Q: What is Smart Report Maker and how can it help me?
A: Smart Report Maker is a no-code, self-hosted application designed to help you generate reports, charts, pivot tables, dashboards, KPIs, and scheduled reports directly from your databases — without writing a single line of code.
With Smart Report Maker, you can:
Securely connect to your MySQL and MariaDB databases.
Visually build professional reports, charts, pivot tables, and dashboards from your own databases.
Create report chains by linking multiple reports together.
Schedule automated report delivery.
Seamlessly and securely embed reports, dashboards, and analytics into your own PHP applications or WordPress website. 🔥
Track business performance using custom KPIs.
Q: Is Smart Report Maker easy to install? Can it run on shared hosting?
A: Yes, absolutely. Unlike many similar tools that require command-line access, Docker, or complex server configuration, Smart Report Maker offers a brand-new installation method starting with version 11.0. This method requires no command-line usage and no complex setup—you simply upload the package and launch a web-based installer directly from your browser.
This new approach, called Direct Upload of the Pre-Installed Package, was introduced in response to extensive customer feedback and is now the recommended, easiest, and fastest way to install Smart Report Maker, including on shared hosting environments.
✅ Simply upload the files, launch the web installer in your browser, and it works out of the box.
✅ No terminal required.
✅ No shell or command-line commands.
✅ No server administration or DevOps expertise required.
✅ Open-source PHP code — fully accessible and easy to inspect.
You simply upload Smart Report Maker to your website, open a web-based installer in your browser, and complete the setup in just a few clicks.
The Direct Upload method works perfectly with:
Shared hosting or dedicated servers
Any operating system (Windows or Linux)
Any control panel, including cPanel, Plesk, or others
As long as your hosting supports PHP, Smart Report Maker can be installed easily, transparently, and reliably.
Q: Why should I choose Smart Report Maker as my PHP reporting tool for MySQL and MariaDB?
A: Smart Report Maker is a powerful PHP reporting tool that has been on the market since 2007 and is trusted by thousands of users worldwide. It allows you to create reports, charts, pivot tables, KPIs, and PHP dashboards from any MySQL or MariaDB database without writing code. The tool is easy to install using a web-based installer that runs directly from your browser, works smoothly on shared hosting, VPS, and dedicated servers, and runs entirely on your own server for full data privacy. Smart Report Maker is available with a one-time payment model—no subscriptions and no hidden fees—and generated reports and PHP dashboards can be easily and securely embedded into PHP applications and WordPress websites. For more details on why to choose Smart Report Maker, please click here.
Q: Can Smart Report Maker be used by non-technical users without coding experience?
A: Yes, Smart Report Maker is designed for both technical and non-technical users. Its intuitive, wizard-based interface allows business users, analysts, and managers to build reports, PHP dashboards, charts, pivot tables, and KPIs without writing SQL or PHP code. Additionally, unlike many similar tools that require command-line access or complex server configuration, Smart Report Maker uses a web-based installer that runs directly from your browser, making both installation and daily usage simple, fast, and accessible for everyone.
Q: How can I see Smart Report Maker in action?
A: There are several easy ways to explore Smart Report Maker and see what it can do before installing it:
🔗 Try the online demo
Explore a fully working version of Smart Report Maker directly in your browser:
👉 https://demo.mysqlreports.com/
🎥 Watch feature walkthrough videos
See how different SRM modules work by watching short screencasts and tutorials:
👉 https://mysqlreports.com/webuccino-screencasts/
🔌 Use the WordPress plugin
If you are using WordPress, you can install the official SRM plugin from the WordPress repository:
👉 https://wordpress.org/plugins/srm-embed-smart-report-maker/
Note: You will need access to the SRM demo version or a licensed installation to configure and use the plugin.
📊 View live embedded examples
See real examples of reports, dashboards, and charts generated by SRM and embedded inside a WordPress website:
👉 https://demo.mysqlreports.com/wordpress/?page_id=93
These embeds are not limited to WordPress—you can also securely embed them in any PHP application using the SRM Embed Manager.
