Report Designer - How data joins work

Table types

Using the Join Editor you can add the following types of table:

• Static table - A table that's not linked to any other tables on the document. It provides stand alone information, not directly linked to any other information on the report. A common static table is COMPANY.
• Non-static table - This is a table that's joined to another table, based on a common data field. The relationship between the two tables is determined by the type of join you specify. Most tables in a report are non-static.

Join criteria

When creating a join between tables the following criteria must be met for the join to work correctly:

• Data fields must be the same type - Data fields have different types, such as numeric fields which only accept numbers, and alphanumeric fields which accept numbers and text.
• The join must be between two logical variables - Data fields have to share similar information. For example you can link the customer account reference with the invoice account reference since they are the same.
• Parent and child keys - When you create a join between two tables, the first table selected becomes the parent and the second table becomes the child. The parent table is signified by a key. This must be set correctly to ensure the correct data is included on your report.

Join types

The relationship between the parent and child tables is determined by the join type you select. To ensure that your report provides the right information, it is important to set the correct join type.