Forum Discussion
Advocate IHow to see changes made in data view - specifically column name?
I'm editing a report and having trouble tracking a column back to the source. The column must have been renamed after import in the data view. Is there a way to view all data view edits in desktop?
Usually I try to do all renaming in MQuery but since an update where some columns are overriden with the user friendly names this is no longer possible so being able to track changes in model /data view feels more necessary.
Thanks for any help finding this feature!
Hi klev28,
Thank you for reaching out to the Microsoft fabric community forum. Thank you pankajnamekar25, for your inputs on this issue. After reviewing the details you provided, I have identified few workarounds that may help resolve the issue. Please follow these steps:
Power BI doesn’t maintain a log of renames made in Data View. Tracking renames requires manual methods like Power Query Applied Steps, DAX, or external documentation. Once renamed in Data View, the original column name from Power Query may not be obvious.To access the Power Query Editor, navigate to Transform Data > Power Query Editor. If the column was renamed in Power Query, click on the Applied Steps pane on the right. Locate the Renamed Columns step and click on it to view the original column name before renaming. If the column name is not listed here, it was likely renamed after being imported in the Model or Data View.
Open Model View, select the table that contains the renamed column. In the Properties pane, check the Description or Column Name Mapping (if available). Sometimes, Power BI retains metadata from the original source, which may still be visible.Check if there are relationships involving the column in Model View. Often, relationships are created based on the original column names and might provide clues about its initial name. If column names were overridden, consider going back to Power Query: Disable "Use Friendly Names" (if applicable in your version). Manually revert column names by checking the data source and reloading it.
You should rely on Power Query history, model properties, and relationships to back track column names. If the issue stems from Power BI overriding column names with friendly names, consider checking if there’s an option to disable that behaviour in your version.I hope this could resolve your issue, if you need any further assistance, feel free to reach out. If this post helps, then please give us ‘Kudos’ and consider Accept it as a solution to help the other members find it more quickly.
Thank you for using Microsoft Community Forum
4 Replies
- pankajnamekar25
Super User
Power BI does not provide a direct history of column name changes in data model.
only in Power Query you can track.
other way you can compare with source to do validation.
if possible you can do version control to the version from which column name are changed to compare with latest pbix.
Thanks,
PankajIf this solution helps, please accept it and give a kudos, it would be greatly appreciated.
v-kpoloju-msftCommunity Support
Hi klev28,
Thank you for reaching out to the Microsoft fabric community forum. Thank you pankajnamekar25, for your inputs on this issue. After reviewing the details you provided, I have identified few workarounds that may help resolve the issue. Please follow these steps:
Power BI doesn’t maintain a log of renames made in Data View. Tracking renames requires manual methods like Power Query Applied Steps, DAX, or external documentation. Once renamed in Data View, the original column name from Power Query may not be obvious.To access the Power Query Editor, navigate to Transform Data > Power Query Editor. If the column was renamed in Power Query, click on the Applied Steps pane on the right. Locate the Renamed Columns step and click on it to view the original column name before renaming. If the column name is not listed here, it was likely renamed after being imported in the Model or Data View.
Open Model View, select the table that contains the renamed column. In the Properties pane, check the Description or Column Name Mapping (if available). Sometimes, Power BI retains metadata from the original source, which may still be visible.Check if there are relationships involving the column in Model View. Often, relationships are created based on the original column names and might provide clues about its initial name. If column names were overridden, consider going back to Power Query: Disable "Use Friendly Names" (if applicable in your version). Manually revert column names by checking the data source and reloading it.
You should rely on Power Query history, model properties, and relationships to back track column names. If the issue stems from Power BI overriding column names with friendly names, consider checking if there’s an option to disable that behaviour in your version.I hope this could resolve your issue, if you need any further assistance, feel free to reach out. If this post helps, then please give us ‘Kudos’ and consider Accept it as a solution to help the other members find it more quickly.
Thank you for using Microsoft Community Forum- v-kpoloju-msft
Hi klev28,
May I ask if you have resolved this issue? If so, please mark the helpful reply and accept it as the solution. This will be helpful for other community members who have similar problems to solve it faster.
Thank you.
klev28Yes, thank you for the detailed reply!
