Record and Store Values From One Table to Another

[PaulMac]

Hi

I have been stuggling to find the right keywords to search online that would give me what I am looking for.

Here is my scenario. 

I have a table (we'll call SourceTable) that is comprised of one value. This provides the number of active customers and is connected via an SQL query that counts the volume of distinct customer numbers and returns as a single value.

This figure is fluid and changes daily when the SQL table refreshes but I would like to keep a record of the volumes each day for trend analysis purposes.

What I am asking for is help to build a HistoricData table that pulls data from SourceTable and appends them to the bottom of the HistoricData table with the date and customer volume for that day.

I'm sure this can be achived and I've no doubt the smart and wonderfull people on this forum would be able to provide a simple solution.

Any and all help is appreciated.

Kind regards

Paul

[v-yingjl]

Hi @PaulMac ,

Agree with @ BA_Pete, Power Query is a tool which can transform data as your need before you import data tables into Power BI Desktop, refer: Power Query Editor .

It is not supported and not a media to store history data in it, each time when you click the refresh button in Power Query editor, it would send queries to the data source and get the latest data.

Best Regards,
Community Support Team _ Yingjie Li
If this post helps, then please consider Accept it as the solution to help the other members find it more quickly.

[AlexisOlson]

@BA_Pete Is correct. Power Query is not the right tool for this job.

Similar questions get asked frequently (see links below) but the answer is that this is not something that Power BI is designed to do. Power BI is intended to read and visualize data, not be a repository for storing your data. A database is a more appropriate tool for that.

Update Power BI historical data daily

Store and "freeze" column data prior refresh

Maintain historical Data

[BA_Pete]

Hi @PaulMac ,

Power Query is a mash up tool, not a data warehouse, therefore the refresh process is as follows:

Wipe all existing data > Import current data from source > Perform transformations.

As such, PQ doesn't have certified capability to retain historical data.

I would recommend either:

1) Have a SCD table stored proc built on your SQL Server that runs daily.

2) Look into Incremental Refresh in the PBI Service:

https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/power-bi/connect-data/incremental-refresh-overview 

Pete