Top 50 Power BI Interview Questions

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Top 50 Power BI Interview Questions By
Analytics Training Hub
Data visualization Data visualization has come a
long way from creating pie or graph charts in MS
Excel. Since the launch of Power BI by Microsoft
a few years back looking into data had never
been this interactive and fun. The demand for
Power BI as a business intelligence/data
visualization tool has only risen in the past few
years and a lot of companies hire individuals to
post a thorough knowledge search of this tool
via interviews.

• So, here are some Power BI Interview Questions
  that the user might find helpful in the users
  quest to face the interview.
• Q1. What is a Power BI?
• Power BI is a cloud-based data-sharing
  environment. Once the user has developed reports
  using Power Query, Power Pivot, and Power View.
  The user can share his/her insights with
  colleagues. This is where Power BI enters the
  equation. Power BI allows the operator to upload
  Excel workbooks into the Power BI cloud and
  share them with a chosen group of co-workers. Not
  only that, the colleagues can interact with the
  users reports to apply filters and slicers to
  highlight data. It is a simple way of sharing the
  users analysis and insights from the Microsoft
  cloud with the rest of the department.
• Power BI features allow the user to
• Share presentations and queries with peers.

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• Update the Excel file from data sources that can
  be on-site or in the cloud.
• Display the infographic on multiple devices like
  desktops, tablets, and tfTML 5-enabled
  smartphones that can use the Power BI app.
• Query the user data using natural language
  processing (or QA, as it is known)
• Q2. What is self-service business intelligence?
• Self-Service Business Intelligence (SSBI)
• SSBI is a tactic for data analytics that allows
  trade users to filter, segment, and analyze
  their data, without in-depth technical
  knowledge in statistical analysis, and business
  intelligence (BI).
• SSBI has made it stress-free for end-users to
  access their data and craft various visuals to
  get healthier business insights.
• Anybody who has a rudimentary grasp of data can
  generate reports to build instinctive and
  shareable dashboards.
• Q3. What is the Power BI Desktop?
• Power BI Desktop is a free desktop application
  that can be installed right on the users
  laptop/desktop. Power BI Desktop works together
  with Power BI services by offering data
  exploration, shaping modeling and also, aiding
  the user in creating a report with highly
  interactive visualizations. The user can save
  the work to a file or publish the data and
  reports right to the Power BI site to share with
  his/her colleagues.
• Q4. Describe the data sources, that Power BI can
  connect to?
• The list of data sources for Power BI is massive,
  but it can be clustered into the following
• Files Data can be pulled in from Excel, Power
  BI Desktop files, and Comma Separated Values.

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• Content Packs It is a compendium of related
  documents or files that are stored as a group.
  In Power BI there are two categories of content
  packs, primarily one is from service providers
  like Google Analytics, Marketo, or Salesforce
  and secondly, one is created and shared by other
  colleagues in the company.
• Connections to databases and other datasets such
  as Azure SQL, Database and SQL, Server Analysis
  Services tabular data, etc.
• Describe the diverse filters in Power BI Reports.
• Power BI provides a variety of options to filter,
  report, data, and visualize. The following is
  the list of Filter types.
• Visual Filters These work on individual
  visualizations, decreasing the amount of data
  that the visualization can show. Also, visual
  filters can compartmentalize both calculus and
  data.
• Page Filters These filters work at the
  report-page level. Distinct pages in the same
  report can have unique page-level filters.
• Report Filters These work on the complete
  report, sorting all the pages and visualizations
  incorporated in the report.
• Power BI visuals have an interactive feature,
  which makes filtering a report easy. Visual
  interactions are insightful but come with some
  restrictions
• The filter used is not saved as part of the
  report Whenever the user launches a report,
  the user can use visual filters but would not be
  able to store the filter in the original report.
• The filter is always visible Sometimes the user
  intends to use a filter
• for the entire report, but the user does not wish
  any visual indication of the filter being
  applied.
• Q5. What is the format available in Power BI?
• Power BI Desktop for desktop/laptop
• Power BI service Online SaaS
• Power BI mobile app for Android and iOS devices

