3752691 - SAP Analytics Cloud displays warnings for a formula: "Uses operands with incompatible dimensions"

When creating formula in SAP Analytics Cloud the following warning may be displayed for the formula: "Uses operands with incompatible dimensions"

• SAP Analytics Cloud 2025.21.11  
• Story based off of a SAP BW Live model

1. Create a story in SAP Analytics Cloud based off of a BW Live model
2. On a chart add a formula that contains an IF statement
3. The error may be displayed

• The IF statement is passed to the BW as part of the query
• BW will only pass the result or TRUE value of the IF statement, the FALSE value is passed as a constant
• BW passes a constant for the unused value for query optimization
• The FALSE result's constant value may not be of the expected type which will trigger the warning
• As the FALSE result is not used this does not affect the outcome of the formula
• This is documented in item 32 of kbase 3702507- Known Limitations and By-Design Behaviors of Calculation Features in SAP Analytics Cloud (Collective KBA)         

For example:

• Take the formula : IF (measure_C = 1, dimensionA, dimensionB)

• This is sent as part of the INA query

• The back end BW INA engine evaluates the IF condition

• In this scenario let us say measure_C does equal 1 and dimensionA and dimensionB are both dates

• What happens is through the back end it will return the required value for dimensionA   

• For efficiency instead of evaluating what dimensionB would be it sends a Place Holder value back of a type that is not necessarily a date

• The above if statement basically becomes IF (TRUE, 'Date Value', 'Constant string value')

• It is this 'Constant string value' that generates the warning

This behaviour is outside of SAC and is due to the way BW handles INA query optimization

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Warning, BW, Query, incompatible dimensions, SAC , KBA , LOD-ANA-DES , Story Design & Visualizations , Problem