Slicer Settings are used to configure the default behavior of the slicer and define which elements are presented in the slicer. For example, if you want to create a slicer based on a custom list or a hierarchical structure from a cube data source. You may want to configure your slicer settings to change your slicer's elements, set it as a Pre-Query slicer, customize its default state (disabled), and so on.
Once you have added a slicer that was created in Discover, or built a new slicer using the Advanced Slicer wizard or New Slicer toolbox option, you can open a panel containing its Slicer Settings and configure its settings.
Open the Slicer Settings panel
- Start by right-clicking the slicer and selecting Slicer Settings on the context menu:
- Specify the details for your slicer using the options in the Slicer Settings panel.
- Once you have set all of your options, click Apply to save your changes.
The Slicer Settings panel opens at the bottom of the page.
You can move between the pages of settings by clicking the tabs along the left-hand side of the panel.
Slicer Settings panel
Type
The Type settings let you change the slicer's title and type:
Type panel
- Title: Edit the slicer title.
- Type: Select a slicer type from the drop-down menu. See below for more information.
- Columns: (Buttons only.) If your slicer type incorporates buttons, select the number of columns of buttons that should be added to the presentation.
Slicer Types
The slicer type that you select here indicates whether the slicer you use to filter your presentation assets at runtime is a drop-down, set of buttons, a tree, or even a date-time calendar.
Slicer types with runtime examples
Select from the following slicer types:
- Drop Down: Adds a drop-down list that you can select one slice from (blue arrow below).
- Multi Select Drop Down: Adds a drop-down list that you can select multiple slices from simultaneously.
- List Box: Adds a single-select list within a box container.
- Multi Select List Box: Adds a multi-select list within a box container.
- Text Box: Adds a textbox with drop-down.
- Buttons: Adds single-select buttons, rather than a list (orange arrow below).
- Multi Select Buttons: Adds multi-select buttons.
- Multi Select Tree: Supports 'regular' hierarchies in both cube and SQL models. Adds a multi-select tree, which you can navigate through to find and select relevant elements.
- Single Select Tree: Supports 'regular' hierarchies in both cube and SQL models. Adds a single-select tree, which you can navigate through to find the relevant element.
- Date-Time Picker: The date-time picker is a specialized slicer visualization (in the form of a calendar) designed to make it easier to use date-time hierarchies and their associated calculations. The date-time picker is automatically generated at runtime when using the dateKey hierarchy to create a slicer. As with other slicers, the date-time picker slicer can be customized from the slicer settings.
Note: Date-Time Pickers are only supported for SQL models. This functionality is not currently supported for MS OLAP, Tabular, or SAP BW.
Data Source details
The read-only data source metadata, including the data source, database, data model, and the hierarchy used in the filter.
Note: You will only see this panel if you are editing your slicer settings. If you are creating a new Advanced Slicer, the data source information is shown on the Data Sources panel.
Load Time
The load time settings determine which of the slicer's elements will be automatically loaded when the report is opened.
Initial Selection Mechanism
The initial selection mechanism determines which slice will be automatically loaded when the user opens the report.
- Saved Selection by Name: Select the initial slicer selection by name; this slicer will be selected by default whenever the report is opened.
- Saved Selection by Position: Select the initial slicer selection by position; this slicer will be selected by default whenever the report is opened. This is useful if the slicer is based on a custom calculation that shows, for example, the top ten products. You might want to automatically load the top selling product. In this case, the slicer position needs to be saved.
- First Member: Automatically select the first member in the slicer whenever the report is opened.
- Last Member: Automatically select the last member in the slicer whenever the report is opened.
Subsequent Selection Options
Subsequent selection options determine whether or not the user's slicer selection will be saved. If so, these selections will override the given 'initial selection mechanism'.
Remember user's last selection
Enable this option to save the current user's saved slicer selection. Each time the user saves the report, the currently selected slice will be saved, and that slice will automatically be loaded when the report is next opened by that user.
If this option is not enabled, the given 'initial selection mechanism' will be loaded every time the user opens the report.
