Power BI - Introduction

Power BI is a Data Visualization and Business Intelligence tool that converts data from
different data sources to interactive dashboards and BI reports. Power BI suite provides
multiple software, connector, and services - Power BI desktop, Power BI service based
on Saas, and mobile Power BI apps available for different platforms. These set of
services are used by business users to consume data and build BI reports.
Power BI desktop app is used to create reports, while Power BI Services (Software as a
Service - SaaS) is used to publish the reports, and Power BI mobile app is used to view
the reports and dashboards.
Power BI Desktop is available in both 32-bit and 64-bit versions. To download the latest
version, you can use the following link −
https://powerbi.microsoft.com/en-us/downloads/

Power BI - Installation Steps

To check the system requirements, installation files detail, users have to navigate to
“Advanced download options”. Following are the system requirements to download
Power BI tool −
Supported Operating Systems
• Windows 10, Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 8.1, Windows Server 2008 R2,
Windows Server 2012, Windows Server 2012 R2
• Microsoft Power BI Desktop requires Internet Explorer 9 or higher
• Microsoft Power BI Desktop is available for 32-bit (x86) and 64-bit (x64) platforms
Users can select a language in which they want to install Power BI and following files
are available for download.

This is the link to directly download Power BI files −

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=45331
PBIDesktop_x64.msi shows a 64-bit OS file. Select the file you want to install as per OS
type and click Next. Save the installation file on the local drive.

When you run the installation file, following screen is displayed.

Accept the license agreement and follow the instructions on the screen to finish the
installation.
When Power BI is installed, it launches a welcome screen. This screen is used to launch
different options related to get data, enrich the existing data models, create reports as
well as publish and share reports.

Power BI - Architecture
Power BI includes the following components −
• Power BI Desktop − This is used to create reports and data visualizations on the
dataset.
• Power BI Gateway − You can use Power BI on-premises gateway to keep your
data fresh by connecting to your on-premises data sources without the need to
move the data. It allows you to query large datasets and benefit from the existing
investments.
• Power BI Mobile Apps − Using Power BI mobile apps, you can stay connected
to their data from anywhere. Power BI apps are available for Windows, iOS, and
Android platform.
• Power BI Service − This is a cloud service and is used to publish Power BI reports
and data visualizations.
 Power BI - Supported Data Sources
Power BI supports large range of data sources. You can click Get data and it shows you
all the available data connections. It allows you to connect to different flat files, SQL
database, and Azure cloud or even web platforms such as Facebook, Google Analytics,
and Salesforce objects. It also includes ODBC connection to connect to other ODBC
data sources, which are not listed.
Following are the available data sources in Power BI −

• Flat Files
• SQL Database
• OData Feed
• Blank Query
• Azure Cloud platform
• Online Services
• Blank Query
• Other data sources such as Hadoop, Exchange, or Active Directory
To get data in Power BI desktop, you need to click the Get data option in the main screen.
It shows you the most common data sources first. Then, click the More option to see a
full list of available data sources.
When you click “More..” tab as shown in the above screenshot, you can see a new
navigation window, where on the left side it shows a category of all available data
sources. You also have an option to perform a search at the top.
Following are the various data sources listed −
All
Under this category, you can see all the available data sources under Power BI desktop.
File
When you click File, it shows you all flat file types supported in Power BI desktop. To
connect to any file type, select the file type from the list and click Connect. You have to
provide the location of the file.
Database
When you click the Database option, it shows a list of all the database connections that
you can connect to.
To connect to any database, select a Database type from the list as shown in the above
screenshot. Click Connect.
You have to pass Server name/ User name and password to connect. You can also
connect via a direct SQL query using Advance options. You can also select Connectivity
mode- Import or DirectQuery.
Note − You can’t combine import and DirectQuery mode in a single report.
Import vs DirectQuery
DirectQuery option limits the option of data manipulation and the data stays in SQL
database. DirectQuery is live and there is no need to schedule refresh as in the Import
method.
Import method allows to perform data transformation and manipulation. When you
publish the data to PBI service, limit is 1GB. It consumes and pushes data into Power BI
Azure backend and data can be refreshed up to 8 times a day and a schedule can be
set up for data refresh.
Advantages of Using DirectQuery
• Using DirectQuery, you can build data visualizations on large datasets, which is
not feasible to import in Power BI desktop.
• DirectQuery doesn’t apply any 1GB data set limit.
• With the use of DirectQuery, the report always shows current data.
Limitations of Using DirectQuery
• There is a limitation of 1 million row for returning data while using DirectQuery.
You can perform aggregation of more number of rows, however, the result rows
should be less than 1 million to return the dataset.
• In DirectQuery, all tables should come from a single database.
• When a complex query is used in the Query editor, it throws an error. To run a
query, you need to remove the error from the query.
• In DirectQuery, you can use Relationship filtering only in one direction.
• It doesn’t support special treatment for time-related data in tables.
Azure
Using the Azure option, you can connect to the database in Azure cloud. Following
screenshot shows the various options available under Azure category.

