Define a breakdown source

Specify a facts table to serve as a data source for breakdowns. Apply conditions to specify the elements for this breakdown source.

Before you begin

Roles required: pa_data_collector, pa_admin, or admin. The breakdown source creator needs access to the table and reference column that the indicator source uses.

About this task

Always use a facts table with a field that has a unique value for every record, usually Sys ID. For example, the Incident.Category breakdown source takes its elements from the Choice table. The elements are identified by the Sys ID field. The breakdown source filters the choices to those that are on the Incident table, in English, and not inactive.

Tip:

As in this example, if you use Choice [sys_choice] for the facts table, put conditions on the Table, Element, and Language fields. Also filter out Inactive records.

The breakdown source uses the following records from the Choice table:

Note:

The Choice table includes every possible choice from every table, which is why it has Table and Element columns. Most other facts tables you would use for a breakdown source are simpler.

Procedure

1. Navigate to All > Performance Analytics > Breakdown Sources and click New.
2. Give the breakdown source a meaningful Name.
3. Add a detailed Description to help others understand the use and purpose of this breakdown source and to help them avoid creating duplicates.
4. For the Facts Table, select the table that the breakdown source gets elements from.
   For example, for the breakdown source to specify user groups as elements, select Group [sys_user_group].

   Warning:

   • You cannot use Workflow Data Fabric tables for a breakdown source.
   • Do not change the facts table for a source after you have started collecting data. If you change the facts table, you lose all historical scores for the associated indicators at the next score collection.
5. In the Field table, select a field that contains a unique value for every record.
   This field is usually Sys ID.
6. Set the Conditions to filter out unneeded elements.
   If you set Choice [sys_choice] as the facts table, always filter on table, element, and language, and filter out inactive records. For example:

   [Table] [is] [Incident] and

   [Element] [is] [Category] and

   [Language] [is] [en] and

   [Inactive] [is] [false] or

   [Inactive] [is] [empty]

7. To see how many records match the selected conditions, click Preview.
8. Optional: Define RELATED LIST CONDITIONS to include a relationship with another table in the filter.
   For more information, see Add related list conditions.
   For example, consider a breakdown source for Configuration Item (CI) Managers. The facts table is User [sys_user], but the only condition you can apply from this table is to filter for active users. No field on the table lets you select only users who are CI Managers. You get hundreds of results.

   

   If you add a condition that the Name on the User record must match at least one entry in the Managed by column of the Configuration Item [cmdb_ci] table, the breakdown source only returns the users who are CI Managers.

   

9. Optional: In Label for unmatched, write a custom label to use when the value in a mapped field on an indicator source record does not match any elements on the breakdown source.
   The default label is Unmatched.
   The Incident.Category breakdown source references records on the Choices [sys_choices] table where the value of the Table field is incident and the value of the Element field is category. The Category breakdown includes a mapping from the Incident.Category breakdown source to the Category field on the Incidents [incident] table. If an Incident record has a null value in the Category field, the value when you apply the Category breakdown to this record is Unmatched, by default.
10. In the Security tab, set whether to exclude or include breakdown source elements by role based on element security lists.
    For more information, see Define an elements security list.

What to do next

Create breakdowns that use this breakdown source. You can open the Breakdowns tab and click New. The Breakdown form opens, as described in Create an automated breakdown. After you create breakdowns that use this source, these breakdowns are listed in the Breakdowns tab.