Defining a semantic model
Applies to: Kyvos Enterprise Kyvos Cloud (SaaS on AWS) Kyvos AWS Marketplace
Kyvos Azure Marketplace Kyvos GCP Marketplace Kyvos Single Node Installation (Kyvos SNI)
This section details how to define a semantic model in Kyvos by organizing datasets into dimensions, hierarchies, attributes, and measures to enable structured data analysis and high-performance querying.
When you define a semantic model, you add dimensions and measures. In Source Fields, the circled numbers next to candidate measures and dimensions indicate how many times each one is used in the design.
Note
Kyvos supports naming semantic model entities in the ENTITY_ format, such as DIMENSION_, DIM_, and MEASURE_, and so on.
From Kyvos 2026.1 onwards, you can view collaborative editing indicators that inform users when a semantic model is opened or being edited by others.
You can search for input entities while creating base or perspective semantic models. This functionality enables you to quickly locate and select entities.
You can create a Base model and a Perspective model. With the Perspective model, you can expose only a subset of a base semantic model—such as dimensions, hierarchies, attributes, and measures—to specific groups or individuals. This allows for simplified, customized views of the semantic model tailored to distinct business use cases, without the need to duplicate data.
Base Model – Contains the actual data.
Perspective Model – Provides a filtered view of selected elements from the base model without duplicating data.
Designing a Base model
To design a semantic model, perform the following steps.
From the Toolbox, click Semantic Models.
Click the Actions menu ( ⋮ ) at the top of the Semantic Models column.
Click Add Base Model.
Enter a name for the semantic model.
Select a Relationship from the list and click Add.
You can enter a term in the search box to quickly find a name.
Do one of the following:
Right-click in the Dimension or Measure areas to add dimensions or measures.
By default, the name of the data source table from which the first measure is created in the measure group is taken as the measure group name. However, if you have created a measure group with a custom name, then dragging a measure in it would not impact the name of the measure group.Drag candidate measures or dimensions to the semantic model design worksheet to the areas for measures and dimensions. Use Ctrl+click to select multiple fields.
Click the plus buttons in the Dimension or Measure columns to add additional dimensions or measures. Then select candidate measures or dimensions from the candidate lists on the left.
Right-click at the Dimension or Measure Group levels to rename them and add lower levels.
Right-click at the lower levels to rename the item you selected or add items at that level.
Click the Actions menu (...) menu near the top of the page and choose Validate. See Validating semantic model.
Click Save.
Tips
You can click the Expand All icon next to the Tips icon to expand all dimensions and measures, or if they are expanded, you can click the Collapse All icon in the same location to collapse them.
Selecting dimensions and measures
Under Source Fields, you can select dimensions and measures to drag into the dimension and measure areas. You can select multiple elements in a semantic model using Ctrl+Click. You can also select and delete multiple elements in the semantic model.
Methods to move hierarchies, attributes or levels
When using the Design tab, you can drag an item to a different dimension or measure a group. You will see a placeholder indicator, for example, Drop as dimension.
When you select an item, you can use the Properties pane to move it to a different hierarchy or measure group.
Tips
You can use wild card characters % (and) while naming attributes, levels, hierarchies, dimensions, measure groups, measures, and calculated measures.
Designing a Perspective model
A Perspective model can only be created on a Base model; it cannot be created on another Perspective model. Multiple Perspective models can be created from a single Base model.
For Perspective models, no semantic model processing is required. Once the Perspective model is saved, it is created and becomes available for browsing.
Additionally, any CLS (Column-Level Security) or RLS (Row-Level Security) applied to the Base semantic model will also be applied to the corresponding Perspective model.
From Kyvos 2025.10 onwards, exporting Field Data lineage is supported.
To create a perspective model, perform the following steps.
From the Toolbox, click Semantic Models.
Click the Actions menu ( ⋮ ) at the top of the Semantic Models column.
Click Add Perspective Model.
Select the semantic model and click Select. The selected semantic model (base model) will be displayed.
Select the required dimension from the left pane and drag it to the Dimension. Do the same process for the Members group as well.
Note
The hierarchy must be dragged as is but an attribute can be dragged to the dimensions column as needed.
Enter the name of the perspective model and click Save.
After saving the perspective model, you can now browse the semantic model.
Suspending a semantic model
You can suspend any unused semantic model. When you suspend the semantic model, you cannot query or browse it.
To suspend a semantic model, perform the following steps.
From the Toolbox, click Semantic Models.
Select a semantic model from the list.
Right click the semantic model and select the Suspend Usage option from the list. The semantic model is suspended.