What are Reports in Business Central and How Can They Be Customised?

Reports in Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central are objects that retrieve and present business data for operational, financial, analytical, and document-generation purposes.

An important architectural distinction is:

The report dataset determines what data is available; the report layout determines how that data is presented.

Microsoft describes Business Central reports as having a report object containing the dataset and layouts.

Think of a report as two layers

Business Central Tables
        ↓
Report Object / AL
        ↓
Dataset
        ↓
Report Layout
        ↓
Word / Excel / RDLC / External
        ↓
Final Document

Dataset

The dataset defines the information available to the report.

For example:

Customer
    ↓
Sales Header
    ↓
Sales Line

The dataset might expose:

Customer Name
Invoice Number
Invoice Date
Item Number
Description
Quantity
Unit Price
Amount
Tax
Total

If a field isn't available in the dataset, simply changing the Word or RDLC layout won't magically make the field available.

This distinction is extremely important for developers.

Layout

The layout controls presentation.

Business Central currently supports layout types including:

• Word
• Excel
• RDLC
• External

Microsoft documents these as the primary report layout types.

Word layouts

Word layouts are useful when business users need relatively straightforward document formatting.

You can customize:

• Logo
• Fonts
• Labels
• Positioning
• Headers
• Footers
• Tables
• Text
• Basic formatting

Business Central allows users to export a layout, modify it in Word, and import it as a user-defined layout.

RDLC layouts

RDLC is more appropriate when you need detailed control over report presentation, particularly for pixel-sensitive documents and complex reporting requirements.

For example:

Invoice
 ├── Header
 ├── Customer section
 ├── Line items
 ├── Tax summary
 ├── Payment information
 └── Footer

Complex grouping, pagination, conditional formatting, and precise positioning may require RDLC expertise.

Excel layouts

Excel layouts are useful when the output is intended for analysis rather than a formal document.

For example:

Sales Analysis → Excel → Pivoting → Filtering → Management Analysis

When AL development is required

Suppose management says:

"Add salesperson commission to the invoice."

If the commission value already exists in the report dataset, you may only need a layout modification.

But if the value doesn't exist in the dataset, you may need:

AL development → Report extension/custom report → Dataset modification → Layout modification

Microsoft specifically notes that changing report datasets requires AL development and report/report-extension knowledge.

Expert rule

Don't customize the layout when the real problem is the dataset.

And don't write AL code when the required data already exists and the requirement is purely presentation.

That distinction helps reduce unnecessary customization and improves maintainability.

Business Central also supports report selection, allowing organizations to determine which reports and layouts are used for different business documents.