1. how could a client with a specific user id and password invoke his own report using jsp by passing parameters. (using websphere & IIS)
2. will there be any problem while the request pass through firewall & proxy.
3. could the crystal s/w installed on a seperate server but not on iis and websphere server, but still call the report connecting to the oracle db.
4. How much time does the report take for 1000 record data, with huge memory, hard drive and state-of the-art server comming from a T1 line.
5. How could users save the data from the report and print it later.
Regards and thanks a lot.
Pinna

Answer 1 :

i) At Application level :

Create an application and force the user to login to the application with a particular username and password.Once he has logged into his account,it should display only a particular set of report links (which are relevant to the user).

ii) At Database level :

Add a User_Id field to all the tables in your database and,add this User_Id field as a parameter field when invoking User-specific reports.

iii) At Database level :

One can also set a User-Id and Password to view the report and,by mapping this User-Id ans password with the one of the database,the desired result can be achieved.

Answer 2 : Firewall or Proxy Server blocks certain file type from being downloaded to the client machine and,so one has to be sure that one's security settings permit the following file types through to the client's computers :namely,

• .CAB - Cabinet File
• .EMF - Encapsulated Message File
• .EPF -  Encapsulated Page Format
• .ETF -  Encapsulated Totaller File
• .RPT -  Report Files
• .TMP - Temporary files

You might want to view ce8_firewall_support.pdf

Pooja M.,
http://home.attbi.com/~pooja.mohan

Answer 3  : Yes,you can make use of some other Web Server as well ,like Netscape Enterprise Server,Netscape Fast Track Server,Lotus Domino,Apache and CGI compliant Servers.You should then specify the port number ,so that the report is picked up from the correct web server.
 
Answer 4     : It is very difficult to state this in exact numbers as it depends on a number of parameters, including :
• Whether it is an intranet / extranet requirement
• The number of concurrent users
Surely,there are many other scenarios which would affect the invoking of reports.

Answer 5    : There are many options available.
i) Crystal Enterprise is the current Crystal Decisions based product for providing scheduled reports via the WEB. Take a look at c2011385.asp at their official website.
ii) They also have another tool called Crystal Info.   Now, both these tools offered by Crystal Decisions are expensive (unless you can find a old freebie Crystal Info 7 license).
iii) An alternative might be to use Compiled Reports(refer - c2006523 ) , but they're supposed to be phased out and require that you have developer edition.
iv) Another option is a tool Report Scheduler which is a product of Recrystallize .You can visit their official website and,get more details about it.
v) Visual CUT ,   an expensive tool also lets you allows you to schedule reports for bursting, emailing, and printing.

Pooja M.,
http://home.attbi.com/~pooja.mohan