Can SSRS 2008 be used to report on SqlServer 2005 data, and if so is this a good idea?

Currently our data is in SqlServer 2005 and we are using the Crystal Reports in VS2008 for reporting. 开发者_如何学JAVA

The decision has been made to convert from Crystal Reports to SSRS. We will also be upgrading to SqlServer 2008 (not sure if R2 or not) at some point, not sure how soon.

Meanwhile, I need to learn how to use SSRS now.

I was thinking of just going straight to learning SSRS 2008 if I can use it to report on SqlServer 2005 data.

If possible, I was planning to download a free trial version of SqlServer 2008 ( good for ½ year) to a development machine to use SSRS 2008 until we upgrade to SqlServer 2008 or SqlServer 2008 R2.

Unknowns which would help me decide:

Is this even doable, ie can SSRS 2008 be used to report on SqlServer 2005 data?

If doable, is this a good or bad idea?

Difficulty in upgrading from SSRS 2005 to SSRS 2008. If very easy, I could just learn SSRS 2005 now.

Learning curve for learning SSRS 2005, SSRS 2008, and SSRS 2008 if I already know SSRS 2005.

I have been researching this till my head hurts and not been able to figure this out.

Can SSRS 2008 be used to report on SqlServer 2005 data?

Definitely Yes. It can connect to a wide variety of Data Sources, many much older/obscurer than SQL-Server 2005.

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms159219.aspx

If doable, is this a good or bad idea?

As long as you are happy administering / licensing two servers, then it's fine.

Difficulty in upgrading from SSRS 2005 to SSRS 2008.

err... should work, but don't blame me if it doesn't. http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms143674.aspx

Downgrading from 2008 to 2005 almost definitely won't work, by the way.

Learning curve for learning SSRS 2005, SSRS 2008, and SSRS 2008 if I already know SSRS 2005.

I'd say that 80-90% of things stayed the same, so the important thing is to get started with either version. I find the grouping and tables much more intuitive in 2008, and that things are generally a bit easier to find, and better described in the GUI's.

In summary, if you think the upgrade will happen sooner rather than later, go for 2008. If you think that in two years you might still be waiting for an upgrade, then go for 2005.

Here's what I would do:

Get your hands on the developer edition of SQL Server 2008, install it on your PC or development server, and put a copy of your SQL Server 2005 database(s) on your server.

If you have an MSDN subscription you should already have access to SQL Server Dev version (or any of the other versions).

If you don't have MSDN, I believe you can purchase the developer edition by itself.

http://www.microsoft.com/sqlserver/2008/en/us/developer.aspx

I'm personally not a fan of evaluation editions, 180 days isn't bad, but it might take 263 days for your company to move to SS2008...