Q: Which hosting control panels are supported by Smart Report Maker?
A: Smart Report Maker works with any hosting control panel when using the Direct Upload of a Pre-installed Version (the default installation method).
You can use SRM with hosting control panels such as: cPanel, Plesk, CWP (Control Web Panel), DirectAdmin, Webmin, Virtualmin, ISPConfig, CyberPanel, HestiaCP, VestaCP, aaPanel, Ajenti, Froxlor, SolidCP, CloudPanel, RunCloud, ServerPilot, Laravel Forge. As long as your hosting supports PHP, Smart Report Maker can be installed regardless of the control panel you use.
Q: What are the system requirements for Smart Report Maker when using the default Direct Upload method?
A: When using the Direct Upload of a Pre-installed Version, Smart Report Maker requires:
Operating System: Windows or Linux.
Web Server: Apache or Nginx.
PHP Version: PHP 7.4 or later.
Database: MySQL or MariaDB.
Q: What new features does the latest version of SRM include?
A: The latest version of Smart Report Maker introduces powerful new capabilities designed to help you build, share, and analyze data more efficiently. It expands both reporting flexibility and embedding options, making it easier than ever to integrate analytics into your applications and workflows. Learn more about this new version.
Q: Is there a promotion if I purchase Smart Report Maker? Can I get a discount on Smart Form Maker and Smart Report Engine?
A: Yes. There are usually cross-product promotions between Smart Report Maker (SRM), Smart Form Maker (SFM), and Smart Report Engine (SRE). Currently, the discount is typically around 25%, but it may change over time. When purchasing any product, check the “We Also Recommend” section on the checkout page to see the latest discounts available on the other products.
Q: Can I embed reports, dashboards, or analytics created with SRM into my PHP application? How does it work?
A: Yes. Starting from SRM 11.0, you can securely embed reports, dashboards, and other analytics into any PHP application using the built-in Embed Manager.
The Embed Manager generates a secure embed code that you can place directly inside your application. When embedded:
This allows seamless integration while keeping your analytics secure and your application UI clean.
👉 Learn more about the Embed Manager here.
Q: Can I display barcodes, Google Maps, QR codes, images, and rich visual elements inside my reports?
A: Yes. Smart Report Maker (SRM) allows you to transform raw data into rich, visual report cells without custom coding. You can display and format many data types directly inside your reports, including:
All of these options can be configured visually inside SRM, allowing you to create professional, interactive, and presentation-ready reports directly from your database.
Q: Can I automatically schedule reports to be sent to my end users on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis?
A: Yes. Smart Report Maker (SRM) includes powerful scheduled reporting that automates both report generation and delivery—so your end users receive the right reports at the right time without any manual effort.
With SRM, you can:
Scheduled reporting works with any MySQL or MariaDB database, helping you eliminate repetitive manual tasks while ensuring reliable and timely data delivery.
Q: Can report linking be used to navigate from customers to their accounts and invoices?
A: Yes. You can link a single Customers Report to multiple related reports. For example, the customer report can be linked to an Accounts Report to view each customer’s balance, and also to an Invoices Report to display all invoices for that customer. From there, users can drill down further into invoice details or any other relevant reports you choose. Learn more about report linking here.
Q: What is the difference between a Parent Report and a Linked Report?
A: A Parent Report sends parameters when users click a value, while a Linked Report receives those parameters and filters its data accordingly. The Parent controls navigation, and the Linked Report displays the related details.
Q: When do I need an Intermediate Report?
A: An Intermediate Report is useful in multi-level report chains. It receives a parameter from one report and passes another parameter to the next report, allowing you to build complex drill-down paths across several reports.
Q: Can linked reports receive parameters from the URL?
A: Yes, Linked reports can receive parameters directly through the URL, which makes them ideal for embedding reports in websites, dashboards, or external applications while still filtering data correctly.
