Reports Testing

[powerbiexpert22]

What is the optimal approach we should follow to test data in Power BI Dashboards and reports ? Example, if reports are built using SQL Server as source , How do we validate data in each visual? How to do we validate data model correctness?How do we test the performance of reports agains production data?

The question is more around the process we follow for data validation and performance, example if I need to validate chart in Power BI , I prepare equivalent sql statement which includes the columns used in chart and validate results between chart and sql database. For Data Model, I validate each and every metrics across all dimensions by running sql statements against database to make sure metrics shows correct result across dimensions. For performance, I use performance analyzer to check which area ( charts , calculations etc.) is taking more time. is this the correct approach?

[Anonymous · Accepted solution]

Hi @powerbiexpert22 ,
It's good to see your understanding of the best way to test your data in Power BI dashboards and reports. These actions are indeed the right steps for testing your data. I have a few additions to these steps that you can refer to. First, for data accuracy, you can use Query diagnostics in Power Query, which can further understand and validate the queries that Power BI builds and sends to SQL Server.
In order to verify the correctness of the data model, the method of validating each metric for all dimensions by running SQL statements on the database is very thorough. As a complement, you can also explore using the DAX Studio tool. DAX Studio can help you validate DAX expressions and measure performance, ensuring that your data model is not only correct, but optimized for performance.
You can refer to the links below for more information
DAX Studio | DAX Studio
Query diagnostics - Power Query | Microsoft Learn
Recording query diagnostics in Power BI - Power Query | Microsoft Learn

Best regards,
Albert He

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