sql server reporting services free edition

08 April 2019

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• Reporting Services Basics: Overview and Installation

SQL Server Reporting Services has changed quite a bit since it was introduced in 2004. Despite new analytic services like Power BI, SSRS is still a popular tool for paginated reports. In this article, Kathi Kellenberger explains the architecture of SSRS and walks you through installing an SSRS development environment on your workstation or laptop.

The series so far:

• Reporting Services Basics: Creating Your First Report
• Reporting Services Basics: Data Sources and Datasets
• Reporting Services Basics: Parameters
• Reporting Services Basics: Adding Groups to Reports

SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS) is a server-based reporting platform that allows you to create and manage a wide variety of different types of reports and deliver them in a range of formats. You can create basic reports containing tables and graphs, or more complex data visualizations, using charts, maps and sparklines. You can even create dashboards that will run on your phone! Reports can draw their data from SQL Server databases, but also from other relational database such as Oracle or Azure SQL Database, and other types of data sources such as Analysis Services.

You can present your finished reports from the Reporting Services website typically running on premises, called the Web Portal, or users can view them within web- or Windows-based applications. Reports can also be viewed in SharePoint with a special webpart. (In earlier versions of SSRS, there was also a SharePoint integrated mode.) End users can run reports on demand or schedule them as subscriptions. This article is the first in a series that will provide in-depth coverage of the basics of report development with SSRS.

The report development examples in this series will work for SSRS 2017 and later. Many of the examples will also work for earlier versions. If you are still using SSRS 2005, please refer to Steve Joubert’s original SSRS series . If you are working with 2008 to 2012, look at the series I wrote a few years ago.

SSRS Through the Ages

SSRS has been around since 2004, first shipping as an “add-on” for SQL Server 2000, and then fully integrated into SQL Server 2005. I first saw it demonstrated at the 2003 PASS Summit and had the Beta version installed and running at work as soon as I could get my hands on the media. Back in 2003, the SQL Server community were very excited about SSRS as it made available, for the first time, built-in reporting capabilities for SQL Server. If you owned SQL Server, you owned SSRS.

Since its integration into SQL Server 2005, Microsoft has made a number of improvements over the years and gave it a complete overhaul in 2016. One big change in 2016 was the renaming of the website from Report Manager to Web Portal. In 2017, SharePoint integrated mode was discontinued, but a special version for hosting Power BI dashboards called Power BI Reporting Services became available.

SSRS Architecture

An SSRS deployment must be associated with a SQL Server instance. On the instance will be two databases, named by default:

ReportServer – contains the report definitions, configuration, history, security of deployed reports and more

ReportServerTempdb – much like tempdb, it is used as a workspace for building reports and doesn’t maintain any objects permanently.

You will also need a location for the Report Server Web Service , which can be on the same server as the databases, as in the simple deployment architecture shown in Figure 1, or on a different server. On whichever server you choose, you will have access to the Web Portal that allows you to deploy and manage the reports. The data sources will typically be found on other servers throughout the network. End users can run reports from the Web Portal, create subscriptions, and publish their own reports if they have permission.

Figure 1: A simple SSRS deployment

The end user sends an HTTP request for a report, providing any required parameters. The SSRS server finds the metadata of the report and sends a request for data to the data sources. The data returned by the data sources is merged with the report definition into a report. As the report is generated, it is returned to the client. There are two layers of security to get past before viewing the report.

SSRS Security

You have many options for securing the reports. The first layer of security is built into the Web Portal. You can control access to folders and individual reports based on network groups or user accounts. The second layer of security is to the database. You can either base the security on the individuals running the report or store an account within the data source that can be passed on to the database system. Security will be covered in more detail in a later article on deploying reports.

Tools for Building SSRS Reports

SSRS reports are XML files with the extension RDL. If you were a robot instead of a human, you might be able to just create the RDL files with a text editor. Instead, there are a number of tools from Microsoft for building reports that can be hosted in the SSRS Web Portal depending on the type of report and who is building the report.

Traditional SSRS reports, which also might be called paginated reports, can be build using an extension for Visual Studio (VS) or Report Builder. Developers will be more comfortable working in the VS environment. VS is based on a solution/project model and integrates with version control software such as Azure DevOps formerly known as Visual Studio Team Services. This is the tool you will use for this series of articles.

