Friday, March 12, 2021

SQL Server Management Studio 2012 Color Theme Support

This information is a summarization from Brad Gearon’s blog (blog doesn't exist any longer, hence no link). All credits go to the him and all the blog contributors. I added here so I can remember the steps for myself.

These are the things needed to support color theme in SQL Server Management Studio 2012.

Putting it together (this is from Arthur from the Brad’s blog. Thanks Arthur!)…

  1. Install the 2012 Color Theme Editor.
  2. Find the files somehwere in “C:\Users\xxxxx\AppData\Local\Microsoft\VisualStudio\10.0\Extensions\” .. for me, it was in “\shvn3avp.com” for the current version of the plugin.
  3. Copy those files to a new folder: “C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft SQL Server\110\Tools\Binn\ManagementStudio\Extensions\VSTheme”
  4. Now extract the extension.vsixmanifest file from Brad’s vstheme.zip file and replace the one in “…ManagementStudio\Extensions\VSTheme”.

    Note: The important difference in the vsixmanifest files is the lines:
  5. ssms
    instead of visual studio product numbers

  6. Start SQL Server Management Studio and enjoy the colors.

Keep Column Headers Visible in SSRS

The information below is a duplication from article written by Ginger Keys Daniel posted in SQLServerCentral site (great SQL resource). It's here so I can have a record incase the original posting is removed. All credits belong to Ginger Keys Daniel. Thank you Ginger.



When scrolling through the pages of a SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS) report, it is very useful to be able to see the column headers throughout the report. Let’s say you have successfully created an SSRS report using Visual Studio, and everything looks wonderful…except the headers on your columns disappear when you scroll down the page. You have even set the properties of your Tablix to “Keep Headers Visible While Scrolling”, but it still doesn’t work! Trying to keep the column headings visible while you scroll down the page of your SSRS report can be a frustrating endeavor. The following steps will demonstrate how to make it work.

Adjust Tablix Properties In Visual Studio, make sure you are on the Design tab of your report. Right click on the upper left corner of your Tablix to open the Tablix Properties.

When the Properties dialog box opens, un-check the Keep header visible while scrolling checkboxes for both Row Headers and Column Headers. This doesn’t seem logical, but trust me.

Go to Advanced Mode for the Grouping Section. You can do this in the Design tab of your report, click on drop down arrow on the far right side of the Grouping Section and select Advanced Mode.

A Static property element will show above your Row Groups as shown below. Click on the top Static cell which represents the first column header of the report. A properties box will open on the right side of the page for this Static element.

Change Tablix Member properties for the Static element as shown

  • Fixed Data = True
  • Keep With Group = After
  • Repeat On New Page = True

Preview and Run your Report

Click on the Preview tab on your report, save it, and deploy the report to Reporting Services. Below you can see the report as shown in SSRS browser.

As you can see below, the page header disappears when you scroll down, but the column headers remain visible. (note: You may need to change the background color of the column headers, else the text will run over one another when scrolling)

Conclusion

Sometimes when creating a report for SQL Server Reporting Services, you want the column headers to remain visible while you scroll down the report page. Adjusting the Tablix properties isn’t as straightforward as it should be, and can be frustrating to figure out. Following the steps above will keep your column headers visible in your reports.