The rand function can be used in custom filters and table calculations to return a random number between 0 and 1.

Syntax

rand()

The rand function returns a random number between 0 and 1.

Examples

The rand function is often used to generate random integers, sometimes to select a random sampling of data. For example, to generate an integer between 1 and 100 (inclusive) you could use:

(floor(rand()*100)+1)

This expression works as follows:

1. Uses the rand() function to generate a random number between 0 and 1.
2. Multiplies by 100 to turn it into a random number between 1 and 100.
3. Uses the floor function to round down the random number to the nearest integer, producing a random number between 0 and 99 (inclusive).
4. Adds 1 to bring the random integer up to 1 to 100 (inclusive).

You could then filter your report to only include data below a certain random number.

Things to know

The rand function produces a number with 16 decimal places, such as 0.04277424614631747.