Databases Reference
In-Depth Information
Alias table
Another use of an outline alias table is as a cross-reference table when interfacing
with other systems. Experience has shown that even within the same company,
but in different departmental activities, it is not uncommon for a different system
to use a different name or code for the same model, unit, or part. Just like having a
conversion or cross-reference table in a relational database, you can add a new alias
table to your database outline any time.
A new alias table can contain the product names or codes as they are represented
in another system, yet they are aligned to the correct members in your system. For
example, if your system is part of the marketing activity and you receive data from
the finance activity (who by the way calls everything by a different name than you
do), you can execute a data load that specifically calls for and uses the Finance alias
table you have specially created to handle the differences in product names.
Build your first data rules file
Before we start building a data rules file, let us talk about the purpose of the
Essbase data rules file.
The Essbase data rules file is one of the smartest features available to you as an
Essbase database programmer! Whether you are using data with a rules file to
dynamically add members to your outline (dimension build setting), or loading
data into the database (data load setting), the Essbase data rules file can prove to
be an invaluable tool.
Data rule files can be used to maintain your Essbase database outline or load data
into your Essbase database. In this section, we will talk about using the data rules
file to update the Essbase dimensions. In the next chapter, we will talk about how
to use the data rules file to load data into your database or cube.
You can run your data load or dimension build data rules file with accompanying
data manually from the EAS tool or you can run it by executing an Essbase
Command or Essbase MaxL script.
