Skip to main content
cancel
Showing results for 
Search instead for 
Did you mean: 

The Power BI Data Visualization World Championships is back! Get ahead of the game and start preparing now! Learn more

Reply
nlovoldegar
Frequent Visitor

Column name reverting after data refresh

I'm working on a data model (called DevcoTracker) that's sourced directly from dataverse and a small handfull of sharepoint lists. I have a table called "Master Project List" - recently when I've been refreshing the model in desktop I noticed that several column names have been reverted between power query editor and in desktop.

 

E.g. in power query editor we have a field called "Title" that is renamed to be "Project Name". In Power Query editor at the end step of the query the column is still called "Project name" but when it is closed and applied it is reverted to "Title" and I am unable to rename it in the desktop data table. 

 

When the data model is refreshed in the powerbi online service we do not have this error, but obviously would like to resolve it because there are some larger data model changes that we're not able to accomplish in the service. 

 

Below is the data tab prior to a data refresh:

nlovoldegar_0-1729001224450.png

Post-refresh, missing columns:

nlovoldegar_1-1729001264273.png

 

Things I have tried: 

Table.Buffer

Renaming columns within the data panel (I get an error that "That name already exists")

Duplicating the table

Re-creating the table from scratch

 

5 REPLIES 5
Kedar_Pande
Super User
Super User

@nlovoldegar 

Try refeshing in power query.

On refreshing, check if any error messages appear in Power Query. They may provide clues as to why the column names are reverting.

 

If this helped, a Kudos 👍 or Solution mark would be great! 🎉
Cheers,
Kedar
Connect on LinkedIn

SamWiseOwl
Super User
Super User

Ohh that is a new one!

Things to try:

  • If you right click the table and choose show Hidden in report view, do you have two Title/Project Name
  • When you hover over the field in the Data pane does it show the original name?
  • Can you take a screen shop of your queries and the M of the final step
  • If you duplicate the column in the query editor do both get brought through?

If you are happy with this answer please mark as a solution for others to find !

Kudos are always appreciated! Check out our free Power BI video courses.

Ah - forgot to add that I tried to view hidden. Unfortunately no cigar. 

 

Hovering over the data pane on "Title" (pre refresh) this is what it shows:

nlovoldegar_1-1729004225042.png

 

And then post refresh:

nlovoldegar_0-1729004072263.png

Here are the steps for the Master Project List query:

nlovoldegar_4-1729004599603.png

Worth noting, I also started rebuilding this query from scratch to see if renaming and merging etc was causing issues. When renamed columns in "Master Project list (2)" the same issue persists:

nlovoldegar_5-1729004676200.png

nlovoldegar_6-1729004784105.png

 

 

Here I've made a duplicate of Project Name -- 

nlovoldegar_2-1729004440621.png

...and it just comes through as "Title 2" 

nlovoldegar_3-1729004519312.png

 

 

HI @nlovoldegar 

Daft question but you haven't been editing the M under Advanced editor have you?

 

It is possibel to change the very last bit IN #"your last step" to be point at another step IN #"A step further up" and it wont show you this in the front end.

 

SamWiseOwl_0-1729005010674.png

 


If you are happy with this answer please mark as a solution for others to find !

Kudos are always appreciated! Check out our free Power BI video courses.

I just went in and re-wrote the query so all renaming happens at the end. Still same issue after applying the query: 

nlovoldegar_0-1729006079513.png

 

Helpful resources

Announcements
Power BI DataViz World Championships

Power BI Dataviz World Championships

The Power BI Data Visualization World Championships is back! Get ahead of the game and start preparing now!

December 2025 Power BI Update Carousel

Power BI Monthly Update - December 2025

Check out the December 2025 Power BI Holiday Recap!

FabCon Atlanta 2026 carousel

FabCon Atlanta 2026

Join us at FabCon Atlanta, March 16-20, for the ultimate Fabric, Power BI, AI and SQL community-led event. Save $200 with code FABCOMM.