topic Re: Paginated Report, two columns of data, weird page breaks in Report Server

Paginated Report, two columns of data, weird page breaks

timatlee — Thu, 21 Aug 2025 16:25:06 GMT

New-ish to PowerBi and especially new to paginated reports.

I have an existing report that scrolled vertically for several pages (~30 tables or so). I wanted to present the tables side-by-side.

I copied the one table, pasted it beside, then filtered each table based based on a counter % 2, so that the left column would show table 1, 3, 5, etc, and the right would show tables 2, 4, 6, etc. The design view looks like this:

The challenge that comes is that the repeating row, the row that starts with "[Labcode2]", may span more than one page. This would be consistent for the whole report. Stated another way, each table in a single report has the same number of lab codes.

I set a page break on the row group around the top row (where it says TEST RESULTS). I do this on both tables.

When viewing the results in the report designer, the report looks exactly as I would like.

When viewing as a PDF, the first pair of tables show correctly:

The [Labcode2] group repeats, wraps to the next page, and the summary bit shows, then page breaks.

The next page does not follow this behaviour:

For some reason, the last row of [Labcode2] does not span to the next page, and pulls the summary section up into the first page - honestly making it look weird: 😛

(pardon the size - it was hard to get both side-by-side and show the weird breaking).

There is no page break defined on the [Labcode2] repeating group. The only page break I can find defined is on the repeating group around TEST RESULTS.

This only happens when the output is generated as PDF.

My inexperience with report builder starts to show up here .. I have no idea how to approach this to fix it 🙂

Any help or dierction is appreciated.

Re: Paginated Report, two columns of data, weird page breaks

Ilgar_Zarbali — Thu, 21 Aug 2025 20:05:20 GMT

It looks like your issue is tied to pagination and group rendering rules in paginated reports, especially when exporting to PDF. Here’s how you can fix:

1. Check “Keep Together” settings

Go to the row group properties of the [LabCode2] group.
Ensure “Keep Together” is unchecked — this allows rows to split naturally across pages.
Also check the parent group (the one with “TEST RESULT”) and uncheck “Keep together with first detail row.”

2. Use “Keep with Group” options

On the row containing your summary section, set “Keep with group: After” so the summary always stays with its corresponding data block.

3. Adjust “CanGrow” and heights

Ensure textboxes and rows have CanGrow = True and avoid fixed heights, which can force unexpected breaks.

4. Disable unnecessary page breaks

Remove manual page breaks except for the top-level group if needed.
Check Group Properties → Page Breaks for both tables and confirm no extra breaks are applied.

5. Test rendering

Use the Print Layout preview in Report Builder to simulate PDF output — it reflects PDF pagination more accurately than the interactive view.

6. Other

If the PDF keeps misaligning:

Place two Tablix controls inside a parent rectangle, rather than side-by-side without a container.
This often keeps alignment and pagination consistent across pages.

I hope it will help.

Re: Paginated Report, two columns of data, weird page breaks

V-yubandi-msft — Mon, 25 Aug 2025 06:25:40 GMT

Hi timatlee ,

Have you had a chance to review Ilgar_Zarbali response? If it resolved your issue, that’s good. If you’re still experiencing any problems, please let us know. We’re here to assist if you need more information.

Thank you.