Report Generation Solutions

General
1

Hello All:

I was hoping to get some recommendations on easy-to-use, reasonably-priced end user reporting solutions (for both desktop and web).

Over the years, I’ve come to dislike creating reports for the apps I build. I deal with a lot of small businesses and while their reporting needs are usually very extensive or complex, it would be great if I could just point them to a 3rd party solution, which does not require them to know much about writing sql statements, etc.

In the past, I’ve built solutions using MSAccess and then showed them how to create their own reports in Access, but that limits them to Windows. I now have a few Ubuntu customers as well as macOS, iOS and Android users.

I’d appreciate it if you could point me to a handful of low code/no code 3rd party reporting tools that you might have found very useful. I’d prefer letting the customer build, enhance/modify their own reports as opposed to me having to do it.

btw: Support for both SQL and NOSQL databases is important as well and thanks in advance!

2 Likes
2

i like to have reports not in the app itself because maintenance.
basically you setup a reporting server, a software with a report designer, this designer have access to a database
and get data via querys.
this reporting server usually have a web front-end with login.
u need a (virtual private) server that customers can reach 24/7.
reporting server software can also send scheduled reports via mail as text or excel.

i asked a question in chatgpt:

Gute Frage! Es gibt eine ganze Reihe von Reporting-Server-Softwarelösungen, je nachdem, was du genau suchst (Open Source, Enterprise, Self-Hosted, Cloud). Hier mal eine Übersicht über bekannte Reporting-Server und -Plattformen, die zur Erstellung, Verwaltung und Verteilung von Berichten genutzt werden:

:white_check_mark: Bekannte Reporting Server Software (kommerziell & Enterprise)

Name Beschreibung Besonderheiten
Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS) Teil der Microsoft SQL Server Suite, für tabellarische, grafische und interaktive Berichte. Integration in Microsoft-Ökosystem, On-Premise, sehr mächtig.
SAP Crystal Reports Server Enterprise-Reporting, ideal für strukturierte Berichte. Starke Layout-Kontrolle, gut für Unternehmen.
Tableau Server Visual Analytics und Reporting-Server für interaktive Dashboards. Moderne Visualisierung, sehr nutzerfreundlich, aber teuer.
Power BI Report Server On-Premises Version von Power BI für Self-Service BI und klassische Berichte. Microsoft Power BI Integration, Hybrid-Lösung möglich.
Qlik Sense Enterprise (Server) Reporting und Analytics Plattform, Self-Service BI. Interaktive Dashboards, Assoziative Datenmodelle.
IBM Cognos Analytics Starke Enterprise-BI-Plattform für Reporting, Dashboards und AI-gestützte Insights. KI-Integration, sehr umfassend.

:white_check_mark: Open Source & kostenfreie Reporting Server

Name Beschreibung Besonderheiten
JasperReports Server Vollständige Open-Source Reporting-Plattform von TIBCO. Pixel-perfect Reporting, interaktive Dashboards.
Pentaho (Hitachi Vantara) BI Suite mit Reporting, ETL und Data Mining. Umfassende Suite, inkl. Reporting-Server.
ReportServer Open Source Reporting-Plattform mit Support für verschiedene Engines (z.B. JasperReports, BIRT). Modular, integriert verschiedene Reporting-Engines.
Metabase (eingeschränkt Server-Funktion) Einfaches Open-Source Tool für Dashboards und einfache Reports. Sehr nutzerfreundlich, schnelle Analysen, weniger komplexe Berichte.
BIRT (Business Intelligence and Reporting Tools) Von Eclipse Foundation, fokussiert auf Reports und Visualisierung. Open Source, Integration mit Java-Anwendungen.

:white_check_mark: Cloud-basierte Reporting-Lösungen (SaaS)

Name Beschreibung Besonderheiten
Google Looker (ehem. Data Studio) Google-basierte BI- und Reporting-Plattform. Moderne Dashboards, direkte Google Cloud Integration.
Amazon QuickSight AWS BI- und Reporting-Dienst. Skalierbar, stark in AWS integriert.
Power BI Cloud SaaS Variante von Power BI. Gute Office365 Integration, Self-Service BI.
Zoho Analytics Cloud-basierte BI und Reporting Plattform. Relativ günstig, einfache Anbindung an viele Quellen.

:brain: Worauf kommt es an bei der Auswahl?

