Crystal Reports 9

Crystal Reports 9 

Creating a Java Bean to use as a Data Source 

Overview 

Contents 

Crystal Reports 9 Advanced Edition has the capability to use Java Beans as data 

sources. This technical brief discusses how to construct a Crystal Reportscompatible 

Java Bean. Specifically, this document demonstrates how to create a 

Java Bean that returns a Java ResultSet containing data from the Customer table 

in the Xtreme Sample Database 9. 

INTRODUCTION............................................................................................ 2 

GETTING STARTED......................................................................................2 

Checking for the Java Beans Connectivity folder ........................................2 

Installing the Java Development Kit............................................................2 

CREATE A JAVA BEAN ................................................................................3 

Compiling the Java Bean source file ...........................................................5 

Modifying the registry..................................................................................5 

Creating the first registry entry .......................................................................... 6 

Creating the second registry entry...................................................................... 6 

CREATE A REPORT USING THE JAVA BEAN DATA SOURCE ...........................7 

FINDING MORE INFORMATION ......................................................................8 

Knowledge base articles ..............................................................................8 

Javadocs and tutorials on resultsets ............................................................8 

Utility ...........................................................................................................8 

11/8/2004 1:49:00 PM Copyright © 2004 Business Objects. All rights reserved. Page 1

Crystal Reports 9 Java Bean Data Sources 

Introduction 

Getting Started 

Crystal Reports 9 Advanced Edition is the first version that has the ability to use 

Java Beans as data sources (this feature is also available in Crystal Reports 10 

Developer and Advanced Developer editions). Any compiled Java class that has 

a public method returning a java.sql.ResultSet object can be used as a data 

source. 

Checking for the Java Beans Connectivity folder 

To verify whether your installation of Crystal Reports is properly setup to report 

off Java Beans, complete these steps: 

1. In the Crystal Reports Designer, click the New button. The Crystal 

Reports Gallery appears. 

2. Click As a Blank Report, and then click OK. The Database Expert dialog 

box appears. 

3. Expand the Create New Connection folder, and then search for the Java 

Beans Connectivity folder (see Figure1). 

If the Java Beans Connectivity folder does not exist, re-install Crystal 

Reports 10 with the Java Data components. The Java Data components 

are available by expanding the Data Access folder in the Crystal 

Reports Setup dialog box. 

If the Java Bean Connectivity folder does exist, continue with the 

following sections in this document to create a Java Bean. 

Installing the Java Development Kit 

Before creating a Java Bean, download and install the latest version of J2SE 

from the Sun Microsystems website at http://java.sun.com/j2se. 

11/8/2004 1:49:00 PM Copyright © 2004 Business Objects. All rights reserved. Page 2 

cr9_java_bean_datasource.pdf


Create a Java Bean 

Figure 1 – Database Expert Dialog Box 

To create a Java Bean source file, complete these steps: 

1. Create a text file called CR9SampleDataSourceBean.java and copy the 

following code into this file: 

import java.sql.*; 

/** 

* Title: Java Bean Data Source Sample 

* Description: Sample application to show how to use a 

Java Bean as a Data Source for CR 9 

* Copyright: Copyright (c) 2002 

* Company: Crystal Decisions, Inc. 

* @author Erik Lemen (Technical Support) 

* @version 1.0 

*/ 




/* For information on how to use JDBC and ResultSets see 

Sun's tutorials and guides at 

 

This site will explain the url, Connection, Statement and 

JDBC-ODBC Bridge driver 

that are used to populate the java.sql.ResultSet 

*/ 

public class CR9SampleDataSourceBean { 

private ResultSet resultSet = null; 

private Connection con = null; 

private String url = "jdbc:odbc:Xtreme Sample Database 

9"; 

private String JDBCBridge = 

"sun.jdbc.odbc.JdbcOdbcDriver"; 

private String sqlQuery = "SELECT * FROM CUSTOMER"; 

public CR9SampleDataSourceBean() { 

try { 

//Ensure JDBC-ODBC Bridge exists 

Class.forName(JDBCBridge); 

//Create a connection to 'Xtreme Sample Database 9' 

ODBC DSN 

con = DriverManager.getConnection(url, "Admin", ""); 

} catch (ClassNotFoundException e) { 

System.out.println("Check to ensure that the JDBC- 

ODBC Bridge driver is installed"); 

e.printStackTrace(); 

} catch (SQLException e) { 

System.out.println("SQL Exception #" + 

e.getErrorCode() + " : " + e.getLocalizedMessage()); 

} 

} 

e.printStackTrace(); 

public ResultSet getResultSet() throws 

java.sql.SQLException { 

//Create an SQL statement to execute 

Statement stmt = 

con.createStatement(ResultSet.TYPE_SCROLL_SENSITIVE, 

ResultSet.CONCUR_READ_ONLY); 




NOTE 

CAUTION 

//Execute the select statement to populate the 

ResultSet 

} 

} 

resultSet = stmt.executeQuery(sqlQuery); 

return resultSet; 

2. Save CR9SampleDataSourceBean.java to the D:\Sample Apps\Java\Bean 

DataSources\ directory. 

