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Have you ever wished you had a list of all the database tables and fields used in your Crystal reports? You may have needed to make structural changes to your database. If so, such a list would help you judge the impact of the changes. Or you might simply have wanted to rename one or two fields. Again, it would be handy to know exactly which reports use the fields in question.
CR Doc is a simple utility that will meet exactly that need. You tell it which reports you're interested in, and it will rapidly produce a text file containing all the field names used in those reports. You can use the information in a variety of ways. For example, you could open the text file in Microsoft Excel, where you can sort it and analyse it, or you could feed it back into CR to produce a new report.
Note that CR Doc is not a full report-documentation utility. There are products on the market that will give you a much more detailed analysis of the composition of your reports. On the other hand, CR Doc is very easy to use, and has the added advantage of being free.
CR Doc does not work directly with the actual Crystal report files (RPT files). Instead, it uses report definition files to obtain the information it needs. A report definition file is a text file that contains information about the various objects used in a report. You create it within CR. The process, which is described in the CR Doc Help file, is completely straightforward and takes only a few moments.
Note for FoxPro developers. If you would like some VFP code that does the same job as CR Doc, please see A utility to document your Crystal reports.
The download file accompanying this article includes a stand-alone version of CR Doc, ready for you to install and run. Just click on the link below to start the download. When it's finished, open the resulting zip file, and double-click on SETUP.EXE to install the program.
Note that CR Doc requires the Microsoft .NET Framework, version 2.0 or above. If this is not already installed on your computer, the setup program will ask your permission to download and install it.
We have tried to make CR Doc self-explanatory. If you need any assistance, refer to the accompanying Help file.
Mike Lewis Consultants Ltd. November 2007.
These pages are maintained by Mike Lewis Consultants Ltd. as a service to the CR community. Feel free to download and use any code or components, and to pass around copies of the articles (but please do not remove our copyright notices or disclaimers).
The information given on this site has been carefully checked and is believed to be correct, but no legal liability can be accepted for its use. Do not use code, components or techniques unless you are satisfied that they will work correctly in your applications.
© Copyright Mike Lewis Consultants Ltd.