*FIRST_PERIOD

Allowed uses: By Commit, MDX, SQL

*FIRST_PERIOD

This instruction comes as an integration of the *PRIOR instruction and can be used whenever the switch between the current category and prior category should not happen at year end, but in a different, user-defined period.

The syntax is:

*FIRST_PERIOD = {period}

For example, say that a rolling forecast is entered in the 12 periods 2005.APR through 2006.MAR, but the preceding values for the months of 2005.JAN through 2005.MAR should be read from a different category.

This result can be achieved combining the following two instructions:

*PRIOR CATEGORY = “ACTUAL” // quotes are optional

*FIRST_PERIOD = ”APR”

An alternative syntax allows the dynamic retrieval of the name of first period by reading a property of the current category, like in this example.

*FIRST_PERIOD = CATEGORY.FIRSTPERIOD

The search for the correct date is performed, scanning all periods preceding the first modified period moving backwards until a time period with the property PERIOD = {period} is met. For example, if {period} is “MAR” and the first modified date is 2005.FEB, the first date is 2004.MAR, which is the first date where PERIOD=”MAR” going backwards from 2005.FEB.