Create a Dimensioned Metric

This article outlines the process of creating a Dimensioned Metric.

Dimensioned Metrics should be used when you want to show a given Measure charted over time with a Dimension drop-down list. In this example, you'll see the process of building a Dimensioned Monthly Metric that measures sales by Sales Channel. This example uses the Metric Editor to build the new Metric in order to have access to advanced options.

PREREQUISITES:

  • Define the Dimension. For more information on creating and collecting data for a Dimension, see Create a Simple Dimension article.
  • Construct a data fetch command that will return a data set with three columns:  
    1. The Dimension Key Value;
    2. The Measurement date/time;
    3. A measurement value corresponding to the specific Dimension Value and Measurement date/time.

1. Start Creating a New Metric

Access + New > Metric > Create New

  1. Measured: Select the measurement interval that applies to the level of aggregation that you want in your result set.
  2. Dimension it by: Since we are creating a dimensioned Metric select Dimension from the drop-down list below.
  3. Name: The system automatically generates name based on the values selected in the fields above, however, you can change it to a unique descriptive name of your choice.
  4. Category: Select the Category where the new Metric will be placed.
  5. [Next: Define Details] to open Metric Editor.

1.1. Set Additional Fields

  1. Description: This field defaults from the Name, but if this is not sufficiently descriptive, you may change it.
  2. Certified: Certification is a means for Admin and Power Users to identify Elements that have been approved as being valid and accurate. For details, refer to Certifying an Element article.
  3. Tags: Tags are used to relate Elements to each other for identifying purposes. For details, refer to Create a Tag article.

2. Define Data Collection Parameters

  1. Data Source: Select the repository which contains necessary data. SQL Database is used for this example.
  2. Trigger: Select a Data Collection Trigger that will initiate Metric data collection process.
  3. Query: Enter an SQL query.
  4. [Validate] to verify that the SQL statement is valid.

2.1. Enter Last Measurement Time Value for Validation

NOTE: This pop-up only appears if you included ':last_measurement_time' in the SQL Statement field.

3. Collect Data

  1. If your statement is valid, the query box color is green; if there are any errors, the box is colored in red and errors are explained below the query box.
  2. The total number of found records and an example of first one are displayed below the query box.
  3. Specify data collection advanced options.
  4. To proceed with fetching data, click [Collect data].

3.1. Parameters Substitution

  1. Last Measured Time: Select how far back to collect the data.
  2. Delete, then recollect data: Define if the previously collected data should be deleted or just updated.
  3. [Collect]

4. Modify Charting Tab

In this tab the User can change how the Metric's chart will look like.

For a more detailed Charting tab overview, check the Metric Editor Overview article.

5. Enable & View Metric

[Enable & View] to view the Metric in the Viewer.

By selecting different Dimension Values (in this case channels), the User can change the displayed Metric.

And Tiles of a Dimensioned Metric will look like this: