Fact table configuration
The Configuration section opens by default when you open a fact table. Here you build its logical structure by selecting elements from the RMD. A fact table is organised into three sections: Configuration, Measures and Verification filters.
What a fact table contains
| Component | Description |
|---|---|
| Measures | Quantitative measures added from the RMD. They are the basis for calculations and SQL generation |
| Dimensions | Categorical elements from the RMD that define the axes of analysis |
| Facts | Records that link measures with dimensions |
| Dimension groups | Groups of dimensions with a primary key and a foreign key, which provide the joins |
| Mapping to the database | The links between elements of the model and the physical tables and columns of the connected databases |
| Positions | The coordinates of the blocks on the canvas |
Canvas layers
The canvas carries two independent layers, switched with the layers button in the toolbar above it:
| Layer | Content |
|---|---|
| Measures | Measures, facts, dimensions and dimension groups from the RMD. Elements are added and removed here |
| Connections | Tables of the connected databases and their links to the elements of the model |
Both layers are selected by default. The Connections layer is described on the Connections layer page.
Selecting elements from the RMD
The selection panel contains all measures, dimensions, facts and dimension groups from the RMD of the current project version, grouped into four collapsible sections:
| Section | Content |
|---|---|
| Dimension groups | Dimension groups with their hierarchy of dimensions |
| Dimensions | Individual dimensions that do not belong to a dimension group |
| Facts | Fact records |
| Measures | Base and calculated measures |
The search field at the top of the panel filters all four sections at once, matching the element name as a case-insensitive substring.
Rules for adding elements:
- Facts and dimensions not in a group are added directly to the central fact table
- Measures (both base and calculated) are displayed as separate elements
- Dimension groups: You can only select an entire dimension group. It will be displayed as a separate dimension table, and a relationship between it and the fact table is created
- Adding a hierarchical dimension also adds its child dimensions
- Measures in the panel and on the canvas carry the health icon that shows their overall health status; hovering over it shows the health summary (see the Measure health cards page)
- A measure with the overall health status Error cannot be added: its checkbox in the panel is unavailable, and the tooltip reads "A measure with Error health status can't be added". If such measures are among the changes being saved, saving is rejected with the message "Measures with Error health status can't be added: {names}" listing the measures. Measures that are already in the fact table stay in it and can be removed
- Important: The list loads when the section is opened. Changes made later in the RMD will not be reflected until you refresh the section or save the table
Visual data model
The system automatically builds an interactive diagram based on your selection.
Model components
- Central fact table:
- Contains selected facts and dimensions not in a group
- Contains a primary key, and one foreign key per attached dimension group
- Dimension tables:
- Appear for each selected dimension group
- Contain all dimensions from that group and the primary key used for the link to the fact table
- Measures:
- Each selected measure is displayed as a separate element on the diagram
- Links are automatically established with other measures, facts and dimensions used in this measure's formula, as defined in the RMD
- Selecting a measure automatically adds to the model all elements it depends on
- Relationship lines:
- Show many-to-one relationships between dimension tables and the fact table, drawn from the foreign key to the primary key
- For measures, you can show and hide dependency lines according to their calculation formulas
Interactive diagram features
- Zooming: Increase or decrease the zoom level of the diagram
- Moving: Drag and drop tables and groups. Relationships are redrawn automatically
- Viewing details: Click on the information icon for any element to see all its properties from the RMD in a pop-up panel
- Measure dependencies: Click a measure to show animated lines to every element its formula depends on. Clicking the background hides all dependency lines
- Removing an element: Click the delete icon (✕) for the element that you want to remove from the model. Removing a measure does not delete its dependencies from the model. Removing an element from the fact table does not delete it from the RMD
- Removing a link: Click a link that carries a delete button and confirm the removal
Automatic arrangement
When a fact table is opened for the first time, or when new blocks appear, blocks that have no saved position are arranged automatically: fact tables on the left, dimension groups in the centre and measures on the right. Dimension groups are placed in the same zone but each into free space, so that they do not overlap each other. A database table of the Connections layer that is linked to a dimension group is placed on the level following that dimension group, next to it and in free space. Blocks whose position is already saved are never moved.
Saving changes
- WARNING: Changes in the Configuration section are NOT saved automatically
- The Save button in the canvas toolbar becomes active as soon as a change is detected: an element added or removed, a link added or removed, a mapping changed, or a block moved
- Click Save to commit all changes at once — the composition of elements, the mapping and the arrangement of the blocks on both layers
- Collaborative editing: If two users are editing the same table, the last save will overwrite the previous one. The second user is warned before the overwrite occurs and is notified when another user updates the table
- Saving requires the Developer access level or above in the project and a valid license. Other roles can open the section, pan and zoom, but the Save button is not shown to them
When unsaved changes exist, the system warns you before they are lost:
| Situation | Behaviour |
|---|---|
| Switching to another section of the fact table | A dialog offering to leave without saving or to save the changes |
| Navigating to another page or closing the tab | The standard browser warning |
| Switching the project or the project version | A confirmation dialog; if saving is confirmed, the changes are saved first and the switch happens afterwards |
| Signing out | A confirmation dialog with the option to save first |
Updating the model when the RMD changes
The diagram in the Configuration section does not update in real time when changes are made in the RMD. You can see the current state in one of the following ways:
- Reopen the fact table
- Refresh the browser page
- Switch to another section and return to Configuration