Intelligent Cubes – Pattabhi Ram Chalasani (Nalgan)

Intelligent Cubes are In-memory copy of data, which is also known as Multi-Dimensional Cubes (sets of data), that are present on MicroStrategy Intelligent Server memory. The data in Intelligent Cubes can be accessed by different MicroStrategy objects like Reports and Documents.

It allows us to create sets of data that supports multiple reports that can answer variations to similar Business Queries.

There are two types of intelligent cubes in MicroStrategy 9.2:

Personal Intelligence Cubes: In-memory copy of data automatically created in Intelligence Server when a report is executed against the data source. This In-memory copy can provide analytical and OLAP features for report requiring same data as present in personal Intelligence Cubes.

Intelligence Cubes: In-Memory copy of data created by a user using data extracted from the data source, multiple different types of reports can access data present in Intelligent Cube. Intelligent Cube supports OLAP features for reports accessing data in Intelligent Cubes.

All Intelligent Cubes created in a project can be viewed by using MicroStrategy tool called Intelligent Cube monitor. MicroStrategy features available for reports accessing Data Warehouse differs from MicroStrategy reports accessing Intelligent Cubes.

View Reports: Reports created based on the data on I-cubes is called view reports

View Filters: Reports accessing Intelligent Cubes can use only View Filters.

MicroStrategy features in Intelligent Cubes:

  • Some of the MicroStrategy features are not supported when creating intelligent cubes and on reports accessing Intelligent Cubes.
  • Intelligent Cubes do not support objects that modify the display of the data. (Ex: Custom Groups, Consolidations).
  • Consolidations and Custom Groups: Consolidations cannot be included in Intelligent Cubes or in reports accessing Intelligent Cubes. To overcome this Intelligent Cubes support MicroStrategy object derived elements which combine the analysis features of Custom Groups and Consolidations.
  • OLAP Services features: View filters, derived metrics, and derived elements cannot be included in Intelligent Cubes, but these features are the main analysis tools for reports that access Intelligent Cube.
  • Prompts: Prompts cannot be included in Intelligent Cubes. However, reports that access Intelligent Cubes can use prompts that access only data included in the Intelligent Cube. Prompts on reports that connect to Intelligent Cubes can only access data that is available within the Intelligent Cube.

Drilling on view reports: A report connected to an Intelligent Cube can drill within the data available in that Intelligent Cube. Drilling outside of an Intelligent Cube requires execution against the data warehouse and it provides access to the full ROLAP schema of the project outside of the Intelligent Cube.

Dynamic sourcing: It is the ability of standard reports to access any published Intelligent Cube that can satisfy the data requirements of the report.

Advantages of dynamic sourcing

  • With dynamic sourcing, an Intelligent Cube that can satisfy the report’s data requirements is detected automatically, without the report designer having to consider which Intelligent Cubes are available.
  • Dynamic sourcing can allow standard reports to automatically detect an Intelligent Cube that satisfies the report’s data requirements.
  • The performance of prompted reports can be greatly improved with dynamic sourcing. Intelligent Cubes can provide a set of data that can satisfy the data requirements of reports executed with different prompt answers.
  • Reports can drill from one Intelligent Cube to another Intelligent Cube.
  • Reports cannot combine the data from multiple Intelligent Cubes to use dynamic sourcing. All the data requirements of a report must be satisfied by a single Intelligent Cube.

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