Levels of Templates
Documentation to clarify how our templates work.
Level 0 - Time Series tables
Level 0 is a blank ETL with a few tables to help time analysis such as year, quarter, period, week, etc. Clients will configure ETL+ to extract tables into their data warehouse from scratch.
Level 1 - Mirror Copy
Level 1 templates replicate the raw data from a source system such as Acumatica into the data warehouse. These templates come pre-mapped to the most popular tables according to the licensed templates (for instance, if a client only licenses GL Financials, only raw tables related to GL Financials will be pre-mapped). These templates also have popular settings such as delta refresh configurations and table indexes/PKs. Usually, clients will have to build their own data modeling on top of the raw tables for efficient reporting.
Level 2 - DFT Data Modeling (D = Dimensions, F = Facts, T = Time Series)
Level 2 templates, also known as data warehouse templates, include a set of data warehouse transformations for efficient and fast reporting for the licensed templates. This layer isolates the source system's unique data structures from the reporting layer.
Level 2 templates feature ETL+ | ETL-based transformations in the data warehouse, that enable easy, fast, and efficient reporting and analysis.
The goal is to enable reporting tools to use the DFT tables (instead of the raw data) for reporting. The bulk of the reporting data modeling is at this level.
The DFT data model is where the bulk of the single version of the truth (or SPOT = single point of truth) is defined.
A variety of reporting tools (Tableau, Power BI, Excel, SSRS, Domo, QlikView, ) can be used to query the DFT data model, maintaining consistent metrics across all tools.
The DFT output tends to change very little, even if the client switches to a new ERP system.
Level 3 - Analytics/Reporting Data Modeling
Level 3 templates include some data modeling built at the reporting tool level. For instance, there's some logic built into Power BI semantic models and Tableau data sources that feed into the report and dashboard templates. This level also changes very little when a client moves to a new ERP system.
Level 3 templates are pre-built data models at the reporting tool level. These models build on bring in the Level 2 DFT transformations, and may add some additional logic to these Power BI semantic models and Tableau data sources that then feed into the report and dashboard templates.
This level of template also changes very little when a client moves to a new ERP system.
Level 4 - Report and Dashboard Templates
Level 4 templates are workbooks currently in Excel, Power BI, and Tableau that provide customizable reports and dashboards on day one.
Level 4 templates are Tableau, Excel, or Power B workbooks that provide customizable reports and dashboards on day one.
For more information search this site for “BI Report Template” or “Dashboard template”.
Related Pages
Pre-mapped Source Systems – details of the out-of-the-box templates available for ERP, CRM and other business systems
ETL+ Data Source List – data sources (ERP, CRM, business systems, databases and file types) that ETL+ can work with
DataSelf BI Templates for ERP & CRM (Reports, Dashboards, KPIs)
DataSelf Analytics Editions Needs updating = Essentials, Pro, Enterprise
https://www.dataself.com/pricing/ – editions listed on the home page, dataself.com. Essentials, Pro, Enterprise
Search words
BI template, BI Report template, Report Template, Dashboard template, Data Warehouse template, Tableau template, Power BI template, Microsoft Excel template