Modifying the Fields to be Included

You can add and remove fields from a report. Fields are organized by report type; a report can only contain fields from one report type. You cannot change the report type of a report. Each report type includes information from various related tables in the Reporter database. Typically, only a subset of the available fields are included in each report. You can add or remove fields to suit your needs.

Each report has a layout, which determines the display of the fields, including the positioning, grouping and sorting. When you modify the included fields, the layout is not automatically updated. For information on modifying the layout, see Changing the Layout and Report Designer Tips and Tricks.   Some functions can be implemented when choosing the fields, or when designing the report layout. For example, you can set sort ordering when you include the field in a report, or you can set it using the report layout. The difference between the two methods is where the action occurs. If you configure the fields, the action is carried out on the database before the report is generated. If you configure the report layout, the action is carried out as the report is generated. You may notice a performance increase if you configure the fields instead of the report layout.

By default, Enterprise Reporter collects a base set of attributes for each type of object. Your discovery administrator has the ability to extend some attributes, and these are noted as (extended) after the attribute name. They can be added to a report as usual, and you will find them in the report type associated with the object on which you are reporting. If you have requested that an attribute be collected, you need to restart your Report Manager in order to see the new attributes.

You can set the sort order for each field on this page as well. This sorts the fields in the database before reporting them. Sort order is important in determining what the report output looks like. The first sorted field is the primary sort, the second field is the secondary sort and so on. For example, if you sort ascending on Server Name, Instance Name, and Database Name then arrange the fields in that order, your results are returned like this:

Server A

Instance A

Database A

Database B

Database C

Instance B

Database A

Database B

Database C

Server B

Instance A

and so on.

To add and remove report fields

1.	In My Reports, select the report, then click Edit report.

2.	If necessary, rename the report to reflect your changes.

3.	Click Fields.

4.	In the Available Fields area, select any fields you want to add, and click Add.

You can multiselect fields using the Ctrl key.

The first time you modify fields in any editing session (add, remove, or right-click operations), a warning appears, explaining that the report layout is not automatically updated. For information on updating the layout to reflect your changes, see Changing the Layout and Report Designer Tips and Tricks.

5.	Click OK to continue.

You cannot change the report type.

6.	In the Selected Fields area, select any fields that you want to remove and click Remove.

To set the sort order of fields

1.	In Selected Fields, drag the fields as required.

You cannot move unsorted fields above sorted fields.

2.	Right-click the field and select Sort Ascending or Sort Descending.

To remove sorting, choose No Sorting.