Step 2: Download and modify the report file in iReport

Once you have iReport installed, you are ready to modify your report file.

To download a report in iReport:

  1. In Aspen, click the General sub-tab for the copied report.
  2. Click Download icon. next to Format definition.
  3. Save the file as a type .jrxml to your computer, replacing the auto-generated numeric file name with something more meaningful.
    Note: A good practice is to name the report file the same as the report ID you assigned in Aspen, such as PPS-STD-021.
  1. Open the .jrxml file with iReport.
    Note: See Formatting Dates and Numbers in iReport. For more in-depth instructions on using iReport, refer to iReport Help.

Information on adding fields in iReport

When adding a field to a report in iReport, use the field’s Java name. Java names can be found by looking up the field in Aspen’s Data Dictionary.

To find a field’s Java name:

  1. In Aspen, log on to the District view.
  2. Select Admin > Data Dictionary.
  3. Select the checkbox next to the table the field resides on.
    Note: If you do not know which table the field is on, see your state's Reporting Setup Guide for a list of common fields and their respective tables.
  1. Click Fields under the Tables side-tab.
  2. Copy the Java name for the field you want to add to the report.
  3. In iReport, define the field by adding the Java name to the list of fields in the Document Structure pane.
  4. Paste the Java name into the report format between the brackets of the code $F{ }.

When adding a field to a report, the field must reside on the report’s primary table or a table related to the primary table.

To view a table’s related tables:

  1. Log on to the District view.
  2. Select Admin > Data Dictionary.
  3. Select the checkbox next to the report’s primary table.
  4. Click Relationships under the Tables side-tab.

In order to use a field from a related table in a report, the relationship between the primary table and the related table must be many to 1 (n : 1) or one to one (1 : 1). The relationship can be determined by looking at the values in the PRelType and RRelType columns:

In the screenshot above, tables IEP Goal through Meeting Attendance have a relationship of 1 : n with the primary table (Student). Therefore, fields from these tables cannot be used in a report that has Student as its primary table.  

The tables Next School through Organization 5 have a relationship of n : 1 with the primary table. Fields from these tables can used in a report that has Student as its primary table.

To add a related field to a report:

  1. In Aspen, press CTRL-C to copy the Java name for the field you want to add to the report.
  2. In iReport, define the field by adding the Java name to the list of fields in the Document Structure pane.
  3. Press CTRL-V to paste the Java name into the report format between the brackets of the code $F{ }.
  4. Define the related table in the Fields category of the Document Structure.
  5. Define the field name, prefixed by the related table name.
    Example: To add a student's next school to a report, select the table nextSchool (the Java name of the related table) and the field.