  • Self-Hosted vs. Cloud (Datenschutz, Kontrolle)
  • Lizenzkosten (Open Source vs. Enterprise)
  • Integration mit bestehenden Systemen (SQL, NoSQL, APIs)
  • Benutzerfreundlichkeit (Business User vs. Entwickler)
  • Erweiterbarkeit (Plugins, Custom Reports, API)
3

and the chatgpt answer in english:

There are many reporting server software solutions available, depending on what kind of reports you want to generate (e.g., business intelligence, operational reports, ad hoc reports) and the environment (cloud, on-premise, hybrid). Here’s a list of some well-known reporting server software/tools:

1. Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS)

  • Type: On-premise
  • Features:
    • Paginated reports, charts, tables, and dashboards
    • Integration with SQL Server databases
    • Export to various formats (PDF, Excel, Word)
    • Role-based security and scheduling
  • Pros: Deep integration with Microsoft ecosystem, powerful for structured reports
  • Cons: Less flexible for ad hoc or self-service reporting

2. Tableau Server

  • Type: On-premise & Cloud
  • Features:
    • Interactive dashboards and visual analytics
    • Easy data exploration and sharing
    • Real-time data connections
  • Pros: Excellent for visual reports and business intelligence
  • Cons: More expensive, less suited for traditional paginated reports

3. Power BI Report Server

  • Type: On-premise
  • Features:
    • Host and distribute Power BI reports
    • Supports paginated reports like SSRS
    • Role-based access and scheduling
  • Pros: Combines BI dashboards and paginated reports, great for Microsoft stack
  • Cons: Licensing tied to Power BI Premium

4. JasperReports Server

  • Type: Open-source & Commercial
  • Features:
    • Embeddable reports, dashboards, and analytics
    • Role-based access control
    • Interactive and ad hoc reporting
  • Pros: Open-source version available, good Java integration
  • Cons: Requires more setup and Java expertise

5. Pentaho Report Server (Hitachi Vantara)

  • Type: Open-source & Enterprise
  • Features:
    • Operational reports, dashboards, and data integration
    • Self-service and scheduled reporting
  • Pros: Open-source core, flexible
  • Cons: Interface is less modern compared to Tableau/Power BI

6. SAP Crystal Reports Server

  • Type: On-premise
  • Features:
    • Paginated, highly formatted reports
    • Integration with various databases
    • Scheduling and distribution
  • Pros: Great for formatted business reports
  • Cons: Complex to set up, costly

7. Looker (by Google Cloud)

  • Type: Cloud
  • Features:
    • Modern BI platform with embedded analytics
    • SQL-based modeling language (LookML)
    • Role-based access
  • Pros: Great for cloud-native analytics
  • Cons: Expensive, not for traditional paginated reports

8. Metabase (Open-source)

  • Type: Open-source & Cloud
  • Features:
    • Simple dashboards and reports
    • SQL and no-code query builder
  • Pros: Free (self-hosted), easy to set up
  • Cons: Limited for complex reporting needs

➤ Other honorable mentions:

  • Qlik Sense / QlikView (interactive dashboards)
  • Zoho Analytics (cloud-based BI)
  • Sisense (embedded analytics)

If you tell me more about your use case (e.g., enterprise vs. small business, cloud vs. on-premise, visual dashboards vs. paginated reports), I can give more specific recommendations. Want to narrow it down?

2 Likes
4

and there is Valentina Server

and about nosql

What is a Report Server for NoSQL?

A Report Server for NoSQL is a system or tool designed to generate, manage, and deliver reports from NoSQL databases (such as MongoDB, Cassandra, Couchbase, Firebase, etc.). Unlike traditional relational databases, NoSQL stores unstructured or semi-structured data, making reporting more challenging and requiring specialized tools that understand the flexible schema.

:key: Key Features of a NoSQL Report Server

Feature Description
Data Source Integration Connects directly to NoSQL databases.
Dynamic Schema Handling Supports flexible, schema-less data models.
Aggregation & Analysis Enables complex aggregations, filters, and joins.
Report Design & Templates Drag-and-drop or code-based report creation.
Visualization Charts, tables, dashboards, and other visual elements.
Scheduling & Automation Auto-generate and distribute reports on a schedule.
Security & Access Control Manage who can create, view, or edit reports.
API & Integration Provides APIs to embed reports in apps or export data.

:white_check_mark: Popular Tools & Solutions for Reporting on NoSQL

  1. MongoDB Charts

    • Native tool for MongoDB.
    • Real-time visualizations and dashboards.
    • Embeddable in applications.

  2. Metabase

    • Open-source BI tool with NoSQL connectors (MongoDB, Druid, etc.).
    • Easy-to-use GUI for query building and dashboards.
    • Scheduled email reports and alerts.

