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scripting-add-clone-remove-objects.md

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uid how-to-add-clone-remove-objects
title How to Add, Clone and Remove Objects
author Morten Lønskov
updated 2026-04-10
applies_to
products
product full
Tabular Editor 2
true
product full
Tabular Editor 3
true

How to Add, Clone and Remove Objects

C# scripts can create new model objects, clone existing ones and delete objects. This article covers the Add, Clone and Delete patterns.

Quick reference

// Add objects -- all parameters after the first are optional.
// See sections below for parameter details.
table.AddMeasure("Name", "DAX Expression", "Display Folder");
table.AddCalculatedColumn("Name", "DAX Expression", "Display Folder");
table.AddDataColumn("Name", "SourceColumn", "Display Folder", DataType.String);
table.AddHierarchy("Name", "Display Folder", col1, col2, col3);
Model.AddCalculatedTable("Name", "DAX Expression");
Model.AddPerspective("Name");
Model.AddRole("Name");
Model.AddTranslation("da-DK");

// Relationships
var rel = Model.AddRelationship();
rel.FromColumn = Model.Tables["Sales"].Columns["ProductKey"];   // many (N) side
rel.ToColumn = Model.Tables["Product"].Columns["ProductKey"];   // one (1) side

// Clone
var clone = measure.Clone("New Name");                         // same table
var clone = measure.Clone("New Name", true, targetTable);      // different table

// Delete (always materialize with ToList() before modifying a collection in a loop)
measure.Delete();
table.Measures.Where(m => m.IsHidden).ToList().ForEach(m => m.Delete());

Adding measures

AddMeasure() creates and returns a new Measure on a table. The first parameter is the name, the second is a DAX expression and the third is the display folder. All parameters except the first are optional.

Capture the returned object in a variable to set additional properties. This pattern is the same across all Add* methods.

var table = Model.Tables["Sales"];

// Create a measure and set properties on the returned object
var m = table.AddMeasure(
    "Revenue",                   // name
    "SUM('Sales'[Amount])"       // DAX expression
);
m.FormatString = "#,##0.00";
m.Description = "Total sales amount";

// With display folder
var m2 = table.AddMeasure(
    "Cost",                      // name
    "SUM('Sales'[Cost])",        // DAX expression
    "Financial"                  // display folder
);

Adding columns

// Calculated column -- first parameter is the name, second is a DAX expression
var cc = table.AddCalculatedColumn(
    "Profit",                              // name
    "'Sales'[Amount] - 'Sales'[Cost]"      // DAX expression
);
cc.DataType = DataType.Decimal;
cc.FormatString = "#,##0.00";

// Data column -- maps to a source column in the partition query
var dc = table.AddDataColumn(
    "Region",              // name
    "RegionName",          // source column name
    "Geography",           // display folder
    DataType.String        // data type
);

Warning

Adding a data column does not modify the table's partition query. You must update the M expression or SQL query separately to include a source column that matches the sourceColumn parameter.

Adding hierarchies

The levels parameter is variadic. Pass any number of columns in a single call to create the corresponding levels automatically.

var dateTable = Model.Tables["Date"];
var h = dateTable.AddHierarchy(
    "Calendar",                        // name
    "",                                // display folder
    dateTable.Columns["Year"],         // level 1
    dateTable.Columns["Quarter"],      // level 2
    dateTable.Columns["Month"]         // level 3
);

Or add levels one at a time:

var h = dateTable.AddHierarchy("Fiscal");
h.AddLevel(dateTable.Columns["FiscalYear"]);
h.AddLevel(dateTable.Columns["FiscalQuarter"]);
h.AddLevel(dateTable.Columns["FiscalMonth"]);

Adding calculated tables

var ct = Model.AddCalculatedTable(
    "DateKey List",                    // name
    "VALUES('Date'[DateKey])"          // DAX expression
);

Adding relationships

AddRelationship() creates and returns an empty relationship. You must set the columns explicitly.

FromColumn is the many (N) side and ToColumn is the one (1) side. Tabular Editor does not detect the direction automatically. A useful mnemonic: F for From, F for Fact table (the many side).

New relationships default to CrossFilteringBehavior.OneDirection and IsActive = true. Set these only if you need a different value.

var rel = Model.AddRelationship();
rel.FromColumn = Model.Tables["Sales"].Columns["ProductKey"];   // many side (fact)
rel.ToColumn = Model.Tables["Product"].Columns["ProductKey"];   // one side (dimension)

// Only set these if you need non-default values:
// rel.CrossFilteringBehavior = CrossFilteringBehavior.BothDirections;
// rel.IsActive = false;

Cloning objects

Clone() creates a copy with all properties, annotations and translations.

// Clone within the same table
var original = Model.AllMeasures.First(m => m.Name == "Revenue");
var copy = original.Clone("Revenue Copy");

// Clone to a different table (with translations)
var copy2 = original.Clone("Revenue Copy", true, Model.Tables["Reporting"]);

Generating measures from columns

A common pattern: iterate selected columns and create derived measures. Note the use of DaxObjectFullName which returns the fully qualified, properly quoted DAX reference (e.g., 'Sales'[Amount]) to avoid quoting errors.

foreach (var col in Selected.Columns)
{
    var m = col.Table.AddMeasure(
        "Sum of " + col.Name,
        "SUM(" + col.DaxObjectFullName + ")",
        col.DisplayFolder
    );
    m.FormatString = "0.00";
    col.IsHidden = true;
}

Deleting objects

Call Delete() on any named object to remove it. When modifying a collection in a loop (deleting, adding or moving objects), always call .ToList() first to materialize a snapshot.

// Delete a single object
Model.AllMeasures.First(m => m.Name == "Temp").Delete();

// Delete multiple objects safely
Model.AllMeasures
    .Where(m => m.HasAnnotation("DEPRECATED"))
    .ToList()
    .ForEach(m => m.Delete());

Common pitfalls

Warning

  • Always call .ToList() or .ToArray() before modifying objects in a loop. Without it, modifying the collection during iteration causes: "Collection was modified; enumeration operation may not complete."
  • AddRelationship() creates an incomplete relationship. You must assign both FromColumn and ToColumn before the model validates.
  • Column is abstract, but you can access all base properties (Name, DataType, FormatString, IsHidden) without casting. Only cast to a subtype for type-specific properties.
  • Clone() copies all metadata including annotations, translations and perspective membership. Remove unwanted metadata after cloning.

See also

  • @useful-script-snippets
  • @script-create-sum-measures-from-columns
  • @how-to-navigate-tom-hierarchy
  • @how-to-use-selected-object
  • (xref:TabularEditor.TOMWrapper.Measure) -- Measure API reference
  • (xref:TabularEditor.TOMWrapper.Column) -- Column API reference
  • (xref:TabularEditor.TOMWrapper.Hierarchy) -- Hierarchy API reference
  • (xref:TabularEditor.TOMWrapper.SingleColumnRelationship) -- Relationship API reference