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Transaction mode

Owned by Former user (Deleted)
Last updated: Jul 30, 2024 by Denise McGettigan
5 min read

Restrictions applied to data items don't apply in this mode because this mode searches the source data. For example, if there’s a restriction on the Store dimension to prevent users from accessing data for a particular store, the restriction will not apply to other dimensions, such as Product. When you view the product list, you'll see all products from all stores.

During your analysis, you might ask yourself, 'What’s behind this number? Where did this number come from? How did we get these results?'. Transaction mode can help you to answer such questions, as it takes the data currently displayed in the grid and replaces it with the relevant individual transactions*. It provides the most detailed data view, allowing you to see the base transactions, such as invoice lines.

*You might not see all expected transactions in the grid because:

  • There's a limit to the number of transactions that are displayed. Your administrator sets the maximum number of transactions (in the Designer module).

  • If there’s no differentiation between two or more transactions, those transactions will be aggregated in the grid. Adding a differentiating property, such as the Due Date, will split those transactions.

Typically, you would not use Transaction mode in Summary view. It is best to filter the data first to narrow your search, as you can't select or focus on data when in Transaction mode. Also, as there's a limit to the number of transactions displayed in the grid, you might not see all the transactions and, therefore, not find the answers you are looking for.

See the example below or watch the video on the right to learn how to prepare your data for Transaction mode.

Open Transaction mode

After you have selected and focused on data, there are two ways of opening Transaction mode:

  • In the functions menu, click Mode > Transaction. This method retains your period selection and the grid displays the transactions* for that period.

  • In the grid, right-click a value cell and select Transactions. This method changes your selected period into a custom period that corresponds to the transaction(s), and the grid displays those transactions. This custom period persists even after you leave Transaction mode or reset the grid. In effect, you apply another filter to the grid (for that specific time period).

View transactions

When you open Transaction mode, the transactions (see blue note above) display as rows in the grid.

In Transaction mode, the Summary button is blue. This is because no dimensions are selected. You are looking at the raw, unfiltered data from our ERP system.

Initially, in Transaction mode, the grid displays columns for the active properties (such as Code and Name) for the selected dimension, plus a column for all active measures. You can customize this view of the transactions via the Properties menu, which behaves differently in Transaction mode (see below). 

If an invoice number has a blue link, you can click that link to view the invoice for that transaction.

Customize Transaction mode - change the properties 

As mentioned above, the Properties menu behaves differently in Transaction mode. This is because in Transaction mode, no dimensions are selected, therefore, the Properties menu lists all the properties for all the dimensions. You have a lot of options to choose from.

  1. Click the Properties button. A window displays the properties of all dimensions in the database and the transaction properties.

  2. Select the items you want to display as columns in the grid and click Apply.

Search for transactions

In Transaction mode, you can search for transactions that meet certain conditions. For example, you might want to find a particular invoice or instances where cost is greater than value, which you might use to look for 'giveaways' or other behavior affecting the sales value. You can find this information by performing an advanced search on properties and measures.

In Transaction mode, the Advanced Search window displays the stream's name above the dimensions. This is the only mode in which you will see this. 

Close Transaction mode

Click any dimension or select another mode to return to the default Period mode. You cannot click Reset to exit Transaction mode.

Example - Use transaction mode

Use Transaction mode in the Sales database to view individual invoice lines within a customer account. 

  1. Prepare your data:

    1. Click the Customer dimension.

    2. Select a customer (100195) and click Focus.

    3. Click Period > Previous Month.

    4. Click Measures > Quantity and Local Value. The grid displays the following columns: Code, Name, Local Value and Quantity.

  2. Select Mode > Transaction. The grid now displays the following columns: (Invoice) Date, Order Number, Invoice Number, Source, Code, Name, Local Value and Quantity.

  3. Change the properties:

    1. Click Properties.

    2. Remove the Order Number and Source properties and keep the other selected properties. Then, add the following properties: Product Code, Product Name, and Sales Rep Name.

    3. Click Apply. The grid updates to display the new columns layout. You can see the value and quantity of the products purchased, as well as the invoice date and number and Sales Rep, as illustrated in the image in the View transaction section above.