Concepts → Individual Filter

About an Individual Filter

An individual filter is a pill in the Individual Filter tray in the Insight panel of the Analyzer. In the Filters panel for the pill, you can specify the filter operator and one or more filter values. The result is a filter expression that removes the unwanted rows from the insight query. In this regard, an individual filter is synonymous with a SQL WHERE clause. A SQL WHERE clause filters out unwanted rows from a query.

In the Analyzer, you can specify one or more individual filters for a supported visualization. The Analyzer only supports the Listing Table and Aggregated Table visualizations for both an Incorta Table and Incorta View. For an insight on a dashboard tab, the Rich Text visualization does not support individual filters.

In order to create or edit the following with the Analyzer, you must belong to a group assigned with necessary security role(s) AND be the owner of the object or have Edit access rights to the object:

The objects are a dashboard, physical schema, and business schema, respectively. An individual filter is not visible to a user with View or Share access rights to a dashboard, physical schema, or business schema.

Filter expression context for an Individual Filter

The parent object of an individual filter pill is either an insight, an Incorta Table, or an Incorta View. The parent object governs the filter expression context and, in doing so, determines the evaluation and application of the filter expression.

The filter expression context governs the referenceable and filterable columns. When a column from a physical schema table or runtime business view is an individual filter pill, you specify the filter operator and one or more filter values within the Filter panel in the Analyzer to complete the filter expression. Alternatively, you can add a formula from the Data panel to the Individual Filter tray and use the Formula Builder to create the filter expression.

Incorta Table individual filters

An Incorta Table is a derived table, meaning that it represents a query of one physical schema table or more than two related physical schema tables. Physical schema tables are not derived. Incorta evaluates and applies an individual filter when processing the Incorta Table query for the load job that is either for the entire physical schema or for the Incorta table. The query results persist to the shared storage as Direct Data Mapping (DDM) files and not Apache Parquet files.

Incorta View individual filters

An Incorta View is one type of runtime business view. Unlike a business schema view, an Incorta View allows for one or more individual filters. As a runtime business view, an Incorta View is only available in the runtime processing of the Analytics Service.

Insight individual filters

Incorta applies the individual filters in the query plan predicate, the WHERE clause. A query plan relates to one or more measures for the given insight. Incorta evaluates the query at runtime when Incorta renders the insight on a dashboard tab.

Note

Visualizations such as the KPI visualization allow for multiple measures. These measures may come from disparate schemas or tables without relationships. In these cases, an individual filter may not reference a filterable column for the specific aggregated measure.

Supported filterable columns based on the filter expression context of the individual filter

The following table details the filterable columns that you can use or reference for each context. These columns can be data-backed columns or formula columns:

Column Type / Individual Filter Context Incorta Table Incorta View Insight
Physical_Schema.Table.Column
Physical_Schema.Table.Formula_Column
Physical_Schema.Materialized_View.Column
Physical_Schema.Materialized_View.Formula_Column
Physical_Schema.Incorta_Table.Column
Physical_Schema.Incorta_Table.Formula_Column
Business_Schema.View.Column
Business_Schema.View.Formula_Column
Business_Schema.Incorta_View.Column
Business_Schema.Incorta_View.Formula_Column

The joins between physical schema tables and the query plan for the insight measure work together to determine if an individual filter uses a filterable column. For example, you can specify a physical schema column in a parent table as an individual filter for a measure in a child table. In contrast, a physical schema column from a child table is not a filterable column for a parent table as an individual filter, even when it is the foreign key reference. The behavior is the same for a formula as an individual filter. The following are the filterable columns that you can use or reference in a formula column when creating an individual filter pill:

  • The filterable column is a dimension or measure column, that is, it is on the grouping dimension or measure trays in the Analyzer.
  • The filterable column has a sibling column from the same physical schema table, and that sibling is a dimension or measure.
Note

You can use the In Query operator to filter the parent table values using a query or queryDistinct function that references the child table column (or any other table with no relation to the parent table) to generate the filter values.