Online Services
Power BI also allows you to connect to different online services such as Exchange,
Salesforce, Google Analytics, and Facebook.
Following screenshots shown the various options available under Online Services.
Other
Following screenshot shows the various options available under other category.
 Power BI - Comparison with Other BI Tools
In this chapter, a comparison between Power BI and other BI tools such as Tableau and
SSRS is carried out.
Power BI vs Tableau
Tableau is considered as one of the leading tools in the BI market. Power BI is
considered as an emerging tool in close competition with Tableau because of its backend
data manipulation features and connectivity with the list of data sources. Tableau is one
of the best data visualization tools in the market and is used by medium and large
enterprises. Power BI is closely integrated with Office 365 suite, and hence it is
compatible other sources such as SharePoint.

Feature Tableau Power BI

 Tableau provides
Power BI provides a
strong data
strong backend data
Data visualization and is
manipulation feature
Visualization one of the main data
with access to simple
visualization tool in
visualizations.
the market.

Tableau can
connect much Power BI has a limit of
Size of Dataset larger datasets as 1GB data in free
compared to Power version.
BI.

Power BI covers most

of the data sources
available in Tableau.
Tableau covers a It is closely integrated
vast range of data with Office 365,
sources to connect hence provides
with for data connectivity to
Data Sources visualization. In SharePoint.
Tableau, you select Power BI online
the dataset first and version also supports
visualizations are direct visualization on
used on the fly. Search Engine,
though, only Bling is
supported at this
point.

Power BI provides a
Tableau is
free version with 1GB
expensive as
limit on dataset.
compared to Power
Costing Power BI Pro is also a
BI but still under
cheaper solution
budget for small and
when compared with
medium enterprise.
any other BI tool.

Tableau Desktop
License and Power BI: Free
Profession:
Pricing USD70/user/month 1 GB storage
and it can connect
 to hundreds of data 10k rows/hour data
sources. streaming
Tableau Desktop Power BI Pro:
Personal:
USD9.99/user/month
USD35/user/month
and it can connect 10 GB storage
to data sources
1 million rows/hour
such as Google
Sheets and Excel
files.
Tableau Server:
Minimum 10 users
with the cost of
USD35/user/month
Tableau Online with
private cloud: USD
42/user/month

Tableau provides Power BI uses cloud

different storage and includes
implementation simple
types as per implementation
Implementation
organizational process.
needs panning from
few hours to few
weeks.

Power BI vs SSRS

Feature SSRS Power BI

SSRS is mostly Power BI provides a

used for Pixel strong backend data
perfect manipulation feature
Data
reporting and with access to simple
Visualization
average dash- visualizations.
boarding
features.
 No such limit in
SSRS. It can
connect to Power BI has a limit of
Size of Dataset much larger 1GB data in free
datasets as version.
compared to
Power BI.

Power BI covers most

of the data sources
available in Tableau. It
is closely integrated
with Office 365, hence
SSRS covers a provides connectivity
vast range of to SharePoint.
Data Sources data sources to
connect with for Power BI online
BI reporting. version also supports
direct visualization on
Search Engine,
though, only Bling is
supported at this
point.

Power BI provides a
free version with 1GB
SSRS pricing
limit on dataset.
details are
Costing Power BI Pro is also a
available only
cheaper solution
upon request.
when compared with
any other BI tool.

