Member Avatar for Kian99

Hi, I’m a new comer at this forum.
I got a printing problem with crystal report; I can’t directly print the document/ report from the crystal report printing function.
I build this web base reporting program with asp.net 2.0 using CrystalReportViewer control.
As the report designer I use Crystal Report 10.
I’ve managed to view the report. But, every time I press the print button, it returns/ shows nothing.
But starts from few days ago, each time I clicked the print button, a message box that request to install PrintControl.cab shows up.
To avoid that message keep showing up I add those lines of code at the Web.Config :

<configSections>
<sectionGroup name="businessObjects">
<sectionGroup name="crystalReports">
<section name="printControl" type="System.Configuration.NameValueSectionHandler, System, Version=1.0.3300.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=b77a5c561934e089, Custom=null"/>
</sectionGroup>
</sectionGroup>
</configSections>
<businessObjects>
<crystalReports>
<printControl>
<add key="url" value="" />
</printControl>
</crystalReports>
</businessObjects>

It works, the message box didn’t show up again, but still it didn’t solve my printing problem.
Now every time I click the print button a small window with "Cristal Report Viewer" title on it, shows up for few seconds before automatically close it self and print nothing.
As temporary solution for this printing problem, I export the report to PDF or MSExcel and print using their printing function.
But not every document allowed to be treated like that; they must be printed directly at that time (to prevent multiple printing).
How to print directly from CyrstalReportViewer?
So, does anyone have solution or suggestion for my problem?
Thanks …

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  • Latest Post Latest Post by nileshagni

Dani AI

Generated

Short summary and practical checklist based on what described: the CrystalReportViewer client print uses an ActiveX print control (PrintControl.cab) that must be downloaded, installed and allowed to run in the client browser (Internet Explorer on Windows). If the viewer opens a tiny window and nothing prints, common causes are: the CAB never loads or is blocked, the CAB version doesn’t match the runtime, browser pop‑up/ActiveX/security settings stop the control, or the application is forcing “no-cache” or authentication on the CAB so IE refuses to use it.

What to try (step‑by‑step):

  • Test from a plain IE browser on a client machine with ActiveX enabled. Turn off pop‑up blocking for the app’s host and test again.
  • Make the PrintControl.cab URL publicly reachable (or at least allow anonymous access) so the client can download it; if your site requires auth, put the CAB in a virtual folder that allows anonymous access.
  • Check response headers for the CAB: if served with “no-cache”/“Pragma: no-cache” (or via HTTPS with no caching) IE will fail to use it—exclude the CAB path from those headers.
  • Confirm server and CAB versions of Crystal runtime match; mismatched versions often fail silently.
  • As a quick workaround that avoids ActiveX, switch the viewer to PDF print mode:
CrystalReportViewer1.PrintMode = CrystalDecisions.Web.PrintMode.Pdf;

Server-side printing alternative (if you need strict control over when a report prints): print from the server so no client control is required. Example:

rptDocument.PrintToPrinter(1, false, 0, 0);

Notes and diagnostics: enable tracing or check IIS/Crystal logs and the browser’s temporary internet files to see if the CAB downloaded. Try a simple report on a clean client to isolate browser/security issues. If these checks don’t help, report the exact Crystal build number and whether the site runs under HTTPS or uses Windows auth—those details narrow the root cause (useful for and ).

Member Avatar for nileshagni

Hi Kiran

Have u resolved the error? We are also facing the same problem and unable to find the solution. If u found a way to do it, pls let me know the solution. my mail id is

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