When you create a partition for a cube, you can choose to use the fact table specified for the cube’s default partition, or you can select a different fact table. All fact tables and dimensions for a cube’s partitions must have the same structure as the cube’s fact tables and dimensions. For example, different fact tables can have the same structure but contain data for different years or different product lines.
When you use different fact tables for partitions of a cube, ensure that no data is duplicated among the fact tables. For example, if one fact table contains only transactions for 1997 and another fact table contains only transactions for 1998, they would contain independent data. Similarly, fact tables for distinct product lines or distinct geographical areas would be independent.
It is possible but not recommended to use different fact tables that contain duplicated data. In this case, you must use filters in the partitions to ensure that data used by one partition is not used by any other partition.
Note Merging partitions that address different fact tables requires special consideration and attention. For more information, see Fact Table Considerations when Merging Partitions.