Power BI: Free

SQL Server 1 GB storage
Enterprise
License. It is 10k rows/hour data
License and streaming
available on
Pricing
cloud - AWS, Power BI Pro:
Azure, and
other providers. USD9.99/user/month
10 GB storage
 1 million rows/hour

SSRS Power BI uses cloud

implementation storage and includes
Implementation is complex as simple
compared with implementation
Power BI. process.

Power BI - Data Modeling

In this chapter, you will learn about data modeling in Power BI.
Using Data Modeling and Navigation
Data Modeling is one of the features used to connect multiple data sources in BI tool
using a relationship. A relationship defines how data sources are connected with each
other and you can create interesting data visualizations on multiple data sources.
With the modeling feature, you can build custom calculations on the existing tables and
these columns can be directly presented into Power BI visualizations. This allows
businesses to define new metrics and to perform custom calculations for those metrics.

In the above image, you can see a common data model, which shows a relationship
between two tables. Both tables are joined using a column name “Id”.
Similarly, in Power BI, you set the relationship between two objects. To set the
relationship, you have to drag a line between the common columns. You can also view
the “Relationship” in a data model in Power BI.
To create data model in Power BI, you need to add all data sources in Power BI new
report option. To add a data source, go to the Get data option. Then, select the data
source you want to connect and click the Connect button.

Once you add a data source, it is presented on the right side bar. In the following image,
we have used 2 xls file to import data - Customer and Product.
In Power BI on the left side of the screen, you have the following three tabs −

• Report
• Data
• Relationships

When you navigate to the Report tab, you can see a dashboard and a chart selected for
data visualization. You can select different chart types as per your need. In our example,
we have selected a Table type from available Visualizations.
When you go to the Data tab, you can see all the data as per the defined Relationship
from the data sources.

In the Relationship tab, you can see the relationship between data sources. When you
add multiple data sources to Power BI visualization, the tool automatically tries to detect
the relationship between the columns. When you navigate to the Relationship tab, you
can view the relationship. You can also create a Relationship between the columns using
Create Relationships option.
You can also add and remove relationships in data visualization. To remove a
relationship, you have to right-click and select the “Delete” option. To create a new
“Relationship”, you just need to drag and drop the fields that you want to link between
the data sources.

You can also use the Relationship view to hide a particular column in the report. To hide
a column, right-click on the column name and select the “Hide in report view” option.
Creating Calculated Columns
You can create calculated columns in Power BI by combining two or more elements of
the existing data. You can also apply calculation on an existing column to define a new
metric or combine two columns to create one new column.
You can even create a calculated column to establish a relationship between the tables
and it can also be used to setup a relationship between two tables.
To create a new calculated column, navigate to Data View tab on the left side of the
screen and then click Modeling.
When you navigate to the Modeling tab, you can see a New Column option at the top of
the screen. This also opens the formula bar, where you can enter DAX formula to perform
calculation. DAX- Data Analysis Expression is a powerful language also used in Excel
to perform calculations. You can also rename the column by changing the Column text
in the formula bar.

In the following example, let us create a new column: Product Code (Product_C), which
is derived from the last three characters of Prod_Id column. Then, write the following
formula −
Product_C = RIGHT( Sheet1[Prod_Id],3)
A long list of formulas is also provided that you can use for creating calculated columns.
You have to enter the first character of formula to be used in calculations as shown in
the following screenshot.

Creating Calculated Tables

You can also create a new calculated table in data modeling in Power BI. To create a
new table, navigate to the Data View tab on the left side of the screen, and then go to
the Modeling option at the top of the screen.

DAX expression is used to create the new table. You have to enter the name of a new
table on the left side of the equal sign and DAX formula to perform the calculation to form
that table on the right. When the calculation is complete, the new table appears in the
Fields pane in your model.
In the following example, let us define a new table - Table_CustC that returns a one
column table containing unique values in a column in another table.

A new table is added under the “Fields” section in Power BI screen as shown in the
following screenshot. Once the calculated column and calculated tables are created as
per your requirement, you can use the fields in the Report tab in Power BI.
To add these objects, you have to select a checkbox and a relationship is automatically
detected if possible. If not, then you can drag the columns that you want to connect.

