Derived Metrics

A derived metric is a calculation based on the data included in the report definition. You can use derived metrics to perform column math, for example, calculations on metrics included in the report definition, without regenerating or re-executing SQL against the data warehouse.

Derived metrics are easy to create and can be made on the fly when you are viewing a report. A typical case is to create a derived metric to perform calculations between columns of metric data. For example, a derived metrics can subtract the data of one metric by the data of another metric (Metric1 - Metric2) to obtain a new metric calculation.

To see how derived metrics can be used in reports, consider the Derived Metric report from the MicroStrategy Tutorial project. The report includes a derived metric that is defined as Revenue/1000, which returns the Revenue values in thousands of dollars, as shown below.

Notice that in the Report Objects pane to the left of the report (and shown below), the derived metric is preceded by an fx symbol, instead of the usual metric symbol, meaning this is a new metric based on the existing metrics in the report.

Since derived metrics are created within a report, they can only be used for the report in which they are created. Derived metrics cannot be saved as individual objects in the project, and therefore cannot be applied to other reports in the project.

This section discusses the following topics on derived metrics:

• Creating a derived metric
• Editing derived metrics
• Formatting derived metrics
• Deleting derived metrics
• View filter effects on derived metrics
• Derived element effects on derived metrics