Parameter in Power BI (Desktop and Power Query)

[Mdived]

Hi Team,

Good Day!

I am and was a Tableau Developer. Now, we are doing migration of reports from Tableau to Power BI.

I have knowledge on power bi but need to improve some technical data technique or ETL porcess.

I am really confused Paramter concept in Power BI. We can create a parameters in power query and desktop also.

Request: Can any one understnad me the when we can utilize the these 2 different tool parametrs.

Imp Question: 
If I wan to create a Field parameter in desktop we dont have option to create based on list of values. 
So, i created a enter data table then write a DAX to apply logic. Need to fix my confusion.

Appreciate your help and support!
Thank you,
Manty

[cath1ynn]

Having come from Tableau to Power BI, I feel your pain and confusion. In Tableau, you can create Parameters that the Users can use to enter values into that you can then take into account in your measures. You don't have that option in Power BI. The closest you have is to create a data table with the values that they can select from (using a slicer or another visual) and using SELECTEDVALUE in your measure. I find the Parameter function in Power Query too limiting when compared to the Parameter function in Tableau.

Having said that though, the Field Parameters in Power BI is quite powerful and it is something that is not available natively in Tableau (when I used it 2 years ago). This allow you to do some very cool work in Power BI such as allowing the user to select the fields that they want to use in their columns and rows for matrix visual, or allowing the user to select the measure that they want to use in their chart visuals.

[v-jianpeng-msft · Accepted solution]

Hi, @Mdived 

We can use parameters in Power Query for many purposes, such as filtering our queries through parameters:

We can also use parameters as parameters for connecting to a data source. For example, when we connect to a database, we define the database name in the parameters and then use it when connecting:

We can also use parameters created by PowerQuery in the Advanced Editor:

For example, when we want to use incremental refresh of the Power BI semantic model, we need to use the parameters in Power Query.

Power BI desktop field parameters allow users to dynamically change the measure or dimension being analyzed in a report. This feature helps report readers explore and customize the analysis of a report by selecting different measures or dimensions that they are interested in.

As I created a field parameter in the image above, this parameter will interact with my visual object.

You can learn more about the differences between them from the following links:

Let report readers use field parameters to change visuals (preview) - Power BI | Microsoft Learn

Parameters - Power Query | Microsoft Learn

Change the Source of Power BI Datasets Dynamically Using Power Query Parameters - RADACAD

Power Query Parameters Vs. What If Parameters: Power BI Implementation Use Cases - RADACAD

Best Regards

Jianpeng Li

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