed in the item panel.
Matrix report item is not provided as separate report item. The table report item can be used to create a matrix layout.
The following sections explain each of these report items.
What is the Table report item?
The Bold Reports® Table report item displays data in tabular format. A simple table design contains a table header row and a details row with three columns. A table can have only row groups.
What is the Matrix layout?
The Bold Reports® matrix layout displays summarized data. A matrix can have row groups and column groups. A simple matrix design contains a row group, a column group, a corner cell, and a data cell.
What is the List report item?
The Bold Reports® List report item creates free-form layouts. A list acts as a container where you place multiple report items side by side to design a free-form layout.
What are the tablix sections?
A Bold Reports® tablix data region has four sections:
- Corner cell - It is created when tablix data region has both row groups and column groups.
- Row group cells - Displays group instance values.
- Column group cells - Displays group instance values.
- Body cells - Displays detail and group data.
The following image shows the areas of a tablix region with nested row groups and column groups.
The tablix body area always exists in the tablix data region. The other areas are optional.
How do groups and totals appear in a tablix?
When you select a tablix cell in the Web Report Designer, row and column grippers and group indicators inside the tablix data region show the groups that the cell belongs to.
The following image shows a matrix with both row and column groups, a total row, and a total column.
Properties
The tablix properties in the Web Report Designer are set through the properties panel. Before you set the following properties, read the Properties panel section.
Data
The Data category of the tablix holds the Dataset, Filter, and Sort properties, as shown in the following image.
Dataset
The Dataset property assigns a dataset to the tablix. The Dataset property dropdown lists the available datasets in the report. Choose the dataset you want from the dropdown.
Each tablix report item can only show data from one dataset.
To add a dataset to your report, see the Create Data section.
Filter
The Filter property filters the data shown in the tablix. To open the Filter dialog, click the Set Filters... button. The filter dialog opens as shown in the following image.
To add or remove filters in the filter dialog, see the Filter Data section.
Sort
The Sort property sorts numeric or string fields in the tablix. You can apply sorting to the whole data region or to each group, including the details group. To open the sort dialog, click the Set Sorts... button. The sort dialog opens as shown in the following image.
To add or remove sort expressions in the sort dialog, see the Sort Data section.
Appearance
The tablix Appearance properties (border style, color, width, and background color) style the tablix and customize its look in the report design. You find these properties under the Appearance category in the properties panel.
Border
The Border properties add or customize the border around a tablix item to separate it visually in the report design. To set border properties in the properties panel, see the Border Properties section.
Background color
The Background color property colors the tablix background. To set the background color in the properties panel, see the Background color section.
Page break
The tablix Page Break property controls the amount of information on each page when you preview the report. Follow these steps to apply the page break property to a dynamic member.
The following image shows the Page Break property in the properties panel.
Choose any Break Location type in the dropdown.
To prevent predefined page breaks from being applied during report preview, enable the Break Disabled property checkbox. You can also control page breaks during report preview with expressions. To set and reset page breaks dynamically, see the Set Expression and Reset Expression sections.
To restart page numbering on each page, enable the Page Number Reset property checkbox.
Keep together
The Keep together checkbox keeps the entire tablix together on one page if possible. Enable it as shown in the following image.
Headers
The tablix Headers property configures how the row and column headers behave when you preview the report.
Fixed Row
The Fixed row property freezes the row headers while you scroll the pages of a report.
Fixed Column
The Fixed column property freezes the column headers while you scroll the pages of a report.
Repeat Row
The Repeat row property shows the row header on every page of the report.
Repeat Column
The Repeat column property shows the column header on every page of the report.
Position
The tablix Position property sets the width, height, left, and top position of the tablix in the report design. To set these properties in the properties panel, see the Position section.
No Rows
The tablix No Rows property displays static text when the dataset returns empty or zero rows at run time.
To set or reset the no data message properties, see the No Rows property section.
Data Element
The tablix Data element properties control the visibility of a report item when you export the report in XML format. The properties panel lists them under the Data Element category.
Name
The Name field assigns a custom name to the tablix element. The tablix is exported with the name you provide.
Note: The name cannot contain spaces, and it must begin with a letter followed by letters, numbers, or the underscore character (_).
Output
The Output property controls the visibility of the tablix when you export the report. Each option for the Output property performs the following operation:
- Auto or Output - Exports the tablix report item.
- NoOutput - Does not export the tablix report item.
Visibility
The tablix Visibility property conditionally shows or hides the tablix report item on report preview or export. To set the visibility of the tablix item in the properties panel, see the Visibility section.
Miscellaneous
The tablix Miscellaneous category holds the Page name, Custom attributes, Document Map, Bookmark, Custom Style, and Tooltip properties.
Page name
The Page name property names the first worksheet of the Excel workbook when you export the report to Excel format.
You can set static or dynamic text as the page name. To set and reset dynamic text, see the Set Expression and Reset Expression sections.
Custom attributes
The Custom attributes property sets the values for tablix custom properties. To create and assign values for custom properties in the properties panel, see the Custom Properties section.
Document Map
A document map is a navigational feature that displays a separate side pane with a set of navigational links in a hierarchical structure when you view a report. You click an item in the list to go to the report page that displays that item. To configure a document map in the report design, see the Document Map section.
You can set static or dynamic text as the value of the document map property. To set and reset dynamic text, see the Set Expression and Reset Expression sections.
Bookmark
Bookmark links let users navigate to different parts of an SSRS report. You can add bookmarks to each textbox, image, table, or chart, or to the unique group values displayed in a tablix, to direct users to specified locations in the report. The bookmark value can be your own string or an expression. To configure a bookmark in the report design, see the Bookmark section.
You can set static or dynamic text as the value of the bookmark property. To set and reset dynamic text, see the Set Expression and Reset Expression sections.
Custom Style
The Custom Style property lets you use external CSS to style report items, giving more flexibility than the built-in styling options. Use this property to meet specific design requirements and keep styling consistent across multiple reports. For a step-by-step guide to setting up custom styles in your report, see the How To section of this guide.
Tooltip
The Tooltip property displays informative text or a value when the user hovers over the report item in report preview. To set a tooltip for the table report item in the properties panel, see the Tooltip section.
How do I set an expression on a tablix property?
You can set an expression on some properties of the Bold Reports® tablix report item so that their values are processed from expressions. To set expressions on tablix properties, see the Set Expression section.
How do I reset an expression?
To Reset an expression applied to a tablix property in the Web Report Designer, see the Reset Expression section.
How do I use advanced properties?
Some properties of the Bold Reports® tablix report item contain nested properties. To open and handle nested properties, see the Advanced Properties section.
How do I design an RDL report using a table?
To learn how to design a simple tablix in your report with the Web Report Designer, see the Design ssrs RDL report using tablix section.
Frequently asked questions
Can a tablix show data from more than one dataset?
No. Each Bold Reports® tablix report item can only show data from one dataset.
Is there a separate Matrix report item?
No. The matrix report item is not provided as a separate report item. You use the table report item to create a matrix layout.