Report Builder is meant more for power users to create their own reports, but developers in some shops use this tool in place of VS. Instead of a project model, each report is independently created. One advantage of Report Builder is that it has an Office look and feel which makes it more comfortable for non-developers to use. It also has more wizards to help beginners get started. Users of Report Builder can take advantage of published report parts to make building a dashboard simple. Figure 2 shows what Report Builder looks like when it’s launched:

Figure 2: Report Builder

A new type of report available with SSRS 2016 is called Mobile Reports. Mobile Reports must be created with the Mobile Report Publisher which is launched from the Web Portal. These reports are dashboards which can run on phones and tablets as well as the Web Portal. (If you are a previous developer or user of Datazen reports, these will look familiar to you as Microsoft acquired the company and brought the technology into SSRS). Figure 3 shows what the Mobile Report Publisher looks like:

Figure 3: Mobile Report Publisher

Power BI dashboards can also run in a special type of SSRS Web Portal called Power BI Report Server. The tool for creating Power BI dashboards is called Power BI Desktop. Power BI is out of scope for this series, but if you would like to learn more about this topic, take a look at the article series written by Robert Sheldon.

Installing and Configuring SQL Server and Reporting Services

Since this series is focused on report development, it will cover just enough about installation and configuration to help you get things set up on your development computer. This section is not intended to provide information for installing SQL Server or SSRS in a production environment. 

To follow along with this series of articles, you will need to install the following:

• A SQL Server instance
• SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS)
• Visual Studio (SSDT with VS 2017 or an extension with VS 2019)
• Report Server 2017 

You should be running a Windows 10 computer, making sure that there is at least 50 GB free on the hard drive. You will also need to restore the AdventureWorks sample database to follow along with the examples.

At the time of this writing, SQL Server 2019 is available as a Community Technology Preview (CTP), which is a fancy way of saying Beta version. The following instructions are based on SQL Server 2017, the latest generally available version. One big change made in the installation of SSRS in 2017 is that the SSRS media must be downloaded and installed separately.

SQL Server Instance Installation

If you already have a SQL Server instance in place, version 2008 or later, you can skip this section. The instance is used to host the two databases used by SSRS and the sample databases used in the examples.

To install the SQL Server instance, you will need to first download the media. I will not provide a link here, because invariably it will change, so just search for “SQL Server 2017 downloads.” The page that was current as of this writing had links for a free trial and for a Developer Edition shown in Figure 4. Choose the Developer edition and save the downloaded file.

Figure 4: The SQL Server media download page

I’m not going to show you every step of installing SQL Server because that information can be found elsewhere. Here are the important things to note:

• The page mentioned above allows you to download the actual media. Do that first.
• Once you have downloaded the media, run setup.exe to launch the SQL Server Installation Center . You’ll need to click New SQL Server stand-alone installation on the Installation page shown on Figure 5.

Figure 5: Launch the installation

Make sure to choose the Developer Edition shown in Figure 6.

Figure 6: The Developer edition

The only instance feature you will need for learning SSRS is the Database Engine Services shown in Figure 7.

Figure 7: Features

To make things simpler, just install the Default instance shown in Figure 8. If you have already installed an instance, you’ll see it listed. If that’s the case, you may want to just cancel out of the wizard at this point and use the previously installed instance.

Figure 8: Install the Default instance

Be sure to click Add current user to make your account an administrator. You may also want to set the security to Mixed mode . Figure 9 shows these options.

Figure 9: Security settings

Review the summary shown in Figure 10 and go make yourself a cup or coffee or tea after clicking Install because it could take 10 or 20 minutes for the installation to run.

Figure 10: The Summary

Figure 11 shows that the installation was a success!

Figure 11: Success!

SSMS Installation

SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) is the tool you will use to connect to the SQL Server instance to restore the sample databases and run queries. If you already have this tool in place, you can skip to the next section.

Microsoft is now releasing new versions of SSMS on a frequent basis, so it is no longer installed during the database engine installation. You can search for “SSMS download” to find the latest version. You can also find a link on the Installation page of the SQL Server 2017 Installation Center, if you used this to install your instance. You can launch it again from the Windows Start menu. Figure 12 shows where you can find the link.

Figure 12: Launching the download page for SSMS

Once you have downloaded the media for SSMS, just run the installation wizard accepting the defaults.

SSRS Service Installation and Configuration

Previous versions of SQL Server allowed you to include SSRS during the installation of the database engine, but that is no longer the case beginning with 2017. Installing them together was quite convenient since the installation took care of the SSRS configuration for you automatically. Now, you must download the media separately and configure SSRS yourself. It’s not difficult, but I’ll walk you through the steps.

Begin by searching for “Download SSRS” or you can also find a link to the download page from the SQL Server 2017 Installation Center shown in Figure 13.

Figure 13: A link to the download page for SSRS

Save and run the downloaded file. To get the installation started, click Install Reporting Services shown in Figure 14.