Types of Individual Filters

When creating an individual filter pill, you can use either a formula or a column of any data type. When a column from a physical schema or a runtime business schema is an individual filter pill, you specify the filter operator and one or more filter values within the Filter panel in the Analyzer to complete the filter expression. Selected columns can be data-backed columns that reference data that persists to shared storage or formula columns.

Alternatively, you can add a formula from the Data panel to the Individual Filter tray and use the Formula Builder to create the filter expression. For a formula, you specify a filter expression or reference a filter expression session variable. The context of the individual filter determines the types of columns that you can use or reference. For more information, see Supported filterable columns based on the filter expression context of the individual filter.

Individual filter pill as a Column

An individual filter pill represents a filter expression. The filterable column in the filter expression can be a key, dimension, or measure column. The filterable column can be a data-backed column or formula column.

A filter expression for the individual filter pill consists of the filterable column, a filter operator, and one or more filter values. To configure the Filter properties, select the pill in the Individual Filter tray in the Insight panel. In the Filter panel, configure the following properties to specify the filter expression.

Property Control Description Comments
Column name label Displays the fully-qualified name of the column you dragged to the Individual Filter tray
Operator drop down list Select the operator to use in the filter criteria
Values single-selection or multiple-selection (depending upon the selected operator) Select the value(s) to evaluate the column value against. Some operators do not require a value to evaluate against, such as Null and True. In addition to specific values, you can reference variables according to the individual filter context. For more information, see Valid referenceable variables in an individual filter.

Individual filter pill as a Formula

You use the Formula Builder to create the filter expression for an individual filter pill that is a formula. This means that you can evaluate a formula expression for an individual filter. Depending on the filter operator, a formula expression can itself evaluate specific conditions and values. Values include external session variable, global variable, internal session variable, presentation variables, and system session variables. As such, you can also specify the dynamic evaluation with a filter expression session variable. For more details, see Valid referenceable variables in an individual filter.

The following are the properties of an individual filter that uses a formula.

Property Control Description Comments
Name label The name of the formula Double-click the new formula pill to change its default name, New Formula.
Dynamic toggle Enable this option to select a filter expression session variable as a value
Formula text box When selected, it invokes the Formula Builder to create the filter expression. This property is visible only when you disable Dynamic
Operator drop down list Select the operator to use in the filter criteria This property is visible only when you disable Dynamic
Values single-selection or multiple-selection (depending upon the selected operator) Select the value(s) to evaluate the column value against, if required. Some operators do not require a value to evaluate against, such as Null and True. In the case that you enable Dynamic, select a filter expression session variable In addition to specific values, you can reference variables according to the individual filter context. For more information, see Valid referenceable variables in an individual filter.
Note

Certain filter operators afford various options for selecting one or more filter values. For example, when using the In Query operator, you can use a query expression to generate the list of values to apply as a filter. Also, the In and Not In operators allow for the selection of none, one or more, or all filter values.

Valid referenceable variables in an individual filter

When creating the filter expression for an individual filter pill, whether using a column or a formula, you can reference different variables as filter values. There are multiple factors that govern which types of variables you can reference. These factors are as follows:

  • The type of the filter: column, filter expression formula, or dynamic formula
  • The context of the individual filter: insight, Physical Schema Incorta Table, or Business Schema Incorta View
  • The Filter expression you create for a formula individual filter
  • The operator you select

Here are the types of variables that you can reference as values in the individual filter other than defined values:

The following table shows the matrix of referenceable variables and the context of the individual filters.

Referenceable Variables / Individual Filter Context and Type Incorta Table Incorta View Insight Column (data-backed or formula) Formula (using filter expression) Dynamic Formula
Internal Session Variables
External Session Variable
Filter Expression Session Variables
Dashboard Presentation Variables
Global Variables
System Session Variables

View Access Rights

In order to reference a column or variable in an individual filter, you must have View access rights to the grandparent object (physical schema or business schema) or the variable.


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