Report Modeler, Report Builder, Reporting Services

My company has recently upgraded from SQL Server 2000 to SQL Server 2008.  

I have been given a list of reports to upgraded.  I created my first .rdl and Report Model yesterday.  In giving design consideration to these reports, I would like to know:

1. When do you use Report Modeler and why
2. What is the differnce in a stand-alone report or a report that uses a model.

I am new to this - and have formed the prelimnary conclusion that IF the ultimate goal for a report is AD-HOC via Report Builder, a model would be used.  If it is a pre-defined report, the .rdl would be used.  I am trying to decided how to approach this task, given what has currently been asked of me, and also where we might be in the future.  

Feedback please. Regards - Victoria

From: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc678411.aspx

Report models have the following features:

• Database fields and views can be given logical business names, so knowledge of the database structure is not required to produce reports.
• Items can be grouped logically.
• Relationships between items can be defined.
• Model elements can be secured so that users can see only the data that they have permission to see.

A standalone report without a report model requires knowledge of SQL and structure of the schema/database you are connecting to. You will need this knowledge to write the dataset query that the report will be based on.

The report model gives a level of abstraction to the user so that they do not have to worry about the complexity of the database structure giving them a drag 'n' drop GUI. The report model creator needs to understand what the end users will need to write reports against and an in depth knowledge of the database structure.

If you go a level above report model you can create an SSAS cube for the report builders to use. The SSAS cube would be able to be upgraded to SQL Server 2012

One thing to bear in mind is that the report model feature is deprecated in SQL Server 2012 and has been replaced by BISM (Business Intelligence Semantic Model). There is no migration path from Report Model to BISM as they are very different entities. So any work you do now in Report Model if you choose that route, will need to be done again if you upgrade to SQL Server 2012.

Thank you - very informative.  Much appreciated.

If it answered all of your questions, please remember to 'mark as answered'

Thanks :-)