Figure 14: Install Reporting Services

Click through the installation wizard. The most important question for you to answer is to specify the edition. Make sure that you select the Developer edition.

Once the installation is complete, you’ll be asked to configure the report server. If you are required to restart, do that first. After you restart, you will need to launch the Report Server Configuration Manager. You can do this from the item found in the Windows Start menu or from the final page of the SSRS installation shown in Figure 15 if you didn’t have to restart.

Figure 15: The final page of the SSRS installation wizard

Either way you launch Report Server Configuration Manager, you will need to connect as shown in Figure 16.

Figure 16: Connect to SSRS

There are three items that must be set up when configuring SSRS just to get it running:

• Web Service URL
• Web Portal URL

Click Database on the left menu. Click Change Database shown in Figure 17.

Figure 17: Click Change Database

This will launch the Report Server Database Configuration Wizard . Leave Create a new report server database selected and click Next as shown in Figure 18.

Figure 18: Create a new database

On the following screen, make sure that the local computer name is filled in. If you are using a named instance, then the Server Name will be computer\instance . If you’re not sure, take a look at the “Connecting to Your SQL Server Instance” section later in this article. Leave the Authentication type set at Current User – Integrated Security and click Next as shown in Figure 19.

Figure 19: The server name

On the next page, you will specify the SSRS database name. The default database name is ReportServer . Figure 20 shows that you can leave it at the default and click Next .

Figure 20: The database name

Leave the Authentication Type set at Service Credentials and click Next as shown in Figure 21.

Figure 21: The authentication type

That’s the last question you’ll be asked about the database. Complete the wizard to create the database. Once the database is in place, click Web Service URL .

Leave the defaults in place and click Apply as shown in Figure 22.

Figure 22: The Web Service URL

Click Web Portal URL . Again, leave the defaults in place and click Apply as shown in Figure 23.

Figure 23: The Web Portal URL

Make a note of the URL. This is what you’ll use to connect to the Web Portal after deploying reports. Once done, exit out of the Report Server Configuration Manager. Now that the SSRS service is in place, the next step is installing the development tool.

Installing in Visual Studio

NOTE: At this time, you can install in one step with VS 2017 using SSDT. If you have VS 2019 installed, add the SSRS extension. The instructions in this section cover the 2017 instructions.

You’ll use the SSRS extension for VS to develop reports, and this is the last item to install. You can search for “SSDT Download” or launch the page from the SQL Server 2017 Installation Center shown in Figure 24.

Figure 24: The link to the SSDT download

You will need to scroll down the web page to find the link for SSDT standalone installer as shown in Figure 25.

Figure 25: The SSDT installer

Once downloaded, run the file. Make sure that SQL Server Reporting Services is selected and click Install as shown in Figure 26.

Figure 26: Install SSDT

Accept any other defaults and complete the installation.

Connecting to Your SQL Server Instance

You may have trouble connecting to your local SQL Server instance for a couple of reasons. First, you may not know the actual server name needed to connect to it, especially if you have installed a named instance. The other problem may be that it’s just not running. I’ve seen that happen quite often with laptops.

To solve both problems, launch SQL Server Configuration Manager . You may find it in the SQL Server programs section of the Windows Start menu. If not, take a look at this post for more information. With this tool, you can see the instance name as well as start up an instance that isn’t running. Click SQL Server Services and take a look at the items on the right as shown in Figure 27.

Figure 27: The SQL Server Configuration Manager

Default instances are called SQL Server (MSQLSERVER) . When connecting to the default instance locally, you just need the computer name or an equivalent:

• . (That’s just a period!)

If you see something else in parentheses after the words SQL Server, that’s a named instance. To connect to a named instance, you’ll need the computer name followed by a backslash and the instance name. Here are some examples assuming that my computer is called MyComputerName :

• MyComputerName\SQL2017
• Localhost\SQL2017
• (local)\SQL2017

Notice in the previous image that the default instance is stopped. Just right-click the instance and choose Start to get it running.

Now that you know the name of your SQL Server and have ensured that it’s running, launch SSMS and connect to it as shown in Figure 28.

Figure 28: Connect to the SQL Server

You’ll see the SQL Server and several folders in the Object Explorer window shown in Figure 29.

Figure 29: The Object Explorer

Restoring a Sample Database

To follow along with the examples in this series of articles, you’ll need to restore one or more sample databases. The main database that will be used for the examples is called AdventureWorks2017 . At the time of this writing, Microsoft is hosting the sample databases on GitHub, a well-known software repository site. Search for the AdventureWork2017.bak file. A bak file is a backup file, and that’s what you need. Figure 30 shows the download page.

