Excel data model refresh corrupting the data model

[Alan_]

I refresh a number of excel data models using the power bi service. 

As of this week, after the refresh, the model is broken. The result is the workbook crashes (completely closes excel without any error message) when I either try open power pivot or try to open power query on a workbook that has been refreshed via the service. 

[Anonymous]

Hi @Leione 
Can you please share the case number you have with microsoft support?

[Leione]

@Anonymous  Case #:31453561

[Leione]

There’s an update on this ticket from ms support team. And I also see the alert in MS365 admin center in service health

<Analysis>

We just got confirmation from internal team that the root cause is “AS Engine added new XML properties into the XML Vertipaq information of the database. Those properties are not compatible with other AS Engine.”

<Solution>

The fix is available and will be deployed to all regions by the end of June 2022. You could try to refresh it again in early July to verify if the same issue occurs again.

[MattyH]

Thanks @Leione  for posting info on this, really appreciate it.

I have been stressing out over this problem for weeks now trying to figure out what is going on and it looks as though its getting fixed. 

[Anonymous]

Hi @Alan_ ,

We have reproduced your issue and have submitted to internal icm 314179254, engineers are doing their best to fix this issue . The ETA for fix is the end of June.

Please be patient and I will give you feedback here once there is any progress.

Best Regards,
Community Support Team _ Caitlyn

[Anonymous]

I just want to thank you all for:

1) having this thread in the first place.

2) sharing your experiences

3) working together to get our voice heard on this issue

I was seriously thinking this was not going to get fixed anytime soon and we would all be sitting here with no resolution.

Pointing Microsoft to this thread that had the exact same situation I was experiencing as well as providing feedback on my end I think really made a difference to get a solution done.

Well done everyone!

[JayVee]

Just a follow through to this topic which seems almost closed, but may have a bigger scope than what is being shown here. And also to build on what was mentioned by @MattyH:

This issue does not only affect the Excel files refreshed by the PowerBI Service. In fact it affects any Excel file refreshed by any MS Online Service which uses the AS Engine. In my company it is happening with several Excel files that are stored in SharePoint Online and that are not at all connected to the PowerBI Service.

The crash situation is exactly the same: once the user uploads the file to the SharePoint Online and try to use the Excel Online option to refrsh the data model, the file is corrupted and instantly crashes when doing anything with the data model in Excel Desktop. No warning, no error message, just a direct crash.

On top of that, I opened the XML file pointed by the Event Viewer log as the cause of issue and here we can see clearly that it was created/updated on the 2nd of June (date where the issue started as reported by many users):

<CreatedTimestamp>2022-06-02T09:13:56.64</CreatedTimestamp>
<LastSchemaUpdate>2022-06-17T07:17:46.256667</LastSchemaUpdate>

Also, coincidently or not, the 17th of June (last Friday) was when the issue started to affect our users.

Hopefully Microsoft will roll out the updates not only for PowerBI users but for all users of the AS Engine, in whichever app it may be.

[Anonymous]

@JayVee  - Interesting as I typically do not refresh data in Excel Online at all so I never tried.  So after reading your post I tried it myself.  What happens for me is that as soon as I choose "Refresh All Connections" is that it starts to refresh, but it puts the report in a perpetual "Saving..." state and the refresh never seem to finish.

I'm assuming it will have the same behavior as you describe if I was paitient enought to let he refresh finish. 😃

Great find though.

[RosaVB]

Thank you very much @Leione for sharing the resolution you have achieved, in my case the technical department of BI did not solve anything and they are still going round in circles without any sense.
Let's see if they soon fix this big problem with excel updates.

[Anonymous]

I also encounter the same issue, does anyone know any workaround for this? I have tried to refresh in Excel Online, but it never finished.