To view the report, you navigate to the Report tab and you can see both “Calculated
columns” and fields from the new “Calculated table” in the report view.
Managing Time-Based Data
Power BI allows to drill through time-based data by default. When you add a date field
in your analysis and enable drill on your data visualization, it takes you to the next level
of time-based data.
Let us consider we have added Time-based table in Power BI visualization. We have
added Revenue and Year column in our report.
We can enable the drill feature in visualizations using the option at the top. Once we
enable the drill feature and click the bars or lines in the chart, it drills down to the next
level of time hierarchy. Example: Years → Quarters → Months.
We can also use Go to the next level in the hierarchy option to perform a Drill.

Power BI - Dashboard Options

In this chapter, you will learn about the various dashboard options available in Power BI.
Exploring Different Datasets
Power BI tool provides a lot of options to explore the datasets. When you are working on
your BI report or dashboards, you can use Power BI look for quick insights. Navigate to
the datasets section on the left side of the tool UI, click the 3 dots (…) and click Get
Insights.
When you select the Get Insights option, it runs all the algorithms in your dataset and
once it is complete, you get a notification that insight is ready for your dataset.

You can click the View Insights option and the tool will show you all chart representations
of your data insights. You can any time go to this option and check insights option in your
dataset.
When you publish a report to Power BI service, you also get an option of Quick Insight
on the first page.
Creating Dashboards
In Power BI, you can create a dashboard by pinning visualizations from BI reports that
are published using Power BI desktop. All the visualizations that are created using Power
BI service are also available for pinning to create dashboards.
In Power BI, if you want to pin a visual, open the BI report on the Power BI service. At
the top of the visual, select the pin icon.

When you use the Pin option as shown as shown in the above screenshot, a new dialog
box appears as shown in the following screenshot. It asks you to create a new dashboard
or select an existing dashboard to put the visual from the dropdown list. If you don’t have
an existing dashboard, then this option is greyed out.

Once you click the Pin button, you will get a confirmation that your visualization is
“Pinned” to the dashboard. You can click My Workspace and check the dashboard.
Once your dashboard is created, you can use different options to configure the
dashboard.

Sharing Dashboards
When you publish your BI report to Power BI service, you can share reports and
dashboards with other users in your organization. Sharing a dashboard is very easy in
Power BI.
You have to open the dashboard in Power BI service and click the Share option at the
top right corner of the screen.

The sharing feature is only available with Power BI Pro version. You can also use the
60-days free trial for Power BI Pro as shown in the following screenshot.
Click the Try Pro for free to start a trial. Select the Start Trial and Finish, and you will get
a confirmation that 60-days trial has started. When you click the Share dashboard, you
will get options in a new window. You have to enter the email Id of the user with whom
you want to share this dashboard.
You can allow recipients to share the dashboard with other users or send email
notifications. You can also provide a direct URL to users and they can access the
dashboard directly.
Tiles in Dashboard
When you check More Options in the dashboard, you can see an option of Focus Mode
and other different options in the dashboard.
Focus Mode is used to take a closer look at your dashboard data. When you have
multiple values in the dashboard, you can use the Focus Mode for a better view of the
objects in the dashboard. If there are any columns, which are not shown due to space
issues, you can also view those using the Focus Mode.

Focus Mode is used to see all the data in the dashboard/report. It is also possible to pin
the visual directly from Focus Mode to a different dashboard by selecting the Pin icon.
To exit the Focus Mode, you can select the Exit Focus Mode option.

You can also use the Tile Details option to edit few formatting changes. This option
allows to change the tile's title, subtitle, last refresh time and date, and other details, such
as creating a custom link for your dashboard.
Data Gateway
You can connect on-premise data sources to Power BI service using a data gateway.
You can also use a version of data gateway that doesn’t include any administration
configuration and it is called as Personal Gateway.
You can set up Personal Gateway by logging into Power BI service. You have to select
the download icon on the top right hand corner of the screen and click Data Gateway.
As per Power BI official site, using Data Gateway with the on-premises gateways, you
can keep your data fresh by connecting to your on-premises data sources without the
need to move the data. Query large datasets and benefit from your existing investments.
The gateways provide the flexibility you need to meet individual needs, and the needs of
your organization.

