Supported formats

ReportForge V1 supports CSV (comma-separated values) files as data sources. This covers the most common data export format from business tools, spreadsheets, and databases.

Tip

Database connectivity is on the roadmap for a future release. For now, export your data as CSV from your database or application.

CSV requirements

  • First row must contain column headers.
  • UTF-8 encoding recommended — most applications export UTF-8 by default.
  • Comma delimiter is auto-detected.
  • Values containing commas should be enclosed in double quotes.
  • One record per line.

ReportForge also supports semicolon and tab delimiters — the delimiter is detected automatically.

Importing a data source

1
Open Data Sources (Ctrl+2).
2
Click Import or press Ctrl+N.
3
Browse to your CSV file and select it.
4
Give the data source a name (or keep the filename). ReportForge reads the headers and shows a preview of the first few rows.

Column mapping

When you create a mapping (Mappings → New Mapping), ReportForge connects CSV column headers to template placeholders. Matching is case-insensitive — a CSV header Company_Name matches the placeholder {{company_name}}.

Unmatched placeholders remain as literal text in the output. You can manually adjust mappings in the mapping editor if headers don’t match placeholder names exactly.

Storage and management

When you import a CSV, ReportForge copies it to a managed location at %AppData%\ReportForge\DataSources. This means you can move or delete the original file without affecting your data source.

To update the data, re-import the CSV — ReportForge will use the latest version for all future report generation.

Common data issues

  • Garbled characters — File may not be UTF-8. Re-export from your application with UTF-8 encoding.
  • Wrong delimiter detected — If your CSV uses semicolons or tabs and auto-detection fails, check that the file is well-formed.
  • Missing headers — The first row must contain column headers. If your data starts on row 1 with no headers, add a header row.
  • Extra blank rows — Remove trailing blank rows from your CSV. They may cause empty data in your report.
  • File is too large — ReportForge shows a warning when your CSV exceeds the configured row limit (default: 10,000 rows). You can adjust this in Settings.

For more help, see the Troubleshooting guide.