Figure 30: Download AdventureWorks

Do not download the file to your Desktop , Documents , or Downloads file. Since SQL Server is running under an identity that is not you, it can’t see files in those locations. I recommend just downloading to a file in your C:\ drive such as C:\Temp .

Follow these steps to restore the database:

Connect to the SQL Server instance by launching SSMS and connecting to it. If you have trouble, review the “Connecting to Your SQL Server Instance” section.

Right-click on the Databases folder and select Restore Database… as shown in Figure 31.

Figure 31: Choose Restore Database

Select Device and click the ellipses as shown in Figure 32.

Figure 32: Click the elipses.

This brings up the Select backup devices window. Click Add shown in Figure 33.

Figure 33. Click Add

Navigate to the folder where the bak file is stored as shown in Figure 34.

Figure 34: Navigate to the backup file

Select the file and click OK . You’ll click OK two more times to fire off the restore.

Once the database has been restored, you’ll see the message shown in Figure 35. Click OK two more times to dismiss the dialogs.

Figure 35: A successful restore

If you have followed the instructions in this article, you now have a development environment for SSRS set up on your workstation or laptop. In the next article, I’ll show you how to create some basic reports.

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Kathi Kellenberger

Kathi Kellenberger is a Customer Success Engineer at Redgate and a Microsoft Data Platform MVP. She has worked with SQL Server for over 20 years and has authored, co-authored, or tech edited more than 20 technical books. Kathi is a volunteer at LaunchCode, the St. Louis based organization providing free training and paid apprenticeships in technology. When Kathi isn’t working she enjoys spending time with family and friends, cycling, singing, and climbing the stairs of tall buildings. Be sure to check out her courses on Pluralsight .

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Installing SQL Server Reporting Services 2017

By: Rajendra Gupta   |   Comments (15)   |   Related: > Reporting Services Installation

SQL Server 2017 has just been released and with most releases there are changes that you need to be aware of. One of the changes in SQL Server 2017 is that the SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS) installation is not part of the regular SQL Server installation. In this tip, we will explore how to install and configure SSRS in SQL Server 2017.

SQL Server 2017 was released in October and contains many new enhancements over previous SQL Server versions. Up until SQL Server 2016, SSRS installation was part of the regular SQL Server installation where we have to select Reporting Services from the feature pane, and then install and configure SSRS.

With SQL Server 2017, when we launch the SQL Server setup from the media, the SQL Server Installation Center provides a separate option: Install SQL Server Reporting Services . This is basically a hyperlink that launches a download page that provides a link to install SQL Server Reporting Services.

If we go through the normal SQL Server installation by clicking on New SQL Server stand-alone installation or add features to an existing installation , we can see below that Reporting Services is not included in the list of instance features .  But there is a link above the Instance Features Looking for Reporting Services? Download it from the web.

Once we click on the link, it takes us to the download page for SQL Server Reporting Services as shown below.

This downloads SQLServerReportingServices.exe which is a very small installation setup for SSRS.

This SSRS 2017 installer is small and easier to complete than previous SQL Server versions. If we already have a SQL Server database engine installed, we can simply download and install Reporting Services in just a few minutes. This installer is specific to Reporting Services, so it allows you to install the latest version of Reporting Services without impacting other SQL Server database features.

Installation of SQL Server 2017 Reporting Services

Once we have downloaded SQLServerReportingServices.exe , begin the install process by clicking on the setup file. This launches the setup process as shown below.

This setup shows the release version of SQL Server Reporting Services. For example, above you can see Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services (October 2017) .

When the install starts, we have an option to choose an edition to install from the drop down list.

From this list, we can select the edition as:

• Evaluation (expires in 180 days)

To run SSRS 2017 in production, we need to enter the SQL Server 2017 product key during setup. To do so, click on Enter the product key.

For my installation, I have selected the evaluation edition. Clicking on Next takes you to review and accept the license terms.

Click on Next after accepting the license terms. The next screen shows that you will need a database engine instance on this or separate server for the report server database. Since this is lightweight installation for SSRS only, it will only install Reporting Services.

It also contains a link to check supported database engine versions and editions. Click on Next to specify an install location. By default, it will be in C:\Program Files\Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services.

Click on Next to start the SQL Server Reporting Services installation, this is very quick.

Once setup is complete, it installs all the necessary installation files for Reporting Services and gives the option to configure the report server manually. This basically launches the Report Server Configuration Manager.

