Create Classification Tables

When designing your target SuperSTAR database, in most cases you will want to create references between the fact table columns and the classification tables that contain the descriptions of the values in the fact table.

For example, you might have a fact table column called Gender that contains codes like M, F and U, and create a reference to a classification table containing the descriptions Male, Female, and Unknown:

Excerpt from fact table in the source database:

Corresponding classification table in the source database:

However, you can also create classification tables directly from fact table columns. When you do this, SuperCHANNEL will automatically create the classifications based on the values in the fact table (it uses the "add to classification" cleansing action to do this during the build).

Although you can create a classification table from any fact table column, it is most useful in situations where the fact table column contains the actual descriptions, rather than a code.

For example, the Customer table in the sample retail banking database contains a column called Company, which contains values such as Individual or Company:

To include this column in the SXV4, you can create a classification table in SuperCHANNEL, as follows:

1. Right-click the fact table column in the Target View and select Create Classification.

   

   The Create Classification dialog displays.

2. Enter a name for the classification table and click OK. The table name must be unique (it cannot be the same as any existing tables in the source database).

   

   This label will appear by default in the drop-down list in SuperWEB2 (although you can override the drop-down labels if necessary):
   

   

   SuperCHANNEL automatically creates the classification table with code and name columns:

   

   SuperCHANNEL automatically sets the cleansing action on the fact table column to add to classification. Leave this setting unchanged.

   This means that during the build, SuperCHANNEL will automatically populate both the name and code columns in the new classification table with the values from the fact table column:

   

The values will be added to the classification table in the order they are encountered in the source fact table column, and this ordering will be reflected when the values are displayed in the SuperSTAR clients.