Add a Standard Action

Applies to: SQL Server Analysis Services Azure Analysis Services Fabric/Power BI Premium

You add an action to a database by using the Actions view in Cube Designer. That view can be accessed from SQL Server Data Tools. After you create an action, it becomes available to users after you reprocess the relevant cube. For more information, see Processing Analysis Services Objects.

To create an action

1. Open the cube for which you want to create an action, and then click the Actions tab.

2. On the toolbar, click the New Action icon, and then in the expression pane, do the following:

   • In Name, type a name for the action.

   • From the Target type drop-down list, select the type of object to which you want to attach the action. The object you select in Target Type determines the objects that are available and the type of selection that you can make in Target Object. The following table lists valid Target Object selections for each target type.

     If you select the following target type	Make the following selection in Target Object
     Attribute Members	The only valid selection is a single attribute hierarchy. The target type of the action will be all members of the attribute wherever they appear (that is, the action will apply to user-defined hierarchies as well).
     Cells	All cells is the only selection available. If you choose Cells as a target type, you can type an expression in Condition to restrict the cells with which the action is associated.
     Cube	CURRENTCUBE is the only selection available. The action is associated with the current cube.
     Dimension members	Select a single dimension. The action will be associated with all members of the dimension.
     Hierarchy	Select a single hierarchy. The action will be associated with the hierarchy object only. Attribute hierarchies appear in the list only if their AttributeHierarchyEnabled and AttributeHierarchyVisible properties are set to True.
     Hierarchy members	Select a single hierarchy. The action will be associated with all members of the selected hierarchy. Attribute hierarchies appear in the list only if their AttributeHierarchyEnabled and AttributeHierarchyVisible properties are set to True.
     Level	Select a single level. The action will be associated with the level object only.
     Level members	Select a single level. The action will be associated with all members of the selected level.

   • In Target object, click the arrow at the right of the text box, and in the tree view that opens, click the object to which you want to attach the action, and then click OK.

   • (Optional.) In Condition, create an MDX expression to limit the target of the action. You can either type the expression manually, or you can drag items from the Metadata and Functions tabs.

   • From the Type drop-down list, select the type of action that you want to create. The following table lists the types of actions that are available.

     Type	Description
     Dataset	Retrieves a dataset.
     Proprietary	Performs an operation using an interface other than those listed in this table.
     Rowset	Retrieves a rowset.
     Statement	Runs an OLE DB command.
     URL	Displays a Web page in an Internet browser.

   • In Action expression, create an expression that defines the action. The expression must evaluate to a string. You can either type the expression manually, or you can drag items from the Metadata and Functions tabs.

3. (Optional.) Expand Additional Properties, and then perform one of the following steps:

   • From the Invocation drop-down list, specify how the action is invoked. The following table describes the available options for invoking an action.

     Option	Description
     Interactive	The action is triggered by user interaction.
     Batch	The action runs as a batch operation.
     On open	The action runs when a user opens the cube.

   • In Application, type the name of the application that is associated with the action. For example, if you create an action that takes a user to a particular Web site, the application associated with the action should be Microsoft Internet Explorer or another Web browser.

     Note

     Proprietary actions are not returned to the server unless the client application explicitly restricts the schema rowset to return only actions that match the name specified in Application.

   • In Action Content, if you are using the URL type, enclose the Internet address in quotes, For example, "http://www.adventure-works.com".

   • In Description, type a description for the action.

   • In Caption, type a caption or an MDX expression that evaluates to a caption. This caption is displayed to end users when the action is initiated. If you do not specify a caption, the name of the action is used instead.

   • From the Caption is MDX drop-down list, specify whether the caption is MDX. This field indicates to the server whether to evaluate the contents of Caption as an MDX expression.