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• All of these may be used in conjunction. For
  example, the user might create a report on the
  desktop and then publish and share it online so
  that colleagues could view it on their mobile
  devices.
• Q6. What are content packs in Power BI?
• Content packs are prefabricated solutions for
  popular features as part of the Power BI
  experience. User with access can link to their
  profile from Power BI to see their data through
  live dashboards and interactive reports that have
  been fabricated for them. Microsoft has
  published content packs for services like
  Salesforce.com, Marketo, Adobe Analytics, Azure
  Mobile Engagement, CircuitID, etc.
• The corporate content pack gives the employees,
  BI professionals, and system integrators the
  means to construct their content packs and to
  share purpose-built dashboards, reports, and
  datasets within their company.
• Q7. Describe the building blocks of Power BI?
• Visualizations Visualization refers to a chart,
  graph, or similar graphic depiction of data.
• Datasets A dataset is a group of data used to
  generate a visualization such as a column of
  sales figures. Datasets can be merged and
  cleaned from distinct sources using built-in
  connectors.
• Reports A report is a collection of
  visualizations of one or more
• pages for example, charts, graphs, and maps can
  be fused to create a report.
• Dashboards A dashboard lets the user share a
  one-page visualization with others, who can then
  interact with the users dashboard.
• Tiles A tile is a visualization on the users
  dashboard or in the report.
• As the creator, the user has complete access to
  move the tiles around.
• Q8. Describe DAX?
• Data Analysis Expressions (DAX) is a compilation
  of functions, operators, and constants used in
  formulas to calculate and return values. In other
  words, it helps the user create new information
  from the data obtained.

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• To do the basic calculation and data analysis on
  data in power pivot, we use Data Analysis
  Expression (DAX). It is a formula language used
  to compute the calculated column and field.
• DAX works on column values.
• DAX cannot modify or insert data.
• We can create computed columns and measures with
  DAX but we cannot evaluate rows using DAX.
• Q9. What are the most shared DAX Functions used?
• Below mentioned are some of the most widely used
  DAX functions
• SUM, MIN, MAX, AVG, CONTROLS, DISTINCT COUNT
• IF, AND, OR, SWITCtf
• ISBLANK, IS FILTERED, ISCROSSFILTERED
• VALUES, ALL, FILTER, CALCULATE,
• UNION, INTERSECT, EXCEPT, NATURALINNERJOIN,
• NATURALLEFTEROUTERJOIN,
• SUMMARIZECOLUMNS, IS EMPTY,
• VAR (Variables)
• GEOMEAN, MEDIAN, DATEDIFF
• Q10. How is the FILTER function used?

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• Q11. What is the common table function for
  grouping data?
• SUMMARIZE()
• Main group by function in SSAS.
• The recommended routine is to specify the table
  and group by columns but not by metrics. The
  user can use ADD COLUMNS function.
• SUMMARIZECOLUMNS
• Create a New Group by function for SSAS and Power
  BI Desktop more efficient
• Specify the group by columns, table, and
  expressions.

Q12. What are Variables in DAX? Below are some
of the benefits
some benefits of using

• By announcing and calculating a variable, the
  variable may be reprocessed multiple times in a
  DAX expression, thus avoiding additional
  queries of the source database.
• Variables can make DAX expressions more
  intuitive/logical to predict.
• Variables are only measured to their query, they
  cannot be shared among measures, queries, or be
  defined at the model level.
• Q13. How would the user create trailing X- month
  metrics via DAX against a non- standard
  calendar?
• The solution will involve
• CALCULATE function to control (take over) filter
  context of measures.
• ALL to remove existing filters on the date
  dimension.
• FILTER to identify which rows of the date
  dimension to use.

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Alternatively, CONTAINS may be used CALCULATE(FI
LTER(ALL(DATE),.)) Q14. What are the
concepts of DAX?
three
fundamental

• Syntax Syntax includes functions such as SUM
  (used when the user wants to add figures). If
  the syntax isnt correct, the user will get an
  error message.
• Functions These formulas are used as arguments
  in a particular order to perform a calculation,
  akin to the functions in Excel. The different
  types of functions are time intelligence,
  logical, parent/child, mathematical, date/time,
  statistical, etc.
• Context There are basically 2 categories
• .
• row context and
• filter context
• Every Time a formula has a function that applies
  filters to identify a single row in a table, row
  context comes into play. When multiple filters
  are employed in a calculation that determines a
  result or value, the filter context comes into
  play.
• Q15. What are some of the most common sources
  for data in the Get Data menu?
• Power BI datasets, MS Excel, SQL server, and
  analysis services.
• Q16. What is grouping, and how would the user
  use it?

