Clarification on client filters

#1

I think I understand what client filters are. As I see, they are a type of filter that somehow executes on the client side. The documentation associates them to Trend and Map charts but it doesn’t say anything about other visualizations. Can I apply client filters to any visualization?
Can any filter be a client filter? Can I have an application using only client filters?

#2

Client filters as you mentioned are executed on the browser side. They are not included in the analytical queries pushed down to data engines. They are applied after the data is obtained.

So for example, on the Trend chart, when users click on one of its points to filter by that selection, only that point would be visible after applying a normal filter. With a client filter, the full line can be maintained and grayed out while bolding the selected point. On Vector or Geo Map, you’ll see the full map grayed out with the selected country/region with color instead of only the region shape.

There are certain conditions for a visualization to be filtered on the client side. The first one is that client filters must match the “group by” attribute of the visualization. So for example, if your visualization is grouping by “country”, then only “country” filters can be applied as client filters since country values is the only information the visualization contains.

The second condition is that the visualization must actually support client filters. For now, this can be only done with certain visualizations such as Vector Maps, Geo Maps, Trends (time plus attribute), Area Lines (time plus attribute), Slicers, Range Filter and Time Slider. We are updating the documentation to specify this.

So in summary and to answer your questions:

  • Client filters work with a subset of visualizations specified above
  • A client filter must match the “group by” attribute of the visualization
  • Yes, you can have an application using only client filters providing that the visuals you are using support client filters

I hope the clarification helped you. Let us know if you have more questions.