Power BI Desktop on ARM (Snapdragon) – “Error Fetching Data for This Visual” + Compatibility Concern

Hi DSavill ,

Thank you for sharing all the details regarding running Power BI Desktop on ARM (Snapdragon) devices. This is a relatively new scenario, and your findings will be valuable for others as well.

Here are some insights and suggestions:

1. ARM (Snapdragon) Compatibility:
   Currently, there is no native ARM build for Power BI Desktop. Running the x64 version in emulation mode on Windows 11 ARM devices (like those with Snapdragon processors) can lead to compatibility issues, especially with more complex visuals, DAX, or dynamic date tables. These issues are not uncommon as emulation is not always 100% reliable for all features.

2. Your troubleshooting steps are spot on:

• Verifying relationships, DAX, and model on x64 Intel (where it works) confirms the root cause is likely platform-specific.
• The fact that everything works in the Power BI Service and broke recently suggests a backend change or an update that the emulator struggles with.

1. Workarounds & Recommendations:

• Unfortunately, at the moment, there is no official or community-supported workaround for these errors except running Power BI Desktop on x64 (Intel/AMD) hardware or using the Power BI Service for report authoring and testing.
• You might try rolling back to an older version of Power BI Desktop to see if the issue is version-specific, though this is not always practical or recommended.
• For lighter editing, you can use Power BI Service (Web) as you’ve noted, but advanced modeling features are still limited there.

1. Community Feedback:

• You are not alone; other users with ARM devices (especially Snapdragon) have reported similar issues, mostly related to visuals not rendering or random data-fetch errors.
• Currently, Microsoft has not announced native ARM support for Power BI Desktop, but feedback like yours is crucial. I recommend submitting this scenario to the Power BI Ideas forum and upvoting any related suggestions.

1. Summary:

• Power BI Desktop in x64 emulation on ARM is not fully reliable, especially with dynamic or complex features.
• For mission-critical work, x64 hardware or the Power BI Service are recommended until a native ARM version is available.
• Stay tuned to release notes and the Ideas forum for progress on ARM support.

If you have further questions, want to troubleshoot a specific error log, or need help finding alternative workflows, let me know!
translation and formatting supported by AI

Best regards,
Burak