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• Power BI Desktop groups the data in the users
  visuals into pieces. The user can however define
  the users groups and bins. For this use Ctrl and
  click to select multiple elements in the visual.
  Right-click on one of those elements and from
  the menu that appears, opt the Group. In the
  Groups window, the user can create new groups or
  modify existing ones.
• Q17. Describe responsive slicers.
• On a report page, the user can resize a
  responsive slicer to different sizes and shapes,
  and the data contained in it will be rearranged
  to match. If a graphic becomes small to be
  useful, an icon representing the visual takes its
  place-making judicious use of space on the
  report page.
• Q18. What are the main components of the Power
  BI toolkit, and what do they do?
• Power Query lets the user discover, access, and
  consolidate info from different sources
• Power Pivot a modeling tool
• Power View a performance tool for creating
  charts, tables, etc
• Power Map lets the user create geospatial
  representations of the users data
• Power QA Allows the operator to use natural
  language to raise queries, i.e. What were the
  total sales last week?
• Q19. What is Power Pivot Data Model?
• It is a specifically designed model that is made
  up of data types, tables, columns, and table
  relations. These data models are normally
  assembled for keeping data for a private
  business entity.

Q20. What is the velocity in-memory analytics
engine used in Power Pivot?
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• The programming behind the power pivot is the
  xVelocity in-memory analytics engine. It is
  capable of handling a significant volume of data
  with ease as it stores the data in the columnar
  database and in-memory analytics which results
  in faster processing of data as it loads the
  entire data to the RAM.
• Q21. What are some of the differences in data
  modeling between Power BI Desktop and Power
  Pivot for Excel?
• Here are some of the differences
• Power BI Desktop supports two-way dual
  relationships, security, calculated tables, and
  Direct Query options.
• Power Pivot for Excel has one direction
  relationship, calculated columns only, and
  supports import mode only.
• Q22. Can we have more than one active
  relationship between two tables in the data
  model of a power pivot?
• More than one active relationship between two
  tables is NOT possible. tfowever, the user can
  instill more than one relationship between two
  tables but there will be only one active
  relationship and many inactive relationships.
• Q23. What is Power Query?
• Power Query is an extract, transform load tool
  used to shape data using intuitive interfaces
  without the need of using coding. It helps the
  user to
• Import Data from multiple sources i.e. files,
  databases, big data, social media data, etc.
• Join and attach data from multiple data sources.
• Model data as per the requirement by deleting and
  adding data.

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• Q24. What are the data destinations for Power
  Queries?
• There are majorly two destinations for output we
  can derive from power query
• Load to a table in a worksheet.
• Load to the Excel Data Model.
• Q25. What is query folding in Power Query?
• Query folding is the procedure where the steps
  defined in the Power Query/Query Editor are
  translated into SQL and executed by the source
  database rather than the operators device. It is
  imperative for administering performance and
  scalability making the best use of the limited
  resources on the clients machine.
• Q26. What is some common Power Query/Editor
  Transforms?
• Changing Data Types
• Filtering Rows
• Choosing/Removing Columns
• Grouping
• Splitting a column into multiple columns
• Adding new Columns etc.

Q27. Is the combined use of Power Query/Query
Editor and SQL possible?
Certainly, an SQL announcement can be defined as
the source of a Power Query/M function for
additional processing/logic. This is a good
practice to ensure that an efficient database
query is passed to the source and that any
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• unnecessary processing and complexity are avoided
  by the client machine and M function.
• Q28. What are query parameters and Power BI
  templates?
• Query parameters may be used to offer the
  operators of a regional Power BI Desktop report
  a notification, to specify the values that they
  might be interested in.
• The parameter selection may then be used by
  the query and calculations.
• PBIX files can be transferred as Templates (PBIT
  files).
• Templates encompass everything in the PBIX except
  the data itself.
• Parameters and templates can make it possible to
  share/email tinier template files and restrict
  the amount of data that is loaded onto the local
  PBIX files, maximizing processing time, and
  experience.
• Q29. Which language is used in Power Query?
• An innovative programming language is used to
  power a query called M- Code. It is simple to
  use and related to other languages. M-code is a
  case- sensitive language.
• Q30. What is the need for a Power Query when
  Power Pivot can be used to import data from the
  most frequently used sources?
• Power Query is an ETL (Extract, Transform, Load)
  tool that operates as an Excel add-in. It
  permits operators to extract data from numerous
  sources, manipulate the said data into a form
  that suits their needs, and load it onto Excel.
  It is the most recommended routine to use Power
  Query over Power Pivot as it not only allows the
  user to load the data but also influences it as
  per the users needs while uploading.

