Introduction to MSSQL Server 2000 Analysis Services: Creating a Dynamic Default Member

About the Series …

This
article is a member of the series Introduction to MSSQL Server 2000 Analysis Services. The series is designed to
provide hands-on application of the fundamentals of MS SQL Server 2000
Analysis Services
, with each installment progressively adding features and
techniques designed to meet specific real – world needs. For more information
on the series, as well as the hardware / software requirements to prepare
for the exercises
we will undertake, please see my initial article, Creating Our First
Cube
.

Note: Service Pack 3 updates are assumed for MSSQL Server 2000, MSSQL
Server 2000 Analysis Services
, and the related Books Online
and Samples. Images are from a Windows 2003 Server
environment, upon which I have also implemented MS Office 2003, but the
steps performed in the articles, together with the views that result, will be
quite similar within any environment that supports MSSQL Server 2000 and MSSQL Server 2000 Analysis Services ("Analysis
Services"
or "MSAS"). The same is generally true,
except where differences are specifically noted, when MS Office 2000 and
above are used in the environment, in cases where MS Office components are
presented in the article.

Overview

As
most of us that work with MSAS are aware, dimensions as defined in Analysis
Services contain many properties, one of which is the default member.
The default member can have far-reaching effects from the perspective of
information consumers, because they are often not even aware of the property, usually
cannot control it, and would not likely relish controlling it even if they
could. Yet the default member affects the results of their reporting
and analysis ambitions because it "fills in the blanks" with regard
to the setting of any unspecified dimensions in the MDX queries that they
generate, be it from enterprise reporting systems, the Pivot Table Service (for
example, within the new Excel OLAP add-in, which I plan to discuss in a
subsequent article), or through any other vehicle they use to query an MSAS
cube.

The WHERE
clause that lies within every MDX query (whether it is explicit or not) is the
fulcrum of the default member in reporting and analysis. In its job of
describing slicer dimensions, the WHERE clause is "subsidized"
by MSAS itself, because MSAS supplements any dimensions that the WHERE
clause leaves unspecified, and which do not appear in an axis assignment, with
the default member it derives from the dimension properties settings
inside the cube structure. All dimensions are thus accounted for, allowing for
precision in the data retrieval from the OLAP cube.

The default
member
, by default, is typically the All level for a given
dimension, unless the "default" empty state of the property is
changed. If the property is empty and there is no All level in place for
the dimension, the default member is an assigned member inside the
highest level of the dimension.

Regardless
of the setting of the default member property, its use in the WHERE
clause of MDX queries is not often clear to information consumers, many of
which understand little more about MultiDimensional eXpressions than how to
spell "MDX." I constantly encounter cases where those who query
cubes do not realize that all dimensions are specified, whether they
name them or not, and that the impact of MSAS’ "assumptions" can affect
the outcome of the results they obtain in their querying efforts.

This
becomes particularly noticeable with the Time dimension(s), which, as in
the sample cubes that accompany MSAS, is typically without an All level
in its structure(s). The effects of the default member within the Time
dimension are likely to have to be managed in most business environments.
While we can certainly maintain the default member manually, from an
administrative perspective, this only adds overhead to our already
resource-challenged environments.

In this
article, we will explore one approach to enhancing the behavior of the default
member
. We will:

  • Determine the
    existing default member setting for the dimension

  • Provide a
    simple solution through customization of the default member for a Time
    dimension;

  • Provide a more
    elaborate solution to provide a completely dynamic default member

  • Explain the
    results we obtain from the MDX that we use to accomplish each solution.

William Pearson
William Pearson
Bill has been working with computers since before becoming a "big eight" CPA, after which he carried his growing information systems knowledge into management accounting, internal auditing, and various capacities of controllership. Bill entered the world of databases and financial systems when he became a consultant for CODA-Financials, a U.K. - based software company that hired only CPA's as application consultants to implement and maintain its integrated financial database - one of the most conceptually powerful, even in his current assessment, to have emerged. At CODA Bill deployed financial databases and business intelligence systems for many global clients. Working with SQL Server, Oracle, Sybase and Informix, and focusing on MSSQL Server, Bill created Island Technologies Inc. in 1997, and has developed a large and diverse customer base over the years since. Bill's background as a CPA, Internal Auditor and Management Accountant enable him to provide value to clients as a liaison between Accounting / Finance and Information Services. Moreover, as a Certified Information Technology Professional (CITP) - a Certified Public Accountant recognized for his or her unique ability to provide business insight by leveraging knowledge of information relationships and supporting technologies - Bill offers his clients the CPA's perspective and ability to understand the complicated business implications and risks associated with technology. From this perspective, he helps them to effectively manage information while ensuring the data's reliability, security, accessibility and relevance. Bill has implemented enterprise business intelligence systems over the years for many Fortune 500 companies, focusing his practice (since the advent of MSSQL Server 2000) upon the integrated Microsoft business intelligence solution. He leverages his years of experience with other enterprise OLAP and reporting applications (Cognos, Business Objects, Crystal, and others) in regular conversions of these once-dominant applications to the Microsoft BI stack. Bill believes it is easier to teach technical skills to people with non-technical training than vice-versa, and he constantly seeks ways to graft new technology into the Accounting and Finance arenas. Bill was awarded Microsoft SQL Server MVP in 2009. Hobbies include advanced literature studies and occasional lectures, with recent concentration upon the works of William Faulkner, Henry James, Marcel Proust, James Joyce, Honoré de Balzac, and Charles Dickens. Other long-time interests have included the exploration of generative music sourced from database architecture.

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