Professional SQL Server™ Analysis Services 2005 with MDX

9.6. Actions

Actions are predefined metadata components stored on the server that send commands to client applications to perform certain operations based on a selection by the user in the cube browser. For example, the user could select dimension members, levels, a set, specific cube cells, and so on. An action command usually includes a command string, such as a URL, and the suggested command behavior, such as opening a Web browser for the URL. MDX expressions are often built into commands to include the context of the user selection in the action. If a user initiates an action by selecting a product, for example, an MDX expression could be used to generate a URL for a catalog page describing the selected product.

9.6.1. Action Types

Analysis Services 2005 supports seven action types. These action types empower client applications with more analytical capabilities than traditional OLAP analysis drill up, drill down, and pivot activities. For example, if a sales manager is analyzing sales for cities in Washington State, the ability to click on a city member to view an MSN city map would be helpful. Similarly, if your implementation includes Reporting Services, you could link a report that analyzes sales reasons by product category to the product category members by adding an action to the cube. When the sales manager clicks a product category, the action passes the selected product category as a parameter to the report which then displays in a Web browser. If a sales number ...