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• Q31. Explain the term M language.
• It is the programming language used in Power BI.
  Its a functional, case- sensitive language that
  is a lot similar to other programming languages
  which are easy to implicate.
• Q32. Describe the difference between visual-
  level filters, page-level filters, and report-
  level filters?
• Visual filters filter data within a single
  visualization.
• Page filters work on the complete page in a
  report, and different pages may have separate
  filters.
• Report filters, and categorize all the
  visualizations and pages in the
• report.
• Q33. How does the Schedule Refresh feature work?
• The user can configure an automatic refresh of
  data daily or weekly and at different times. The
  user can schedule only one refresh maximum daily
  unless the user has Power BI Pro. In the
  Schedule Refresh section, use the pulldown menu
  selections to choose the frequency, time zone,
  and time of day.
• Q34. What data is required to generate a map in
  Power Map?
• Power Map can display only geographical
  visualizations. Thus, data about the location is
  required e.g. city, state, country or latitude,
  longitude, etc.
• Q35. What is the Power Map?

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• Power Map is an Excel add-in that provides the
  user with a powerful set of tools to help the
  user visualize and gain insight into large sets
  of data that have a geo-coded component. It can
  help the operator generate 3D visualizations by
  scheming up to a million data points in the form
  of column, heat, and bubble maps on top of a
  BING map. In certain scenarios, if the data is
  time-stamped, it can also produce interactive
  views that display how the data changes over
  time.
• Q36. What is the principal requirement for a
  table to be used in Power Map?
• For data to be consumed in the power map there
  should be location data like
• Latitude Longitude
• Street, City, Country/Region, zip code, etc which
  can be geolocated by BING
• The initial requirement for the table is that it
  should consist of distinctive rows. It must also
  include location data, which can be in the form
  of a Latitude Longitude, although this is not
  a requirement. The operator can use Street,
  City, Country/Region, Zip Code/Postal Code, and
  State/Province which can be geolocated by Bing.
• Q37. What are the data sources for Power Map?
• Data sources may differ from being present in
  Excel format to multiple external sources. To
  prepare the user data, make sure all of the data
  is in an Excel table format, where each row
  represents a unique record. Using expressive
  labels also makes the value and category fields
  available to the user when the user designs the
  user tour in the Power Map Tour Editor pane.
• To be able to use a table structure that
  precisely symbolizes time and geography inside
  Power Map, include all of the data in the table
  rows and use descriptive text labels in the
  column headings, like this

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• In case the user wishes to load the user data
  from an external source
• In Excel, click Data gt the connection the user
  wants in the Get External Data group.
• Adhere to the steps in the wizard that pops up.
• In the last step of the popup box make sure to
  add this data to the Data Model to have it
  checked.
• Q38. What is Power View?
• Power View is a data visualization technology
  that allows the operator to create cooperative
  charts, graphs, maps, and other infographics that
  bring the users data to life. Power View is
  widely accessible in Excel, SharePoint, SQL
  Server, and Power BI.
• The following provides comprehensive detail about
  the different visualizations available in Power
  View
• Charts
• Line charts
• Pie charts
• Maps
• Tiles
• Cards
• Images
• Tables
• Power View
• Multiples Visualizations

