Cache Refresh Options (Report Manager)

Article
05/24/2017

Use the Cache Refresh options page to create schedules for preloading the cache with temporary copies of data for a report or for a shared dataset. A refresh plan includes a schedule and the option to specify or override values for parameters. For a shared dataset, you cannot override values for parameters that are marked read-only. You can create and use more than one refresh plan as part of the refresh options page.

Default role assignments that enable you to add, delete, change, and view related reports and shared datasets for cache refresh plans are Content Manager, My Reports, and Publisher.

Note

This feature is not available in every edition of SQL Server. For a list of features that are supported by the editions of SQL Server, see Features Supported by the Editions of SQL Server 2014.

To open the Cache Refresh Plan properties page for a report or shared dataset

Open Report Manager, and locate the report or shared dataset for which you want to configure cache refresh plan properties.
Hover over the report or shared dataset, and click the drop-down arrow.
In the drop-down list, click Manage. The General properties page opens.
Click the Cache Refresh Plan tab.
To create a new cache plan, click New Cache Refresh Plan.

Note

You must enable and start the SQL Server Agent service to create a cache refresh plan.
To create a copy of a cache plan and then customize it, click New from Existing.

Cache Refresh Options

Delete
Deletes all of the currently selected refresh plans.

New from existing
This option is enabled when one and only one cache refresh plan is selected. This option will create a new refresh plan which is copied from the original plan. The cache refresh plan page opens pre-populated with details from the plan that was selected. You can then modify the refresh plan options and save the plan with a new description.

New cache refresh plan
Click to create a new refresh plan to be used in the current cache refresh options.

Edit
Select this option to edit the current refresh plan.

Cache Refresh Plan Options

Description
Specify a description for the cache refresh plan.

Item-specific schedule
Select this option to create a schedule that is used only by this item.

Configure
Click to open the Schedule page, which is used to specify frequency information.

For more information, see New Schedule: Edit Schedule Page (Report Manager).

Shared schedule
Select this option to select an existing schedule.

For more information, see Create, Modify, and Delete Schedules.

@< Parameter >
Specify one combination of parameter values. This section appears only if the current dataset or report has parameters.

See Specifying Parameters in the next section.

Use Default
Select this option to use the predefined default value for this parameter.

Specifying Parameters

To create a cache refresh plan, each report or shared dataset parameter must have a value. If the report or shared dataset item does not have a default value specified in the definition, you must specify a value. If a default value exists, you do not need to provide one here. If you do provide a value, the value overrides the default value.

To specify multiple combinations of parameter values, create a separate cache refresh plan for each combination.

Additions, changes, and deletions made to parameters on a report or shared dataset can affect the cache refresh plan. If you add a parameter with a default value for a report, remove a parameter, or change the data type or the read-only option for a shared dataset parameter, the changes take affect the next time the cache refresh plan is processed.

Shared Dataset Parameters

For a shared dataset, the following information is derived from the shared dataset definition:

Name Specifies the name of the query parameter.
Type Specifies the data type of the query parameter. Because this data type is unknown until the data provider processes the dataset query, data type validation cannot occur until the shared dataset is processed.
Nullable Specifies whether NULL is a valid value.
ReadOnly Specifies whether this parameter is marked read-only in the shared dataset definition. Read only parameters do not appear in the parameter list for cache refresh options and must have a default specified as part of the shared dataset definition.
DefaultValues Default values that have been specified in the shared dataset definition. Query parameters can be multivalued. To override the default values, type new values in the text box prompt areas.

If the shared dataset definition specifies the option Omit from query for a parameter, you do not need to provide a default value. This flag indicates that the dataset parameter is not used in the query. For example, the parameter appears in the shared dataset definition because it is a report parameter that is used in the dataset filter only.

To view or change dataset parameter options, you must edit the shared dataset definition. For more information, see Manage Shared Datasets.

Report Parameters

For a report, each parameter value must be valid before you can successfully create a cache refresh plan. You must type or select a default value for each report parameter. The value that you set overrides the default value that is defined for the report parameter on the report server.

Parameters must conform to the requirements specified in the parameter properties on the report server. For example, if the property AllowBlank is false for a report parameter, an empty string is not a valid value.

To view or change report parameter options, you must edit the report parameters in the report, or independently, on the report server. For more information, see Report Parameters Concept (Report Builder and SSRS).

Conditions that Cause a Cache Refresh Plan to be Inactive

The following conditions can cause a shared dataset or report cache refresh plan to become inactive.

The shared dataset cache or report cache option is disabled.
The required parameter values are not defined, not valid, or missing. All queries for a report must be valid before the report will be processed. For a report that has subreports, all dataset queries, including datasets for the subreport, are processed first. If any dataset cannot be successfully processed, the report cannot run.

Conditions that Cause a Cache Refresh Plan to be Reactivated

After a plan is inactive, do one of the following to trigger evaluation of a cache refresh plan:

Change an option for the plan.
Enable caching for a shared dataset or report that is associated with the refresh plan.
Clear or select the read-only option for a dataset query parameter associated with the refresh plan, and then save the new definition to the report server.

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