SQL Server Reporting Services 2017 Configuration

Once we have installed SQL Server Reporting Services, we need to configure the report server. Clicking on configure report server, launches the Report Server Configuration Manager to connect to a specific SSRS instance. One thing to note is that the Report Server instance name shows as SSRS while in the previous version it shows as RSServer.

Once we have connected to SSRS instance, we can see a basic summary page that shows the Reporting Service Instance ID, Edition, Product Version, Report Service Status, etc. The Report Server database name and Report server mode show as blank since no configuration has been completed yet.

To configure the report server database, click on Database from the left.

Click on Change Database to configure it. It opens the Report Server Database Configuration Wizard .

I want to setup a new report server database, so click on create a new report server database. If we want to use an existing database, select choose an existing report server database.

We need to provide the Server Name, Authentication Type (Windows/SQL) and credentials in case of SQL authentication and then click on Test Connection to check the connection status.

Click on Next and enter a database name and select the language to use for running SQL scripts.

On the next page, specify the credentials of an existing account that the report server will use to connect to the report server database.

The next page shows the summary of the Report Server Database Configuration Wizard. Verify the configuration and click on Next to start the configuration.

Once all steps are completed successfully, it restarts the Reporting Service.

This is what the Report Server Configuration Manager looks like after configuration.

Now that the database configuration is complete, we need to configure a URL used to access the report server. To do so, click on Web Service URL from the left menu.

Specify the Report Server Web Service Virtual Directory name and click on Apply . By default, the Report Server web service virtual directory name is ReportServer.

This applies the configuration by creating a virtual directory and restarts Reporting Services as shown in the results section above.

Similarly, we need to configure a URL to access Web Portal URL. To do so, click on Web Portal URL from the left hand menu and specify the virtual directory name and click Apply to accept the changes.

Now SQL Server Reporting Service configuration is complete and we can configure and publish SSRS reports.

Facts about SQL Server Reporting Services 2017

The SQL Server Configuration Manager is used to manage services related to SQL Server (i.e. Database Engine, Analysis Services, Integration Services, etc.). Prior to SQL Server 2016, Reporting Services also used to be managed from here as well as from the Reporting Services Configuration Manager. In SQL Server 2017, Reporting Services is not part of the SQL Server Configuration Manager.

However, we can find it in the Services if we run services.msc .

SSRS 2017 is now completely separate from the SQL Server directory as well. Previously, the Reporting Services directory used to be in C:\Program Files\Microsoft SQL Server\MSRS13.SQL2016\Reporting Services. Now it is C:\Program Files\Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services.

• Download and install SQL Server Management Studio v17.3
• SQL Server 2017 officially launched on October 2, 2017. Check out the SQL Server 2017 Release notes
• Explore What's new in SQL Server 2017
• Read more SQL Server 2017 tips
• Explore Business intelligent tips
• Read more about the Report Server Database

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SQL Server Express and Reporting Services

I'm a fan of SQL Server Express edition. It's a fabulously functional free database that lets you work with up to 10GB of data per database. One aspect that's commonly misunderstood though, is that it also supports a limited version of SQL Server Reporting Services.

There are many scenarios where Express edition is the perfect fit. The Microsoft sales and marketing teams have had an ongoing strange relationship with Express edition because it's free. Much of the documentation tried to suggest that it was for hobbyists, and para-professionals. But Express edition has a great role to play in professional systems too. For example, if you needed a small database to run on a series of point of sale devices, it could well be the right answer, particularly if it's then connected to one of the higher editions as a central SQL Server system.

I used to use it many years ago as an easy way to provide a system test system for clients using one of our applications. That allowed them to get established quickly without SQL Server licensing. When they had been using it for a while, and their databases grew in size, that was the easiest upgrade you'd ever convince customers to do.

What wasn't understood well early on, is that reporting was also needed. I remember arguing passionately about why Express edition needed to include some form of Reporting Services. The marketing teams didn't at first understand that if a software house needed a reporting solution, they weren't going to use something different on Express to what they used on other editions. They'd simply use a different reporting tool where they only had to write the code once.

Express edition regularly helped us to sell paid SQL Server licenses.

Fortunately, the teams eventually saw the light on this one, and a version of Express with Advanced Services was released. It included a limited form of Reporting Services. It was perfectly functional, but didn't allow you to report on any data, except from the Express edition it was running from. (This avoided Microsoft providing a free reporting tool for the world). I thought that was a great option.

So where it is now?

Lately though, I've been asked where Reporting Services for Express went. It's not in that Advanced Services option any more. Other good things are, like full text, but not Reporting Services.

The reason for that, is that since SQL Server 2016, Reporting Services has become a separate install. It's not directly bundled with SQL Server. And that applies to Express edition as well.

