Cannot make cube measure working - error due to null values

Hi ivana_tomekova 

Try validating dimension keys first no duplicates/nulls,process dimensions before the cube, and remove any unsupported MDX/calculated members.

The error message is actually pointing to the root cause:

"Allocation failed, reference measure has no value for this cell. You can only allocate where the reference measure has an existing value."

This usually means the allocation is trying to write to a cell where the reference measure is blank (NULL) rather than zero.

A few things to check:

Verify that your reference measure returns a value for every intersection of the dimensions you're allocating to. Even one missing combination can trigger this error.

Check whether the source data contains NULL/blank values instead of 0. If so, consider replacing NULLs with 0 where appropriate before building the cube.

Ensure that all required dimension members (Year, Version, Cost Center, Account, etc.) exist for the target cells.

Validate that your allocation reference measure is evaluated at the same granularity as the allocation target. A mismatch in dimensionality can also result in blank cells.

If you're still unable to identify the issue, it would be helpful if you could share:

The definition of the reference measure.

The allocation rule.

A small sample of the source data.

That will make it much easier to determine whether the issue is caused by missing data, the measure logic, or the allocation configuration itself.

Hi ivana_tomekova 

This error happens because the allocation is trying to write to a cell where your *reference measure is BLANK/NULL*.

Cube allocation only works where the reference measure has an existing value - it cannot allocate to blank cells.

Here’s how to fix it:

1. Wrap your Reference Measure with COALESCE to return 0 instead of BLANK*
Reference Measure = COALESCE([Your Actual Measure], 0)

Or

Reference Measure = IF(ISBLANK([Your Actual Measure]), 0, [Your Actual Measure])
Then use this new measure as the "Reference Measure" in your Cube Allocation.

2. Check for missing dimension combinations:

Make sure for every intersection you are allocating to, the reference measure actually has data. Even 1 missing combo will throw this error.

3. Filter before allocating

In the Cube Planning editor, apply a filter: `Reference Measure is not blank` so you only allocate to cells that have a base value.

From your screenshot it looks like some rows have `-` which is BLANK. Converting those to 0 should resolve it.

Let me know if this works

Thanks 😊