Tracing Calculations

You can trace the calculation path of all cube cells that are derived by either rules or consolidation. These cells appear shaded in the Cube Viewer.

Tracing a calculation path can help you determine if the value for a cell location is being calculated properly.

Follow the steps below to trace a calculation.

Procedure

  1. In the Cube Viewer, right-click the cell containing the calculated value.
  2. Select Trace Calculation.

    The Rules Tracer window opens. This window contains two panes.

    The top pane displays the definition of the current cell location, along with an icon indicating whether the value in the location is derived by consolidation or rules. This pane also displays the current value of the cell location. If the value is derived by rules, the rule displays in the lower part of the top pane.

    The bottom pane displays the components of the first consolidated element or first rule in the location definition. For example, the following example displays the definition of a location in the SalesCube.

    Image showing the definition of a location in the SalesCube.

    In this definition, Actual is a leaf element while World is a consolidated element. The bottom pane would display the names and values of all the components of the World consolidation.

  3. In the bottom pane, double-click the element for the calculation path you want to trace.

    The top pane now displays the definition of the cell location for the element you double clicked. The bottom pane now displays the components of the first consolidated element in this location definition.

  4. Continue to double-click through the components for the calculation path you want to trace. If you encounter a rule in the path, you can double-click through to any of the components of the rule.

    When you arrive at the end of a calculation path, the elements in the bottom pane of the Rules Editor display a small dot icon. You can double-click one of these elements to view a final calculation path and value.

    As you navigate through a calculation path, the top pane of the Rules Editor records your progress as cell locations. If you click on any of these locations, the location becomes active and you can begin tracing a different path from the location.