Shortcomings - SSRS

This article is simply a list of notable shortcomings I've encountered with SQL Server Reporting Services.

Repeating Row Headers¶

Issue: Repeating row headers is not as straightfoward as it could be, but it is possible. See the details here.

Multi-Column Subreports¶

Issue: A subreport that's configured for multiple columns (via its Columns property) will render as one column, even though running the subreport as a simple report renders correctly (i.e., with multiple columns). Per Microsoft (see links below), this is a known issue with no resolution planned.

http://social.msdn.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/sqlreportingservices/thread/4ec6e9f8-2d2e-46c2-b00a-93826097ddd1
https://connect.microsoft.com/SQLServer/feedback/details/362871/multi-column-subreports-do-not-work

Update: This issue can be addressed by rendering the reports as PDF and merging the results, as detailed here.

Page Headers and Footers¶

Issue: Cannot put a subreport nor any field value from any dataset in a page header or page footer.

KeepTogether¶

Issue: The KeepTogether property doesn't work when processing a report in Local mode. Per Microsoft (see links below), this is a known issue.

http://connect.microsoft.com/SQLServer/feedback/details/428595/keep-together-property-not-working-in-ssrs-2008