Join us at FabCon Atlanta from March 16 - 20, 2026, for the ultimate Fabric, Power BI, AI and SQL community-led event. Save $200 with code FABCOMM.
Register now!To celebrate FabCon Vienna, we are offering 50% off select exams. Ends October 3rd. Request your discount now.
Brand new to Power BI! I hope someone can help with my newbie question. I have excel files stored on a network drive that I used to create a report and dashboard. Is there a way to link directly to the network files so that everytime they are updated, my report and dashboard update automatically or do I have to connect to the excel file and load them everytime?
Any input is appreciated.
Gregg
Hi @greggcampa,
You can also install and configure Power BI on-premises gateway, then add Excel data source under on-premises gateway and use the gateway to refresh your dataset. For more detailed steps about how to add Excel data source under gateway, please check my reply in this similar thread: https://community.powerbi.com/t5/Integrations-with-Files-and/Scheduled-refresh-for-excel-file-with-o... .
Thanks,
Lydia Zhang
If you want the Powerbi Dashboard in the Cloud do stay updated based on your Excel file . You will need to download and install the personal gateway on your machine and setup the excel file as a data source. Then you can schedule refreshed. May require powebi pro version that has a 60 day free trial.