Status:
New
Support advanced ODBC/IAM authentication parameters for Amazon Redshift and similar connectors
Power BI currently does not support passing advanced ODBC driver parameters in native connectors such as Amazon Redshift.
Unlike other BI tools (e.g., Tableau), Power BI abstracts the connection layer and restricts authentication to predefined methods, which prevents usage of enterprise-standard authentication mechanisms.
Specifically, Power BI does NOT allow configuring:
- IAM-based authentication (IAM=1)
- Custom authentication plugins (AuthType=Plugin)
- External Identity Provider (IdP) integration (e.g., Ping SSO)
- Role assumption using IAM roles (preferred_role)
- Advanced connection string parameters at driver level
- Custom proxy and federation parameters
Working Scenario in Other Tools (Tableau Example)
In Tableau Desktop, we are able to use advanced ODBC parameters such as:
AuthType=Plugin; IAM=1; plugin_name=Ping; preferred_role=arn:aws:iam::<account-id>:role/<role-name>; idp_host=<idp_host>; idp_port=443; http.proxyHost=localhost; http.proxyPort=9000; ...
This allows:
- AWS IAM role-based authentication
- Federated SSO using enterprise identity providers (Ping SAML)
- Dynamic role-based access control across environments (DEV/PPR/PRD)
- Standardized enterprise security model
Business Requirement
Our organization uses AWS-based data platforms (Redshift / Databricks) with:
- IAM role-based access control
- Federated authentication via Ping SSO
- Service accounts (SRV accounts) for BI tools
We require Power BI to support:
- Secure IAM-based authentication
- Role assumption similar to Tableau
- Consistent enterprise authentication patterns across BI tools
Microsoft Support has confirmed that:
Current connectors are standard and do not allow adding custom parameters, and feature requests should be submitted via the Fabric Ideas portal.
We request the product team to evaluate and prioritize support for advanced authentication and ODBC parameter configuration, as this is a critical requirement for enterprise adoption.
No CommentsBe the first to comment
