Email Reports

• Jun 07, 2024
• 9 minutes to read

This document contains examples of how to email a report in code, from the Web Document Viewer and Blazor Report Viewer.

Email a Report in Code

Send a Report as PDF Attachment

You can export a report to PDF and attach the PDF document to the email message.

For each report class you can specify different email export options in the Visual Studio Designer:

View Example: Reporting for WinForms - Use MailKit to Email a Report

The following code exports a report to PDF, attaches the PDF document to a message, and sends the message using email options specified in the Visual Studio Report Designer. This code uses the MailKit library.

C#

using MailKit.Net.Smtp;
using MailKit.Security;
using MimeKit;
using System;
using System.IO;
using System.Threading.Tasks;
// ...
private static MimeMessage CreateMimeMessageExportToPdf(MemoryStream stream)
{
    // Instantiate a report. 
    // Email export options are already specified at design time.                
    XtraReport1 report = new XtraReport1();

    var message = new MimeMessage();
    message.From.Add(new MailboxAddress("Someone", "[e-mail]"));
    message.To.Add(new MailboxAddress(report.ExportOptions.Email.RecipientName,
        report.ExportOptions.Email.RecipientAddress));
    message.Subject = report.ExportOptions.Email.Subject;
    var builder = new BodyBuilder();
    builder.TextBody = "This is a test e-mail message sent by an application.";
    // Create a new attachment and add the PDF document.
    report.ExportToPdf(stream);
    stream.Seek(0, System.IO.SeekOrigin.Begin);
    builder.Attachments.Add("TestReport.pdf", stream.ToArray(), new ContentType("application","pdf"));
    message.Body = builder.ToMessageBody();
    return message;
}
// ...
private async void btnSend_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
    string SmtpHost = edtHost.EditValue.ToString();
    int SmtpPort = Int32.Parse(edtPort.EditValue.ToString());
    string SmtpUserName = edtUsername.EditValue.ToString();
    string SmtpUserPassword = edtPassword.EditValue.ToString();
    lblProgress.Text = "Sending mail...";
    lblProgress.Text = await SendAsync(SmtpHost, SmtpPort, SmtpUserName, SmtpUserPassword);
}

private async Task<string> SendAsync(string smtpHost, int smtpPort, string userName, string password)
{
    string result = "OK";
    // Create a new memory stream and export the report in PDF.
    using (MemoryStream stream = new MemoryStream())
    {
        using (MimeMessage mail = CreateMimeMessage(stream))
        {
            using (var client = new SmtpClient())
            {
                try {
                    client.Connect(smtpHost, smtpPort, SecureSocketOptions.Auto);
                    //client.Authenticate(userName, password);
                    await client.SendAsync(mail);
                }
                catch (Exception ex) {
                    result = ex.Message;
                }
                client.Disconnect(true);
            }
        }
    }
    return result;
}

VB.NET

Imports MailKit.Net.Smtp
Imports MailKit.Security
Imports MimeKit
Imports System
Imports System.IO
Imports System.Threading.Tasks
' ...
Private Shared Function CreateMimeMessageExportToPdf(ByVal stream As MemoryStream) As MimeMessage
    ' Instantiate a report. 
    ' Email export options are already specified at design time.                
    Dim report As New XtraReport1()

    Dim message = New MimeMessage()
    message.From.Add(New MailboxAddress("Someone", "[e-mail]"))
    message.To.Add(New MailboxAddress(report.ExportOptions.Email.RecipientName, report.ExportOptions.Email.RecipientAddress))
    message.Subject = report.ExportOptions.Email.Subject
    Dim builder = New BodyBuilder()
    builder.TextBody = "This is a test e-mail message sent by an application."
    ' Create a new attachment and add the PDF document.
    report.ExportToPdf(stream)
    stream.Seek(0, System.IO.SeekOrigin.Begin)
    builder.Attachments.Add("TestReport.pdf", stream.ToArray(), New ContentType("application", "pdf"))
    message.Body = builder.ToMessageBody()
    Return message
End Function
' ...
Private Async Sub btnSend_Click(ByVal sender As Object, ByVal e As EventArgs) Handles btnSend.Click
    Dim SmtpHost As String = Me.edtHost.EditValue.ToString()
    Dim SmtpPort As Integer = Integer.Parse(Me.edtPort.EditValue.ToString())
    Dim SmtpUserName As String = Me.edtUsername.EditValue.ToString()
    Dim SmtpUserPassword As String = Me.edtPassword.EditValue.ToString()
    Me.lblProgress.Text = "Sending mail..."
    Me.lblProgress.Text = Await SendAsync(SmtpHost, SmtpPort, SmtpUserName, SmtpUserPassword)
End Sub

