Power BI is turning 10, and we’re marking the occasion with a special community challenge. Use your creativity to tell a story, uncover trends, or highlight something unexpected.
Get startedJoin us for an expert-led overview of the tools and concepts you'll need to become a Certified Power BI Data Analyst and pass exam PL-300. Register now.
Power BI uses the Oracle Client for Microsoft Tools, which I *think* is the unmanaged Oracle 19c driver. Unfortunatley, we're having an issue where connections are being left open and subsequent refreshes are failing. I'd like to disable connection pooling in Power BI, but I can't edit the connection string. Is there any workaround?
Solved! Go to Solution.
Hi @Henson ,
Power BI indeed utilizes the Oracle Client for Microsoft Tools (OCMT), and when connecting to Oracle databases, it uses the unmanaged Oracle Data Provider for .NET (ODP.NET). Connection pooling is a feature of ODP.NET designed to enhance performance by reusing active connections, but it can lead to the issue you're encountering if connections aren't being closed properly.
Unfortunately, Power BI does not provide a direct user interface option to edit the connection string parameters, including those related to connection pooling. However, there is a workaround that involves modifying the tnsnames.ora file used by the Oracle Client. Here's how you can attempt to disable connection pooling:
Locate the tnsnames.ora File: This file is typically found in the NETWORK\ADMIN directory within your Oracle Client installation path.
Edit the Connection Alias: Within the tnsnames.ora file, locate the alias used by Power BI to connect to your Oracle database. You'll want to add or modify the (POOLING = FALSE) parameter in the connection descriptor for your database alias.
For example:
MYDB_ALIAS =
(DESCRIPTION =
(ADDRESS = (PROTOCOL = TCP)(HOST = mydbhost.example.com)(PORT = 1521))
(CONNECT_DATA =
(SERVER = DEDICATED)
(SERVICE_NAME = mydbservice)
)
(POOLING = FALSE) # Add or ensure this parameter is set
)
Save the Changes: After adding the (POOLING = FALSE) parameter, save your changes to the tnsnames.ora file.
Restart Power BI: Close and reopen Power BI Desktop to ensure it picks up the changes made to the tnsnames.ora file.
Please note, while this approach can disable connection pooling for the specified database alias, it may have performance implications for your applications that rely on this connection.
Best regards,
Community Support Team_Binbin Yu
If this post helps, then please consider Accept it as the solution to help the other members find it more quickly.
Hi @Henson ,
Power BI indeed utilizes the Oracle Client for Microsoft Tools (OCMT), and when connecting to Oracle databases, it uses the unmanaged Oracle Data Provider for .NET (ODP.NET). Connection pooling is a feature of ODP.NET designed to enhance performance by reusing active connections, but it can lead to the issue you're encountering if connections aren't being closed properly.
Unfortunately, Power BI does not provide a direct user interface option to edit the connection string parameters, including those related to connection pooling. However, there is a workaround that involves modifying the tnsnames.ora file used by the Oracle Client. Here's how you can attempt to disable connection pooling:
Locate the tnsnames.ora File: This file is typically found in the NETWORK\ADMIN directory within your Oracle Client installation path.
Edit the Connection Alias: Within the tnsnames.ora file, locate the alias used by Power BI to connect to your Oracle database. You'll want to add or modify the (POOLING = FALSE) parameter in the connection descriptor for your database alias.
For example:
MYDB_ALIAS =
(DESCRIPTION =
(ADDRESS = (PROTOCOL = TCP)(HOST = mydbhost.example.com)(PORT = 1521))
(CONNECT_DATA =
(SERVER = DEDICATED)
(SERVICE_NAME = mydbservice)
)
(POOLING = FALSE) # Add or ensure this parameter is set
)
Save the Changes: After adding the (POOLING = FALSE) parameter, save your changes to the tnsnames.ora file.
Restart Power BI: Close and reopen Power BI Desktop to ensure it picks up the changes made to the tnsnames.ora file.
Please note, while this approach can disable connection pooling for the specified database alias, it may have performance implications for your applications that rely on this connection.
Best regards,
Community Support Team_Binbin Yu
If this post helps, then please consider Accept it as the solution to help the other members find it more quickly.
I've never heard of that parameter for TNSNAMES! I'll try it out.
This is your chance to engage directly with the engineering team behind Fabric and Power BI. Share your experiences and shape the future.
Check out the June 2025 Power BI update to learn about new features.
User | Count |
---|---|
80 | |
79 | |
59 | |
36 | |
35 |
User | Count |
---|---|
99 | |
57 | |
56 | |
46 | |
40 |