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The Kitchen Table

Explore the product knowledge we've built up together

2115 Topics

molly.lippsett
Looker Staff
molly.lippsettLooker Staff
published in Technical Tips & Tricks

Wrong numbers in user_facts viewKnowledge Drop

Last tested: Apr 6, 2020The user_facts view is rebuilt every hour on the hour, so if you are making updates to users and want to see them in system_activity, wait at least an hour after updating them for the changes to be reflected This content is subject to limited support.                  

90
molly.lippsett
Looker Staff
1 year ago
molly.lippsett
Looker Staff
molly.lippsettLooker Staff
published in Technical Tips & Tricks

Can I build an application without specifying the connection in the model?Knowledge Drop

Last tested: Apr 17, 2020 As users build custom apps, they will want to find ways to share model files without including a connection parameter value.This is what constants are for! Constants are specified on install, so the connection doesn't need to be hardcoded into LookMLMore info here: https://github.com/looker-open-source/extension-template-react This content is subject to limited support.                  

100
molly.lippsett
Looker Staff
1 year ago
molly.lippsett
Looker Staff
molly.lippsettLooker Staff
published in Technical Tips & Tricks

Can I use a transient schema for PDTs?Knowledge Drop

Last tested: Aug 19, 2020 What are transient schemas? https://docs.snowflake.com/en/user-guide/tables-temp-transient.html#comparison-of-table-typesCan I use them?Yes - Transient tables still need to be explicitly dropped, the difference with them and a permanent table is that there is a fail safe period for permanent tables of 7 days (in those 7 days, permanent tables can be restored with UNDROP TABLE, transient cannot) This content is subject to limited support.                  

80
molly.lippsett
Looker Staff
1 year ago
molly.lippsett
Looker Staff
molly.lippsettLooker Staff
published in Technical Tips & Tricks

Can I schedule a Look to the emails listed in the Look?Knowledge Drop

Last tested: Jul 17, 2020 You can with the API!Retrieve the look id associated with a scheduled plan using /scheduled_plans/{scheduled_plan_id}. If you run that look using /looks/{look_id}/run/{result_format}  you’ll get the results. You could then use the /scheduled_plans/run_once to send reports to retrieved email addresses This content is subject to limited support.                  

330
molly.lippsett
Looker Staff
1 year ago
molly.lippsett
Looker Staff
molly.lippsettLooker Staff
published in Technical Tips & Tricks

Dashboard filter for ${field1} = ${field2}Knowledge Drop

Last tested: Aug 17, 2020 If you don't mind editing the model then here is a solution where setting the filter value to "Yes" will apply the filter rules, and setting it to anything else will just not do any filtering:filter: apply_equality_filter { type: yesno sql: CASE WHEN {% parameter apply_equality_filter %} = true THEN ${field1} = ${field2} ELSE 1=1 END ;;}  This content is subject to limited support.                  

330
molly.lippsett
Looker Staff
1 year ago
molly.lippsett
Looker Staff
molly.lippsettLooker Staff
published in Technical Tips & Tricks

Can I have a homepage for embedded users?Knowledge Drop

Last tested: Aug 24, 2020 Nope. The default homepage is /browse which is not an embeddable page. Feature requests:https://portal.feedback.us.pendo.io/app/#/case/50470what about a custom homepage?Nope. Even if you were to set an embeddable URL for the main homepage or for user-specific homepages via the landing_page attribute, it wouldn't do anything because embed users are not redirected to the homepage upon login—they are redirected to whatever path is specified in your embed URL.In general, you will need to specify where the embed user will land after login in the embed URL itself. This content is subject to limited support.                  

330
molly.lippsett
Looker Staff
1 year ago
molly.lippsett
Looker Staff
molly.lippsettLooker Staff
published in Technical Tips & Tricks

"I can't see _ from my work computer, but can from my personal computer"Knowledge Drop

Last tested: Jul 24, 2020 If a user is not seeing something in Looker that others are seeing, have them tryan incognito window accessing Looker from a different network other browserIf either of those work, this indicates that the user might have browser extensions (like an ad blocker) or network restrictions that are blocking Looker requests. You can also have them check the JS console for error messages (message are variable but look something like this):Also, clearing cache in browser works if you don't find anything in JS console but still incognito/other browser was working. This content is subject to limited support.                  

100
molly.lippsett
Looker Staff
1 year ago
molly.lippsett
Looker Staff
molly.lippsettLooker Staff
published in Technical Tips & Tricks

Error "The resource already exists" while using create_dashboard endpointKnowledge Drop

Last tested: Nov 9, 2020Check if you're passing a slug in to the call - each slug needs to be unique system wide, so that's a possible cause for this error. This content is subject to limited support.                  