Q: Do report chains work when reports are embedded in other websites?
A: Yes, Drill-down navigation continues to work even when reports are embedded in platforms like WordPress or custom applications, without requiring users to manually reapply filters.
Q: Is report linking suitable for large or complex datasets?
A: Yes. Report linking is especially useful for large datasets because it breaks data into logical steps, improves performance, and helps users focus only on the data relevant to their current selection.
Q: Is there a limit to the number of PHP dashboards I can create in Smart Report Maker?
A: No. Smart Report Maker allows you to create and manage unlimited PHP dashboards. You can design dashboards for different departments, projects, reporting periods, or business needs—all within the same system.
Q: What types of widgets can I add to PHP dashboards in Smart Report Maker?
A: You can build PHP dashboards using a wide range of widgets, including reports, interactive charts, KPIs, and pivot tables. Each widget is fully customizable, allowing you to highlight and visualize the data that matters most.
Q: Do PHP dashboards in Smart Report Maker support drill-down and interactivity?
A: Yes. Smart Report Maker dashboards are fully interactive. You can drill down from charts, KPIs, pivot tables, and report data to view detailed information for any selected data point, enabling deeper analysis and exploration.
Q: Can I combine widgets in a single dashboard that are derived from different MySQL and MariaDB databases?
A: Yes. Smart Report Maker supports multiple database connections, allowing you to combine widgets in a single dashboard that pull data from different MySQL and MariaDB databases. This makes it easy to create unified dashboards that consolidate data from multiple systems.
Q: Can I create PHP charts directly from my existing MySQL or MariaDB databases using Smart Report Maker?
A: Yes. Smart Report Maker allows you to create professional PHP charts directly from your existing MySQL or MariaDB databases, without moving or duplicating your data. You can visualize key metrics and trends using your live database data with just a few clicks.
Q: Does Smart Report Maker support time-series charts for trend analysis?
A: Yes. Smart Report Maker supports powerful time-series charts that help you track performance over time (such as daily sales, user signups, or order volume). You can also use flexible time scales like hours, days, weeks, months, or quarters to analyze trends and seasonality.
Q: Can I filter PHP charts by date ranges or other criteria?
A: Yes. You can apply advanced data filters to focus your charts on the most relevant information, such as filtering by department, region, date range, product, or performance metrics. This ensures your charts remain targeted, clear, and actionable.
Q: Can I choose which values appear in a chart if a column contains many records (e.g., many countries or names)?
A: Yes. When configuring the chart, you can check only the values you want to include. Any unchecked values will be hidden from the chart, allowing you to focus on specific data points without changing your database or query.
Q: Do PHP charts in Smart Report Maker support drill-down and interactivity (for example, clicking a date to view orders for that day)?
A: Yes. Smart Report Maker charts support drill-down and interactive exploration. For example, if you have an Orders chart, you can click a specific date (or data point) on the graph to open a focused view or detailed report showing only the orders for that selected date, helping you move from high-level trends to detailed records instantly.
Q: What is the difference between Smart Report Maker and Smart Report Engine?
A: The difference between Smart Report Maker and Smart Report Engine is that Smart Report Maker is a complete product for creating professional reports, charts, dashboards, drill-down charts, and KPIs using an easy-to-use interface, while Smart Report Engine is a reporting engine that PHP developers can integrate into their projects to generate reports by calling its API within their code.
Q: Can I create PHP MySQL pivot tables in Smart Report Maker without writing SQL?
A: Yes. Smart Report Maker allows you to build powerful MySQL and MariaDB pivot tables using a drag-and-drop editor, without writing a single line of SQL. You simply select fields and assign them to rows, columns, and values to generate insights instantly.
Q: How does the drag-and-drop pivot table builder in Smart Report Maker work?
