docs.datacontroller.io/docs/roadmap.md

---
layout: article
title: Roadmap
description: The Data Controller roadmap is aligned with the needs of our customers - we continue to build and prioritise on Features requested by, and funded by, new and existing customers.
og_image:  https://i.imgur.com/xFGhgg0.png
---

# Roadmap

## Overview

On this page you can find details of the Features that have currently been requested, that we agree would add value to the product, and are therefore in our development roadmap.

Where customers are paying for the new Features (eg with our discounted Developer Days offer), then those Features will always take priority.  Where funding is not available, new Features will be addressed during the Bench Time of our developers, and will always be performed after Bug Fixes.

If you would like to see a new Feature added to Data Controller, then let's have a chat!


## Requested Features

### Dynamic Filtering

The existing filter box provides a list of values when selecting operators such as "IN", "=" etc.  The problem is that this dropdown does not consider existing filter selections.  So if a user filters on, say, "region", and then filters on "store", they will see stores for ALL regions (not just the region/regions already selected in the filter).

![](https://i.imgur.com/KDEVvDi.png)

#### Proposed Solution

We add a checkbox to the top right of the filter dialog (default ON) for "Dynamic Filtering".  Whilst enabled, whenever a list of values is requested, it is filtered using every filter clause EXCEPT the one currently being modified.

#### Technical Implementation

It will be necessary to first ensure that every filter clause is valid (currently, it is possible for two clauses to be invalid whilst they are being worked on).  We will need several (automated) test cases in the cypress suite:

* Simple (just two clauses)
* Multiple clauses (up to 6)
* Multiple grouped clauses
* Very large clause (so that filter query exceeds 50k characters)
* An attempt to work on several clauses in quick succession
* Both character & numeric

Currently when calling the 'public/getcolvals' service we provide a single table (iwant) with two values (libds & col).  This service needs to be extended to include an additional input (filtertable) with one column (filterline).  The filter query will be split across multiple rows in this table.

The service will need to safely validate this input query, to prevent the risk of SQL injection.  It can then be used to filter the returned output.

Additional automated SASjs tests required:

* malicious code injection
* Very large clause (so that filter query exceeds 50k characters)
* accuracy checks

### Dynamic Grid Cell Validation

The challenge here is similar to that of [Dynamic Filtering](/roadmap/#dynamic-filtering) - when editing a value in a grid, the values presented to the user should be filtered according to additional rules, based on the values of other cells in the same row.

![](https://i.imgur.com/J1q4lqo.png)

#### Proposed Solution

Given the near infinite possibilities by which this list could be generated, the solution proposed is that provide a new config item in the MPE_VALIDATIONS table - one that links an editable column to a HOOK script via a web service.

The configuration would like like so:

![](https://i.imgur.com/8Hx05GP.png)

In this way, the entire record can be sent to SAS, for processing by the FILTER_HOOK script, before returning the desired list of values.

If RULE_VALUE is left empty, we can default to filtering according to the value of the (remaining) primary key value(s).

The HOOK_SCRIPT can be either a SAS program on a filesystem (identified by a ".sas" extension) or the path to a registered SAS Service (STP or JES).  The latter is identified by the absence of an extension.

This approach provides maximum flexibility for delivering bespoke values in the edit grid dropdown.

#### Technical Implementation

Backend:

- [ ] Two new validation types to be added for MPE_VALIDATIONS in MPE_SELECTBOX
- [ ] `editors/getdata` service needs to mark those columns that require dynamic dropdowns, and whether they are HARD or SOFT
- [ ] A new service (`editors/get_dynamic_col_vals`) needs to be created, with logic for auto-filtering if no hook script provided
- [ ] Documentation updated
- [ ] SASjs tests (with / without hook scripts) written and integrated

Frontend:

- [ ] Prepare hooks for all target cols as defined in the `editors/getdata` response
- [ ] When in EDIT mode and the user selects the dropdown, call the `editors/get_dynamic_col_vals` service with the currentrow as input
- [ ] Whilst calling the service, a spinner should be presented and the page frozen
- [ ] On response, the dropdown is populated, and the service is not triggered again unless another cell in that same row ismodified (so if the user navigates away, and comes back, the service is not necessarily triggered again)
- [ ] If a user PASTES input (or provides input via Excel upload), then the hook is NOT triggered, even if it is a HARD select(in this case we would rely on backend validation, which is NOT yet implemented)
- [ ] Prepare tests covering all use cases in the Cypress test suite
- [ ] New functions are well documented in JSDoc


### Row Level Security

Row level security is provided by various products in both SAS 9 and Viya, based on the logged in user identity.

