PL-300 Model the data Practice Question
Exhibit
Refer to the exhibit.
```
// DAX Measure
Sales YTD =
CALCULATE(
SUM(Sales[Amount]),
DATESYTD('Date'[Date])
)
```You have the above measure in a Power BI model. The 'Date' table is marked as a date table and has a relationship to Sales[OrderDate]. The measure returns blank for all months. What is the most likely cause?
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
The Date table does not contain all dates in the continuous range
The Date table does not contain all dates in the continuous range. Time-intelligence functions like DATESYTD require a Date table with an unbroken, continuous sequence of dates covering the full period being analyzed; if any dates are missing, the function returns blank for the affected months. A wrong filter direction (B) would typically produce incorrect aggregation rather than blank results, and DATESYTD syntax errors (C) would raise an error, not silently return blank. The table is already marked as a date table per the scenario, so D is not the cause.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
The Date table does not contain all dates in the continuous range
Why this is correct
DATESYTD requires a gapless, contiguous set of dates spanning the entire year because it internally constructs a date range from January 1 through the last visible date in the filter context. If the Date table has missing dates—for example, only trading days or a subset of dates—the year-to-date calculation cannot include those gaps, causing blanks or understated totals. A properly built continuous date table with every calendar date is mandatory for time intelligence functions.
- ✗
The relationship is set to filter in the wrong direction
Why it's wrong here
The relationship direction is correct: the Date table filters the Sales table via a one-to-many relationship, which is the required orientation for DAX time intelligence functions. A wrong filter direction would typically cause measures to return values for the wrong granularity or not propagate filters from the date slicer to the fact table. Here, since the direction is from Date to Sales, filters flow properly, so this is not the cause of the blank result.
- ✗
The measure uses incorrect syntax for DATESYTD
Why it's wrong here
The DAX syntax for DATESYTD is exactly correct: DATESYTD('Date'[Date]) takes a single column reference to a date column, which is precisely what is used. Invalid syntax would be something like DATESYTD('Date') or DATESYTD(SUM('Date'[Date])) or missing the closing parenthesis. Since the function name, argument, and parentheses are all proper, syntax errors cannot explain the blank output.
- ✗
The 'Date' table is not marked as a date table
Why it's wrong here
The Date table is explicitly marked as a date table in the model, as stated in the exhibit, and DATESYTD will function only on a table that is marked as a date table. Being marked as a date table enables DAX to automatically generate the continuous date range that time intelligence functions rely on, but it does not automatically fill in any missing dates in the underlying column. Because the table is already marked, that requirement is satisfied, so the problem must lie elsewhere—specifically in actual date values present in the column.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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