You need to install Reporting Services separately. It still understands deployment against Express edition.

You'll find details of installing it here .

One thing to note, is that since the 2016 change, multiple instances of Reporting Services on a single machine are not supported.  (You could do that previously).

Isn't it all about Power BI now?

Power BI is outstanding, but there are many scenarios where Reporting Services is still the best tool. Standard reports from Express edition is a great example.

If you need to learn more about Reporting Services, we've got a course to help you learn to use it properly. You'll find details of it, and our other courses, here: https://training.sqldownunder.com .

4 thoughts on “SQL Server Express and Reporting Services”

Very helpful. Thanks for sharing.

You are most welcome

Greg, thanks for the information. Do you know if Reporting Services has any cost associated with it?

Hi John, for Express, Reporting Services is free but it is limited to only reporting on data in Express.

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SQL Server Reporting Services 2019: what has changed compared to earlier versions?

• August 31, 2021

When trying to do a standard install of SQL Server, you may have noticed that the 2017 or newer versions of SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS) aren’t installed as well. That’s because SSRS now has its own separate installer. In this blog, we’ll show some of the changes compared to older versions of the software and detail how to install and update the 2019 version.

1. Installing SQL Server Reporting Services 2019

Let’s first take a look at how you can get SSRS 2019 on your device. In the past you could just install your version of SQL and get the tool with it in one go. However, when installing SQL2019 through the usual method, as you did with edition 2016 or older, you will notice that you can no longer select SQL Server Reporting Services as a feature during your setup.

At the top you see a hyperlink that directs you to the Microsoft download page for the SSRS installer which is now a separate executable. Beware, though, the link included in the 2019 ISO directs you to the 2017 version of Reporting Services. So it is not the correct version.

This is the correct version for 2019 . If you’re using the other installer, you will not be able to use the product key you used for the SQL2019 version you installed.

Once you’ve downloaded the correct installer for Reporting Services, copy it to the local server on which you wish to install and double click to start the installation. You will be prompted with the following window:

Click ‘Install Reporting Services’. On the next page, you can choose between a free or a paid edition. The free edition is limited to 180 days, developer and express. For the paid edition, a product key needs to be provided.

This key can be found in the ISO from SQL2019. Run the setup and continue to the product key page.

Once you’ve copied the key, click next. Accept the License terms. Click next and define the install location. Finally, press ‘Install’.

1.1 Changing the name of your Reporting Service

Once the installation is finished, you can start configuring your new Reporting Services.  When you open it, you’ll see that it’s called SSRS. But wait… I always named my reporting service the same as the SQL instance on which it is configured. I also have several tenants with multiple SSRS instances on one host machine. Where is the option to name the service?

Sadly, since 2019 there is no longer an option included in the installation to name the service, and if we start a new installation using the downloaded .exe then we get this:

No option for a second installation or renaming can be found on this installer, unfortunaly.

2. Updating newer versions of SQL Server Reporting Services

Since SSRS is now a stand-alone service, it will not get updated with the patch you apply on your SQL Server, which was the case with version 2016 or older. You’ll find updates for SSRS in the download centre mentioned above. First, verify the version number of your current install by going to properties on the running service.

On the download page, you’ll find the version number of the available install files in details section.

Once downloaded and copied to the desired server, just run the file like you would when doing a new install as detailed above.

It’ll look like this:

Select “Upgrade Edition” and just follow the installer.

3. Other points of interest in Reporting Services 2019

As you may have noticed several things are different in the new version of Reporting Services. First, because of the stand-alone installation, the service is no longer visible in the SQL Server configuration manager.

Third, the 2016 version could also be installed using command prompt , but in the official documentation of later versions this is no longer mentioned.

Finally, adding the service account, which normally happens during the installation, now must be done during configuration.

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Is SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS) free for Developer Edition?

Ten Centuries

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November 25, 2018 at 11:33 pm

While trying to install SSRS I get just 2 options

1) evaluation for 180 days

2) Entrace for product key.

So does this basically mean, that SSRS is not free even for Developer Edition, which I am using?

Points: 90860

November 29, 2018 at 11:15 am

elea.grig - Sunday, November 25, 2018 11:33 PM While trying to install SSRS I get just 2 options 1) evaluation for 180 days 2) Entrace for product key. So does this basically mean, that SSRS is not free even for Developer Edition, which I am using?

On the first option, it's not limited to just the evaluation edition. It's a drop down to select evaluation edition, developer or express.

