PDF Export taking too long

I am using RS SP2 with SQL 2k SP4.
I have a fairly large report, in the region of a few hundred pages. It has a
couple of parameters that filters the data. I have it linked from a web
application and it goes directly to PDF. If the parameters are set the
report renders to PDF pretty quickly, the size runs from 1 page to 70 pages.
If we try to render the whole thing it just sits and sits and sits. I let it
run for an hour at one point at the report never appeared. The CPU is spiked
to 25% continually and eventually I have to do an iisreset to. Now I am
pretty sure, say 95% sure that this report worked fine with RS SP1 and SQL
2k SP3a.
So two questions.
Is there a known problem with large PDF exports?
Does anyone know if any third parties are selling PDF rendering extensions
for sql reporting services? I know there is at least one for Excel.So 1 - 70 pages is fast. How many pages is it if it is the whole thing? PDF
rendering and Excel rendering are very resource intensive.
Bruce Loehle-Conger
MVP SQL Server Reporting Services
"Alex" <atelford6@.hotmail.nospam.com> wrote in message
news:O7cFPTVYFHA.2768@.tk2msftngp13.phx.gbl...
>I am using RS SP2 with SQL 2k SP4.
> I have a fairly large report, in the region of a few hundred pages. It has
> a couple of parameters that filters the data. I have it linked from a web
> application and it goes directly to PDF. If the parameters are set the
> report renders to PDF pretty quickly, the size runs from 1 page to 70
> pages. If we try to render the whole thing it just sits and sits and sits.
> I let it run for an hour at one point at the report never appeared. The
> CPU is spiked to 25% continually and eventually I have to do an iisreset
> to. Now I am pretty sure, say 95% sure that this report worked fine with
> RS SP1 and SQL 2k SP3a.
> So two questions.
> Is there a known problem with large PDF exports?
> Does anyone know if any third parties are selling PDF rendering extensions
> for sql reporting services? I know there is at least one for Excel.
>|||Good news and bad news
Good news is I have figured out the problem. Bad news is it does appear to
come from a PDF rendering bug.
We mad a minor change to the report and uploaded it, which is when we saw
the problem. I rolled back the report, redeployed and all is well, renders
290 pages in around 20 seconds.
The report has a table with 4 groups. On the third group we added a single
blank row above the group row. The group row contains some text. So for
groups #3 we have two header rows, one blank the other has a datafield. We
basically wanted to add some whitespace. With that extra blank row the
report with null parameters will not render and just pegs the CPU. If we
remove the row it works fine. If we supply a parameter to filter the report
it will render in both cases. I don't know at what point it breaks and I
don't really have the time to mess with it.
I will leave it without the whitespace for now but its very annoying to have
such a simple report change break the rendering.
"Bruce L-C [MVP]" <bruce_lcNOSPAM@.hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:%230WlwdVYFHA.3864@.TK2MSFTNGP10.phx.gbl...
> So 1 - 70 pages is fast. How many pages is it if it is the whole thing?
> PDF rendering and Excel rendering are very resource intensive.
>
> --
> Bruce Loehle-Conger
> MVP SQL Server Reporting Services
> "Alex" <atelford6@.hotmail.nospam.com> wrote in message
> news:O7cFPTVYFHA.2768@.tk2msftngp13.phx.gbl...
>>I am using RS SP2 with SQL 2k SP4.
>> I have a fairly large report, in the region of a few hundred pages. It
>> has a couple of parameters that filters the data. I have it linked from a
>> web application and it goes directly to PDF. If the parameters are set
>> the report renders to PDF pretty quickly, the size runs from 1 page to 70
>> pages. If we try to render the whole thing it just sits and sits and
>> sits. I let it run for an hour at one point at the report never appeared.
>> The CPU is spiked to 25% continually and eventually I have to do an
>> iisreset to. Now I am pretty sure, say 95% sure that this report worked
>> fine with RS SP1 and SQL 2k SP3a.
>> So two questions.
>> Is there a known problem with large PDF exports?
>> Does anyone know if any third parties are selling PDF rendering
>> extensions for sql reporting services? I know there is at least one for
>> Excel.
>