Reset Selection on Cascade
Select this option if the selected slicer is being cascaded to. For instance, if you've configured a cascading slicer that cascades from Country down to State, check this option for the State slicer to apply the given slice value modes to State.
In this scenario, if Last Member is set as the load mode, then the last member in the state slicer will automatically be selected whenever a country is selected from the parent slicer. Then, when United States is selected from the country slicer, Wyoming will automatically be selected form the state slicer; when Australia is selected, Victoria will automatically be selected from the state slicer.
Other Settings
From the Other Settings tab, you can update the slicer elements limit for this slicer, disable and enable the filter button, and make this slicer into a pre-query slicer:
Slicer Elements Limit
Set the maximum number of slicer elements to include in the slicer. The limit set here cannot exceed the limit set from the user defaults. Where it is exceeded, the number of elements in the slicer is limited and a limit indicator is displayed on the slicer at runtime.
Examples: Slicer limit indicator at runtime
If the number of elements in the slicer hierarchy exceeds the elements limit, the limit indicator is displayed at runtime (green arrow):
You can hover your cursor over the indicator to see what the elements limit was:
- Click here for more information about slicer limits
- Click here for more information about the slicer limits in user defaults
Disabling
The disabling options relate to the filter associated with the slicer. By default, the filter is enabled and can be used to enable and disable the slicer. The following image shows a Product slicer in its default state at runtime; the filter is highlighted using a green arrow:
- Select the Hide disable button checkbox to hide the filter entirely. The filter is not shown on the presentation and, therefore, cannot be used to enable and disable the slicer.
- Select the Disable checkbox to make this filter disabled (rather than enabled) by default. Note: This option only changes the default state of the filter, the user can still enable the filter at runtime if they want to.
Examples: Hide or disable filter at runtime
If you select the Hide disable button checkbox, your slicer appears as follows at runtime:
If you select the Disable checkbox, your slicer appears as follows at runtime (note the orange arrow):
Pre-query slicer
Select the Pre-query slicer checkbox to indicate that the query should not be run until the user specifies their slicer selections. The effect of this selection is that the user that opens the presentation at runtime is prompted to select either bookmarks or individual selections for their slicers in the Pre-Query slicer dialog.
- Click here for more information about Pre-Query Slicers
Search Type
Set the search type. This is applied to any slicer type that supports search (drop-down and text box).
Elements
Select those elements that should be included in the slicer when your presentation is viewed at runtime. The impact of your Element selection depends on whether or not your slicer is linked to a discovery:
- Where the Slicer is linked to a discovery, you can edit its elements in the discovery, changing its elements wherever it appears. You can also unlink it from its discovery.
- Where it was created on-the-fly in the presentation using the Advanced Slicer Wizard, the New Slicer option in the toolbox, or it has been unlinked from its discovery already, it is a one-off discovery. You can change its elements here. These changes only impact the visual in this presentation.
Linked Discovery
Where the slicer is linked to a discovery, you will see the following in the Elements panel:
- Click Linked Discovery to open the discovery that the slicer is associated with. If you want to change which elements are included on the slicer wherever it appears (that is, on the discovery, in the presentation, and any other instances), you should edit its elements in the Linked Discovery.
- Click Unlink to break the link between your slicer and the linked discovery. Breaking this link means that the slicer is no longer connected to / affected by changes to the slicer in Discover. Once the slicer is unlinked, the elements tree is shown (see below).
Unlinked Discovery
From the Elements panel, select those elements that you want to include in the slicer:
Choose the hierarchy elements that will be included in the slicer. There are three ways to determine the slicer's elements:
- Free Selection: Select the elements from the hierarchy that you want to include on the slicer.
- Level: This option is relevant when working with OLAP or Tabular hierarchies, or regular SQL hierarchies. When creating a slicer based on a regular hierarchy, select this option to specify a particular level of the given hierarchy.
- Lists: Choose this option to use a custom list as the slicer.
Non Empty Filter
Go to the Non Empty Filter to hide empties from the slicer.
Hide Empty Hierarchy Members
Hide any members from the slicer if they don't have any value for the given measure.