A: The pivot table builder uses an intuitive drag-and-drop interface where you move database fields into Rows, Columns, and Values areas. Smart Report Maker automatically handles grouping, aggregation, and calculations, making it easy to create complex pivot tables visually.
Q: Can I group a Date field (such as an order date) into months, quarters, weekdays, or hours when building a pivot table?
A: Yes. Smart Report Maker allows you to group Date and DateTime fields into years, quarters, months, weekdays, days, or hours. This makes it easy to create summary reports such as sales per month, quarterly performance, weekday trends, or hourly breakdowns.
Q: Can end users filter pivot table data dynamically at runtime?
A: Yes. You can define interactive parameters that allow end users to filter pivot table data dynamically using dropdowns, date pickers, sliders, or other input controls, enabling flexible, real-time analysis.
Q: How can I try the Pivot Table Builder before purchasing?
A: You can try the Pivot Table Builder directly in the online demo version of Smart Report Maker. You can also watch this video tutorial to see the feature in action.
Q: What types of filters are available when building pivot tables in Smart Report Maker?
A: Smart Report Maker supports two types of filters when building pivot tables. Static filters are defined by you at design time and apply fixed conditions to the data. Dynamic filters (parameters) are defined by end users at runtime, allowing them to filter data interactively. Parameters can appear as text boxes, date pickers, time sliders, multi-select dropdowns, and other input controls. Both filter types are created using the same drag-and-drop editor, with many supported filter options and display styles.
Q: If I have multiple PHP applications using a single SRM installation, how can I manage embedding for each one?
A: You can use a single Smart Report Maker installation to serve multiple applications or clients by creating a separate access key for each client or application.
Smart Report Maker also supports multiple database connections, allowing you to connect to and report on data from multiple sources within the same installation. For more details, check this tutorial
Q: Can Smart Report Maker connect to multiple MySQL or MariaDB databases?
A: Yes. Smart Report Maker allows you to create and manage multiple connections to MySQL and MariaDB databases. This enables you to generate reports from different databases within the same system and streamline reporting across multiple data sources easily.
Q: Can users interact with embedded dashboards and reports, or are they static?
A: Embedded dashboards and reports are fully interactive. Users can use filtering, linked reports, drill-down, search, paging, and sorting, just as they would inside Smart Report Maker.
Q: Will SRM menus and panels be visible inside my PHP application when embedding reports or dashboards?
A: No. Only the embedded resources (reports, charts, dashboards, pivot tables, and KPIs) are displayed. SRM menus and panels are not shown, and you can brand the embedded content with your own logo.
Q: Can I restrict embedding so it works only within my own PHP application?
A: Yes. You can restrict embedding by configuring the origin settings:
Additionally, it is strongly recommended to use access keys with permissions limited only to the specific resources you want to embed, for enhanced security.
Q: Can I customize the embed scripts?
A: Yes. The embed script is a native PHP file and can be customized as needed. Clear comments in the file indicate where custom code can be safely added.
If you have shared code that should apply to all embedded resources, you can define it once in “Embed Preferences” under the “Embed Manager”, and it will be applied globally.
Q: Do I have to pay per embedded user or per view like other BI platforms?
A: No. SRM runs on your own server, and you do not pay for traffic, number of views, API calls, or embedded report requests. Once licensed, all embedding usage is unlimited with no extra fees per traffic or user.
Q: How can I embed SRM reports and dashboards into a WordPress website?
A: Since SRM 11.0, we provide a dedicated WordPress plugin that enables you to embed SRM reports, dashboards, and analytics directly into your WordPress pages or posts. Learn more about the WordPress plugin here.
Q: How can I download the Smart Report Maker (SRM) Reports WordPress plugin?
A: You can download the SRM Reports WordPress plugin from here
Q: How can I see SRM WordPress plugin in action?
A: To see the plugin in action, you can watch the plugin video tutorials. Additionally, you can install the official SRM plugin from the WordPress repository: After installation, you’ll need access to a licensed Smart Report Maker installation. If you haven’t purchased SRM yet, you can use the online demo version to embed reports and dashboards into your WordPress site and experience the plugin in action.