440
molly.lippsett
Looker Staff
1 year ago
molly.lippsett
Looker Staff
molly.lippsettLooker Staff
published in Technical Tips & Tricks

Table calculation for time difference accounting for negativesKnowledge Drop

Last tested: June 15, 2020 The general logic here is, if the time diff is negative, then build own results using diff_minutes/diff_seconds, otherwise; do the calculation.if(${history.created_time}<${history.completed_time},concat("-",ceiling(diff_minutes(${history.created_time},${history.completed_time})/60), ":", abs(mod(diff_seconds(${history.created_time},${history.completed_time}),60))),to_string(${history.completed_time}))  This content is subject to limited support.                  

230
molly.lippsett
Looker Staff
1 year ago
molly.lippsett
Looker Staff
molly.lippsettLooker Staff
published in Technical Tips & Tricks

Test user permissions before setting up accountKnowledge Drop

Last tested: Dec 7, 2020While you can't completely set up a user to test without including an email address, you can use a fake email address to test setting up a user - this way you can confirm permissions without giving the user access. This content is subject to limited support.                  

320
molly.lippsett
Looker Staff
1 year ago
molly.lippsett
Looker Staff
molly.lippsettLooker Staff
published in Technical Tips & Tricks

What is the difference between history and query create date?Knowledge Drop

Last tested: Oct 16, 2020 Query created date is the time that a specific query was first run. The history created date will have a new row every time that query is run.So if you run a specific explore for the first time, the history and query created date will be exactly the same. If you run the same query (same fields, filters, vis config) a couple days later, you'd have another, new history row with a new created date two days later, but the query created date would be the same. This content is subject to limited support.                  

410
molly.lippsett
Looker Staff
1 year ago
molly.lippsett
Looker Staff
molly.lippsettLooker Staff
published in Technical Tips & Tricks

Duration type returning imprecise dataKnowledge Drop

Last tested: Jul 24, 2020 Date/time diffs tend to count whole units between timestamps - if a duration type is returning 0s, it could be because every individual duration calculated is less than an hour This content is subject to limited support.                  

120
molly.lippsett
Looker Staff
1 year ago
molly.lippsett
Looker Staff
molly.lippsettLooker Staff
published in Technical Tips & Tricks

Do the per-user-query-limit and thread pool limit increase in a cluster?Knowledge Drop

Last tested: Jun 15, 2020Yes! These are per-node limits. This content is subject to limited support.                  

580
molly.lippsett
Looker Staff
1 year ago
sam
Looker Staff
samLooker Staff
published in Technical Tips & Tricks

Why is hitting the samlcallback returning a 403 error?Knowledge Drop

  Last tested: Aug 2020  Check to make sure the callback URL is just myinstance.looker.com/samlcallback. If the URL has anything else in it, like login, then you might get a 403.The only exception is with Okta. Okta automatically injects /samlcallback so we'll just need the base url for the instance with no trailing slash.This content is subject to limited support.                

2080
sam
Looker Staff
1 year ago
sam
Looker Staff
samLooker Staff
published in Technical Tips & Tricks

Why is my single value visualization font so small?Knowledge Drop

  Last tested: May 2021 ExplanationSingle value visualisations do auto-size, however all single value visualisations on a dashboard will have the same font size. So if you have some tiny tiles next to some large tiles, the font size will scale to match the tiny tiles.Also, if there is more than just the value in the visualisation (e.g. the "Comparison" label in the visualisation settings) then that can make the font size smaller.Workarounds Make sure that the "Comparison label" in the visualisation settings is off. Enlarge the tile size of the smallest tile on the dashboard, which should increase the font size of the other single value visualisations Use HTML on the LookML field as in this community link. Vote for this request in our Feedback system Example of Expected Behaviour This content is subject to limited support.                

2310
sam
Looker Staff
1 year ago
sam
Looker Staff
samLooker Staff
published in Technical Tips & Tricks

Which order do I write my join in sql_on?Knowledge Drop

  Last tested: Sep 2020 It doesn't matter. According to docs, you can write the join in any order. Thus these two are equivalent:sql_on: ${order.user_id} = ${user.id} ;;sql_on: ${user.id} = ${order.user_id} ;; This content is subject to limited support.                

550
sam
Looker Staff
1 year ago
sam
Looker Staff
samLooker Staff
published in Technical Tips & Tricks

Can you use Git Stash with Looker?Knowledge Drop

  Last tested: Sep 2020"Stash" has multiple meanings with respect to Git: It's the old name for Bitbucket. They rebranded in early 2018. Looker does support using a Bitbucket repository for Git integration. git stash is also a Git CLI command. Basically it stores away the changes in your working directory so you can start fresh. Git docs. The same effect could be achieved by committing to a branch, and then moving to a branch that has been restored to production. Looker does not implement the stash command, and you may run into errors if you use stash on your repository while it is connected to Looker.   This content is subject to limited support.                

2060
sam
Looker Staff
1 year ago
sam
Looker Staff
samLooker Staff
published in Technical Tips & Tricks

Why isn't "PNG visualization" showing up as an option in the 'Download' modal?Knowledge Drop

  Last tested: Sep 2109To send or download data in image-based formats, such as PNG or PDF files, Looker requires a rendering software. So, the option only appears if you have the rendering software installed.The rendering software that is currently used is Chromium . This is automatically installed for Looker-hosted customers. If you have a self-hosted instance, you can follow this docs page to set it up on your instance.Then the option should appear.There is one corner case in which the png option might not appear even after installing Chromium: trying to download a Lookless tile while not having the explore permission. This is by design.  This content is subject to limited support.                

