How to create an External Report from Power BI
This article details how to build an External Report in Metric Insights that is linked to a Report on your Microsoft Power BI server.
It assumes that you have already established connectivity to Power BI via the respective plugin connection profile.
[6.1.1 new feature] If your External Report Viewer is displaying duplicate Filters based on your BI Tool defaults, your Admin can reset the default behavior to remove the Metric Insights filters from Viewer display - How to omit Filters from External Reports.
1. Access New > External Report > Microsoft Power BI
If necessary, you can create a new Report Type, Category, or Report Image Trigger on the go by clicking the [+] icon next to the corresponding field.
The New External Report screen opens. Provide the following information:
- Give your new External Report a Name
- Place your Report in a relevant Category
- Define whether you want Report content to be updated manually or automatically. For Automated Collection, define the following settings:
- Choose the Report Image Trigger from the drop-down list
- Select the Plugin Connection Profile you have created for Power BI
- Report: Select the Power BI Report from which the image will be collected
- Next: define details to proceed with Report creation
2. External Report Configuration
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Show Report in: change from default "External Webpage" if you want your Report to be displayed in Viewer
- You can choose between the iframe and static image options
- If you select iframe, you can specify the Viewer Image Size
- Apply filters to your Report data by clicking [+Manage Filters]
- For details, see Pre-filtering Power BI data for External Reports
- The External Report URL will be generated automatically based on your other inputs
- You can modify the URL by appending a question mark (?) followed by any filter or parameter settings
- Test External Report: you can optionally test how your Report will be displayed on External Webpage or in Viewer, depending on the display option selected in #1
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Advanced:
- Always collect all instances of external report: Collect all images and cache them on a schedule
- On Demand: only when needed for distribution: Individual images are only collected when they need to be included in an email
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Save and Collect Image to generate a Preview Image for the Homepage
- NOTE: when opting to display your Report as a Static Image, make sure you Collect Image before going to Viewer
- Optionally, Set up image size
- If not specified, it will default to 1200 x 800
- Enable and Publish to be able to go to Viewer
3. Verify display in Viewer
To pre-filter Report Data in the Viewer:
- Select the required Filter Value
- Click [Apply Filters]
- Optionally, save your Filter selections as personalized Bookmarks
- For details, go to Setting Personal Bookmarks (External Reports)