---
url: /set-instructions/set-manipulation.md
description: Reference for Set Manipulation in MODLR.
---

# Set Manipulation

Set Manipulation instructions reorder or filter the working list once elements are already in it - removing parent (consolidation) elements, sorting alphabetically or by value, and grouping members with blank rows between groups.

| Instruction | What it does |
| --- | --- |
| [Remove Consolidations](/set-instructions/remove-consolidations) | Removes every element that has children, leaving only leaf-level elements. |
| [Remove Items Using The Next Instruction](/set-instructions/remove-items-using-the-next-instruction) | A modifier: removes from the working list whatever elements the next instruction specifies. |
| [Sort By Name (Ascending)](/set-instructions/sort-by-name-ascending) | Sorts the working list alphabetically by element name (or by alias, if one has been applied via `Set The Alias For The Set`). |
| [Sort By Name (Descending)](/set-instructions/sort-by-name-descending) | The reverse alphabetical order. |
| [Sort By Value Using The Next Instruction (Ascending)](/set-instructions/sort-by-value-using-the-next-instruction-ascending) | Sorts the working list by the value the next instruction produces (e.g. a measure or formula). Workview column axis only. |
| [Sort By Value Using The Next Instruction (Descending)](/set-instructions/sort-by-value-using-the-next-instruction-descending) | The descending equivalent - the usual choice for "top N by value" reports. |
| [Group By Value Using The Next Instruction (Ascending)](/set-instructions/group-by-value-using-the-next-instruction-ascending) | Groups the working list by the value the next instruction produces, inserting blank rows between groups. Workview column axis only. |
| [Group By Value Using The Next Instruction (Descending)](/set-instructions/group-by-value-using-the-next-instruction-descending) | The descending equivalent. |

## Remove Consolidations pairs with Expand All

The most common use of `Remove Consolidations` is directly after `Expand All`: expand a parent to its full subtree, then strip out every parent-level element so only the leaves remain. Reversing that order - removing consolidations before expanding - removes the only element in the list (since at that point it's still a parent), leaving nothing for `Expand All` to work with.

## "Using The Next Instruction" instructions need a value provider

`Sort By Value` and `Group By Value` don't carry their own criterion - they read it from whichever instruction comes immediately after them in the stack, typically a measure reference or a formula:

```
1. Element: All Products
2. Expand All
3. Remove Consolidations
4. Sort By Value Using The Next Instruction (Descending)
5. Insert Using Formula: LINK("Sales", ["Revenue"])
```

Step 5 isn't a separate addition to the set - it's the value the sort in step 4 uses. If the instruction after a "Using The Next Instruction" modifier doesn't produce a value, the modifier won't behave as expected.

See [Common Patterns](/set-instructions/common-patterns) for a full sort-by-measure example.