Configure data column properties

In PerformancePoint Dashboard Designer, you can set properties for the columns in a tabular data source. The properties that you set determine how PerformancePoint Monitoring Server classifies the data from that column. For example, if you can designate a column as Fact, Monitoring Server classifies the data values in that column as fact data that can be aggregated. If, instead, you designate that column as Tuple, Monitoring Server classifies the data values in that column as tuples from a multidimensional, SQL Server Analysis Server (SSAS) cube.

To configure properties for a data column, do the following:

1. In the Workspace Browser, double-click Data Sources.

2. Double-click the name of the specific data source for which you want to define data properties.

3. In the data source workspace, click the View tab.

4. In the Column Definitions pane, click in a column to to select that column. The data properties for the selected column appear in the Details pane.

5. Take the following steps:

   1. In the Column Name box, type a display name for the column. This value will be displayed as the name of the data source column.

   2. In the Column Unique Name box, type a unique name for the column. Monitoring Server uses this name for internal processes.

   3. From the Column Type drop-down list, select a column type. This value is displayed in the data source column under Column Name.

      Options for column type

      The following table shows the options for Column Type. The option that you choose determines how Monitoring Server classifies the data in that column.

      Column type	Handling for data in column
      Dimension	Values in this column are treated as if they were members of a dimension, based on the column.
      Fact	Values in this column are treated as fact values.
      Ignore	Values in this column are ignored.
      Key	Values in this column are treated as tuples.
      TimeDimension	Values in this column are candidates for mapping to the Master Time Dimension for Time Intelligence.

   4. From the Aggregation drop-down list, select a type of aggregation. The aggregated data value is displayed in the data source column under the Column Type that you specified in step c.

      Options for aggregation method

      The following table describes the options for aggregation method.

      Type of aggregation	Description
      Average	Calculates the average of numeric fact values.
      Count	Determines the number of occurrences of unique members in the column.
      Minimum	Determines the smallest numeric fact value.
      None	Performs no aggregation.
      Statistical Standard Deviation	Calculates the standard deviation of numeric fact values.
      Sum	Calculates the sum of the numeric fact values.
      Statistical variance	Calculates the variance of the numeric fact values.
      First occurrence	Determines the first fact value that occurs for each unique column member.

   5. Repeat steps a through d for each column in the data source.

6. When you finish configuring data columns, click Preview Data to view the data in your data source.

7. Click the Home tab, and then click Publish All.

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Next steps

The procedures that are discussed in this topic are part of the process that is required to create a data source. For information about other procedures related to this process, see the following links.

See all steps that are required to create a data source

Configure general properties for a data source

Configure time and aggregation settings for a data source

Configure a connection for a data source

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