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Sum Troubleshooting

Common problems when creating and running a Sum check, their causes, and how to resolve them.

Validation Fails When Creating the Check

Clicking Validate returns an error instead of a success message.

Cause: The rule could not run against the selected data. The most common reasons are an invalid Filter Clause expression, a connection problem with the source, or a container that failed to load.

Resolution:

  1. Review the error message: it explains what needs attention.
  2. Check the Filter Clause for typos: it must be a valid SQL WHERE expression for the selected container.
  3. If the message says the container is marked as Unloadable, the container was skipped after repeated operation failures. Follow the steps in Unloadable Container Error.

The Total Is Off by a Tiny Fraction

The reported sum differs from the expected value only in the last decimals.

Cause: The comparison is an exact equality and the column holds values that went through division or currency conversion, which do not add up to a round figure.

Resolution: Reconcile on a whole-number column instead (units, or an amount stored in cents), or use Aggregation Comparison, which compares with an operator rather than a fixed equality.

The Check Passed but Rows Are Missing

The total matches even though records were lost.

Cause: Sum only proves the values add up. Rows that cancel out, or a missing row offset by a duplicated one, leave the total unchanged.

Resolution: Add a row-level rule alongside it. Volumetric watches the record count, and Unique catches duplicated keys.

Empty Values Are Not Reported

Rows where the field is empty do not cause a failure.

Cause: An empty value contributes nothing to the total, exactly like a zero. The rule cannot tell the two apart.

Resolution: Add Not Null on the same field so a missing value is reported in its own right.

The Coverage Slider Has No Effect

Lowering coverage does not stop the check from failing.

Cause: The slider is part of the shared check form, but Sum compares one aggregate against one value. There is no per-row pass rate for it to relax.

Resolution: Adjust the expected Sum, or scope the rows with a Filter Clause, instead of changing coverage.

The Anomaly Lists No Source Records

Opening the anomaly shows the two totals but no rows.

Cause: The rule raises a column-level Shape Anomaly. No single row is wrong, so there is nothing to list.

Resolution: Read the two numbers to size the gap, and pair the check with a per-row rule when you need to act on individual records.

An Edited Check Keeps Behaving the Old Way

You changed the configuration but the anomaly list did not change.

Cause: Edits take effect on the next Scan. Saving the check does not re-evaluate the data, and anomalies raised under the previous configuration are not modified.

Resolution: Run a Scan on the container (or wait for the scheduled one). Old anomalies stay open until you triage them or a Full scan with Auto Resolve clears them. See What Happens to Existing Anomalies.

No Anomalies Although the Data Looks Wrong

A Scan ran, the data clearly breaks the rule, but nothing was reported.

Cause: One of these configurations is excluding the violations:

  • The check is in Draft status: Draft checks are not evaluated by Scans.
  • The Filter Clause excludes those rows before the evaluation runs.

Resolution: Confirm the check is Active and test the filter expression against the offending rows.