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Frequently asked questions about the Power BI apps in Business Central

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APPLIES TO: Generally available in Business Central 2024 release wave 2 (version 25.1).

This article provides answers to frequently asked questions (FAQs) about the Power BI apps for Business Central.

What Power BI licenses do I need?

To use the Power BI apps, you need Power BI PRO licenses for the following users:

  • Users who install the Power BI template apps.
  • Users who refresh the report data.
  • Users who access the reports.

Alternatively, you can use Power BI Premium Capacity.

To learn more, go to Installing Power BI apps for Business Central (prerequisites).

Why do I need Power BI licenses?

You must have Power BI licenses for the following reasons:

  1. You must install Power BI template apps from Microsoft AppSource.
  2. You must share a Power BI workspace.

The use of free license alternative for Power BI allows you to embed your own reports. Anything in the free Power BI license must be present in your personal Power BI workspace. So, the free license alternative does not work with the Power BI apps.

Can I install the same app multiple times for different companies or environments?

Yes. Just rename the Power BI workspace after installing the app.

To learn more, see Rename a Power BI workspace.

Can I use the same app to do reporting across multiple companies or environments?

No. The Power BI apps currently work per company in Business Central. If you have multiple companies in your Business Central environment, you must install and set up a Power BI template app for each company. Each app is then available in its own Power BI workspace.

How do I refresh the data in an app?

To learn more, go to Get the latest data (refresh the semantic model).

My semantic model does not refresh. How do I see what is wrong?

If a semantic model cannot refresh, you can see why in its workspace, where semantic models with errors show a small warning icon.

Learn more in the Power BI article Data refresh in Power BI.

I can't see any dimension data in my reports

Check whether the job queue entry for updating dimension set data is stopped.

To learn more, go to Job queue entry for updating dimension set entries.

How do I change the connection parameters for an app?

To learn more, go to Connect the Power BI semantic models to Business Central.

How do I update an app?

To learn more, go to Updating a Power BI app.

Can I get a copy of the source code (.pbix files) for the apps?

No. At the moment, the source code (.pbix files) for the apps isn't available. However, its availability might change in a later release.

Are the apps available for on-premises installations?

No. At the moment, the Power BI apps are only available for online environments.

Installing Power BI apps for Business Central
Power BI apps by functional area
Introduction to Business Central and Power BI
Work with Power BI reports