This is problematic for the EDIT page, which - by necessity - operates under system account credentials.

It is also the case that some customers need row level security but the data access engine does not support that.

Therefore, there is a need to configure such a feature within the Data Controller product.

#### Proposed Solution

A new table (MPE_ROW_LEVEL_SECURITY) will be added to the data controller library with the following attributes:

|Variable|Description|
|---|---|
|RLS_SCOPE| Does the rule apply to the VIEW page, the EDIT page, or ALL pages|
|RLS_GROUP| The SAS Group to which the rule applies.  If a user is in none of these groups, no rules apply. If the user is in multiple groups, then the rules for each are applied with an OR condition.|
|RLS_LIBREF|The library of the target table|
|RLS_TABLE|The table to which to apply the rule|
|RLS_COLUMN|The column to which to apply the rule|
|RLS_OPERATOR|The operator to apply, such as `=`, `<`, `>`,`!=`, `IN` and `CONTAINS`|
|RLS_VALUE|The value to which be used in the comparator|
|RLS_ACTIVE|Set to 1 to include the record in the filter, else 0|
|||

Example values as follows:

RLS_SCOPE $4|RLS_GROUP $64|RLS_LIBREF $8| RLS_TABLE $32| RLS_COLUMN $32| RLS_OPERATOR $16| RLS_VALUE $2048|RLS_ACTIVE|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|EDIT|Group 1|MYLIB|MYDS|VAR_1|=|Some text value|1|
|ALL|Group 1|MYLIB|MYDS|VAR_2|IN|this|1|
|ALL|Group 1|MYLIB|MYDS|VAR_2|IN|or|1|
|VIEW|Group 1|MYLIB|MYDS|VAR_2|IN|that|1|
|ALL|Group 1|MYLIB|MYDS|VAR_3|<|42|1|
|ALL|Group 2|MYLIB|MYDS|VAR_4|Contains|;%badmacro()|1|

If a user is in Group 2, and querying an EDIT table, the query will look like this:

```
select * from mylib.myds
where ( var_4 CONTAINS ';%badmacro()' )
```

If the user is in both Group 1 AND Group 2, querying a VIEW-only table, the filter will be as follows:

```
select * from mylib.myds
where (var_2 IN ('this','or','that') AND var_3 < 42 )
  OR
    ( var_4 CONTAINS ';%badmacro()' )
```

#### Technical Implementation

The implementation will be entirely backend (no impact to frontend).  Tasks include:

- [ ] Creation of new table using SCD2 for history retention
- [ ] Inclusion of new table in the build process
- [ ] Update the migration scripts for customer upgrades
- [ ] Creation of a macro to formulate the filter clause
- [ ] Creation of a series of SASjs tests to validate the macro logic
- [ ] Macro Documentaton
- [ ] User Documentation

The following Services will require modification to use the new macro:

* `public/getcolvals`
* `public/getrawdata`
* `public/viewdata`
* `editors/getdata`
* `editors/loadfile`
* `editors/stagedata`

The macro should also be available to developers using hook scripts in `editors/get_dynamic_col_vals`.



## Delivered Features

Below are some examples of Features that have been requested (and delivered) into Data Controller.

### Configurable Locale

#### Problem Statement

When importing spreadsheets with ambiguous dates (eg 01/02 or 02/01) the ANYDTDTM. informat was using the locale of the browser (en_us) instead of that of the client's actual country, resulting in incorrect dates being loaded.  This is due to the [default behaviour](https://rawsas.com/look-out-locale-gotcha/) of the SAS Stored Process server.

#### Solution

We added a [new config item](/dcc-options/#dc_locale) so that the locale can be explicitly set for all Data Controller users.