Cannot open pbix (decoding error)

[LeoBar]

Hello everyone! 

I have been working with a few days with a simple .pbix file connected to an excel source.
Nothing strange I have done whatsoever, and today I wake up to this error... Can anyone help me debug it?

[freginier · Accepted solution]

Hey there!

You are facing a "Found invalid data while decoding" error when trying to open your Power BI (.pbix) file. This usually happens due to file corruption, unsupported changes, or version conflicts.

Here are some possible solutions: 

File Corruption (Most Common), Why? The PBIX file may have been damaged (e.g., due to an interrupted save or transfer).
Fix:Try opening an earlier version (if you have a backup). If stored in OneDrive/SharePoint, restore a previous version from version history.

Power BI Version Mismatch, Why? If the file was created in a newer Power BI version and you’re using an older version, it might not open.Fix: Update Power BI Desktop to the latest version

Last Resort:
If none of the above solutions work, try reinstalling Power BI Desktop or uploading the PBIX to Power BI Service and see if it opens there.
If you need data recovery, you may need to extract it manually from the ZIP structure.

Hope this helps!

😁😁