---
title: Reporting.ReportBase
summary: API reference for Reporting.ReportBase.
status: draft
owner: SAIF Case Management
last_reviewed: 2026-08-21
library: SAIF.Services.Printing
reference_type: embedded
---

# Reporting.ReportBase

`ReportBase` is a `MustInherit` template-method base class implementing `IReport` that orchestrates the `Create → Render → Print/Distribute/Save` lifecycle for concrete report/letter types, using an internally owned `clsPrint` instance to talk to the xPression Design service. Its base `Create` implementation is a no-op stub (clears errors, returns current XML); concrete subclasses override it to build the actual `Reporting.XDesignXDocument` tree. The only confirmed concrete subclass in the scanned repository is the test-only `MyReport`.**

## Purpose
- Provide consistent render/print/distribute/save orchestration for any concrete letter/report subclass, avoiding duplicated `clsPrint` interaction logic in each subclass.
- Collect non-fatal errors from each lifecycle step into an `Errors` list of `Reporting.ErrorDetail` instances rather than propagating exceptions to the caller.
- Select the correct security platform (Windows vs. Web) when determining the default printer, based on `EnvironmentServiceBase.IsWeb`.

## Context
- Namespace: `SAIF.Services.Printing.Reporting`
- Assembly/package: `SAIF.Services.Printing` (embedded, front-end referenced)

## Public members
| Member | Signature | Purpose |
| --- | --- | --- |
| `New()` | `Public Sub New()` | Parameterless constructor; delegates to the environment-service-accepting overload using `AppGlobal.EnvironmentService`.* |
| `New(envSvc)` | `Public Sub New(envSvc As EnvironmentServiceBase)` | Stores the supplied environment service, used later to select the security platform in `Render`. |
| `Create(overwrite)` | `Overridable Function Create(overwrite As Boolean) As Object` | Base (no-op) implementation clears the error list and returns the current XML; concrete subclasses override this to build the actual document tree. |
| `Render(overwrite)` | `Function Render(overwrite As Boolean) As Boolean` | Builds (via `Create`) and renders the report to PDF bytes through an internal `clsPrint.previewDocument` call; see [Render a letter or report](../../operations/render-report.md). |
| `Print(printer, overwrite)` | `Function Print(printer As String, overwrite As Boolean) As Boolean` | Ensures the report is rendered, then prints via `clsPrint.printPDF`; see [Print a letter or report](../../operations/print-report.md). |
| `Distribute(overwrite)` | `Function Distribute(overwrite As Boolean) As Boolean` | Builds XML (via `Create`, not `Render`) and distributes it as plain XML via `clsPrint.distributeDocument`; see [Distribute a letter or report](../../operations/distribute-report.md). |
| `Save(overwrite)` | `Function Save(overwrite As Boolean) As Boolean` | Renders (if needed) and writes the resulting bytes to `DestinationFileName`; see [Save a rendered report to disk](../../operations/save-report.md). |
| `SetDefaultProfile()` | `Sub SetDefaultProfile()` | Sets `OutputProfile` to `"PDF"`; see [Switch output profile](../../operations/switch-output-profile.md). |
| `SetDraftProfile()` | `Sub SetDraftProfile()` | Sets `OutputProfile` to `"PDF_Draft_Watermark"`; see [Switch output profile](../../operations/switch-output-profile.md). |
| `ReportPackage` | `Public Property ReportPackage As String` | The xPression package name used when rendering/distributing this report. |
| `DestinationFileName` | `Public Property DestinationFileName As String` | The file path used by `Save` to persist rendered bytes. |
| `Errors` | `Public ReadOnly Property Errors As List(Of ErrorDetail)` | The collected list of non-fatal errors recorded during `Create`/`Render`/`Print`/`Distribute`/`Save`. |

## Behavioral notes
- `Render` short-circuits (returns `True` without re-rendering) if `m_reportFile` is already populated and `overwrite` is `False`.
- `Print` calls `Render` internally, while `Distribute` calls `Create` directly — a discrepancy that means `Distribute` may send un-rendered (not re-rendered-to-PDF) XML content while `Print` always ensures rendered bytes exist.*
- `Render` sends `m_reportXml.ToXpression` (xPression markup) to `clsPrint.previewDocument`, while `Distribute` sends `m_reportXml.ToString` (plain XML) to `clsPrint.distributeDocument` — this discrepancy could be intentional (different consumers) or a latent inconsistency; not confirmable from this library's code alone.**
- `Render` determines the security platform via `EnvironmentServiceBase.IsWeb`, defaulting to `clsSecurityPrincipal.Platform.Windows` and switching to `Platform.Web` when `IsWeb` is true, then calls `GetDefaultPrinter()`.†

## Constraints and usage notes
- `Create` in the base class is effectively a no-op; concrete subclasses must override it to produce meaningful report content. No confirmed production subclass exists in this repository — only the test-only `MyReport`.**

> **Note:** Statements marked with * were inferred from code structure, naming conventions, or
> contextual evidence where direct confirmation was not available in source artifacts. Statements
> marked with ** could not be confirmed; treat as unknown until verified. Statements marked with
> † were retrieved from dependency library documentation via the Legends CLI RAG service. They
> describe inherited behavior from the indicated origin library and should be verified if the
> dependency version changes.

## Sources
- `SAIF.Services.Printing\Reporting\ReportBase.vb`
- `SAIF.Services.Printing\SAIF.Services.Printing.Tests\MyReport.vb`