Forum Discussion
Helper IDoes Autoscaling in Microsoft Fabric Exist or Does It Require Configuration?
Hi everyone,
I’m trying to understand how capacity management works in Microsoft Fabric. I know about bursting/smoothing, which seems to automatically give extra capacity for short periods without additional cost.
But I’m unsure about autoscaling:
Does it exist as a built-in feature in Fabric, or do we need to configure it manually?
If it exists, which SKUs support it?
How does it differ from bursting/smoothing in practice?
Any clarification or simple examples/analogies would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks in advance.
Hi ablarrosa8,
Microsoft Fabric does not offer full, built-in autoscaling across SKUs as seen in some other Azure services. Instead, it uses bursting and smoothing by default:
- Bursting allows workloads to temporarily use more compute than the purchased capacity at no extra charge.
- Smoothing averages this usage over time so brief spikes don’t immediately cause throttling.
Autoscaling options depend on the SKU and workload:
- P-SKUs (Power BI Premium): Support Power BI Autoscale, allowing you to set autoscale rules for extra capacity with BI workloads.
- F-SKUs (Fabric): Don’t have Power BI Autoscale but do support Autoscale Billing for Spark, letting Spark jobs scale out to additional compute as needed (up to a set limit), with extra billing for that usage.
- All SKUs: You can manually scale capacity in the Azure portal or use automation tools (like scripts or Logic Apps) to change SKUs.
The main difference from bursting/smoothing:
- Bursting/smoothing is free, automatic, and only handles short-term peaks.
- Autoscaling (when available) adds real capacity for ongoing workloads, which can increase costs.
Fabric will not automatically change your SKU tier. For longer or sustained heavy loads, you’ll need to either enable autoscaling features (if your SKU supports them) or manually/automatically adjust your capacity.
Thank you.
3 Replies
- suparnababu8
Super User
Hi ablarrosa8
Yes, you are correct, bursting concept will give you extra capacity for some time with out additonal cost. If I answer for your questions..
- No, Fabirc doesn;t have auto scaling of your capacties based on your demaand. Let's say if your capacity is full, the you will face some throttling issues. You need to configure autoscaling manually by using Logic apps. Pls go thorugh this document Microsoft Fabric: Automating Fabric Capacity Scaling with Azure Logic Apps - BI Insight
- No SKU supports, auto scaling, you have to do it manullay.
- Bursting is like it's a temporaray time they allow you to upgrade your SKU or reduce your load. Autoscaling is like you need to upgrae your SKU.
Please read this accepted solutin Solved: Re: Does Microsoft Fabric Automatically Autoscale ... - Microsoft Fabric Community. It might helps you
Please let me know if it helps you.
Thank you!
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v-sgandrathiCommunity Support
Hi ablarrosa8,
Microsoft Fabric does not offer full, built-in autoscaling across SKUs as seen in some other Azure services. Instead, it uses bursting and smoothing by default:
- Bursting allows workloads to temporarily use more compute than the purchased capacity at no extra charge.
- Smoothing averages this usage over time so brief spikes don’t immediately cause throttling.
Autoscaling options depend on the SKU and workload:
- P-SKUs (Power BI Premium): Support Power BI Autoscale, allowing you to set autoscale rules for extra capacity with BI workloads.
- F-SKUs (Fabric): Don’t have Power BI Autoscale but do support Autoscale Billing for Spark, letting Spark jobs scale out to additional compute as needed (up to a set limit), with extra billing for that usage.
- All SKUs: You can manually scale capacity in the Azure portal or use automation tools (like scripts or Logic Apps) to change SKUs.
The main difference from bursting/smoothing:
- Bursting/smoothing is free, automatic, and only handles short-term peaks.
- Autoscaling (when available) adds real capacity for ongoing workloads, which can increase costs.
Fabric will not automatically change your SKU tier. For longer or sustained heavy loads, you’ll need to either enable autoscaling features (if your SKU supports them) or manually/automatically adjust your capacity.
Thank you.
- tayloramy
Hi ablarrosa8,
The old Powr BI Premium (P sku) capacities supported autoscaling, but Fabric (F sku) capacities do not.
For F Sku capacities, it needs to be done manually.
Scale your Fabric capacity - Microsoft Fabric | Microsoft Learn
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