To set up download gateways, you have to run the setup till it is downloaded and the
installation wizard is complete.
You have an option to select either −

• On-premise data gateway or

• Personal gateway (Power BI only)
Once you launch Power BI Gateway, you have to login to Power BI gateway service.
You can also enable automatic updates by navigating to Schedule Refresh and
frequency of the schedule.

Power BI - Visualization Options

In this chapter, you will learn about the various visualization options in Power BI.
Creating Simple Visualizations
Visualizations are used to effectively present your data and are the basic building blocks
of any Business Intelligence tool. Power BI contains various default data visualization
components that include simple bar charts to pie charts to maps, and also complex
models such as waterfalls, funnels, gauges, and many other components.
In Power BI, you can create visualization in two ways. First is by adding from the right
side pane to Report Canvas. By default, it is the table type visualization, which is selected
in Power BI. Another way is to drag the fields from right side bar to the axis and value
axis under Visualization. You can add multiple fields to each axis as per the requirement.
In Power BI, it is also possible to move your visualization on the reporting canvas by
clicking and then dragging it. You can also switch between different type of charts and
visualizations from the Visualization pane. Power BI attempts to convert your selected
fields to the new visual type as closely as possible.
Creating Map Visualizations
In Power BI, we have two types of map visualization - bubble maps and shape maps. If
you want to create a bubble map, select the map option from the visualization pane.

To use a bubble map, drag the map from Visualizations to the Report Canvas. To display
values, you have to add any location object to the axis.
In the value fields, you can see that it accepts values axis such as City and State and or
you can also add longitude and latitude values. To change the bubble size, you need to
add a field to the value axis.
You can also use a filled map in data visualization, just by dragging the filled map to the
Report Canvas.

Note − If you see a warning symbol on top of your map visualization, it means that you
need to add more locations to your map chart.
Using Combination Charts
In data visualization, it is also required to plot multiple measures in a single chart. Power
BI supports various combination chart types to plot measure values. Let us say you want
to plot revenue and unit_solds in one chart. Combination charts are the most suitable
option for these kind of requirement.
One of the most common Combination chart in Power BI is Line and Stacked column
charts. Let us say we have a revenue field and we have added a new data source that
contains customer-wise unit quantity and we want to plot this in our visualization.

Once you add a data source, it will be added to the list of fields on the right side. You
can add units to the column axis as shown in the following screenshot.

You have other type of combine chart that you can use in Power BI - Line and Clustered
Column.
Using Tables
In Power BI, when you add a dataset to your visualization, it adds a table chart to the
Report canvas. You can drag the fields that you want to add to the report. You can also
select the checkbox in front of each field to add those to the Report area.
With the numerical values in a table, you can see a sum of values at the bottom.

You can also perform a sort in the table using an arrow key at the top of the column. To
perform ascending/descending sort, just click the arrow mark, and the values in the
column will be sorted.
The order of the columns in a table is determined by the order in the value bucket on the
right side. If you want to change the order, you can delete any column and add the other
one.

You can also undo summarize or apply different aggregate function on numerical values
in the table. To change the aggregation type, click the arrow in the value bucket in front
of the measure and you will see a list of formulas that can be used.
Another table type in Power BI is the matrix table that provides a lot of features such as
auto sizing, column tables, and setting colors, etc.

Modify Colors in Charts

In Power BI, you can also modify the colors in the chart. When you select any
visualization, it has an option to change the color. Following options are available under
the Format tab −

• Legend
• Data Colors
• Detail Label
• Title
• Background
 • Lock Aspect
• Border
• General
To open these options, go to the Format tab as shown in the following screenshot. Once
you click, you can see all the options available.

When you expand the Legend field, you have an option where you want to display the
legend. You can select −

• Position
• Title
• Legend Name
• Color
• Text Size
• Font Family
Similarly, you have data colors. In case, you want to change the color of any data field,
you can use this option. It shows all objects and their corresponding colors in the chart.

