About Semantic Model Customization
You can customize the semantic model to extend it for your business requirements. You extend the semantic model to make the data that you moved into the warehouse more useful for reporting.
You customize your semantic model in the non-production environments such as development or test by creating branches and adding steps to those branches. You use a branch or version to publish your changes to the model. You can apply the model from the branch to a local service instance for testing. When the changes are correct, you can merge that branch with the main branch. You can merge multiple branches with the main branch over time. When you have a set of changes finalized, you can version the main branch and promote that branch to the production environment. After promoting the customizations to the production environment, you can’t directly add further customizations to the semantic model in the production environment.
You can copy the steps from the main branch, edit them directly, and later merge them with the main branch. However, you must ensure not to perform two or multiple levels of copies. For example, you must not copy steps from the main branch to another branch, then copy the steps over to yet another branch, and then merge the second branch with the main branch.
You can customize the model by extending prebuilt dimensions with additional attributes from another data source, by adding a fact to an existing subject area, and by reorganizing the prebuilt subject areas to create a new subject area to name a few. If you've merged an external application, then note that both external semantic model and semantic model extensions can co exist. On the Publish Model page, select "Yes" if you want the external semantic model to be included.
- Oracle Content: This is the base model provided by Oracle. Your customizations are layered on this.
- System Extensions: Your descriptive flexfield and data augmentation changes are available in this component. See View Activity History of Semantic Model Extensions to know about the scenarios in which Oracle Fusion Data Intelligence applies the system extensions.
- User Extensions: Your customization branches and versions are available in this component.
- Security Configurations: You can secure the objects of all the other components against the application roles in this component.
From release Platform 23.R4 onwards, Oracle Fusion Data Intelligence periodically evaluates the customizations and sends notifications to the users with Modeler Administrator and Modeler privileges to correct errors and warnings in branches and steps as soon as possible to prevent errors during patching. If these errors aren't fixed and a patch is initiated (or a mandatory patch is auto-applied), then patching may encounter issues. In that case, customizations that haven't been merged to the main branch are removed and the factory semantic model is upgraded. You must reapply the applicable customizations after the patching is complete.
Learn About the New Semantic Model Extensibility Experience
A new set of wizards are available for you to create semantic model extensions. These wizards will replace the existing wizards in a future release. With the new wizards, you can create extensions with objects created using the merged external application. For this reason, the External Applications is the second layer to be applied and other options are applied subsequently. If you've already merged an external application, then you can create extensions with wizards as well. Though you may choose not to in order to keep all changes in the external semantic model. None of your customizations are lost as a result of this change in order and no reimplementation is necessary.
You can schedule when to switch to the new wizards after learning about it. When you switch to the new wizards, Oracle will migrate your current customizations to the new framework. See About Migrating to the Enhanced Semantic Model Extension Framework.
| Existing but soon to be replaced | New |
|---|---|
| Action centric view. | Model centric view. |
| Steps done one-by-one but are independent of each other. | Related steps are grouped together making it easier to complete a fully consistent unit of work. |
| Has the concept of branches that can contain steps that are unrelated. | Has the concept of a sandbox that can contain fully formed dimensional models or “stars”. All objects within a star are related. |
| No graphical view of the model. | Complete graphical view of each star that shows the ready-to-use and custom objects. |
| Publish branches to test. Merge to main when completed. | Publish sandbox to test, merge to main when completed. |
| Customization steps are disconnected. Different steps done on the same object can override each other in different branches. | All customizations done to an object are visible together. You see the result of all operations at any time. |
- Add or update objects, attributes, joins, and calculations.
- Change how objects are presented to the user such as change subject areas.
- Create variables to control behaviour of sessions and queries.
All other complexities and allowed operations are abstracted and done by the wizards. Operations of each type are possible with these new wizards and connected steps are done together. The key benefit is better usability and understanding of the model and customizations. Another key benefit is better performance and consistency of the semantic model. In the current wizards, each step is compiled and applied one at a time. In the new framework, the entire sandbox is compiled and applied, which results in a much faster time to have all changes available for reporting.
- Manage Subject Areas - Create a new Subject Area or modify an existing one that you created earlier.
- Manage Logical Star - create a new or modify an existing logical star. You start by creating a fact, then add dimensions, and then joins. You modify an existing logical star by adding dimensions, attributes, and other tables. You can add dimensions to existing ready-to-use facts while creating a new logical star. You can create many logical stars.
- Manage variables - similar to adding session variables in the existing capability for the semantic model extension.
After you create your sandbox, you merge it with the main sandbox and then publish the merged main sandbox in the non-production environments such as development or test to ensure that there are no errors.
See Use the Enhanced Semantic Model Extensibility Capabilities.