Custom hierarchies
Custom hierarchies enable you to add features to reports that make them easier to use, without having to create ’helper’ databases or scripts.
Custom hierarchies store your custom information in the repository, without affecting the database.
There are two types of custom hierarchy. They are:
- String
- OLAP Metadata
String custom hierarchies consist of multilingual strings which you specify, or select from the Table of Names and Texts in the Hierarchy Designer
See Creating custom hierarchies.
You can specify a caption, unique name, and name attribute for each string, as well as translations in different languages.
You can use string custom hierarchies to create selection lists. The example 'Creating ascending or descending sorts in a report ' describes how to create a custom string hierarchy containing the words 'Ascending' and 'Descending' and how to use it to change the sort order of items in a report.
See Creating ascending or descending sorts in a report
These are other examples of how string custom hierarchies can be used:
- Navigating between reports
- Changing the format of numbers in a report
- Navigating between reports from a list containing multiple links to the same reports
The OLAP Metadata hierarchy is an in-built hierarchy which contains information about the database aliases to which you are connected, their cubes and their dimensions.
One example of its use is to create a list of slice dimensions in a dynamic report.
See Creating slice dimensions with the Olap Metadata hierarchy. Another example is to view information, in a single report, from all the database aliases, cubes and dimensions to which you have access.
See Selecting different views within a report using the OLAP metadata hierarchy.
You can design custom lists. The list designer for custom lists is similar to the server list designer but has only one or two structure selection options (depending on the type of custom hierarchy), and no Attributes pane. To reference the attributes of custom hierarchies.