Homepage Basics

The Homepage is the first page you see after you have logged in. It holds all elements that have been made available to you by your Administrator and that are pertinent to the performance of your organization.

The Homepage is arranged in two blocks: the Left Sidebar and Main Panel. The Homepage only contains those elements and Dimension Values that you have Permission to access.

There are also four different Main Panel options, as well as filter options that allow you to restrict the contents of the Main Panel as explained below.

This article covers:

1. Homepage Overview

LEFT SIDEBAR includes a set of options for filtering the Homepage content. Selecting any of the filters or Categories listed on the Left Sidebar limits the display of elements on the Main Panel:

  1. Show All: reveals all the content which a user has permission to access and which has been made visible on the Homepage.
    • If the DASHBOARD_EXPAND_SUBFOLDERS System Variable is set to "N", subfolders do not expand when clicking on Show All.
  2. My Content: only those elements, where a user is designated as a Business or Technical Owner are shown. For details, refer to Grant Users Element View and Dimension Access via Element Ownership.
  3. Favorite Folders: By holding the tiles that are of interest to you in favorite sections, you can easily access frequently used information and also receive email digests that provide a daily summary of all updates to your favorite tiles. For details, refer to Working with Favorites and Digests.
    • Most Popular Folder: Metric Insights is not shipped with Most Popular Folder by default. The display and behavior is controlled by System Variables.

This folder allows you to see what elements other Users are finding useful. This system-generated Folder is populated with the tiles representing those elements which either have been recently added to the favorite folders of others or were viewed by others within the last specified number of days. This calculation excludes the current User. This Folder name should never be changed.

  1. Folders: Folders combine the functions of Shared Folders and Bursting in one place. For more information, see Understanding Folders.
    • Folders can be added and sorted from the drop-down next to "Folders".
    • Each individual Folder can be edited by clicking Edit next to the folder name (available when hovering over).
  2. Categories: Categories are used to group tiles and grant bulk access to Users or Groups. For details, refer to Create a Category.
    • Users can hide Categories section to reduce clutter directly by accessing the drop-down next to "Categories" or from My Settings > Catalog Display. See My Settings (aka 'Preferences').

MAIN PANEL includes all Metrics, Multi-Metrics, Reports, and External Reports that are made visible on the Homepage and to which you have access.

Access Admin > System > System Variables

  1. To auto-generate Most Popular Folder, set AUTO_GENERATE_MOST_POPULAR_FOLDER to "Y".
  2. The default number of tiles shown in this folder is five. Increase it by assigning the desired value under MOST_POPULAR_FOLDER_TILE_COUNT.
  3. Define the amount of days to consider while scoring Most Popular Folder under MOST_POPULAR_FOLDER_VIEW_DAYS.
  4. [Commit Changes]

1.2. Performing Actions

1.2.1. Drag and Drop Tiles

You can copy Tiles to Folders and My Favorites by drag-and-dropping it. The Folder you are dragging into will be indicated by a dotted square.

  • To move Tiles between My Favorites and Folders, simply drag and drop the Tile to the desired folder.
  • To copy Tiles from My Favorites to Folder (or vice versa), hold the Shift button while dragging.
  • You are only able to copy from a Category to Folder or My Favorites. You cannot move or copy Tiles between Categories; Category is set in the element's Editor.

The HOMEPAGE_TILES_DEFAULT_TO_COPY Variable controls the Copy/Move behavior.

  • When set to "N", the Copy/Move functions as described above (Default value)
  • When set to "Y", the behavior reverses: drag-and-drop will "copy" the tile to the new location; holding the Shift key while performing a Drag and Drop will "move" the Tile.

1.2.2. Access Popup Menu

Users can access the popup menu by right-clicking a Tile.

The menu allows users to:

  1. View if a Tile is included in any email/Favorites Folder
  2. Either include a Tile to the existing Burst or create a new Burst
  3. Access Element's Editor
  4. Access Element's Viewer

2. Where Is My Version Number?

3. Main Panel View Modes

There are two distinct views to choose for the Main Panel display, but one is only for Favorites folders.

NOTE: [6.4.5] Tile View can be forced on Homepage/Catalog by enabling the HOMEPAGE_FORCE_TILE_VIEW System Variable. When enabled, the Tile and List View buttons are not displayed.

3.1. Tile View

Tile View is the original display format for Metric Insights. Only for My Favorites folders:

  1. The Manage menu allows managing Most Popular and My Favorites without leaving the Homepage.

3.2. List View

A tabular view of your elements that allows you to quickly scroll through current values. The Manage menu is also available for My Favorites folders in List View.

4. Basic Homepage Filter Options

  1. Grouping options: to group Homepage content by a variety of criteria from the list
  2. Filtering options: to filter by using filters from the list
  3. Tags: to group related elements by a common characteristic
  4. Keyword Filter: to search by keywords in name or description
    • NOTE: This is different from Global Search in the top bar. Keyword Search applies to only Homepage content, while Global Search conducts search across all content in the system.

5. Quick Info on Tiles

Some of the icons and information on Tiles can be changing over time. Hover over the icon to display current setting.

  • Metric is used in this example.
  • Certification levels will be available starting v6.3.1.
  • Date for Metrics represents the measurement date.
  • Date for External Reports/Reports represents the report's "As of" date.
  • Tiles for External Reports/Reports include thumbnails (instead of charts and values).
  • If Element is dimensioned, there will be a Tile for each Dimension Value.

6. Anatomy of Preview

Clicking any Tile opens a Preview popup or, if previewing is not enabled, a Full Chart view. Double-clicking the Tile or clicking the Preview opens the larger chart view (Live view).

  1. Alter the display period on the Preview by selecting a time frame or Range Selector below the Chart
  2. Access the attached documents
  3. View the Lineage diagram for the object to understand its relations with other objects
  4. Add to/Remove from My Favorites
  5. Share this Element
  6. Download the Element in one of the available formats
  7. Manage Alert Rules
  8. Edit the Element
  9. Statistics summary information
  10. Expert Analysis
  1. Configure and manage Bookmarks (available only if External Filters are available for the Element)
  2. Manage Report Notifications
  3. "Last Refreshed in Tableau" is available only for Tiles and Tile Previews of Tableau External Reports. It reflects the time a source object was last refreshed on the Tableau side, either on schedule or manually

7. Announcements

One or multiple announcements can be displayed on Homepage or/and specified element Viewers. They can be displayed to all users in the system or display can be set based on Groups.

Announcements are designed to be used to inform Metric Insights users of any news, changes, or instructions essential for the seamless company operation.

To learn how to add Announcements, see Creating an Announcement on Homepage or Element Viewers