Overview

Value and cell metadata are additional properties that can be associated with a particular cell or value. Cell metadata properties can be carried along with the cell as it moves (e.g., via insert, shift, copy/paste, merge, or unmerge) and value metadata properties can be propagated along with the value as it is referenced in formulas.

All of this metadata is stored separately in the metadata.xml part in the workbook.

While the architecture of this feature allows for future extensions, only MDX metadata—metadata that is associated with a particular cube function and it's results—is currently defined. For example, if a CUBEMEMBER function call is used to identify a particular member in an OLAP cube, then the metadata would express the OLAP connection name, the mdx expression identifying that member, and various operational attributes of that metadata (e.g., whether it propagates through formula assignment, shifts with the cell when the cell moves locations in the grid, and so on).