Exporting a Report as a Web Archive File (Report Builder)
The Web archive export option saves report data in HTML format. This export option can produce the following types of HTML: HTML 3.2, HTML 4.0, or MHTML. The export option can also produce fully formed HTML pages or fragments of HTML to embed in other HTML pages. All HTML is generated with UTF-8 encoding.
The Web Archive export option is the default export option for reports that are viewed in a browser. The default HTML type is HTML 4.0.
- To view the report data using HTML 4.0, open the report in Report Manager, a SharePoint Web part, or a report URL.
- To view the report data using HTML 3.2, you must reference the file on a report URL (for example, http://<webserver>/reportserver?%2fProduct%sfSales&rs:Command=Render&rs:Format=HTML3.2).
- To view the report data using MHTML, you can reference it using a report URL or select it from the list of export formats on the report toolbar.
HTML 4.0 reports conform to the HTML 4.0 and Cascading Style Sheets level 2 (CSS2) specifications, with some exceptions. HTML 3.2 reports conform to the HTML 3.2 specification, but some styles may be included to improve appearance. The HTML rendering extension supports the MIME Encapsulation of Aggregate HTML Documents (MHTML) standard. This rendering extension embeds resources such as images, documents, or other binary files as MIME structures within the report HTML, in a single file. The encoded resources within the report increase the size of the report, but embedding the resources is useful for computers that do not have access to resources stored on the report server or in another location. MHTML reports are also useful for embedding within e-mail messages, because all of the resources are included with the report.
Positioning of Items
The Web Archive export option builds a table in HTML to contain the items in each set of report items. Items are positioned within the table to preserve the layout of the report. If the set of report items contain only one report item, the report item is rendered without the table. All locations and item sizes are expressed in millimeters (mm). Differences in sizes and positions less than 0.2 mm are saved as 0 mm.
HTML does not support item overlap. If a report item overlaps another item, the items are arranged so that they do not overlap. This might result in items appearing on the page in different positions than you originally designed. In some cases, items may not appear to overlap but, in fact, do.
Pagination
The Web Archive export option saves report pages as separate HTML pages, also known as "sections," as follows:
- Page breaks will appear in exported tables and matrixes, if one of the following options is set in the report:
- Page breaks between groups and also break before first group.
- Page breaks between groups and also break after last group.
- Page breaks between groups and also break before first group and after last group.
- Items that begin above an item that contains a page break will appear on the page before the page break.
The Web Archive export option attempts to export all the page breaks within the report as described previously; however, items that have page breaks and that are contained within a table or matrix may also yield unpredictable results.
Any item placed next to an item with a page break is saved on the same page if the top of the item is above the bottom of the item with the last break. For example, a text box that is placed directly to the right of a table that has a page break at the end of the table will appear on the same page as the table. A text box that is placed to the right of and below the bottom of the same table appears at the end of the last page.
The Web Archive export option also inserts page breaks at the approximate height of the page as defined in the properties for the report. This is to prevent a large report with no page breaks from generating extremely large pages when exported and viewed in an HTML viewing application.
Exporting as an MHTML File
The Web archive export option can save reports in MHTML (MIME Encapsulation of Aggregate HTML Documents), also described as Web archive files. MHTML extends HTML to embed encoded objects, such as images, in the HTML document.
The Web archive export option can save MHTML as a fragment or as a full MHTML document. If the MHTML is a fragment, the HEAD, HTML, and BODY tags of the MHTML document are removed. Only the contents of the BODY tag are displayed. This is useful for embedding the MHTML in the HTML produced by another application.
To better understand how the Web archive export option saves the Report Definition Language (RDL) elements in a report as a Web archive file, you might want to learn more about the elements. For more information about RDL elements, see the Report Definition Language topic in SQL Server 2005 Books Online.
In This Section
| Topic | Description |
|---|---|
Report Item Behavior when Exporting as a Web Archive File (Report Builder) |
Describes how report items are saved by the Web Archive export option. |
Page Layout when Exporting as a Web Archive File (Report Builder) |
Describes how report layout and properties are saved by the Web Archive export option. |
See Also
Tasks
How to: Export a Report as a Different File Type (Report Builder)
Concepts
Exporting a Report as a Different File Type (Report Builder)
Design Considerations for Exporting a Report as a Different File Type (Report Builder)