December 3, 2018 at 2:45 am

Sue_H - Thursday, November 29, 2018 11:15 AM elea.grig - Sunday, November 25, 2018 11:33 PM While trying to install SSRS I get just 2 options 1) evaluation for 180 days 2) Entrace for product key. So does this basically mean, that SSRS is not free even for Developer Edition, which I am using?

Thanks Sue but it does not show a drop down menu, it's a circular checkbox

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SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS) Versions

Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services ( SSRS or S.S.R.S. or RS ) is a native server-based reporting platform for creating reports from relational or multidimensional data sources.

A widely used and dynamic tool it provides a comprehensive, server-based reporting solution that allows the authoring, manageability, and delivery of reports in multiple ways and formats, such as on the Web or via e-mail, in Excel, PDF, CSV, XML and Word etc.

SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS) is a separate install from SQL Server 2017 onwards.

Reporting Services 2022 build numbers:

Reporting services 2019 build numbers:, reporting services 2017 build numbers:, reporting services 2016 build numbers:, reporting services 2014 build numbers:, reporting services 2012 build numbers:.

You can comment here . If you know of a SSRS version that we don't have listed here, please use the comments.

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Get more out of SQL Server Reporting Services 2022 with an improved user experience

• By Cookie McCray, Senior Program Manager

Part of the  SQL Server 2022 blog series .

SQL Server 2022 introduces the new SQL Server 2022 Reporting Services (SSRS).

At Microsoft, we understand the power of technology, and that is why we continue to innovate, create, and design in a way that gives everyone the ability to achieve more. Designing for inclusivity opens our experiences and reflects how people adapt to the world around them. In this new release of SSRS, we have done significant accessibility work to make sure we are empowering people to achieve more. This includes:

• Enhanced Windows Narrator 1 support for the new Windows OS (Operating Systems) and Windows Server.
• Security enhancements.
• Browser performance improvements with Angular.
• Accessibility bug fixes.
• Support for SQL Server 2022 instances report server catalog 2 .
• Reliability updates.
• Windows Narrator lets you use your PC without a mouse to complete common tasks if you’re blind or have low vision. It reads and interacts with things on the screen, like text and buttons. Use Narrator to read and write email, browse the internet, and work with documents.
• SQL Server Reporting Services native mode uses two SQL Server relational databases to store report server metadata and objects. One database is used for primary storage, and the second one stores temporary data. The databases are created together and bound by name. With a default SQL Server instance, the databases are named reportserver and reportservertempdb . Collectively, the two databases are called the report server database or report server catalog .

Refreshed Portal

In addition to the above updates, the SSRS portal was improved to provide a more inclusive modern graphical interface making it easier to deliver meaningful reporting on your data from a web-based experience. In the portal, you can view reports, KPIs, and navigate through the elements in your report server instance. You can also use the web portal to administer a single report server instance.

The web portal is used only for a report server that runs in native mode. Some web portal features are only available in specified editions of SQL Server. For more information, see Reporting Services Features supported by the Editions of SQL Server .

Reminder of features being removed with the next release of SQL Server 

Back in 2020, we announced the deprecation of Report Server features Pin to Power BI, Mobile Reports, and Mobile Report Publisher.  These features will be removed from versions of SQL Server starting with SQL Server 2022 and will no longer be supported. Only the last three releases, SQL Server 2016, SQL Server 2017, and SQL Server 2019, will be supported in maintenance mode until EOL (End of Life) for existing customers.

When we mark a feature as deprecated, it means:

• The feature is in maintenance mode only. We’ll make no new changes, including changes related to interoperability with new features. 
• We strive not to remove a deprecated feature from future releases, to make upgrades easier. However, in rare situations, we may choose to permanently remove the feature from Reporting Services if it limits future innovations. 
• For new development work, we don’t recommend using deprecated features. 

Features removed in future versions of SQL Server 

To learn more about the new SQL Server 2022 SSRS please visit our docs page at What’s new in Reporting Services – SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS) | Microsoft Docs

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Editions and supported features of SQL Server 2022

• 12 contributors

This article provides details of features supported by the various editions of SQL Server 2022 (16.x).

For information about other versions, see:

• SQL Server 2019
• SQL Server 2017
• SQL Server 2016

For information about Azure SQL, see Features comparison: Azure SQL Database and Azure SQL Managed Instance .

Installation requirements vary based on your application needs. The different editions of SQL Server accommodate the unique performance, runtime, and price requirements of organizations and individuals. The SQL Server components that you install also depend on your specific requirements. The following sections help you understand how to make the best choice among the editions and components available in SQL Server.

For the latest release notes and what's new information, see the following:

• SQL Server 2022 release notes
• What's new in SQL Server 2022

Try SQL Server! Download SQL Server 2022 (16.x) from the Evaluation Center .

