FAQ: Structural modes in Ad Hoc Analysis
What are structural modes?
Every dimension has a predefined structure that is one of two types: level-based or parent-child. Both of these structures are hierarchical. However, when working with a dimension in Ad Hoc Analysis, the dimension's structure can change from hierarchical mode to "flat" mode, which means that you are viewing the dimension as a simple list.
Why switch modes?
Flat mode gives you greater flexibility in situations where you don't need or want a predefined structure.
For example, you are creating a data view that is similar to an income statement. You probably want to order accounts in way that makes sense for the purpose of the data view, but that ignores the hierarchy of the accounts. You likely want to show a parent account that rolls up the values of several child accounts below those accounts, to show their total. You have the freedom to do this when the hierarchy is turned off.
How can I tell which mode a dimension is in?
Visual clues that indicate hierarchical mode include the following:
- Parents always precede their children
- Members below the top-level are indented to show their level in the hierarchy (this applies to the left axis only, never to the top axis)
- Collapsed members (that is, their children are hidden) are prefixed with
- Expanded members (that is, their children are visible) are prefixed with
- Members appear in their predefined order (and must remain that way)
When a dimension is in flat mode, there is no indenting, and because collapsing is not allowed, no symbol is ever displayed. (A symbol does appear for members that have children.)
How do I switch from hierarchical mode to flat mode?
Change the current member selection for the dimension.
The following actions take a dimension from flat mode to hierarchical mode:
- Expand a member that has children (that is, click the member's ).
- Select Actions > Drill Down Replace.
- Select Actions > Drill Down Replace With Total.
- Select Actions > Drill Up.
How can I stay in flat mode?
In other words: What can I do in flat mode (that will not switch the dimension back into hierarchical mode)?
When a dimension is in flat mode, the actions that you can perform and stay in flat mode are as follows:
- Select members and order them
- Use dynamic members
- Include named sets and/or dynamic named sets in the selection