SSRS 2008 to SSRS 2012 migration

Question

Hi

We are about to undertake a migration of some of our SSRS reports from SSRS 2008 to SSRS 2012.

With regards to the reporting services instances, I will be doing this migration using the RS.exe utility using the migration script  - as per 

https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/sql/reporting-services/tools/sample-reporting-services-rs-exe-script-to-copy-content-between-report-servers

However, I need to work with the report developers and users to make this as smooth as possible.

When the reports are migrated (from one SSRS instance to another as per above), are the reports likely to behave any differently ? i.e. in a way that the users will notice. Obviously they will have a new URL, but are there any significant changes to the user interface ? IS it likely that the reports will execute differently.

Re the report developers, when they want to modify a report, am guessing that they will need to open the report in Data tools (2012) - which will convert the report RDL to 2012 format. IS this roughly correct ? Are their any gotchas with this process ?

Thanks

Greg

Answer 1

You will need to ensure that not only are the reports migrated, but also permissions, custom roles, shared data sources, share datasets, data sources, and subscriptions.

Note that in Visual Studio you can continue to develop reports and deploy them in the SQL 2008 report version to SQL 2016 report servers.

Answer 2

Re the report developers, when they want to modify a report, am guessing that they will need to open the report in Data tools (2012) - which will convert the report RDL to 2012 format. IS this roughly correct ? Are their any gotchas with this process ?

Hi Greg Both,

Yes, it is correct. Based on my research, when you open a report in Report Designer in SQL Server Data Tools (SSDT), the report definition is upgraded to the currently supported RDL schema. When you specify a SQL Server 2008, SQL Server 2008 R2, SQL Server 2012, or SQL Server 2014 report server in the project properties, the report definition is saved in a schema that is compatible with the target server.

And When there are references to custom code embedded in a report or to custom assemblies, reports might require additional steps to complete the upgrade during an upgrade of a report server. Custom assemblies should be moved manually to the new installation folder if we want to continue using the custom functionality in reports. If these assemblies are installed in the report server installation folder, they need to be moved to the new installation folder after the upgrade completes.  You can refer to Upgrade Reports and Migrate a Reporting Services Installation (Native Mode) for details.

In addition, some functions in custom code might not be supported in SSRS 2012, so you need to run the report in SSDT 2012 to see whether it can work successfully.

If you have any question, please feel free to ask.

Best regards,

Zoe

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