Guides · 119

What are you trying to do?

Fix a problem

9The error or symptom in front of you, and the fix.

Power BI
Fabric capacity throttling: why reports suddenly crawl, and how surge protection helps
What actually happens when a Fabric capacity overloads — the three throttling stages behind slow reports and rejected refreshes — and how to set surge protection thresholds so background jobs give way before users feel it.
Power BI
Fix "the key didn't match any rows in the table" in Power BI
Power BI's key didn't match any rows in the table error decoded: the three documented causes — a renamed source table, missing privileges, or mixed credentials — and the schema-refresh fix that actually clears it.
Power BI
Build a Gantt chart in Power BI with the new native visual
Power BI's October 2026 update finally ships a Gantt chart as a core visual, in preview. How to turn it on, feed it tasks, milestones and progress, group and colour it, and where its limits are.
Power BI
Power BI write back, finally native: translytical task flows explained
Buttons in a Power BI report that update the database — translytical task flows pair Fabric user data functions with data function buttons and input slicers, so readers can write back without leaving the report.
Power BI
Incremental refresh: set it up, and prove it's working
Load only the recent part of a big Power BI table on each refresh. RangeStart and RangeEnd, the policy settings in plain words, the query-folding trap that quietly loads everything, the republishing rule, and four ways to confirm each refresh really is incremental.
Power BI
Move, upgrade or share an on-premises data gateway without breaking refresh
Move a gateway to new servers, add a second member to a cluster, update it month by month, and give people access to the gateway and its connections. Plus why someone 'can't see the gateway', and what to check when it's unreachable.
Power BI
Refresh on your terms: table-level refresh, automatic retries and refreshing from Power Automate
Refresh only the Power BI table that changed, refresh data without pulling in schema changes, retry failed refreshes automatically, and trigger refresh from Power Automate when the data is ready instead of on a fixed clock. With the limits for each.
Power BI
Build a star schema from messy exports
One wide export loaded as one Power BI table works until the report grows. Here is how to split a flat file into fact and dimension tables in Power Query, step by step, so the model stays fast and the numbers stay right.
Power BI
Why are my totals wrong? Filter context explained
Every row in the table looks right and the total doesn't add up. It isn't a bug: Power BI recalculates the total rather than adding the rows. Here is why, and four patterns that make totals behave.

Design patterns

2Structures that hold up as things grow.

Power BI
Dynamic row-level security with USERPRINCIPALNAME that actually filters
Dynamic row-level security in Power BI: one role, and every user sees only their rows. Build the user-mapping table, put the filter on the right table, avoid the bidirectional trap, assign people in the service, and test it properly, including guest users and why 'Test as role' can fool you.
Power BI
One semantic model, many reports
When every report brings its own copy of the data, every report defines revenue a little differently. One shared semantic model for multiple reports fixes that. Here is how to set one up, let people build on it, and keep it trustworthy.

Measure

1Know whether it's working.

Power BI
Designing a KPI card: target, trend and context
A big number on its own tells people nothing: they can't tell if 1.2M is good. A Power BI KPI card needs a target, a trend and enough context to read it correctly. Here is how to design one in Power BI, with the DAX behind it.

Quick reference

3Error codes, limits and cheat sheets to keep open.

Power BI
Power BI licensing: Free vs Pro vs Premium Per User vs Fabric capacity
Who needs which Power BI licence — Free, Pro or Premium Per User — when a Fabric capacity changes the answer, and the F64 threshold that lets viewers stay free.
Power BI
Power BI permissions cheat sheet: workspace roles, apps, Read and Build
Who can see, edit, share and build on what. Workspace roles side by side, the four semantic model permissions, how apps and sharing grant access, what RLS does and doesn't restrict, and answers to the questions people ask every week.
Power BI
Refresh failed: a Power BI checklist from first look to fix
Why a Power BI semantic model stops refreshing, in the order to check it: credentials, gateway, privacy levels, time-outs, size limits and paused schedules, with the fix for each and the limits that cause them.