730
sam
Looker Staff
1 year ago
sam
Looker Staff
samLooker Staff
published in Technical Tips & Tricks

Action Hub query never completesKnowledge Drop

  Last tested: Sep 2019If a query runs forever in Action Hub, it might be because it's too large or because there are multiple streaming queries.Try reducing size and load and see if it goes through.Self-hosted customers might also experience issues sending/scheduling data via Action Hub and some streamed destination if your repo is not public. You might try : Making your repo public. Switching to a Looker-hosted instance.   This content is subject to limited support.                

110
sam
Looker Staff
1 year ago
sam
Looker Staff
samLooker Staff
published in Technical Tips & Tricks

Lookerbot Error: 401 "Unauthorized"Knowledge Drop

  Last tested: Sep 2019 This is a generic error message that can mean a lot of things.The first thing to check would be to go view the content as the Lookerbot user and make sure you have access in Looker.One user ran into this because they didn't set lookerbot environment variables, specifically the LOOKER_WEBHOOK_TOKEN. This content is subject to limited support.                

550
sam
Looker Staff
1 year ago
sam
Looker Staff
samLooker Staff
published in Technical Tips & Tricks

SMTP Error: `failed to send mail: execution expired`Knowledge Drop

  Last tested: Jan 2019 Make sure ports are opened. According to the outbound ports doc you should allow traffic to smtp.sendgrid.net on port 587 and allowlist noreply@looker.com and noreply@lookermail.comIf you are self-hosted in Google Cloud, then you should follow this article for SMTP setup. This content is subject to limited support.                

2050
sam
Looker Staff
1 year ago
sam
Looker Staff
samLooker Staff
published in Technical Tips & Tricks

Can I use pagination on query results?Knowledge Drop

  Last tested: May 2021 Pagination is a method by which users can download "chunks" of results rather than the whole dataset at one time. Wikipedia has some nice details.Currently, Looker doesn't offer anything like that. To be able to get all results you need to download/schedule "all results". You can vote for the Feature request here: Pagination Support. This content is subject to limited support.                

2470
sam
Looker Staff
1 year ago
sam
Looker Staff
samLooker Staff
published in Technical Tips & Tricks

Error "Could not find a view named x" when extending a viewKnowledge Drop

  Last tested: April 2020 When extending a view, remember to include the view you're extending.include: "base.view"view: new {extends: [base]}Make sure that the string inside include is the filename (what you see on the list on the left hand side), and that the string inside extends is the actual view name. (The string defined at: view: view_name inside the view file).Extending a view (docs)This content is subject to limited support.                

420
sam
Looker Staff
1 year ago
sam
Looker Staff
samLooker Staff
published in Technical Tips & Tricks

Error: 'time' param is not within 5 minutes of the server's system timeKnowledge Drop

Last tested: Oct 2020 This error comes up for SSO embed URLs. Basically, there are two main reasons: The link needs to be hit within 5 minutes of it being generated. Try generating the link again. The time on the server generating the URL is actually 5 minutes off of the time on the Looker server. Check what the servers think the current time is with the date command line call. This portion is mentioned in our docs right here: https://docs.looker.com/reference/embedding/security#sso_embed_parameters"The signed part of the URL contains a timestamp. Once the URL is used to sign on, that time must be +/- 5 minutes from the current time." This content is subject to limited support.                

400
sam
Looker Staff
1 year ago
sam
Looker Staff
samLooker Staff
published in Technical Tips & Tricks

How can I find out who added a dashboard tile to my dashboard, and when?Knowledge Drop

  Last tested: May 2021 You can't see this in the UI at the moment, but you can use the dashboard explore in System Activity to see the created date of each dashboard element.https://[HOSTNAME]/explore/system__activity/dashboard?fields=dashboard_element.created_date,dashboard_element.id,dashboard_element.type,dashboard.id,user.name&f[dashboard.id]=999&sorts=dashboard.id+desc&limit=500&query_timezone=America%2FLos_Angeles&vis=%7B%7D&filter_config=%7B%22dashboard.id%22%3A%5B%7B%22type%22%3A%22%3D%22%2C%22values%22%3A%5B%7B%22constant%22%3A%22999%22%7D%2C%7B%7D%5D%2C%22id%22%3A0%2C%22error%22%3Afalse%7D%5D%7D&dynamic_fields=%5B%5D&origin=share-expandedNote: Make sure to replace the [HOSTNAME] above by your company url, and then filter on the proper dashboard ID!If you need to know which element ID corresponds to which query, you'll have to use the "get dashboard" API call.There is a feature request you can vote for to add this metadata on the system activit

3160
sam
Looker Staff
1 year ago

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