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Q40. How can we refresh our Power BI reports
once uploaded to the cloud (Share point or
Powebi.com)? Yes, the user can refresh his/her
reports through Data Management gateway(for
SharePoint) and Power BI Personal gateway(for
Powerbi.com) Q41. What are the different types of
refreshing data for our published reports? There
are four main types of options for a refresh in
Power BI. Package Refresh This feature
harmonizes the users Power BI Desktop or Excel
file between the Power BI service and OneDrive or
SharePoint Online. tfowever, this does not
extract data from the original data source. The
dataset in Power BI will only be revised with the
data in OneDrive or SharePoint
Online. Model/data Refresh It refers to
refreshing the dataset in the Power BI service
with data from the original data source. This is
done by either using scheduled refresh/refresh
now. It requires access to on-premises data
sources. Tile Refresh Tile refresh updates the
cache for tile visuals on the dashboard once
data alters. This happens every fifteen minutes.
The user may also instigate a tile refresh by
selecting the 3 dots in the upper right-hand
corner of a dashboard and selecting Refresh
dashboard tiles. Visual Container Refresh
Refreshing the visual container revises the
cached report graphics within a report once the
data is modified. Q42. Is Power BI available
on-premises? Power BI is NOT accessible as a
confidential core cloud service. tfowever, with
Power BI and Power BI Desktop, the user can
securely connect to the users on-premises data
sources. With the On-premises Data Gateway, the
user can
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• connect live to the other users on-premises SQL
  Server Analysis Services and other data sources.
  The user can also schedule refresh with a
  centralized gateway. If a gateway is not
  available, the user can refresh data from on-
  premises data sources using the Power BI Gateway
  Personal.
• Q43. What are data management gateway and Power
  BI personal gateway?
• The gateway acts as a bridge between on-premises
  data sources and Azure cloud services.
• Personal Gateway
• Import Only, Power BI Service Only, No central
  monitoring/managing.
• Can only be used by one person (personal) cant
  allow others to use this gateway.
• On-Premises Gateway
• Import and Direct Query supported.
• Multiple users of gateway for fabricating
  content.
• Central monitoring and control.
• Q44. What is Power BI QA?
• Power BI QA is a natural language tool that
  helps in querying the user data and getting the
  results the user needs from it. The user attains
  this by typing into a dialog box on the
  Dashboard, in which the engine instantaneously
  generates an answer similar to in Power View. QA
  interprets the user questions and shows the user
  a restated query of what it is looking for from
  the user data. QA was developed by Server and
  Tools, Microsoft Research, and the Bing teams to
  give the user a complete feeling of truly
  exploring the user data.
• Q45. What is how Excel can be experienced with
  Power BI?

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• Below are some of the ways through which we can
  influence Power BI
• The Power BI Publisher for Excel
• May be used to attach Excel items (charts,
  ranges, pivot tables) to Power BI Service.
• May be used to link to datasets and reports
  stored in Power BI Service.
• Excel workbooks can be uploaded to Power BI and
  viewed in a browser like Excel Services.
• Q46. What is a calculated column in Power BI and
  why would the user use them?
• Calculated Columns are DAX expressions that are
  calculated during the models processing/refresh
  process for each row of the given column and can
  be used like any other column in the model.
• Calculated columns are not compressed and thus
  require additional memory
• and result in decreased query performance. They
  can also decrease processing/refresh performance
  if applied to large amounts of data and can make
  a model more difficult to maintain/support given
  that the computed column is not present at the
  source.
• Q47. How is data security implemented in Power
  BI?
• Power BI can employ Row Level Security roles to
  models.
• A DAX expression is applied on a table to filter
  its rows at query time.
• Dynamic security entails the use of USERNAME
  functions in security role definitions.
• A table is created in the model that connects
  users to specific features
• and roles.
• Q48. What are many-to-many relationships and how
  can they be addressed in Power BI?

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• Many to Many relationships involves building a
  link between tables reflecting the combinations
  of two dimensions (e.g., doctors and patients).
• Two-way dual relationships can be used in PBIX.
• CROSS FILTER function can be used in Power Pivot
  like Excel.
• DAX can be used per metric to check and
  optionally revise the filter framework.
• Q49. Describe Power BI Publisher for Excel?
• The user can use the Power BI publisher for Excel
  to attach ranges, pivot tables, and charts to
  Power BI.
• The user can manage the tiles by refreshing them
  or removing them in Excel.
• The Power BI Publisher for Excel can also be used
  to create a link from Excel to datasets that are
  hosted in the Power BI Service.
• An Excel pivot table is generated with a link to
  the data in Azure.
• The Publisher installs all the essential drivers
  on the local device to verify connectivity.
• Q50. What are the differences between a Power BI
  Dataset, a Report, and a Dashboard?
• Dataset
• The source is used to create reports and
  visuals/tiles.
• A data model is an Analysis Services Server
• Data could be inside of the model (imported) or a
  Direct Query connection to a source.
• Report
• An individual Power BI Desktop file comprising of
  one or more report pages.

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• Dashboard
• a compilation of visuals from different reports.
• Built to average primary visuals and metrics from
  multiple datasets.
• Q51. What are the three Edit Interactions
  options of a visual tile in Power BI Desktop?
• The 3 edit communication choices are Filter,
  tfighlight, and None.
• Filter It completely penetrates a visual based
  on the filter selection of another visual.
• tfighlight It emphasizes only the related
  elements on the visual and shades out the
  non-related items.
• None
• Some useful Links Are Below
• To Know more about Power BI Certification visit
  The power BI Certification Course
• Must visit our official youtube channel -
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