Technical data

Creating Data Cubes Chapter 5
• Assoc i ation d ata cubes.
• Virtual data cubes.
The four types o
f data cubes are not mutually exclusive, but certain combinational restrictions apply. For
example, consi
der that all calculation d ata cubes contain formulas, and association data cubes may or may
not contain fo
rmulas. When an association data cube doe s contain a formula, it is considered to be a type of
calculation d
ata cube. Similarly, when an input data cube contains a formula, it is also considered to be a type
of calculatio
n data cube. Any of these data cubes may also be considered virtual data cubes if their values
are not store
d in the database.
This table lists each type of data cube and specifies whether the data cube can contain a formula, whether the
data cube can lack a formula, whether the data cube can be virtual, and whether the data cube can be nonvirtual:
Data Cube Type
Formula
Allowed?
No Formula
Allowed?
Can Be Virtual? Can Be Nonvirtual?
Input Yes
Note. When input
data cubes contain
formulas, t hey must
use the INPUT
built-in function.
Yes No Yes
Calculation
Yes No Yes Yes
Association
Yes Yes Yes Yes
Virtual
Yes No Yes No
Example: Working with Data Cubes an d Dimensions
To be useful, a data cube must work with one or more dimensions. For example, suppose that you want to
track the sales of multiple products in multiple regions. First, create an input data cube called SALES and
dimensions called PRODUCTS and REGIONS. Next, attach the PRODUCTS dimension and REGIONS
dimension to the SALES data cube.
Note. When a cube collection is mapped to either a Writable-only record or a record with the Readable and
Writable attributes, all data cubes in the cube collection should share the same set of dimensions.
The combined string of all the attached dimension names should not exceed 256 characters.
See Also
Chapter 6, “Creating Dimensions,” page 47
Chapter 3, “Understandin g Analytic Models,” Data Cubes an d Dimensions, page 16
Input Data Cubes
Input data cubes receive their data from either the end user in the application or tables/views in the
database. Input data cubes can exist in all types of cube collections, although they do not serve a purpose in
intermediate/calculation cube collections. Use the INPUT built-in function to work with input cube data.
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