Crystal Reports Server - Report Management and Delivery


Crystal Reports Server Lets You:
  • Access and present data any way you want
  • Deliver the right information to the right people at the right time
  • Provides universal integration with applications and portals
  • Drives your business with proven technology

    New to the Crystal Reports product suite, Crystal Reports Server is an enterprise reporting solution that helps companies create, manage, and deliver reports over the web or embedded in enterprise applications. Crystal Reports Server is designed to support departmental or workgroup requirements and is ideal for small- and medium-sized businesses. With Crystal Reports Server, you can design Crystal reports and then publish them to the web in a single server environment.

    Security
    Take advantage of granular object, user, and data-level security by specifying user access and actions within a particular report.

    Scheduling
    Flexible scheduling capabilities allow you to ensure that information can be processed efficiently when and where you need it. Schedule reports based on events or at specific times and in the formats you require.

    Scalable Central Architecture
    To support high volume reporting, Crystal Reports Server uses a scalable, central architecture. It includes a set of report processing services for speed-of-thought information access. Innovative page-on-demand technology helps expedite processing by serving up only those pages requested by end users. On-demand caching helps maintain fast performance levels by reusing common content requests to service multiple users.

    Licensing
    Crystal Reports Server XI is a complete reporting solution which includes:
  • One Report designer – one named user
  • Five* concurrent access licenses (CAL) for end users to view reports over the web
  • One year of maintenance and telephone technical support direct from Business Objects

    * Up to 20 CALs can be purchased. Each deployment is on a single server with a maximum of four CPUs.

    • More Licensing Detail
    Each Crystal Reports Server package includes one designer license. The designer license allows a single individual to install and use the Crystal Reports designer to create reports. You cannot share this license among multiple individuals. You may purchase individual copies of Crystal Reports (various editions available).

    End-user report viewing is licensed through concurrent access licenses (CAL). This means that a set number of end users can simultaneously connect to Crystal Reports Server. For example, a five CAL license enables five end users to be simultaneously logged on to the system. The sixth end user that attempts to log on will be denied access until one of the first five user logs off of his/her session times out.

    Note: By default, the system is set with a default session time-out of twenty minutes; this may be adjusted in the Central Management Console.

    For each Crystal Reports Server deployment in your organization, you may purchase a maximum of twenty CAL. You may deploy Crystal Reports Server on a single server machine that uses a maximum of four CPUs. This machine may be deployed separately from your web application server.

    In addition to the licensing terms outlined in the above section, if you would like to redistribute a client-server or web application that uses Crystal Reports Server, you must purchase a copy of Crystal Reports Server for each company you redistribute to.

    What is the difference between Crystal Reports Server and Business Objects Enterprise?

    We are often asked why an organisation should purchase Business Objects Enterprise now that Crystal Reports Server is available and appears to do the same for less money. It really does depend on what you are trying to achieve with your reporting solution.

    Crystal Reports Server is intended for small to medium sized organizations that require the ability to create, manage, and deliver reports over the web. It is designed for departmental solutions. You would only be able to distribute Crystal Reports objects – no OLAP Analysis or other objects can be included. Crystal Reports Server is currently only available for Windows.

    BusinessObjects Enterprise is a multi-server Business Intelligence (BI) platform designed to address large-scale reporting and BI requirements. It handles all types of Business Intelligence content including Performance Management, Web Intelligence and OLAP Intelligence.

    BusinessObjects Enterprise is also recommended for its advanced capabilities such as Auditing, Crystal Reports Explorer, and the new Encyclopedia and Process Tracker. Similarly, BusinessObjects Enterprise is offered across a broad range of enterprise operating systems including Solaris, AIX, Linux, and Windows DataCenter.

    If you are in any doubt which solution would be the best for you then call us – we will give you an honest answer, backed up with all the latest available information and knowledge.