  3. Redash

    • Connects to MongoDB, Elasticsearch, and more.
    • Query editor, visualization, and sharing options.
    • Self-hosted or cloud.

  4. Apache Superset

    • Open-source data exploration and visualization platform.
    • Supports MongoDB, Cassandra via connectors.
    • Dashboards and ad-hoc reporting.

  5. Custom Reporting Engines

    • Node.js + MongoDB Aggregations to build tailored reporting engines.
    • Python (Pandas, Dash) for flexible, code-first reporting.

:gear: Architecture Overview of a NoSQL Report Server

[ NoSQL Database ] <---> [ Data Extraction Layer ] <---> [ Report Server ]
                                   |
                         [ Aggregation & Transformation ]
                                   |
                         [ Visualization & Report Generator ]
                                   |
                          [ API / UI / Export (PDF, Excel) ]

:rocket: Use Cases for NoSQL Report Server

  • Business Intelligence for modern applications using NoSQL backend.
  • Operational Dashboards for real-time monitoring.
  • Customer Analytics on user behavior data (from Firebase, MongoDB, etc.).
  • IoT Data Reporting stored in scalable NoSQL databases like Cassandra.
  • Event and Log Analysis for systems using document stores like Couchbase.

:link: Example: Using MongoDB Charts for Report Server

  • Step 1: Connect MongoDB Charts to your database.
  • Step 2: Select collections and fields.
  • Step 3: Use aggregation pipelines or GUI to define data transformations.
  • Step 4: Create charts (bar, line, pie, etc.).
  • Step 5: Share dashboards or embed in apps.

:zap: Do you have a specific NoSQL database in mind?

  • MongoDB?
  • Cassandra?
  • Couchbase?
  • Firebase?

Let me know, and I can suggest the best report server solution or how to set up a custom one!

5

Why does Xojo NOT provide better reporting functionality Or is Android more importend ? nobody needs it anyway !!! If Xojo would focus more on Mac OS, it could be a much better software, but pleasing everybody will never work in the long run. I’m happy with Xojo, but creating tonnes of functions, which have to be created by many other users too. By the way I’m not using any 3rd party software … I like Xojo but as I said it could be much much better !!!

2 Likes
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It would be much easier to recommend anything if you described your needs a bit more. Most likely Tableau or similar will be overkill. Using Cognos was super painful when I worked at GM.

7

The challenge is that it really depends on the customer’s need as I work with different small businesses. “Usually” the requirement is to generate your typical operational reports such as Sales, Inventory Tracking, Invoices.

However, I am finding that during my consultation with many customers, they also tend to need more business intelligence capabilities. Instead of only looking at sales numbers, they need to look at patterns during certain times of the year to help provide them with better decision quality as how to best improve slugging sales in certain regions.

I work in different industries as well. Some clients have sales based purely on Services. Some clients have sales based on Products. Some clients have both.

Tableau and Qlik (from the list above) do seem interesting, however. I will take a look at those. The most important part of all of this is that I am interested in solutions that are beginner-friendly as most of my customers by and large are NOT technical.

8

I would not go as far as to say that “nobody needs it anyway”. I have several customers who use Samsung devices. Not only that, but I have a far greater number of Windows customers than macOS customers. What drew me to Xojo was the fact that this solution allows me to essentially write applications that will run natively on ALL of the major platforms without having to rewrite everything.

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This sounds like you need to develop a dashboard or base for your users so that they can do the rest themselves. Which needs at least some understanding of the tools and the numbers.

For the truly perverted there is also a BI tool in Excel for Windows.

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Let’s split such incredible assumptions in parts.

Why does Xojo NOT provide better reporting functionality

Lack of manpower. I would love if they had someone working on this feature exclusively too.

is Android more important ?

For many people, yes, for others not, depends

nobody needs it anyway !!! (Android)

I’m sorry, more than 72% of the global mobile market disagrees. I for one follow those guides.

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As for macOS importance for the world… The same:

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If you customers are willing to pay you for the time to do all that, then great. But if you’d rather not (I dislike report writing too), then one options is to find a subcontractor that knows Xojo that can take over the task.

Or just tell your customer to invest in a full-time person to just do report writing, who is presumably already experienced with a particular tool that can do the job.

One former employer I had, had an entire team dedicated to just report writing KPI’s and other aggregate data. Totally separate from the teams developing their intranet apps. A worthy investment, given their business model.

I was an independent contractor for over 20 years. It took a while, but I learned that I was allowed to say no (or NO!) to some requests.

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Yep. My plan is to have them invest in a good reporting solution and get someone within their org (or contractor) who can build reports and analytic dashboards for them.

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