Adding Rectangles and Lines
You can use rectangles and lines to create visual effects within a report. To add a line or rectangle, drag the object from the Toolbox to the design surface and resize. You can set properties on these report items by using the Properties pane. Rectangles and lines are not associated with data, however you can attach them to a data region using the RepeatWith property. You can add features like a background color or image, a ToolTip, or a bookmark to a rectangle.
Adding a Container
A rectangle can be used as a container for other items. When you move the rectangle, the items that are contained within the rectangle move along with it.
When using rectangles to contain report items, consider how the items will be affected as a whole during report rendering. Report items that contain repeated rows of data (for example, tables) will expand to accommodate the data that is returned by a query, and this affects the positioning of other items in the rectangle. A table will push items down if they are positioned below the data region. To anchor an item in place, you can place the report item inside of a rectangle that has an upper edge above the lower edge of the table. For more information, see Understanding Rendering Behaviors.
Adding a Report Border
You can add a border to a report by adding borders to the headers, footers, and report body. In the header, add a left, top, and right border. In the body, add a left and right border. In the footer, add a left, bottom, and right border. If you do not use headers in your report, you can place borders around just the report body.
If you add a report border that appears on the page header and footer, do not suppress the header and footer on the first and last pages of the report. If you do, the border may appear cut off at the top or bottom of the first and last pages of the report. For more information, see Adding Page Headers and Footers.