> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.activeviam.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Auto-Explain user guide

> How to access and use Auto-Explain in Atoti UI to identify the root causes of metric changes, covering pivot table cell selection, context menu access, result interpretation, and contribution percentage output.

Auto-Explain is a feature that automatically analyzes data variations and identifies root causes. It examines the underlying data structure to determine which factors contributed to a metric change between two data points.

<Info>
  ### Atoti Intelligence Essentials

  This is part of the Atoti Intelligence Essentials offer.
</Info>

## What is Auto-Explain

Auto-Explain analyzes data to identify the root causes of variations. When a metric changes between two data points, Auto-Explain examines the underlying data structure to determine which factors contributed to the change. It provides:

* **Root cause members** that contribute to the variation
* **Contribution percentages** for each factor

## Why use Auto-Explain

Auto-Explain reduces the time spent investigating data variations manually. Key benefits include:

* Identify root causes automatically
* Get clear explanations of metric changes
* Work with existing Atoti data models
* Focus analysis on relevant dimensions through configuration

## Where to find Auto-Explain

Auto-Explain is available in the context menu of pivot tables in the Atoti UI after successful setup.

To access it, right-click on a selected cell in a pivot table and select **Auto-Explain** from the context menu:

<Frame>
  <img src="https://mintcdn.com/activeviam/J0McnvoVg4x05kNG/atoti-intelligence/6.1/images/test_2.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=J0McnvoVg4x05kNG&q=85&s=b6b14bcafc09e84fb4a48d395cd00187" alt="Auto-Explain context menu" width="1264" height="1216" data-path="atoti-intelligence/6.1/images/test_2.png" />
</Frame>

## How to use Auto-Explain

### Prerequisites

Before using Auto-Explain, ensure the following requirements are met:

* Auto-Explain is set up in the project
* The Atoti application is running
* The Atoti UI is accessible
* A pivot table with data is available

### Analyze a variation

Follow these steps to analyze a variation between two cells:

1. Open a pivot table in the Atoti UI
2. Select two cells to compare
3. Right-click one of the selected cells
4. Select **Auto-Explain** from the context menu
5. Wait for the analysis to complete

Auto-Explain analyzes the variation and displays the results:

<Frame>
  <img src="https://mintcdn.com/activeviam/J0McnvoVg4x05kNG/atoti-intelligence/6.1/images/test_3.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=J0McnvoVg4x05kNG&q=85&s=5b04a6466371e6b38abf1c677400585d" alt="Auto-Explain results" width="2830" height="1386" data-path="atoti-intelligence/6.1/images/test_3.png" />
</Frame>

### Interpret the results

The Auto-Explain results show:

* Root cause members that contribute to the variation
* Contribution percentages for each factor
* Hierarchy levels where variations occur

## Related reading

* [Set up Auto-Explain](../developer-guide/enable-ai-tools/atoti-java-sdk/auto-explain/setup) to add the feature to a Java project
* [Configure Auto-Explain](../developer-guide/enable-ai-tools/atoti-java-sdk/auto-explain/configuration) to customize analysis behavior and adjust thresholds