Tab Page: Master Data/Texts 

Use

In this tabstrip, you can determine whether attributes and/or texts should be made available to the characteristic.

Structure

With Master Data

If you set this indicator, the characteristic may have attributes. In this case the system generates a P table for this characteristic. This table contains the key of the characteristic and any attributes that might exist. It is used as a check table for the SID table. When you load transaction data, there is check whether there is a characteristic value in the P table if the referential integrity is used.

With Maintain Master Data you can go from the main menu to the maintenance dialog for processing attributes.

The master data table can have a time-dependent and a time-independent part.

More information: Master Data Types: Attributes, Texts, and Hierarchies.

In attribute maintenance, determine whether an attribute is time-dependent or time independent.

With Texts

Here, you determine whether the characteristic has texts.

If you want to use texts with a characteristic, you have to select at least one text. The short text (20 characters) option is set by default but you can also choose medium-length texts (40 characters) or long texts (60 characters).

Language-Dependent Texts

You can choose whether or not you want the texts in the text table to be language dependent. If you decide that you want the texts to be language dependent, the language becomes a key field in the text table. If you decide that you do not want the texts to be language dependent, the text table does not get a language field.

It makes sense for some BI Content characteristics, for example, customer (0CUSTOMER), not to be language-specific.

Time-Dependent Texts

If you want texts to be time dependent (the date is included in the key of the text table), you make the appropriate settings here. See also: Using Master Data and Characteristics that Bear Master Data

Master Data Maintenance with Authorization Check

If you set this indicator, you can use authorizations to protect the attributes and texts for this characteristic from being maintained at single-record level. If you activate this option, for each key field of the master data table, you can enter the characteristic values for which the user has authorization. You do this in the profile generator in role maintenance using authorization object S_TABU_LIN.

See Authorizations for Master Data.

If you do not set this indicator, you can only allow access to or lock the entire maintenance of master data (for all characteristic values).

DataStore Object for Checking Characteristic Values

If you create a DataStore object for checking the characteristic values in a characteristic, in the transformation or in the update and transfer rules, the valid values for the characteristic are determined from the DataStore object and not from the master data. The DataStore object must contain the characteristic itself and all the fields in the compound as key figures.

See Checking for Referential Integrity.

Characteristic is ....

InfoSource:

If you want to turn a characteristic into an InfoSource with direct updating, you have to assign an application component to the characteristic. The system displays the characteristic in the InfoSource tree in the Data Warehousing Workbench. You can assign DataSources and source systems to the characteristic from there. You can then also load attributes, texts, and hierarchies for the characteristic.

In the following cases you cannot use an InfoObject as an InfoSource with direct update:

·         The characteristic you want to modify is characteristic 0SOURSYSTEM (source system ID).

·         The characteristic has no master data, texts or hierarchies – there is no point in loading data for the characteristic.

·         The characteristic that you want to modify turns out not to be a characteristic, but a unit or a key figure.

For more information, see InfoSource Types.

If you want to generate an export-DataSource for a characteristic, the characteristic has to be an InfoSource with direct updating – meaning that it has to be assigned to an application component.

InfoProvider:

This indicator specifies whether the characteristic is an InfoProvider.

If you want to use a characteristic as an InfoProvider, you have to assign an InfoArea to the characteristic. The system displays the characteristic in the InfoProvider tree in the Data Warehousing Workbench. You can use the characteristic as an InfoProvider in reporting and analysis.

You can only use a characteristic as an InfoProvider if the characteristic contains texts or attributes.

You can define queries for the characteristic (more precisely, for the master data of the characteristic) if you are using a characteristic as an InfoProvider. In this case, on the Attributes tabstrip, you are able to switch-on dual-level navigation attributes (navigation attributes for navigation attributes) for this characteristic in its role as InfoProvider.

More information: InfoObjects as InfoProviders.

Export DataSource:

If you set this indicator, you can extract the attributes, texts, and hierarchies of the characteristic into other BI systems. See also Data Mart Interface.

Master Data Access

You have three options for accessing the master data at query runtime:

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       1.      Standard: The system displays the values in the master data table for the characteristic. This is the default setting.

       2.      Own implementation: You can define an ABAP class to implement the access to master data yourself. You need to implement interface IF_RSMD_RS_ACCESS. You need to be proficient in ABAP OO. An example of this is the time characteristic 0FISCYEAR that is delivered with Business Content.

       3.      Direct: If the characteristic is selected as an InfoProvider, you can access the data in a source system using direct access. If you choose this option, you have to use a data transfer process to connect the characteristic to the required DataSource and you have to assign the characteristic to a source system.

We recommend that you use the standard default setting. If you have special requirements with regard to reading master data, you can use a customer-defined implementation.

We recommend that you do not use direct access to master data in performance-critical scenarios.