Cube best practices and FAQs

Best practices while setting up a cube #

• Use a valid allocation driver: Always configure a single, clearly defined allocation driver (reference measure) such as prior year actuals, revenue, or units. Ensure the driver reflects real-world business weighting logic.
• Allocate only across nonblank driver cells: Allocation only occurs where the selected driver measure has valid (nonblank) values. Avoid allocations across intersections where the driver is null, as it can cause allocation errors or unintended distributions.
• Restrict input using Allow Input – Based on Formula: To prevent users from entering or allocating values on invalid intersections, configure an input rule such as [Driver Measure]!==BLANK.

By configuring Allow Input – Based on Formula, cells that don't satisfy the specified condition are automatically locked. This ensures that users can only allocate across dimension intersections that meet the defined driver criteria (for example, where the reference measure is nonblank).

FAQ#

What is a Cube measure, and how is it different from a regular measure?

A regular measure pulls a value directly from the semantic model or a planning sheet at whatever granularity it exists. A Cube measure is a calculated allocation layer - it takes a measure with limited granularity and distributes it across additional dimensions using a reference measure as the basis for distribution, without altering the source data.

Can I add more than one breakdown to the same Cube measure?

Yes - you can add multiple breakdowns, which are useful when you need to segregate planning into groups such as geography, category, or customer type. However, all breakdowns must have a common dimension.

If I create a data input cube measure using the Copy from another series option, and the base measure is later updated, does the cube measure change too?

No - the base measure only populates the cube measure at the point when it is created. After that, the cube measure becomes its own independent editable series. A later change to the base measure would not retroactively update the cube - the two are no longer linked once the copy is made.

What would happen if you tried to pull a cube measure into another sheet using From Sheets instead of Cube Measures?

The values would not populate. Without the Cube breakdown, Infobridge has no way to resolve the measure at the additional dimensions - it can only read the measure at the grain at which it was created. This is the core problem Cube Measures solves.

When a subtotal value is updated, why do individual category combinations under the subtotal value update too?

The update is applied to the subtotal, and the cube breakdown distributes that change proportionally down to every dimension category combination under the subtotal, based on their share of the reference measure.

Why do I need to use the Insert as measure option to import cubes, rather than pull in the same way other referenced measures are?

Inserting it specifically as a Cube measure is what preserves its two-way behavior. If it were pulled in as a regular read-only reference, the consuming sheet would only display the value - it can't be edited there. Inserting it through Cube Measures keeps the breakdown-based link intact, so an edit on the consumer flows back to the origin just as an edit on the origin flows forward to the consumer.