You also have Analytics feature in the tool, where you can draw lines as per requirement
in data visualization. You have the following line types in data visualization −

• Constant Line
• Min Line
• Max Line
 • Average Line
• Median Line
• Percentile Line

You can opt for a dashed, dotted, or a solid line. You can select Transparency level,
color, and position of the line. You can also switch on/off data label for this line.

Adding Shapes, Images and Text box

Sometimes it is required that you need to add static text, images, or shapes to your
visualization. In case you want to add header/footer or any static signatures, messages
to data visualization this option can be used.
You can also add URLs in the text box and Power BI uses those link to make it live.
To add shapes, images and text box, navigate to the Home tab and at the top you will
find an option to add images.
You can insert different shapes in data visualization. To see the available shapes, click
the arrow next to the Shapes button.

When you click on the text box, it adds a text box in your Report canvas. You can enter
any text in the text box and use the rich text editor to make formatting changes.

Similarly, images can be added to data visualization to add logos or other images to data
visualization. When you click the Image option, it asks for a path to pass the image file.
You can add shapes by selecting any shape from the dropdown list. You can also resize
it using different options.
Styling Reports
In Power BI, you have flexible options to adjust the page layout and formatting such as
orientation and page size of your report. Navigate to Page View menu from the Home
tab and the following options are provided.

• Fit to Page
• Fit to Width
• Actual Size

By default, the page size in a report is 16:9; however, it is also possible to change the
page size of the report. To change the page size, navigate to the Visualization pane and
select Paint brush.
Note − To change page size, no visualization should be added to the Report canvas.
You have the following options available under Page layout −

• Page Information
• Page Size
• Page Background
Under Page Information, you have Name and Q&A.
Under Page Size, you can select from the following options −

• Type
• Width
• Height

Under Page Background, you can select from the following options:

• Color
• Transparency
• Add Image
Duplicating Reports
In some scenarios, you may want to use the same layout and visuals for different pages.
Power BI provides an option to create a copy of the page. When you use Duplicate Page
option, a new page is added with similar layout and visuals.
To duplicate a page, right-click the Page and select Duplicate Page option. This will
create a copy of the same page with the name - Duplicate of Page1.

Now, if you want to rename an existing page or delete a page, you can use other options
as shown in the above screenshot.

Power BI - Excel Integration

In this chapter, you will learn how to integrate excel with Power BI.
Using Excel Data
Using Power BI, you can also import Excel workbook file from the local drive into Power
BI. To import data from the excel sheet, you have to ensure that each column has a
proper name. To import an Excel file in Power BI, navigate to Get Data → Files → Local
Files.
Importing xls Files
In Power BI Service, navigate to My Workspace → File → Local File.

Also note that it is not necessary your Excel file should only be saved on the Local Drive.
You can also import an Excel workbook from OneDrive or even from SharePoint.
Once the dataset is imported, you are ready to create the reports in Power BI. Imported
dataset is available under “DATASETS” option in Power BI menu.
Double-click Datasets. Then, navigate to the Explore tab. This will open a new Report
Canvas. All the fields from your table and corresponding columns are available under
the Fields option on the right side of the screen.

To create a report, select any visualization and add the fields from the table to
visualization.

Sharing Power BI Dashboards

In this chapter, you will learn how to share Power BI dashboard for report sharing,
printing, publishing, etc.
Using Power BI Desktop for Report Sharing
Once BI reports are created in Power BI desktop, you can also share the reports with
other business users. All BI reports, dashboards, and data can be shared with other
colleagues and business users in the organization.
You can share reports using the following methods −
• Publish reports using Power BI Service
• Content Packs combine dashboard, report, and datasets obtained in BI desktop
tool
• Create Groups and assign specific rights to different users for report sharing
 • Use Power BI mobile apps to access share dashboards and reports
Let us see how to publish a BI report using Power BI desktop tool.
Once the report is created, navigate to the Publish button on the Home tab in Power BI
desktop.

Once you select the Publish service, your visuals, custom measures and reports are all
packaged and published to Power BI service. Power BI files have an
extension .pbix files. When the upload is in process, you get a dialog box that Publishing
is in process.

