How to print line number for each record/group on a report in Access 2002

You can add a text box control that prints a sequential number for each record to the detail section of a report. You can reset this number so that a separate set of numbers is printed for each group of records. This article explains how to do this by modifying a report in the sample database Northwind.mdb.

Printing a Sequential Number for Each Record to the Detail Section of a Report

If you want to print an incremental counter for each record in a report group, add an unbound text box control to the detail section of the report. To begin the sequence with the number 1, set the ControlSource property to =1, and then set the RunningSum property to Over Group.

To print an incremental counter for each record in a report group, follow these steps:

1. In the Database window, open the Products By Category report in Design view.
2. Add the following text box control before the Product Name control in the detail section:

      Object: Text Box
      ----------------------
      Name: MyLineNumber
      ControlSource: =1
      RunningSum: Over Group
   					

3. Preview the report. Note that each group's records are sequentially numbered, beginning with the number 1.

Resetting the Number

You can also increment the counter number for each group in the report by changing the RunningSum property to Over All. To do this, replace step 2 above with the following step:

Repeat step 3 above. Note that each individual record now prints a unique sequential number.