Private Async Function SendAsync(ByVal smtpHost As String, ByVal smtpPort As Integer, ByVal userName As String, ByVal password As String) As Task(Of String)
    Dim result = "OK"
    ' Create a new memory stream and export the report in PDF.
    Using stream As MemoryStream = New MemoryStream()

        Using mail = CreateMimeMessage(stream)

            Using client = New SmtpClient()

                Try
                    client.Connect(smtpHost, smtpPort, SecureSocketOptions.Auto)
                    client.Authenticate(userName, password)
                    Await client.SendAsync(mail)
                Catch ex As Exception
                    result = ex.Message
                End Try

                client.Disconnect(True)
            End Using
        End Using
    End Using

    Return result
End Function

Send a Report as HTML Email Body

Export a report as an email and use the MailKit library to send it.

To export a report to an email message, do the following:

• Use the report’s ExportOptions.Email property to specify options for report export.
• Call the ExportToMail method report to convert a report to a MailMessage object (an HTML representation of the report). This method returns an instance of the MailMessage class.
• Convert the MailMessage object to a MimeMessage object.
• Use the SmtpClient.SendAsync method to send the message.

View Example: Reporting for WinForms - How to Use MailKit to Email a Report

C#

using MailKit.Net.Smtp;
using MailKit.Security;
using MimeKit;
using System;
using System.IO;
using System.Threading.Tasks;
// ...
private static MimeMessage CreateMimeMessageExportToMail(MemoryStream stream) {
    // Instantiate a report. 
    // Email export options are already specified at design time.                
    XtraReport1 report = new XtraReport1();

    System.Net.Mail.MailMessage mMessage = report.ExportToMail("[e-mail]",
                report.ExportOptions.Email.RecipientAddress, report.ExportOptions.Email.RecipientName);
    mMessage.Subject = report.ExportOptions.Email.Subject;

    // Create a new attachment and add the PDF document.
    report.ExportToPdf(stream);
    stream.Seek(0, System.IO.SeekOrigin.Begin);
    System.Net.Mail.Attachment attachedDoc = new System.Net.Mail.Attachment(stream, "TestReport.pdf", "application/pdf");
    mMessage.Attachments.Add(attachedDoc);

    var message = (MimeMessage)mMessage;
    return message;
}

private async void btnSend_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
    string SmtpHost = edtHost.EditValue.ToString();
    int SmtpPort = Int32.Parse(edtPort.EditValue.ToString());
    string SmtpUserName = edtUsername.EditValue.ToString();
    string SmtpUserPassword = edtPassword.EditValue.ToString();
    lblProgress.Text = "Sending mail...";
    lblProgress.Text = await SendAsync(SmtpHost, SmtpPort, SmtpUserName, SmtpUserPassword);
}

private async Task<string> SendAsync(string smtpHost, int smtpPort, string userName, string password)
{
    string result = "OK";
    // Create a new memory stream and export the report in PDF.
    using (MemoryStream stream = new MemoryStream())
    {
        using (MimeMessage mail = CreateMimeMessage(stream))
        {
            using (var client = new SmtpClient())
            {
                try {
                    client.Connect(smtpHost, smtpPort, SecureSocketOptions.Auto);
                    //client.Authenticate(userName, password);
                    await client.SendAsync(mail);
                }
                catch (Exception ex) {
                    result = ex.Message;
                }
                client.Disconnect(true);
            }
        }
    }
    return result;
}

