Forum Discussion
Power BI Service refresh succeeds but data doesn’t update (Excel on SharePoint)
Hi all,
I have a Power BI Desktop report connected to an Excel file stored in SharePoint.
In Desktop, when I refresh, the data updates correctly.
I published to the Power BI Service.
In Service, the refresh says “successful,” but the numbers don’t change.
If I republish from Desktop, it updates, but that defeats the purpose of the Service refresh.
Question:
Why is the Service refresh not pulling new data from my Excel file? Do I need to adjust my query or connection settings?
Thanks in advance!
This usually happens because of how your file is connected.
To ensure Power BI Service pulls the latest data from your Excel file in SharePoint, follow these steps:- Get the Direct SharePoint File URL:
- Open your file in SharePoint.
- Click “Copy link” (make sure it’s a link ending in .xlsx or with ?web=1).
- Reconnect in Power BI Desktop Using “Get Data > Web”:
- In Power BI Desktop, go to Home > Get Data > Web (do not use Get Data > Excel).
- Paste the full SharePoint file URL.
- If needed, select Organizational Account for authentication.
- Publish the Report to Power BI Service Again:
- Save your changes and republish.
- Now, scheduled or manual refreshes in the Service will pull the latest file data.
Note:
If you’re connecting to a folder or multiple Excel files, use Get Data > SharePoint Folder instead, then filter for your file.This change ensures Power BI Service accesses your most recent Excel data every time it refreshes—no need to republish from Desktop.
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- Get the Direct SharePoint File URL:
8 Replies
- danextian
Super User
There normally is a caching period between what the updates in Excel vs what Power BI sees so not all updates immediately reflect when refreshing. Have you tried refreshing a little later after the latest update in Excel? Also, check if you have other filters applied in the service you may not be aware of - click the reset button (persistent filter).
Hey.
It looks like there is a significant delay between the service (dashboard) and the desktop version.
I can update the sheet in share point and go over to the desktop and click refresh and it does it immidently. When going o the online dashboard, i click refresh it say complete and nothing updates. Is there something I can do differently to help this?
- grazitti_sapna
This usually happens because of how your file is connected.
To ensure Power BI Service pulls the latest data from your Excel file in SharePoint, follow these steps:- Get the Direct SharePoint File URL:
- Open your file in SharePoint.
- Click “Copy link” (make sure it’s a link ending in .xlsx or with ?web=1).
- Reconnect in Power BI Desktop Using “Get Data > Web”:
- In Power BI Desktop, go to Home > Get Data > Web (do not use Get Data > Excel).
- Paste the full SharePoint file URL.
- If needed, select Organizational Account for authentication.
- Publish the Report to Power BI Service Again:
- Save your changes and republish.
- Now, scheduled or manual refreshes in the Service will pull the latest file data.
Note:
If you’re connecting to a folder or multiple Excel files, use Get Data > SharePoint Folder instead, then filter for your file.This change ensures Power BI Service accesses your most recent Excel data every time it refreshes—no need to republish from Desktop.
🌟 I hope this solution helps you unlock your Power BI potential! If you found it helpful, click 'Mark as Solution' to guide others toward the answers they need.
💡 Love the effort? Drop the kudos! Your appreciation fuels community spirit and innovation.
🎖 As a proud SuperUser and Microsoft Partner, we’re here to empower your data journey and the Power BI Community at large.
🔗 Curious to explore more? [Discover here].
Let’s keep building smarter solutions together!
- Get the Direct SharePoint File URL:
- Shahid12523
Community Champion
Your Service refresh shows “success” because it’s pulling from a cached/static link, not the live Excel.
Fix: Reconnect the file in Power BI Desktop using SharePoint Folder or OneDrive for Business connector (with Org Account), then republish.
That way Service refresh will always pull the latest Excel data.
Thank you for reaching out to the Microsoft Fabric Forum Community.
Shahid12523 grazitti_sapna danextian Thanks for the inputs. I hope the information provided by users was helpful. please try those, If you still have questions, please don't hesitate to reach out to the community.
I wanted to check if you had the opportunity to review the information provided by users. Please feel free to contact us if you have any further questions.
Hi notrobert2018
May be delay isn’t really a timing issue, it may connection method issue. Could you try reconnecting the Excel file in Power BI Desktop using the SharePoint/OneDrive connector, or the Web option with the direct .xlsx link, and then republish? please try above points.If I misunderstand your needs or you still have problems on it, please feel free to let us know.
Thanks.
Hope everything’s going smoothly on your end. I wanted to check if the issue got sorted. if you have any other issues please reach community.
