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sophie63
Helper I
Helper I

Switch a data source from SQL database to Power BI Service (live connection) on existing dashboard?

Hi,

 

Is is possible to switch a data source from an SQL database to Power BI Service (live connection) on an existing dashboard? I want to use the same data set but switch to live connection without having to recreate the whole dashboard. Is it supported by Power BI?

 

Thanks!

13 REPLIES 13
dscott73
Resolver I
Resolver I

This is the easiest way I have found.  This assumes you have a SQL DB Connection of some type.

 

  1. Load the original .pbix file with the SQL DB Connection.
  2. I strip out the pages, and remove all visuals, leaving a blank page titled "Sales Dataset". Save this file as "Sales Dataset" and publish to the Power BI service. Close this file after publishing.
  3. Re-load the original report .pbix file
  4. Click on the Model view Icon to the left of the designer
  5. Highlight all the tables and delete them.
  6. Click on Get Data > Power BI Datasets
  7. Select the "Sales Dataset" you uploaded earlier. The report should connect. Click over to report view, and viola! Your visuals are working again.
  8. Publish this new report to your desired workspace
  9. Remove the old report
  10. Save file as .pbit (or as a .pbix but at this point .pbit is a better option)

 

Thanks For your Comment - But Its not Working and Giving Error Like " The Connect Live Option is Disabled Because It already Contains Data From Another Source . But My File Is not having Any Data .

Then you are doing something wrong. I just followed my own directions, and it worked fine. I just downloaded the latest version of Power BI as of today (June 30, 2023). That error sounds like you might be working with an older version of PowerBI Desktop that did not allow mixed datasets.

dbhudia
Frequent Visitor

Anyone found a resolution to this ? Everyone starts with a Report + SQL Connected datasource initially then eventually evolves to PowerBI Dataset. It seems silly not to have a way to go from A to B without the need to totally recreate the original report. 

Majidbhatti
Advocate IV
Advocate IV

Hi, Was anyone able to reconnect existing SQL database dashboard to Power BI Service?

 

 

Anonymous
Not applicable

Hi,

 

I just want to confirm it is not possible to Change the datasource from SQL data source to a Power BI Service live connection dataset.

 

Cheers

I am able to do it just fine following the directions.  The issue is the underlying metadata of the report.  If you are trying to take a completely different report, and then point it over at a Dataset in the service, no, that will probably not work. If it does, the measures etc would all need to be re-written.

v-shex-msft
Community Support
Community Support

Hi @sophie63,

 

I'd like to suggest you publish origianl report to power bi service, then create a new report with power bi service as datasource. It will change to live connection mode, but I haven't found a solution to keep original visuals.

 

BTW, I also test with smoupre's workaround, but it seems not works.

 

Regards,

Xiaoxin Sheng

Community Support Team _ Xiaoxin
If this post helps, please consider accept as solution to help other members find it more quickly.
Anonymous
Not applicable

Can I get confirmation that you still cant switch from a sql server connection to a Power BI Service live dataset connection in Power BI

 

 

cheers

omrdmr
Helper I
Helper I

Hi @sophie63,

 

Unfortunately, if you would like to get data from a live data set in your PBI service, you will not be able to load any other data sources in your PBI app. Whatever you need have to be in the live data set.

 

Regards.

Greg_Deckler
Super User
Super User

In theory, follow this procedure:

 

  1. Create a new PBIX file and connect it to the Power BI Service dataset that you want.
  2. In Query Editor, go to Advanced Editor and copy the Source line
  3. Copy your existing PBIX file to a new file
  4. Go into the Query Editor and the Advanced Editor and replace the Source line of your query.

 



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@Greg_Deckler   but I cannot access the Query Editor once I chose the Power BI Service as data source, right?noqueryeditor.PNG

 

 

Hmm, that's a fair point @sophie63. If your original PBIX file connected to a live SQL Server, you might be able to do this.

 

  1. Create new PBIX file and connect to your dataset in the Service
  2. Save the PBIX file and then copy it to a .ZIP file
  3. Open the ZIP file and copy the "Connections" file
  4. Backup your original PBIX file or otherwise ensure it is safe and will not get overwritten
  5. Copy your original PBIX file to a .ZIP file with a rename for good measure -> copy MyFile.pbix MyFile1.zip
  6. Open this .ZIP file and replace the "Connections" file with the one you copied
  7. Rename this copied .ZIP file back to .PBIX


Follow on LinkedIn
@ me in replies or I'll lose your thread!!!
Instead of a Kudo, please vote for this idea
Become an expert!: Enterprise DNA
External Tools: MSHGQM
YouTube Channel!: Microsoft Hates Greg
Latest book!:
Power BI Cookbook Third Edition (Color)

DAX is easy, CALCULATE makes DAX hard...

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