VB.NET

Imports MailKit.Net.Smtp
Imports MailKit.Security
Imports MimeKit
Imports System
Imports System.IO
Imports System.Threading.Tasks
' ...
Private Shared Function CreateMimeMessageExportToMail(ByVal stream As MemoryStream) As MimeMessage
    ' Instantiate a report. 
    ' Email export options are already specified at design time.                
    Dim report As New XtraReport1()

    Dim mMessage As System.Net.Mail.MailMessage = report.ExportToMail("[e-mail]", report.ExportOptions.Email.RecipientAddress, report.ExportOptions.Email.RecipientName)
    mMessage.Subject = report.ExportOptions.Email.Subject

    ' Create a new attachment and add the PDF document.
    report.ExportToPdf(stream)
    stream.Seek(0, System.IO.SeekOrigin.Begin)
    Dim attachedDoc As New System.Net.Mail.Attachment(stream, "TestReport.pdf", "application/pdf")
    mMessage.Attachments.Add(attachedDoc)

    Dim message = CType(mMessage, MimeMessage)
    Return message
End Function


Private Async Sub btnSend_Click(ByVal sender As Object, ByVal e As EventArgs) Handles btnSend.Click
    Dim SmtpHost As String = Me.edtHost.EditValue.ToString()
    Dim SmtpPort As Integer = Integer.Parse(Me.edtPort.EditValue.ToString())
    Dim SmtpUserName As String = Me.edtUsername.EditValue.ToString()
    Dim SmtpUserPassword As String = Me.edtPassword.EditValue.ToString()
    Me.lblProgress.Text = "Sending mail..."
    Me.lblProgress.Text = Await SendAsync(SmtpHost, SmtpPort, SmtpUserName, SmtpUserPassword)
End Sub

Private Async Function SendAsync(ByVal smtpHost As String, ByVal smtpPort As Integer, ByVal userName As String, ByVal password As String) As Task(Of String)
    Dim result = "OK"
    ' Create a new memory stream and export the report in PDF.
    Using stream As MemoryStream = New MemoryStream()

        Using mail = CreateMimeMessage(stream)

            Using client = New SmtpClient()

                Try
                    client.Connect(smtpHost, smtpPort, SecureSocketOptions.Auto)
                    client.Authenticate(userName, password)
                    Await client.SendAsync(mail)
                Catch ex As Exception
                    result = ex.Message
                End Try

                client.Disconnect(True)
            End Using
        End Using
    End Using

    Return result
End Function

Email a Report from the Web Document Viewer

You can send a request to the server to export a report to PDF and email the resulting PDF document.

View Example: Reporting for Web - Email a Report from the Document Viewer

Do the following on the client and server sides:

Configure Server Side

1. Create a DocumentOperationService class descendant and override CanPerformOperation) and PerformOperation methods.

2. Implement the PerformOperation method that exports a report to PDF, composes the mail message, and uses the SmtpClient instance to send a message:

   C#

   public override DocumentOperationResponse PerformOperation(DocumentOperationRequest request, 
       PrintingSystemBase initialPrintingSystem, 
       PrintingSystemBase printingSystemWithEditingFields) {
       using (var stream = new MemoryStream()) {
           System.Net.Mail.MailMessage mMessage = 
               printingSystemWithEditingFields.ExportToMail(request.CustomData,
               "[e-mail]",
               "John Doe");
           mMessage.Subject = "Test";
   
           // Create a new attachment and add the PDF document.
           printingSystemWithEditingFields.ExportToPdf(stream);
           stream.Seek(0, System.IO.SeekOrigin.Begin);
           System.Net.Mail.Attachment attachedDoc = 
               new System.Net.Mail.Attachment(stream, "TestReport.pdf", "application/pdf");
           mMessage.Attachments.Add(attachedDoc);
   
           var message = (MimeKit.MimeMessage)mMessage;
   
           string smtpHost = "localhost";
           int smtpPort = 25;
   
   
           using (message) {
               using (var client = new MailKit.Net.Smtp.SmtpClient()) {
                   try {
                       client.Connect(smtpHost, smtpPort, SecureSocketOptions.Auto);
                       //client.Authenticate(userName, password);
                       client.Send(message);
                       client.Disconnect(true);
                       return new DocumentOperationResponse {
                           Succeeded = true,
                           Message = "Mail was sent successfully",
                           DocumentId = printingSystemWithEditingFields.Document.Name
                       };
                   }
                   catch (Exception ex) {
                       return new DocumentOperationResponse {
                           Message = ex.Message, 
                           Succeeded = false,
                       };
                   }
               }
           }
       }
   }
   