Microsoft Entra ID was previously known as Azure Active Directory (Azure AD).

SQL Server editions

The following table describes the editions of SQL Server.

1 Unlimited virtualization is available on Enterprise edition for customers with Software Assurance . Deployments must comply with the licensing guide. For more information, see our pricing and licensing page.

Choose SQL Server features

Use the Feature Selection page of the SQL Server Installation Wizard to select the components to include in an installation of SQL Server. By default, none of the features in the tree are selected.

Use the information in the following tables to determine the set of features that best fits your needs.

Server features

Developer and evaluation editions.

For features supported by Developer and Evaluation editions, see features listed for the SQL Server Enterprise edition in the tables below.

The Developer edition continues to support only 1 client for SQL Server Distributed Replay , which is deprecated in SQL Server 2022 (16.x).

Scale limits

1 Enterprise edition with Server + Client Access License (CAL) based licensing (not available for new agreements) is limited to a maximum of 20 cores per SQL Server instance. There are no limits under the Core-based Server Licensing model. For more information, see Compute capacity limits by edition of SQL Server

Azure connected services

SQL Server 2022 includes features for connecting to Azure Synapse Analytics , Azure SQL Managed Instance , and Microsoft Purview .

1 These features are governed by their respective Lifecycle Policies .

2 Configure in Azure portal.

RDBMS high availability

1 For more information on installing SQL Server on Server Core, see Install SQL Server on Server Core .

2 Full safety only

3 Witness only

4 On Enterprise edition, the number of nodes is the operating system maximum. On Standard edition there is support for two nodes.

5 On Enterprise edition, provides support for up to 8 secondary replicas, including 5 synchronous secondary replicas.

6 Standard edition supports basic availability groups. A basic availability group supports two replicas, with one database. For more information about basic availability groups, see Basic availability groups .

7 Database mirroring is a deprecated feature.

RDBMS scalability and performance

1 In-Memory OLTP data size and Columnstore segment cache are limited to the amount of memory specified by edition in the Scale Limits section. The degree of parallelism (DOP) for batch mode operations is limited to 2 for SQL Server Standard edition and 1 for SQL Server Web and Express editions. This refers to columnstore indexes created over disk-based tables and memory-optimized tables.

2 Aggregate Pushdown, String Predicate Pushdown, and SIMD Optimizations are SQL Server Enterprise edition scalability enhancements. For more detail, see Columnstore indexes - what's new .

3 This feature is not included in the LocalDB installation option.

4 Stretch Database is a deprecated feature.

RDBMS security

1 Requires SQL Server enabled by Azure Arc

Replication

1 Subscriber only

Management tools

1 SQL Server Web, SQL Server Express, SQL Server Express with Tools, and SQL Server Express with Advanced Services can be profiled using SQL Server Standard and SQL Server Enterprise editions.

2 Tuning enabled only on Standard edition features

Distributed Replay has been deprecated in SQL Server 2022 (16.x).

RDBMS manageability

1 With trace flag

2 For more information, see Considerations for Installing SQL Server Using SysPrep .

3 On Linux, PowerShell scripts are supported, from Windows computers targeting SQL Server on Linux.

Development tools

Programmability.

1 Basic integration is limited to 2 cores and in-memory data sets.

2 Advanced integration can use all available cores for parallel processing of data sets at any size subject to hardware limits.

3 Client only.

Integration Services

For info about SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS) features supported by the editions of SQL Server, see Integration Services Features Supported by the editions of SQL Server .

Master Data Services

For information about the Master Data Services and Data Quality Services features supported by the editions of SQL Server, see Master Data Services and Data Quality Services Features Supported by the editions of SQL Server .

Data warehouse

Analysis services.

For information about the Analysis Services features supported by the editions of SQL Server, see Analysis Services Features Supported by the editions of SQL Server .

Reporting Services

For information about the Reporting Services features supported by the editions of SQL Server, see Reporting Services Features Supported by the editions of SQL Server .

Business intelligence clients

For information about the Business Intelligence Client features supported by the editions of SQL Server, see Analysis Services Features Supported by the editions of SQL Server or Reporting Services Features Supported by the editions of SQL Server .

Spatial and location services

Additional database services, related content.

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• DBA Stack Exchange (tag sql-server): Ask SQL Server questions
• Stack Overflow (tag sql-server): Answers to SQL development questions
• Reddit: General discussion about SQL Server
• Microsoft SQL Server License Terms and Information
• Support options for business users
• Contact Microsoft
• Additional SQL Server help and feedback

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