Copying Report for Data Model and then changing the relationship on a Date Filter is breaking!

[BigPicDeepDive]

I have a huge data model for a client. I have built 3-4 reports from it already without issue. I am now down to the two simplest reports and have been stuck for 2 days because of a software bug! I am so tired of dealing with the slow crappy software. 

If I try to reuse my data model it breaks every time. But only in the last few days. I have deleted all date relationships, deleted the date table and even deleted the data table I am trying to filter but everytime I reestablish them applying the date filter wipes all the views out as if there is no relationship to the data. It says no results for 2021, when unfiltered there are at least 20 rows dated 2021 and ONLY ONE DATE RELATIONSHIP in the report because I deleted all the other date relationships.

Once I got an error message saying cyclical dependency when reconnecting the date table to the data table. But there were no other date relationships connected and as soon as I selected the createdon column in my data table the error disappeared from the relatioship UI. I have to say, it definitely seems like a software bug! And its related to making changes to relationships in an existing data model.

If I import the data table I am trying to filter into a fresh report and setup the relatioship to a newly built date table it works as expected. Somehow this crappy software is remembering date relationships which have been deleted! Please fix it! Not being able to copy big data models which contains hundreds of calculations is massively time consuming and not profitable for my employer. Please fix these time wasting issues!

So now... because your software works so well. I have to rebuild a massive data model for the two smallest reports and I was almost done. I am so upset about this. And this is like the 3rd blocking bug since your last update. Who is on your QA team? 

[v-robertq-msft]

Hi, 

If you want to get a solution for this kind of data load problem for your specific data model as soon as possible, I suggest you to open a support ticket to get direct help from the technical support team of Microsoft.

https://community.powerbi.com/t5/Community-Blog/How-to-create-a-support-ticket-in-Power-BI/ba-p/6830...

https://powerbi.microsoft.com/en-us/support/

Thank you very much!

Best Regards,

Community Support Team _Robert Qin

[BigPicDeepDive]

Support is Pro option and a total cop out. It basically means that Power BI agrees to ignore all bugs unless a paid to pay attention to them. This is likely why Power BI has so many serious usability issues. Seems like a bad process for maintaining a top tier product. It's like the ostrich who puts his head in the sand.

[BigPicDeepDive]

Here is a Loom of the issue: https://www.loom.com/share/48b558e0430e4254a2fa52a8c9526c70

Here is a link to someone who encountered the issue in January: Circular Dependency in DAX caused by CALENDARAUTO – Sergio Murru

I can not use his method to build a date table and this method has been working for me without issue for year. Please fix the issue so that my date slicers work again.

Please let me know when you have what you need for the video so I can delete it.

[v-robertq-msft]

Hi,

I’ve watched the video you posted, I think the first thing you should be aware of is that the root cause of the error “circular dependency” is when two objects reference each other. The blog you posted about the CalendarAuto() table linking to the main table is a very good example. Because the CalendarAuto() table is created based on the date range of the main table, if you still link it to the date column in the main table, it will be meaningless and will of course lead to the “circular dependency” error.

What's more, there are also some factors that can lead to a hidden circular dependency:

• You are using context transition inside a calculated column.
• You are creating a relationship that involves either a calculated column or a calculated table.

I suggest you to have a deep research on these two blogs which explain this error in detail:

https://www.sqlbi.com/articles/understanding-circular-dependencies/

https://www.sqlbi.com/articles/avoiding-circular-dependency-errors-in-dax/

What’s more, I still believe that it will be of great help if you can create a support ticket to get a more professional explanation from Microsoft about this error.

Thank you very much!

Best Regards,

Community Support Team _Robert Qin

[BigPicDeepDive]

Ya, you didn't really watch the video I think.

There are NO Caculated Columns or Measures in my model. NONE

There is a CALENDARAUTO() function which is used exactly as it was intended.

And a table with NO CALCULATIONS in it.

There is ZERO reason for a circular dependency and you are clearly NOT qualified to answer the question.

I reiterate that the produce has major usability issues and a lot of these is due to the fact that there is no way to report when OOB functions FAIL.