Installing the Reporting Services Client Print ActiveX Control

Created: 14 October 2009. Last Reviewed: 14 October 2009

EEE Reports are delivered using Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services, a component of SQL Server 2005 and SQL Server 2008. Reporting Services displays reports to users in a web browser. In order to print reporting services reports to a client-connected printer, Reporting Services uses a small ActiveX component known as RSClientPrint. Upon first attempt to use the client print function (or first attempt after installing a Reporting Services update such as an SQL Server service pack), IE will prompt the user to download and install the ActiveX control.

The ActiveX control may be manually pre-deployed to client machines. This is desirable:

1. To save users having to accept the ActiveX installation prompts; or
2. If Internet Explorer security settings are such that the installation of the ActiveX control would not be permitted.

To Manually Install the ActiveX Control:

The ActiveX control files are in RSClientPrint.cab on the SQL Server in the Reporting Services bin directory. This is typically located in c:\Program Files\Microsoft SQL Server\MSSQL.4\Reporting Services\ReportServer\bin. Note, that the MSSQL.4 directory is variable depending what SQL Server components are installed – Reporting Services may be in MSSQL.2 or MSSQL.3 etc.

The cab file contains the following which should be installed in c:\windows\Downloaded Program Files:* gdiplus.dll

• rsclientprint.dll
• RSClientPrint_1028.rll
• RSClientPrint_1031.rll
• RSClientPrint_1033.rll
• RSClientPrint_1036.rll
• RSClientPrint_1040.rll
• RSClientPrint_1041.rll
• RSClientPrint_1042.rll
• RSClientPrint_1043.rll
• RSClientPrint_1046.rll
• RSClientPrint_1049.rll
• RSClientPrint_1053.rll
• RSClientPrint_2052.rll
• RSClientPrint_3082.rll
  

Once thse files have been installed, RSClientPrint.dll needs to be registered:regsvr32.exe RFClientPrint.dllIf writing a batch file to automate this process it may be necessary for force steps 2 and 3 above to run under a separate account with administrative privileges. The following batch file may be used as a guide:

@echo off

@Rem Skip if already installed (might not work if attempting to upgrade an older version!)

if exist "c:\Windows\Downloaded Program Files\gdiplus.dll" goto endd

@Rem Create directory if necessary

if not exist "c:\Windows\Downloaded Program Files" mkdir "c:\Windows\Downloaded Program Files"

@Rem Specify source directory (copy of files from cab file)

set srcpath=\\eee-server\files

@Rem Install Files

%srcpath%\psexec.exe /accepteula -u administrator -p my-password cmd.exe /c xcopy %srcpath%\rsclient\* "c:\Windows\Downloaded Program Files" /y

@Rem Register DLL

%srcpath%\psexec.exe -u administrator -p my-password regsvr32 "c:\Windows\Downloaded Program Files\RSClientPrint.dll" /s

:endd

Note: This batch file uses psexec.exe from Sys Internals (http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/bb545027.aspx) to invoke commands (cmd.exe and regsvr32.exe) under a different (administrator) account. The Windows internal runas command cannot be used because you cannot pass the password on the command line to runas.

Note that upon first execution of psexec.exe a EULA may be displayed to the user in a modal dialog box. To prevent this (which would stop a batch file from running in unattended mode), the command line switch /accepteula is used in the first call to psexec.exe.