How is data stored in Report Server between scheduled refreshes?

[MP2]

I'm looking at the data security of Report Server. I need to know how data is stored between data refreshes. For example, if I schedule a nightly data refresh, where will the data be stored in the 24 hours between refreshes?

Presumably the data must be stored in the Report Server environment somewhere, I just can't find any documentation on whether this is in the .pbix file that's been uploaded to Report Server, or in the Report Server database tables. Is the data encrypted?

I need to be able to assess the risk that someone could gain access to the Report Server backend and see data that they shouldn't.

[Icey · Accepted solution]

Hi @MP2 ,

I found someone explained in more detail:

When you upload a PBIX file to PBI-SSSR Server it creates an entry in the ReportServer DB dbo.catalog. It also creates two entries in dbo.CatalogItemExtendedContent table. One of these is the visuals, m code etc, the other is the data blob.

If you take a PBIX that has imported data and rename it to .zip you can Unzip it. Inside you will find a file called DataModel. This is a super compressed blob of data. This is the thing that gets split out. Everything else is in the visuals blob.

I assume this is so that you can setup a scheduled refresh of the data and it just overwrites the data blob.

When you view a PBIX report the SSRS server magically stitches them back together somehow. Actually what it looks like it does is fire up a captive instance of SSAS tabular and feeds it the data blob. Your visuals are then connected to this temporary data source and as you slice and dice your charts the queries are sent to the captive SSAS instance. Once you've spun your report down the captive SSAS instance is quietly killed off.

Reference: PBIRS reports dataset stored

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Best regards

Icey

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[FarhanAhmed]

I think report data stored in ReportServer DB where it is hosted. 

you can take a look into the table "[dbo].[CatalogItemExtendedContent]" under Report Server DB .

The data seems encrypted but you can explore a bit more