Planning for reporting in Microsoft Dynamics AX

Applies To: Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 R3, Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 R2, Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 Feature Pack, Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012

Before you implement the reporting features of Microsoft Dynamics AX, there are several things you must consider. This article describes the things you must consider and the decisions you must make at each step in the planning process.

Verify prerequisites Select a Reporting Services mode Determine your topology Determine if the reports that are provided with Microsoft Dynamics AX will meet your needs Determine which tools will be used to create custom reports Learn about Management Reporter Next steps

Verify prerequisites

Before you begin the planning process, you must make sure that the following prerequisites are in place.

Select a Reporting Services mode

If you do not already have Reporting Services installed, you must install it. When you install Reporting Services, you must select a mode in which to run the report server. Two modes are available: native mode and SharePoint integrated mode. The mode you select affects the steps you will need to complete to integrate the report server with Microsoft Dynamics AX.

Determine your topology

To help plan your Microsoft Dynamics AX implementation, determine a topology that supports the reporting needs of your organization. Consider the following information when determining your topology.

Multiple instances of Reporting Services on one computer

You can install multiple instances of Reporting Services on the same computer. In this kind of deployment environment, each instance of Reporting Services is connected to an independent Microsoft Dynamics AX installation. You may want to install multiple instances of Reporting Services on the same computer for the following reasons:

• To support development and production installations of Microsoft Dynamics AX

  For example, in the following sample diagram, assume that AOS instance 1 is a development installation of Microsoft Dynamics AX, and AOS instance 2 is the production installation of Microsoft Dynamics AX.

• To support multiple production installations of Microsoft Dynamics AX

  For example, if you are a Microsoft Dynamics AX solution provider, you may have to support multiple production installations of Microsoft Dynamics AX. For this scenario, assume that AOS instance 1 (in the sample diagram) is a production installation of Microsoft Dynamics AX for one client, Northwind Traders. Assume that AOS instance 2 is a production installation of Microsoft Dynamics AX for another client, Contoso Pharmaceuticals.

For more information, see Install multiple instances of Reporting Services on the same computer (for use with Microsoft Dynamics AX).

AOS scale-out deployments

You can distribute the user load in Microsoft Dynamics AX across multiple instances of the Application Object Server (AOS) by creating a load balancing cluster. The cluster may or may not include a dedicated load balancer.

In an environment that contains an AOS load balancing cluster, you must point each AOS instance to the same Reporting Services instance. For example, your environment may resemble the following illustration.

To integrate an AOS load balancing cluster with Reporting Services, complete the following tasks.

1. Install the Reporting Services extensions on the server running Reporting Services. For more information, see Install the Reporting Services extensions.

   When you install the Reporting Services extensions, the Setup wizard requires you to connect to an AOS instance. Connect to an AOS instance in the cluster. However, if the cluster includes a dedicated load balancer, do not connect to the AOS instance that serves as the dedicated load balancer.

   When the installation is complete, the AOS instance that you selected is connected to the Reporting Services instance. You can view the properties of this connection in the Report servers form in Microsoft Dynamics AX.

2. Connect the other AOS instances in the cluster to the Reporting Services instance. To connect an AOS instance to the Reporting Services instance, complete these steps:

   1. Open the Microsoft Dynamics AX client.

   2. Click System administration > Setup > Business intelligence > Reporting Services > Report servers.

   3. Connect the AOS instance to the Reporting Services instance by creating a new record in the Report servers form. For more information about how to use this form, see Report servers (form).

Reporting Services scale-out deployments

A report server scale-out deployment includes two or more report server instances that share a single report server database. By using a Reporting Services scale-out deployment, you can increase the number of users who can access reports at the same time. You can also improve the availability of the report server.

Microsoft Dynamics AX supports scale-out deployments of Reporting Services in an environment that has the following configuration:

• The Reporting Services instances are installed on separate computers.

• The Reporting Services instances share a single database.

• A Network Load Balancing (NLB) cluster is used.

• The Reporting Services extensions that are provided by Microsoft Dynamics AX are installed on each computer where Reporting Services is installed.

An environment of this kind may resemble the following illustration.

For more information about how to configure a scale-out deployment, see the Configuring a SQL Server Reporting Services scale-out deployment to run on a Network Load Balancing cluster white paper. For more information about Reporting Services scale-out deployments, see Planning for scale-out deployment in the SQL Server documentation.

Failover clustering

Reporting Services cannot be installed on a failover cluster because you cannot run the Reporting Services service as part of a failover cluster. However, you can install the report server database on a computer that has a failover cluster installed. For more information, see Host a Report Server Database in a SQL Server Failover Cluster.

AlwaysOn

SQL Server AlwaysOn is a capability that enables highly available, SQL Server databases. This capability has been available since SQL Server 2012. Key points to keep in mind:

• Systems administrators can deploy AlwaysOn capabilities to create a robust environment for databases, including the Microsoft Dynamics AX database, as well as other staging databases associated with a Microsoft Dynamics AX implementation, such as the SSRS catalog database.

• The AlwaysOn feature enables retaining a read-only replica of the primary Microsoft Dynamics AX database. This read-only replica can be used for processing cubes, thereby relieving the load on the primary Microsoft Dynamics AX database.

• Secondary databases created as a result of enabling SQL Server AlwaysOn cannot be used to scale-out Reporting Services. To scale-out your Microsoft Dynamics AX SQL Server Reporting Services deployments see the information here.

Determine if the reports that are provided with Microsoft Dynamics AX will meet your needs

Microsoft Dynamics AX provides hundreds of preconfigured reports that users can use to view and analyze business data. Review details about these reports in the Report catalog for Microsoft Dynamics AX to determine if they will meet organization’s needs. If you need to create custom reports, see the next section.

Determine which tools will be used to create custom reports

If you or anyone in your organization needs to create a new, custom report, several tools are available. The following table lists the tools that can be used to create reports, and the type of user who will most likely use those tools.

Learn about Management Reporter

Management Reporter for Microsoft Dynamics ERP is the recommended financial reporting solution for Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012. Use Management Reporter to create, distribute, and analyze financial statements and other financial reports. For more information, see Management Reporter for Microsoft Dynamics ERP.

Next steps

Install Reporting Services extensions for Microsoft Dynamics AX