Once the upload is complete, you will get a confirmation message announcing the
“Success”. You can also view Quick Insights and open the shared report from the dialog
box.
Printing Power BI Dashboards
It is also required sometimes to take printouts of your reports and dashboards. With
Power BI, you can take prints of your BI reports and dashboards. To take a Printout of
the report, navigate to Power BI service and click the “…” option.

It will open a Print dialog box. You can select the Printer on which you want to take the
printout of the report. You can also select different Print options such as
Portrait/Landscape, Margins, Header or Scale.
Export Options
In Power BI, you can also use different Export options to export data from BI report. To
use the export option, navigate to Power BI service and select the BI report you want to
export.
When you click the Export to option, it generates a CSV file. In Power BI, you can also
export/view a report directly by navigating to File → Print option.

Publishing Report to Web

In Power BI, it is also possible to publish a BI report to web or share it via email. To
publish a report to the web, you have to navigate to Power BI service → My Workspace.
Once you open the report that you want to publish, navigate to the File tab → Publish to
Web. Once you select this option, it opens a new dialog that creates an embed code for
this report to include in the website or email.
Option says: Get a link or embed code that you can include on a public website. You
may use publish to web functionality to share content on a publicly available website.
You may not use this functionality to share content internally, which includes through
your email, your internal network, or intranet site. Publish a live version that will remain
synchronized with the source report in Power BI. Any changes you make to the report
will immediately be reflected in the published public version.

When you select - Create Embed code, Power BI prompts that you want to share your
data with everyone on the internet.
The following message is displayed: You are about to create an embed code for this
report. Once published, anyone on the Internet will be able to access the report and the
data it contains, and Microsoft may display the report on a public website or a public
gallery.
Before publishing this report, ensure you have the right to share the data and
visualizations publicly. Do not publish confidential or proprietary information, or an
individual's personal data. If in doubt, check your organization's policies before
publishing.
Note − You can publish the report as a web page and any user with the link can view it.
The link can be sent via email or it can be used as an iframe in a web page.
Deleting an Embed Code
Let us say, you want to delete an embed code. Navigate to the Gear icon at the top of
the screen as shown in the following screenshot. Then go to Manage Embed codes.

To remove an embed code click the ellipsis mark (…) in front of the report name and
select the Delete option.
When you click the Delete option, it will ask you if you want to delete publish to web
code. Once you are sure, click Delete.

Using Content Pack

In Power BI, you can also share dashboard, report, and dataset as a package with your
colleagues. To create a content pack, click the Gear box icon in Power BI workspace as
shown in the following screenshot.
Once you select Create content pack, you will be prompted with a new dialog box. You
can choose if you want to distribute this content pack with Specific Groups or My Entire
Organization.
If you want to share this with specific people, you have to enter email addresses. You
can also add a Title and description of the content pack as shown in the following
screenshot.

At the bottom of the page, you have an option to select the components you want to
publish. You can select from the following −

• Dashboards
• Reports
• Datasets
Editing Content Pack
When a content pack is created, you can also go back and edit the shared objects of the
content pack. Whenever you update any dashboard, BI report, you are prompted if you
want to update the shared content.
Click the Gear box icon under My Workspace → View Content Pack.

If you see a small icon in front of the name of the content pack, it shows that the content
pack is updated. When you select the edit button, you will reach the home screen, where
you can create a new content pack.
Power BI accepts all the changes you make to the content pack and publishes the
updated content pack to the content pack gallery.

DAX Basics in Power BI

In this chapter, you will learn how to use various DAX functions in Power BI.
DAX Introduction
DAX (Data Analysis Expressions) is a formula expression language and can be used in
different BI and visualization tools. DAX is also known as function language, where the
full code is kept inside a function. DAX programming formula contains two data types:
Numeric and Other. Numeric includes - integers, currency and decimals, while Other
includes: string and binary object.
Following is an example of DAX formula, which uses a function to calculate a column in
a table.
DAX function can also include other functions, conditional statements, and value
references.
DAX Functions
In Power BI, you can use different function types to analyze data, and create new
columns and measures. It includes functions from different categories such as −

• Aggregate
• Text
• Date
• Logical
• Counting
• Information
Power BI provides an easy way to see the list of all functions. When you start typing your
function in the formula bar, you can see the list of all functions starting with that alphabet.

