Understanding SQL Server and SQL Server Reporting Services

You can manage Visual Studio Team System Team Foundation Server more easily if you understand SQL Server, SQL Server Reporting Services, and how they both interact with Team Foundation Server. You can find extensive documentation for SQL Server 2005 and SQL Server 2008 on the Microsoft Web site. This topic focuses specifically on the interactions between SQL Server, SQL Server Reporting Services, and Team Foundation Server.

Interactions between Team Foundation Server and SQL Server

The logical Team Foundation data tier depends on SQL Server. The logical Team Foundation data tier consists of SQL Server databases. This logical tier can be located on one physical server, or distributed across a SQL Server cluster of servers. Team Foundation Server data is stored in seven SQL Server databases. One advantage of this aspect of Team Foundation Server architecture is that all data that you need to restore an Team Foundation Server deployment is stored in these databases. You do not have to back up individual client computers or team project sites. If you are familiar with backing up SQL Server databases, you will find backing up and restoring Team Foundation Server databases equally familiar. For more information, see Backing Up the Team Foundation Server.

SQL Server must be installed on a server (or servers) that has the appropriate trust levels configured between it and the server (or servers) that hosts the logical Team Foundation application-tier. For more information, see Managing Team Foundation Server in an Active Directory Domain and Managing Team Foundation Server in a Workgroup.

Interactions between Team Foundation Server and SQL Server Reporting Services

SQL Server Reporting Services is considered part of the logical application tier for Team Foundation. However, Reporting Services does not have to be installed on the same physical server as other logical aspects of that application tier, such as SharePoint Products and Technologies. For more information, download the installation guide for Team Foundation from the Microsoft Web site, and see "Team Foundation Server Security Architecture."

When you configure user and group permissions and group membership in Team Foundation Server, you must also manually configure role membership and permissions appropriately for those users and groups in Reporting Services. For more information, see SQL Server Reporting Services Roles.

In addition to configuring role membership and permissions in Reporting Services, you must also manage the service account used by Team Foundation Server for communicating with Reporting Services. This account is frequently referred to as the Reporting Services service account or TFSREPORTS. Like the TFSSERVICE service account, the TFSREPORTS service account must be a member of a workgroup or domain that is trusted by every computer that will connect to Team Foundation Server. Unlike the TFSSERVICE service account, changes to this account cannot be solely managed by using the TFSAdminUtil command-line tool. You must manage configuration changes to the TFSREPORTS account in the data sources for Reporting Services as well as in the Team Foundation Server integration database and the web.config files for Team Foundation Server. For more information, see Managing Team Foundation Server Services and Service Accounts and How to: Change the Service Account or Password for SQL Server Reporting Services.

Important Note:

Even if you are logged on with administrative credentials, you might have trouble accessing Report Manager or the https://localhost/Reports site on a computer that is running Windows Server 2008 or Windows Vista. You might need to add those sites as Trusted Sites in Internet Explorer or start Internet Explorer as an administrator. To start Internet Explorer as an administrator, click Start, click All Programs, right-click Internet Explorer, and then click Run as administrator. For more information, see the Microsoft Web site.

See Also

Concepts

Team Foundation Server Security Architecture

SQL Server Reporting Services Roles

Windows SharePoint Services Roles

Other Resources

Managing Permissions

TFSAdminUtil Command-Line Commands