FIX: The DataSets panel is not available in the report designer when you open a SQL Server Reporting Services 2005 RDLC file in Visual Studio 2008

In Microsoft Visual Studio 2005, the following behavior occurs:

• You perform one of the following actions:
  • You double-click a Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services 2005 RDLC file.
  • You right-click the RDLC file, click Open With, and then click Microsoft Visual Studio 2005.
• The report design window and the DataSets panel appear. The DataSets panel enables you to drag-and-drop the fields onto the report design surface.

If the DataSets panel is closed in Visual Studio 2005, you can reopen it by using one of the following methods:

• Press ALT+SHIFT+D.
• Click Show Data Sources on the Data Design toolbar.
• On the Data menu, click Show Data Sources.

In Visual Studio 2008, the DataSets panel is not available, and you experience the following behavior:

• When you press ALT-SHIFT-D, the hotkey sequence does not work.
• The Show Data Sources button is unavailable on the Data Design toolbar.
• The Show Data Sources item is not on the Data menu.

Note You can still access the field names by using the expression editor.

A supported hotfix is available from Microsoft. However, this hotfix is intended to correct only the problem that is described in this article. Apply this hotfix only to systems that are experiencing this specific problem. This hotfix might receive additional testing. Therefore, if you are not severely affected by this problem, we recommend that you wait for the next software update that contains this hotfix.

To download this hotfix from the MSDN Code Gallery, visit the following Microsoft Web site:

Note The MSDN Code Gallery displays the languages for which the hotfix is available. If you do not see your language listed, it is because the Code Gallery resource page is not available for that language.

Note If additional issues occur or if any troubleshooting is required, you might have to create a separate service request. The usual support costs will apply to additional support questions and issues that do not qualify for this specific hotfix. For a complete list of Microsoft Customer Service and Support telephone numbers or to create a separate service request, visit the following Microsoft Web site:


The English version of this hotfix has the file attributes (or later file attributes) that are listed in the following table. The dates and times for these files are listed in Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). When you view the file information, it is converted to local time. To find the difference between UTC and local time, use the Time Zone tab in the Date and Time item in Control Panel.

Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in the Microsoft products that are listed in the "Applies to" section.

For more information, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: