Link types

A row in the current table or worksheet is matched to the first row in the foreign table or worksheet that has exactly the same values in the linked columns. Column information from the foreign table or worksheet is appended to matching rows in the base table or worksheet. All rows in the resultant worksheet are retained.

A row in the current table or worksheet is matched to the first row in the foreign table or worksheet that has exactly the same values in the linked columns. Column information from the foreign table or worksheet is appended to matching rows in the current table or worksheet. Only those rows in the resultant worksheet that have a match between the two are retained.

A row in the current table or worksheet is matched to the first row in the foreign table or worksheet that has exactly the same values in the linked columns. However, column information from the foreign table or worksheet is not appended to matching rows in the base table or worksheet. Only those rows in the base table or worksheet that do not have a match between the two are retained.

A row in the current table or worksheet is matched to the first row in the foreign table or worksheet that has exactly the same values in the linked columns. However, column information from the foreign table or worksheet is not appended to matching rows in the base table or worksheet. Only those rows in the base table or worksheet that have a match between the two are retained.

A row in the current table or worksheet is matched to all rows in the foreign table or worksheet that have exactly the same values in the linked columns. As necessary, a row in the current table or worksheet is duplicated so that it appears as many times as there are matches to that row in the foreign table or worksheet. Column information from the foreign table or worksheet is appended to matching rows in the current table or worksheet. All rows in the resultant worksheet are retained.

The Link closest match options allow you to match rows in a less strict way when two tables are linked together. Link closest match can be performed only on date/time columns.

For a particular row in the current table, if no exact match can be made in the foreign table based on the value in the link column, the row in the current table or worksheet is matched to the first row in the foreign table or worksheet that has the next closest value to the row in the current table or worksheet. Column information from the foreign table or worksheet is appended to matching rows in the current table or worksheet. All rows in the resultant worksheet are retained.

If you are linking on more than one column (for example, product and date), only the last column (the date/time column) is linked with closest match. The other columns are linked exactly.

In the foreign table, the column that is linked with closest match must be sorted in ascending order within the remaining link columns, or it may be sorted in ascending order for the entire table. For example, if you link on product and date, then values can be sorted by date in ascending order for each product, or the entire table can be sorted in ascending order by date.

For a particular row in the current table, if no exact match can be made in the foreign table based on the value in the link column, the row in the current table or worksheet is matched to the first row in the foreign table or worksheet that has the previous closest value to the row in the current table or worksheet. Column information from the foreign table or worksheet is appended to matching rows in the current table or worksheet. All rows in the resultant worksheet are retained.

If you are linking on more than one column (for example, product and date), only the last column (the date/time column) is linked with closest match. The other columns are linked exactly.

In the foreign table, the column that is linked with closest match must be sorted in ascending order within the remaining link columns, or it may be sorted in ascending order for the entire table. For example, if you link on product and date, then values can be sorted by date in ascending order for each product, or the entire table can be sorted in ascending order by date.