Aggregate Functions
DAX has a number of aggregate functions.

• MIN
 • MAX
• Average
• SUM
• SUMX
Counting Functions
Other counting functions in DAX include −

• DISTINCTCOUNT
• COUNT
• COUNTA
• COUNTROWS
• COUNTBLANK
Logical Functions
Following are the collection of Logical functions −

• AND
• OR
• NOT
• IF
• IFERROR
TEXT Functions

• REPLACE
• SEARCH
• UPPER
• FIXED
• CONCATENATE
DATE Functions

• DATE
• HOUR
• WEEKDAY
• NOW
• EOMONTH
INFORMATION Functions

• ISBLANK
• ISNUMBER
 • ISTEXT
• ISNONTEXT
• ISERROR
DAX Calculation Types
In Power BI, you can create two primary calculations using DAX −

• Calculated columns
• Calculated measures
When you navigate to the Modeling tab, you can see a New Column option at the top of
the screen. This also opens the formula bar where you can enter DAX formula to perform
the calculation. DAX - Data Analysis Expression is a powerful language used in Excel to
perform calculations. You can also rename the column by changing the Column text in
the formula bar.

In the following example, we have created a new column: Product Code (Product_C),
which is derived from the last 3 characters of Prod_Id column. Following is the formula
−
Product_C = RIGHT( Sheet1[Prod_Id],3)
To create a calculated measure, navigate to New Measure tab under Modeling. This will
add a new object under the Fields tab with the name Measure.
You can write DAX formula to calculate the value of the new measure, as we did for the
new calculated column.

Power BI - Administration Role

Power BI administration role is assigned to those who require admin privilege on BI
Admin portal, without granting Office 365 access.
To provide admin access, navigate to Office 365 Admin Center, select Users and then
Active Users.
Navigate to the Roles tab and click the Edit option.

Navigate to the Customized Administrator tab and select Power BI Service Administrator.
Purchasing
Power BI is a newly designed tool from Microsoft, which consists of the following
components −

• Power BI Desktop
• Power BI Service
• Connector Gateway
Power BI desktop is a free tool that can be installed from the Microsoft site without any
additional cost.
https://powerbi.microsoft.com/en-us/pricing/

This is the link to directly download Power BI files −

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=45331
Power BI Pro has 60-days free trial and then it can be purchased for 9.99$/user/month.
Power BI Premium is as per the capacity pricing per node/month.
Power BI also provides on-premise report server, which can be used for publishing a
report with the flexibility to move to the cloud environment later.
https://powerbi.microsoft.com/en-us/report-server/

A trial version is also available for Power BI Pro Report Server and as per the company
website - Power BI Report Server provides access to data and insights, and the
enterprise reporting capabilities of SQL Server Reporting Services in a modern, on-
premises solution.
It assists in visually exploring data and quickly discovering patterns to make better, faster
decisions. At the same time, it generates precisely formatted reports based on the
business needs. You’ll also be able to confidently scale to thousands of users as Power
BI Report Server is based on a proven, enterprise-grade platform.
REST API
In Power BI, it is also possible to push data in real time using REST APIs. With Power
BI REST API, you can create data sets, dashboards, add and delete rows and get
groups.
A Power BI REST API can be created using any of the following technologies −

• .NET
• JQuery
• Ruby
To authenticate Power BI, you need to get an Azure Active Directory token and this can
allow your app to access Power BI dashboards.
Following is the C# code to get an authorization code from Azure AD in Power BI service.
Security
Azure Active Directory (AAD) authentication is used in Power BI when a user
authenticates using Power BI service. Power BI login credentials can be an email
account used by users to set up their BI account and is an effective username.
Power BI provides security level used by Azure cloud that includes the following level of
security −

• Multitenant Environment Security

• Networking Security
• AAD based Security
For data storage, there are two different repositories used in Power BI −

• Azure BLOB
• Azure SQL Database
Azure BLOB storage is used for data uploaded by users and Azure SQL database is
used to store system data. Power BI security is mostly based on data and network
security features available in Azure cloud and authentication is also based on Azure AD.