Forum Discussion
OneDrive Refresh
you're nearly there.
Storing the .pbix on the OneDrive is good practice, but has nothing to do with your issue. .pbix files only live on the Desktop. Once the .pbix is "published" it will live on the Power BI service inside a workspace, split up into a dataset and a report (the latter is optional). The dataset is what gets refreshed, and it gets refreshed form your Excel file on the OneDrive (NOT from the .pbix unless you re-publish. But that's a whole 'nother story).
Now, Microsoft claim that OneDrive changes are automatically propagated within the hour. However we have seen no solid evidence of that in our environment. So what we advise our developers is to add scheduling to the dataset "just in case". Since it is a cloud data source no gateway is required.
Final note: There are subtle differences between these connectors: Excel, File, Web, Sharepoint Folder - they all can access your Excel file, but with varying efficiency. Note that Sharepoint Folder is basically the same thing as native OneDrive. That's why I prefer it even though it is a tad slower than the other connectors.
Hi Anonymous ,
Check this document.
https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/power-bi/connect-data/refresh-data#onedrive-refresh
Best Regards,
Jay
Community Support Team _ Jay Wang
If this post helps, then please consider Accept it as the solution to help the other members find it more quickly.
Microsoft EmployeeHi, I experienced similar confusion around the OneDrive sync and the different ways to import Excel files. When I first imported the Excel file using the "Excel" import, the Service told me this was an on prem data source and that I needed to install a Gateway to have a scheduled refresh, even though the file is stored in One Drive for Business (aka a SharePoint folder - I believe the two terms are analogous, or at least share the same backend).
After reading the OneDrive refresh article I realized I needed to switch the import to be from OneDrive, however I don't see that as an option in the desktop app, only "SharePoint folder". This at least solved the issue of requiring the Gateway but I am still not seeing the automatic sync described in the article happening. When I click on the Refresh history in the Service, it does show the OneDrive tab and the history of refreshes, but they are all On demand from me manually refreshing. But I do not have the additional sections for "OneDrive credentials" and "OneDrive refresh".
Could someone clarify which Import method I need to use in order to get these OneDrive refresh settings? (e.g. Web, SharePoint folder, Excel, something else??)
Thanks