Compiling the Java Bean source file 

Now that you have created the CR9SampleDataSourceBean.java source file, 

compiled it into a class file by completing these steps: 

1. On the command line, change the directory to C:\Java\Bean DataSources\. 

2. Compile the file using the javac.exe command as follows (see Figure 2): 

< path to javac.exe> CR9SampleDataSourceBean.java 

Figure 2 – Using theJavac.exe Command 

The CR9SampleDataSourceBean.java source file is now being compiled 

into a class file. When it has finished compiling, you will see two new files 

created in the directory: CR9SampleDataSourceBean.java and 

CR9SampleDataSourceBean.class. 

The Java Bean source file name must be the same as the class name. In this example, 

the file name is CR10SampleDataSourceBean.java and the class name is 

CR10SampleDataSourceBean.class. 

Modifying the registry 

The next step is to create two registry entries. The first registry entry points 

Crystal Reports to the path containing the Java Bean class files; the second 

registry entry points Crystal Reports to the location of the Java Virtual Machine 

(JVM). 

The following involves editing the registry. Using Registry Editor incorrectly can cause 

serious problems that may require you to reinstall the Windows operating system. Use 

Registry Editor at your own risk. 




For information about how to edit the registry, view the Changing Keys And Values online 

Help topic in Registry Editor (Regedit.exe). Note that you should make a backup copy of 

the registry files (System.dat and User.dat) before you edit the registry. 

Creating the first registry entry 

To create the first registry entry, complete the following steps: 

1. Ensure that Crystal Reports is shut down. 

2. On the Start menu, click Run. The Run dialog box appears. 

3. Type regedit.exe in the Open box and then click OK. The Registry Editor 

appears. 

4. Navigate to the following subkey: 

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Crystal Decisions\9.0\Crystal 

Reports 

5. Right-click the Crystal Reports subkey, click New, and then click Key. 

6. Type “Database” for the name of the subkey. 

7. Right-click the Database key, click New, and then click String Value. 

8. Type “JavaBeansClassPath” as the name of the registry entry. 

9. Right-click JavaBeansClassPath, and click Modify. The Edit String 

dialog box appears. 

10. In the Value data box, type the path(s) to the directory (or directories) that 

contains the compiled Java Bean class files. If you are using more than one 

directory, separate them with a semi-colon. For example: 

C:\JavaBean\Datatype\;C:\JavaBean\Linking\ 

Creating the second registry entry 

To create the second registry entry, complete the following steps: 

1. In the Registry Editor, navigate to the following subkey: 

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Crystal Decisions\9.0\Crystal 

Reports" key 

2. Right-click the Crystal Reports subkey, click New, and then click String 

Value. 

3. Type “JREPath” as the name of this new entry. 

4. Right-click the JREPath entry, click Modify. The Edit String dialog box 

appears. 

5. In the Value data box, type the full path to the file Jvm.dll. For example: 

C:\j2sdk1.4.0\jre\bin\client\jvm.dll 




Create a Report using the Java Bean Data Source 

You are now ready to create a report based off your Java Bean data source. 

Complete the following steps: 

1. In the Crystal Reports 10 Designer, click the New button. The Crystal 

Reports Gallery appears. 

2. Click As a Blank Report and then click OK. The Database Expert dialog 

box appears. 

3. Expand the Create New Connection folder and then click the Java Beans 

Connectivity folder. The Java Beans Connectivity dialog box appears 

displaying a list of available Java classes (see Figure 3). Methods that return 

java.sql.ResultSet objects are added as available tables under the Java 

Beans Connectivity folder. 

Figure 3 – Available Java Classes 

4. Click the CR9SampleDataSourceBean class and then click the Finish 

button. 

5. Complete the remaining steps to finish creating your report. 




Finding More Information 

Knowledge base articles 

Search for the following knowledge base articles on our support site: 

• c2011506 - Configuring Crystal Reports 10 to use Java Bean classes as data 

sources 

• c2011653 - Limitations when using crdb_javabeans.dll to report on Java 

Beans 

• c2011830 - Troubleshooting Err Msg: "Unknown Query Engine Error" 

when using Java Bean 

• c2011834 - Report appears blank when using Java Bean as data source in 

CR 10 

Javadocs and tutorials on resultsets 

Javadocs on the ResultSet Interface 

http://java.sun.com/j2se/1.3/docs/api/java/sql/ResultSet.html 

Tutorial on using JDBC and creating ResultSets 

http://java.sun.com/products/jdbc/learning.html 

Utility 

SQLCon32 utility to troubleshoot database connections 

http://support.businessobjects.com/communityCS/FilesAndUpdates/sqlcon3 

2.zip 

For more information and resources, refer to the product documentation and 

visit the support area of the web site at www.businessobjects.com 

www.businessobjects.com 

Business Objects owns the following U.S. patents, which may cover products that are offered and sold by Business 

Objects: 5,555,403, 6,247,008 B1, 6,578,027 B2, 6,490,593 and 6,289,352. Business Objects, the Business Objects 

logo, Crystal Reports, and Crystal Enterprise are trademarks or registered trademarks of Business Objects SA or its 

affiliated companies in the United States and other countries. All other names mentioned herein may be trademarks 

of their respective owners. Product specifications and program conditions are subject to change without notice. 

Copyright © 2004 Business Objects. All rights reserved.

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