Create and Bind Parameters to a Top Bottom N Filter

Create and bind parameters to a Top Bottom N filter to control how you want consumers to interact with the filter.

If you create a Top Bottom N filter and make it available to consumers, they have full access to adjust the Method, Count, and By properties, as well as change the filter type.

If you want to control the level of interactivity your consumers have with it, or make it easier for them to interact with, you can hide the filter, create and bind parameters to the Method and Count properties, and expose the parameters as dashboard filter controls for your consumers to use instead.

For example, suppose you have a visualization showing Sales by City with a Top Bottom N filter applied to it to show the top 10 cities with the highest sales.
Description of params_topbottomn_salesbycity.png follows
Description of the illustration params_topbottomn_salesbycity.png

You want your consumers to be able to select different Method and Count values for the filter so they can explore different subsets of the top and bottom cities based on sales. You don't want your consumers to be able to change the By property or switch the filter type.
Description of params_topbottomn_salesbycity_filterdialog.png follows
Description of the illustration params_topbottomn_salesbycity_filterdialog.png

You can create a parameter called City Top/Bottom Method and another called City Top/Bottom Count, bind these parameters to the corresponding properties for the filter, and then use these parameters as filter controls in a dashboard filter. This lets your consumers switch between top and bottom and see the values within a specified range in the visualization.
Description of params_topbottomn_salesbycity_dashboardfilter.png follows
Description of the illustration params_topbottomn_salesbycity_dashboardfilter.png

Before you begin, create a Top Bottom N filter as a visualization filter, see Create a Top Bottom N Filter.
  1. On your home page, hover over a workbook, click Actions, then select Open.
  2. Select the visualization and go to Filters in the Grammar pane.
  3. Click the Top Bottom N filter and click Show Filter to deselect it so it doesn't have a check mark and isn't visible on the visualization.
    Description of params_topbottomn_showfilter.png follows
    Description of the illustration params_topbottomn_showfilter.png

  4. Click Modify Filter to open the Filter dialog.
  5. In the Method row, click (x) Bind to Parameter.
  6. Click Create Parameter.
    A parameter called Column Name Top/Bottom Method is added to Parameters in the Data panel.
  7. In the Count row, click (x) Bind to Parameter.
  8. Click Create Parameter.
    A parameter called Column Name Top/Bottom Count is added to Parameters in the Data panel.
  9. In the Data panel, click Parameters, right-click the Column Name Top/Bottom Count parameter you just created, then click Edit Parameter.
  10. Under Available Values, edit the Min Value and Max Value to reflect the range that you want to provide for your consumers.
    Description of params_topbottomn_availablevalues.png follows
    Description of the illustration params_topbottomn_availablevalues.png

  11. Click Ok.
  12. In the Data panel, click Visualizations, and drag a Dashboard Filters visualization to your canvas.
  13. In the Data panel, click Parameters, and drag the two parameters you just created to the dashboard filters visualization.
    Description of params_topbottomn_dashboardfilter.png follows
    Description of the illustration params_topbottomn_dashboardfilter.png

  14. Click Save.