I've kept the thread here but it's no longer sticky - basically if you want to get the reports working and you don't have a BaseStation.sqb then make sure you're running version 2.3, download and install the Database Writer plugin, create a new BaseStation.sqb with it and tick the box to tell it to save online lookups to your BaseStation.sqb.
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If you're finding that the aircraft's registrations aren't appearing in Virtual Radar Server, or that the silhouettes and operator flags aren't appearing, or that when you run the reports they've got nothing in them, then you probably don't have a BaseStation.sqb database file configured.
Aircraft do not transmit their registration, nor their model type or any information about who owns them. The only bit of identifying information that they transmit is their Mode-S code, also known as the ICAO or ICAO24 code, which is a unique number assigned to each aircraft. For Virtual Radar Server to work from that to the registration, operator, manufacturer and model type you need a lookup database. The one that Virtual Radar Server uses is BaseStation.sqb, which is an SQLite database file that was dreamt up by Kinetics.
GETTING A BASESTATION.SQB
VRS does not come with a BaseStation.sqb, you need to supply your own. If you have a Kinetics radio then you already have the database. If you don't then there are a few pre-populated databases knocking around on the Internet:
Option 1 - download Kinetic's pre-populated database
You can't do this any more, the link on their site is broken.
Option 2 - download the SBS-Resources installer and fish the database out of that
The Windows installer (no Linux or Mac version available) is here: http://www.sbs-resources.com/download/index.html
It's a big installer and it takes a while to do its thing, but once it's finished you should have a folder on your C drive called C:\SBS-Resources.
In there you should have a folder called C:\SBS-resources\Files\Registration. In that folder is a pre-populated BaseStation.sqb.
Looks like this site has disappeared, at the moment it's going to a non-functioning "domain name for sale" page...

Option 3 - download BaseStation.sqb from the VirtualRadarServer site
You can download a BaseStation.sqb from here: http://www.virtualradarserver.co.uk/Fil ... tation.zip
That file is mostly UK aircraft, so if you're not in the UK you will probably only see details for international flights.
If anyone knows where you can download a BaseStation.sqb with more aircraft in it then please let me know.
CONFIGURING VRS TO USE YOUR BASESTATION.SQB
Go into Tools | Options and select the Data Sources page.
In section 4, Aircraft Data, click on item 4.1 "Database Filename". You should see a ... button appear. Click that, navigate to your BaseStation.sqb and select it.
That's the database configured. If you've downloaded SBS-Resources then you can also set the silhouettes and operator flags folders in the same page. The folders for them are:
4.2 Flags folder = C:\SBS-resources\Files\OperatorLogos
4.3 Silhouettes folder = C:\SBS-resources\Files\SilhouettesLogos
Click OK on the options screen to get VRS to save your changes. VRS will immediately start using the database and you should start seeing them on the web site.
USING YOUR BASESTATION.SQB WITH REPORTS
BaseStation.sqb records details about the aircraft and details about the flights. The reports are just reporting on the flights in BaseStation.sqb. If you have a Kinetics radio then the BaseStation program that came with the radio will be recording details about the flights, but if you don't and you're using a pre-populated BaseStation.sqb then there are no flight details in there and the reports are going to be empty.
If you are in this situation then you need to install the Database Writer Plugin for VRS. You can download it from here: http://www.virtualradarserver.co.uk/Download.aspx
Quit VRS before installing it. After installing it restart VRS and go to Tools | Plugins. Find the Database Writer plugin and click Options.
Tick "Enabled" and, if you are using a pre-populated database, remove the tick from "Only update databases that this plugin created".
Click OK.
From now on VRS will create flight records in your BaseStation.sqb and you will be able generate reports from them. Note that it mimics the behaviour of the Kinetics program - in particular the end of a flight is not recorded until 25 minutes after the last message is received from an aircraft.
ADDING NEW AIRCRAFT TO BASESTATION.SQB
Having a pre-populated database is fine but after a while you're going to see aircraft that aren't in the database. What you need is a program that will run in the background and will periodically check the database for new aircraft, fetch the details for the new aircraft from a web site and write those details back to your database. There are a couple of programs that will do this (both Windows-only), both by Gatwick Aviation Society: SBSPopulate and AD. Unfortunately SBSPopulate has been retired, you used to be able to get the installer for it from SBS-Resources but it appears that they've stopped doing that. There are two versions of AD - I think the free "Lite" version *might* do auto-updates of databases but I've a feeling that it's only the subscription "full" version that does it. I don't know, I've not tried either - I use SBSPopulate:
Full version (pay-for): http://www.gatwickaviationsociety.org.uk/AD_home.asp
Lite version (free): http://www.gatwickaviationsociety.org.uk/ADL_home.asp