Q: How do I configure the SRM Reports WordPress plugin?
A: All required plugin configurations can be found on the “SRM WP Plugin” page under the “Embed Manager” section in the left navigation panel of Smart Report Maker. This is available in both your own SRM installation and the online demo version if you are testing the plugin.
Q: Does the plugin store tokens and access keys securely?
A: Yes. All tokens and access keys are securely encrypted using WordPress salts. In addition, you can restrict access keys to specific origins or limit them to the same origin only for enhanced security.
Q: Where is Smart Report Maker hosted?
A: All of our products, including Smart Report Maker, are self-hosted solutions. You can install them on your own servers to maintain full control and security over your data.
Q: Is it truly a one-time payment to purchase your products, with no hidden costs involved?
A: You pay once for unlimited access, with no hidden fees.
Q: Can I brand Smart Report Maker with my business logo?
A: Yes, you can easily add your business logo and business details to Smart Report Maker. Additionally, since it is hosted on your own server, you have full control over the branding and customization.
Q: If I create a metric or KPI from my database, can I compare it with historical data? For example, can I show sales from the last 30 days and compare it to the preceding period? How does that work?
A: Yes, you can! Smart Report Maker allows you to create a KPI that tracks the 30-day sales (or any other metric) and displays it in a clear, green Info Box. The KPI dynamically updates by comparing the current 30-day period with the preceding one, giving you actionable insights. You can follow this tutorial to learn how to create a KPI with the Comparison Option using Smart Report Maker.
Additionally, you can find KPI documentation in our Smart Report Maker Docs here.
Q: Can I create master-detail (sub-form) forms using Smart Form Maker?
A: Yes. Smart Form Maker supports master-detail forms, allowing you to manage data from two related tables on the same page. For example, you can create a single form to manage customers and their orders, where the master record and its related detail records are handled together. You can also follow this step-by-step tutorial to learn how to build master-detail (sub-form) forms in Smart Form Maker
Q: What types of forms can I create, and do they support AJAX submission?
A: Smart Form Maker allows you to generate multiple form types—including columnar forms, editable grids, mobile forms, justified forms, and master-detail forms. All generated forms use AJAX-based technology, enabling data submission without refreshing the page for a smooth user experience.
Q: I don’t want to use the default Direct Upload and web installer. I use Docker and want to run Smart Report Maker as a docker container. Is that possible?
A: Yes. The default and recommended installation method for Smart Report Maker is the Direct Upload of a Pre-installed Version, where you simply upload the SRM files and launch the web installer to get up and running out of the box.
However, if you prefer to use Docker, Smart Report Maker also provides alternative Docker-based installation methods:
These Docker options are provided as alternatives for users who prefer containerized environments.
👉 To learn more about all available installation methods for Smart Report Maker, click here.
Q: Do your products work on both Linux and Windows servers?
A: Yes, our products are compatible with both Linux and Windows servers.
Q: How secure is the purchase process?
A: The payment process is securely handled by FastSpring, a highly trusted global e-commerce provider with a strong reputation, advanced security standards, and excellent customer satisfaction. Your payment information is processed securely and never stored on our servers.
Q: How long does it take to complete the purchase process?
A: After clicking the “Purchase” button on the “Purchase” page, you will be redirected to FastSpring to complete your purchase. The whole process usually takes only a few minutes.
Q: My download link has expired, and I need to download my product again. What should I do?
A: Please contact us. After reviewing your order, we will reset the expiration date for your download link.
Q: After purchasing, how will I download the product?
A: Once your purchase is complete, you will receive an email containing a link to our download area along with your login credentials, which you can use to access and download the product.
Q: What support options are available, and is support free?
A: Yes, our support service is free. However, users who have purchased a product receive higher priority. Support is provided through our support ticketing system. To open a support ticket, please click here.