Home
>
Software
>
Crystal Reports for Microsoft Great Plains

Crystal Reports for Microsoft Great Plains

Microsoft Business Solutions ? Great Plains is designed to meet and extend the needs of small and mid-size organizations for its business success. Its comprehensive accounting and business management applications also provide businesses with capabilities to customize various modules of the Great Plains software to fit to their specific needs. Because of these potentials, Great Plains has been targeted to the whole spectrum of both horizontal and vertical clientele.

A number of industry-specific applications integrate well with Great Plains. This allows for more flexibility and unparalleled access to information that aids in decision-making and analysis of performance.

Crystal Reports is a report-writing software that can integrate itself to Great Plains' database. It goes beyond the report creation process of Great Plains' own Report Writer. As a developer, Crystal Reports will help your client access decision-driving information to aid in managing their businesses more effectively. So, how do we use Crystal Reports to extend Great Plains Report Writer?

Great Plains Table Structure

When a business entity is processed, the information is written onto the Great Plains database tables. This can be found by launching Great Plains, then: Tools > Resource Description > Tables. Find the appropriate Table:

RM00101 ? Customer Master File

SOP30200 ? Sales History Header File

Create ODBC Connection

Open Database Connectivity (ODBC) is an integration tool to connect a client application to an ODBC-compliant database. It allows exchanging information among databases and easily integrates with a wide range of present systems. Great Plains uses the ODBC drivers installed by Microsoft SQL Server.

To create an ODBC connection to a Great Plains company database, one common way is with the use of the Data Source dialog box. It prompts you to connect to the appropriate data source. Choose the company database that you are targeting that contains the data needed for your Crystal Reports report generation.

SQL Views

Microsoft SQL Server has a virtual table that you can access to minimize the complexity of looking at links in Crystal Reports itself. By referencing the view name in a Transact-SQL statement, a user can access this virtual table and retrieve the data for future selection to be applied into Crystal Reports.

SQL Stored Procedures

There are instances wherein you will not be able to pull all your needed data into one view. In this situation, you would need an SQL stored-procedure ? defined as a group of Transact-SQL statements compiled into a single execution plan. With the help of a stored procedure, you do not need to access individual tables to use in Crystal Reports.

Calling Crystal Reports via VBA/Modifier

It is possible to call the Crystal Reports engine from one Great Plains application to do a process with the use of Modifier and VBA. For example, you want to print a Crystal Reports invoice in Great Plains from the Sales Order Processing window, use Modifier and VBA to call up the Crystal Reports engine.

SQL Query

Using SQL Query Analyzer can help in making sure you are getting adequate results in your report generation. In addition, it debugs stored procedures and query performance problems. It can also copy existing database objects and locate, view or work with these objects within the database.

Need more information?

For customization work and advice, please contact Andrew Karasev, Alba Spectrum Chief Technology Officer. His works include development of applications with the use of Dexterity, SQL, C# .NET, Crystal Reports and Microsoft CRM SDK.

Divine Rigor is the Technical Writer for Alba Spectrum Technologies USA ( http://www.albaspectrum.com ), a Great Plains, Microsoft CRM customization company. We are based in Chicago with locations in California, Arizona, Texas, Florida, Georgia, New York and contacts in international markets.

? Jan 2005 Alba Spectrum Technologies USA

cheapest limo Akin .. Lockport Chicago limo O’Hare

In The News:

Tech expert Kurt “CyberGuy" Knutsson says using outdated computers and software leaves them vulnerable to security risks and malware.

Tech expert Kurt “CyberGuy" Knutsson reveals how WalkON enhances walking and jogging with sensors and artificial tendons.

Old-fashioned check fraud is back in style, quintupling over the past year. Here are a few low-tech, practical means of protecting yourself.

Tech expert Kurt “CyberGuy" Knutsson discusses how 600,000-plus records, including checks and property data, were left exposed online by an information service provider.

That weird text from a friend may actually be from a hacker. Kurt “CyberGuy" Knutsson tells you what signs to look out for.

Scammers can wreak havoc on your life just by having your phone number. Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson addresses how to avoid becoming a victim.

PongBot is an artificial intelligence-powered tennis robot and a smart training partner available to play 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson explains how to update your iPhone to add Apple Intelligence, which he says can transform your interactions with your phone.

University scientists have trained a robotic surgical system to do work with the skill of human doctors, possibly transforming the future of surgeries.

As more companies implement artificial intelligence for daily tasks, some industry leaders are working to push back against certain aspects of the technology.

Tech expert Kurt “CyberGuy" Knutsson says the Batagaika crater in Siberia expands 35 million cubic feet yearly due to thawing.

While fewer than 30% of farmers reportedly use emerging technologies like artificial intelligence, experts believe AI could help producers and farmers make food quicker and more efficiently.

Amazon becomes a prime target of scammers during the holiday shopping season trying to steal Social Security numbers, bank information and Amazon credentials.

Spammers have found a way to target Spotify playlists and podcasts to push pirated software, cheat codes for games and spam links and malware sites.

Sharing information online like your vacation plans and relationship status can make you a target for scammers; here's what to avoid posting to keep yourself safe.

Stay up to date on the latest AI technology advancements and learn about the challenges and opportunities AI presents now and for the future.

Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson explores six sneaky holiday season gift card tricks, providing tips on how to outsmart scammers trying to rip you off.

Apple Watch's Translate app gives you your own personal interpreter, allowing you to have live two-way conversations in up to 20 different languages.

With kids facing a seemingly increasing amount of threats from creeps on the internet, here's how you can respectfully ask people not to post photos of your children on social media.

Tech expert Kurt “CyberGuy" Knutsson reveals how to regain your Facebook access if you get hacked or locked out.

Kurt “CyberGuy" Knutsson explains how to safeguard retirement accounts from cyber threats with a VPN: encryption, anonymity, secure access.

I’m going to Europe soon, and planning my trip was a breeze. Yes, really! AI did a big chunk of the work for me — and it can help you plan your next getaway, too.

Tech expert Kurt “CyberGuy" Knutsson says North Korean hackers hide malware in macOS apps, bypassing Mac security checks.

Kurt “CyberGuy" Knutsson reveals how iPhone’s new Automatic Mic Mode adjusts settings for optimal call quality automatically.

Jeff Hancock, an expert on AI and misinformation, has been accused of fabricating an expert declaration by citing a study that was allegedly made up by AI.

Crystal Reports for Microsoft Great Plains

Software