In section reports, you can use the SubReport control to embed a report into another report. Once you place the Subreport control on a report, use code to create an instance of the report you want to load in it, and to attach the report object to the SubReport.
You can also pass parameters to the subreport from the main report so that data related to the main report displays in each instance of the subreport.
Due to the high overhead of running a second report and embedding it in the first, it is generally best to consider whether you need to use subreports. Some good reasons to use subreports include:
Subreports are disconnected from any concept of a printed page because they render inside the main report. For this reason, page-dependent features are not supported for use in subreports. Keep any such logic in the main report. Page-related concepts that are not supported in subreports include:
Use the ReportStart event of the main report to create an instance of the report for your SubReport control, and then dispose of it in the ReportEnd event. This way, you are creating only one subreport instance when you run the main report.
In the Format event of the containing section, use the Report property of the SubReport control to attach a report object to the SubReport control.
Important Properties
| Property | Description |
|---|---|
| CanGrow | Determines whether ActiveReports increases the height of the control based on its content. |
| CanShrink | Determines whether ActiveReports decreases the height of the control based on its value. |
| CloseBorder | By default, the bottom border of the control does not render until the end of the subreport. Set this property to True to have it render at the bottom of each page. (Only available in code.) |
| Report | Attaches a report object to the control. (Only available in code.) |
With the control selected on the report, in the Commands section at the bottom of the Properties window, you can click the Property dialog command to open the dialog.
General
Name: Enter a name for the SubReport that is unique within the report. This name is displayed in the Document Outline and in XML exports. You can only use underscore (_) as a special character in the Name field. Other special characters such as period (.), space ( ), forward slash (/), back slash (\), exclamation (!), and hyphen (-) are not supported.
Tag: Enter a string that you want to persist with the control. If you access this property in code, it is an object, but in the Properties window or Property dialog, it is a string.
Visible: Clear this check box to hide the control.
ReportName: Enter the name of the report.
Format
Can increase to accommodate contents: Clear this check box to set CanGrow to False.
Can decrease to accommodate contents: Clear this check box to set CanShrink to False.