   VB.NET

   Public Overrides Function PerformOperation(ByVal request As DocumentOperationRequest, ByVal initialPrintingSystem As PrintingSystemBase, ByVal printingSystemWithEditingFields As PrintingSystemBase) As DocumentOperationResponse
       Using stream = New MemoryStream()
           Dim mMessage As System.Net.Mail.MailMessage = printingSystemWithEditingFields.ExportToMail(request.CustomData, "[e-mail]", "John Doe")
           mMessage.Subject = "Test"
   
           ' Create a new attachment and add the PDF document.
           printingSystemWithEditingFields.ExportToPdf(stream)
           stream.Seek(0, System.IO.SeekOrigin.Begin)
           Dim attachedDoc As New System.Net.Mail.Attachment(stream, "TestReport.pdf", "application/pdf")
           mMessage.Attachments.Add(attachedDoc)
   
           Dim message = CType(mMessage, MimeKit.MimeMessage)
   
           Dim smtpHost As String = "localhost"
           Dim smtpPort As Integer = 25
   
   
           Using message
               Using client = New MailKit.Net.Smtp.SmtpClient()
                   Try
                       client.Connect(smtpHost, smtpPort, SecureSocketOptions.Auto)
                       'client.Authenticate(userName, password);
                       client.Send(message)
                       client.Disconnect(True)
                       Return New DocumentOperationResponse With {
                           .Succeeded = True,
                           .Message = "Mail was sent successfully",
                           .DocumentId = printingSystemWithEditingFields.Document.Name
                       }
                   Catch ex As Exception
                       Return New DocumentOperationResponse With {
                           .Message = ex.Message,
                           .Succeeded = False
                       }
                   End Try
               End Using
           End Using
       End Using
   End Function
   

3. Register an instance of a custom DocumentOperationService class as a service:

   C#

   DefaultWebDocumentViewerContainer.Register<DocumentOperationService, Services.CustomDocumentOperationService>();
   

   VB.NET

   DefaultWebDocumentViewerContainer.Register(Of DocumentOperationService, CustomDocumentOperationService)()
   

Configure Client Side

1. Call the PerformCustomDocumentOperation method to pass an email address to the DocumentOperationService on the server.

   The code snippet below handles the CustomizeMenuActions event to add a Send via Email button to the toolbar and calls the PerformCustomDocumentOperation method on button click:

   function CustomizeMenuActions(s, e) {
       var itemDisabled = ko.observable(true);
       s.Init.AddHandler(function (s) {
           var reportPreview = s.GetReportPreview();
           reportPreview.events.on('propertyChanged', (e) => {
               if(e.propertyName === 'exportDisabled') {
                   itemDisabled(e.newValue);
               }
           });
           itemDisabled(reportPreview.exportDisabled);
       });
       var sendViaEmailItem = {
           id: 'someCustomId',
           imageClassName: 'custom-image-item',
           text: 'Send via Email',
           visible: true,
           disabled: itemDisabled,
           clickAction: function () {
               s.PerformCustomDocumentOperation('[e-mail]')
                   .done((arg) => alert('Document ' + arg.documentId + " : " + arg.message));
           }
       };
       e.Actions.push(sendViaEmailItem);
   }
   

Email a Report from the Native Blazor Report Viewer

Use the Mailkit library to send an email from the native Blazor Report Viewer. You can find a complete code sample here: Email a Report from the Native Blazor Report Viewer.

The example adds a Send Email button to the Viewer’s toolbar. The button opens the Send Email dialog (DxPopup). You can specify the recipient list, subject, attachment, and body within the dialog. Click the Send button to send the report with the specified settings.

View Example: Reporting for Blazor - Email a Report from the Native Blazor Report Viewer