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Edit a Secondary Dimensional Attribute

You can always edit an existing secondary dimensional attribute in a dimension to change its name or other properties. Double-click the attribute name to open the edit dialog.

Procedure​

  1. Open the dimension editor canvas.
  2. Double-click the name of the secondary dimensional attribute in the Hierarchies panel.
  3. Edit the attribute's properties as needed; for details, see the sections below.
  4. Save your changes.

General​

Display Name​

The user-friendly name for the dimension level attribute. Consider the following specifics of the name:

  • Should be unique among other secondary attributes in the parent level.
  • Can be the same as the name of the parent level.
  • Can be the same as the name of another secondary attribute in a different dimension.

Query Name​

The SQL or MDX column name for this dimension attribute in the published AtScale cube. The query name is how the AtScale engine refers to this attribute internally. This should not be changed after the cube is published, as changing the query name may break existing data sources and reports that rely on this cube.

Description​

This is a description of the data that this attribute contains. Some BI tools can show this description, some can't. It's a good practice to enter descriptions to help other people get familiar with the data in the cube.

Attribute Type​

Choose Dimensional to add a secondary attribute. For details, see Model Secondary Dimensional Attributes.

Level Alias​

Indicates which Hierarchy Level this attribute aliases. Only visible when Attribute Type is set to 'Level Alias'.

Sources​

Dataset​

The source dataset that contains the column that the attribute is based on.

Key Column​

The dataset column that a dimension attribute is based on. If the attribute has a compound key, click Add Key Column to specify other columns that comprise the attribute's key.

Value Column​

The dataset column that the attribute is based on.

Sort Column​

The column to use to sort the values in result sets. This applies to MDX queries only (i.e. queries received through the 'xmla interface').

Data handling and formatting​

Primary Date Filter Attribute​

This option is available only in time dimensions, only when in Name Column you have selected a column of Date, DateTime, or Timestamp type. The option can only be selected for one secondary attribute in the time dimension. This is useful for some BI tools (Excel), for exposing arbitrary date filters on a primary key. A secondary attribute for which this option is selected is marked with a special icon in the Hierarchies list.

Exclude from System-Generated Dimension-Only Aggregates​

Excludes this attribute from system generated dimension-only aggregates. Useful if the attribute contains a large number (e.g. millions) of distinct values that you don't want to aggregate.

Exclude from System-Generated Fact-Based Aggregates​

Excludes this attribute from system generated fact-based aggregates. Useful if the attribute contains a large number (e.g. millions) of distinct values that you don't want to aggregate.

Contains Unique Names​

Enable if each member of this attribute has a unique name. This must NOT be enabled if two members have different keys but the same name.

Custom Empty Member​

Enable this property to ensure un-joinable values such as NULL that may reside in the Foreign Key columns of the fact dataset are included in your query results. The Custom Empty Member feature provides the convenience of handling NULL values so Data Architects are not forced to fix their fact tables. For maximum compatibility with BI Tools, you will have to add an empty member record to the dimension dataset. To learn more about Custom Empty Members, see Using Custom Empty Members for Levels and Attributes.

Dimensionally Modified Aggregates​

Here you can enable or disable the creation of dimensionally modified aggregates for the current level. The following calculation types are available:

  • Prev, Next, Lead, Lag
  • Siblings
  • Moving Window (aka Range Operator + Lag)

Consider the following:

  • Calculation types cannot be modified when the Attribute Type (see above) is set to Level Alias. In this case, the system uses the corresponding configuration from the aliased Level.
  • When working with a Time Dimension, you can select calculation types only when the time unit (see above) is set to Days or longer.

For more information, see Dimensionally Modified Aggregates.

Visibility in published data sources​

Visible in BI tool?​

If selected, the attribute will be visible in the cube.

Organization​

Folder (optional)​

The name of the folder in which to display this attribute in BI client software, such as Microsoft Excel and Tableau. If your cube has a lot of attributes, folders are a good way to organize them.