Power Bi Report Server access from outside stuck on loading data

[MarieKAA]

https://community.fabric.microsoft.com/t5/forums/postpage/board-id/ReportServer

Power Bi Report Server access from outside stuck on loading data

I have a problem accessing the reports on my Power BI Report Server from outside. From the server itself I can open the reports in Power BI Desktop for RS and in Power BI Report Server via a browser. But from a browser outside, the reports are stuck on "Loading data" - I never see any errors. I tried both Edge and Chrome.

From outside I can access the “https://<servername>/reports” page (log in etc.) and see the reports but when choosing one, I only see the "Loading data". It never stops and I don't get any errors, but the reports will not load. When entering the full name “https://<servername>/reports/<reportname>” I can log on but then the Loading Data wheel starts spinning again.

When the error occured, I had PBIRS and Desktop for RS from September 2023, I now updated to January 2025 and created a new report in the new versions, but it still cannot load. Until January 2025 everything worked fine.

I tried to look at the LogFiles: The RSHosting Only contains lines like this: 
2025-02-27 10:13:48.1190|INFO|83|Catalog max connection pool size: 100

I tried changing this to 500, and it just says 500 instead in the log file.

In the RSPortal log I get the warning:

2025-02-27 11:29:53.1499|WARN|134|Received a request with an unmatched or no authentication scheme. 401

But I am logged in and don't see any errors in Power BI Report Server online? I am administrator and creator of the reports but I have also tried to add myself in the Security part of PBIRS.

What else can I check – what can be wrong?

[R1k91]

Is it the client OS recent?

is it the client browser recent? 
have you tried to open a profile against the report server to see if "while loading" is running and it's stuck on a query? 

[HiteshDataXpert]

When accessing Power BI Report Server (PBIRS) from outside your network and encountering the "Loading data" issue, there are several potential causes and troubleshooting steps you can take. Sometimes we miss basics so please do check teh below tasks:

### 1. **Network and Firewall Configuration**
- **Check Firewall Rules**: Ensure that the necessary ports are open on your firewall. PBIRS typically uses port 443 for HTTPS traffic.
- **Network Latency**: High latency or unstable network connections can cause data loading issues. Ensure that the network connection is stable and has low latency.

### 2. **SSL/TLS Configuration**
- **SSL Certificate**: Ensure that your SSL certificate is valid and correctly configured. An invalid or expired certificate can cause issues with loading data.
- **TLS Version**: Ensure that the server and client are using compatible TLS versions. PBIRS typically requires TLS 1.2 or higher.

### 3. **Authentication and Authorization**
- **Authentication Scheme**: The warning in the RSPortal log indicates an authentication issue. Ensure that the authentication scheme configured in PBIRS matches the one used by the client.
- **User Permissions**: Double-check that the user has the necessary permissions to access the reports. Even though you are an administrator, there might be specific permissions required for accessing certain reports.

### 4. **Browser Configuration**
- **Browser Compatibility**: Ensure that the browsers you are using (Edge and Chrome) are up to date. Sometimes, browser extensions or settings can interfere with the loading of reports.
- **Clear Cache**: Clear the browser cache and cookies to ensure that there are no stale or corrupted files causing the issue.

### 5. **Server Configuration**
- **Resource Allocation**: Ensure that the server has sufficient resources (CPU, memory, disk I/O) to handle the requests. Insufficient resources can cause delays in loading data.
- **Configuration Files**: Check the `rsreportserver.config` and `rssrvpolicy.config` files for any misconfigurations. These files are located in the PBIRS installation directory.

### 6. **Log Files**
- **Detailed Logging**: Enable detailed logging in PBIRS to get more insights into what might be causing the issue. You can do this by modifying the `ReportingServicesService.exe.config` file to increase the verbosity of the logs.
- **Event Viewer**: Check the Windows Event Viewer for any related errors or warnings that might provide more context.

### 7. **Proxy Settings**
- **Proxy Configuration**: If you are accessing PBIRS through a proxy, ensure that the proxy settings are correctly configured. Misconfigured proxy settings can cause data loading issues.

### 8. **Database Connectivity**
- **Data Source Credentials**: Ensure that the data source credentials used in the reports are correctly configured and have the necessary permissions to access the data.
- **Database Connectivity**: Verify that the PBIRS can connect to the underlying databases without any issues.

### 9. **Update and Patches**
- **Latest Updates**: Ensure that both PBIRS and Power BI Desktop for RS are updated to the latest versions. Sometimes, bugs in older versions can cause such issues.

### 10. **Network Tools**
- **Network Diagnostics**: Use network diagnostic tools like Fiddler or Wireshark to capture and analyze the network traffic between the client and the server. This can help identify any network-related issues.

### Example Steps to Enable Detailed Logging:
1. **Locate the Configuration File**:
- Navigate to the PBIRS installation directory, typically `C:\Program Files\Microsoft Power BI Report Server\PBIRS\ReportServer`.

2. **Edit the Configuration File**:
- Open `ReportingServicesService.exe.config` in a text editor.

3. **Modify the Logging Level**:
- Find the `<switches>` section and modify the `Default` switch to include more verbose logging:
```xml
<switches>
<add name="Default" value="4" />
</switches>
```

4. **Restart the Service**:
- Restart the Power BI Report Server service to apply the changes.

By following these steps, you should be able to identify and resolve the issue causing the "Loading data" problem when accessing PBIRS from outside your network. If the issue persists, consider reaching out to Microsoft Support for further assistance.

[Poojara_D12 · Accepted solution]

Hi @MarieKAA 

Your issue with Power BI Report Server (PBIRS) reports getting stuck on "Loading data" when accessed externally could be related to authentication, network configuration, or browser security settings. Since you can successfully access the /reports page, log in, and view the report list, but the reports themselves fail to load without errors, this suggests that the problem might be due to authentication mismatches or blocked service requests when rendering reports.

The 401 warning in the RSPortal log ("Received a request with an unmatched or no authentication scheme") indicates that external requests might not be passing authentication properly to PBIRS. This often happens when Kerberos delegation is not correctly configured, or when Windows Authentication (NTLM/Kerberos) is required, but the request from external networks does not pass credentials correctly. You can try enabling Anonymous Authentication temporarily in Reporting Services Configuration Manager under Web Service URL settings to see if it helps.

Another possible cause is CORS (Cross-Origin Resource Sharing) or SameSite cookie policies in modern browsers. If authentication is handled via Integrated Windows Authentication (IWA), browsers like Chrome and Edge block third-party cookies, preventing proper authentication flow. You can test this by disabling "SameSite by default cookies" in Chrome ( chrome://flags/#same-site-by-default-cookies or manually allowing the PBIRS domain in site settings.

Additionally, since your issue persists after upgrading to PBIRS January 2025, check if firewall rules or reverse proxy settings (if applicable) are blocking WebSocket or API calls required for loading data externally. Running F12 Developer Tools (Network tab) while accessing the report externally can help identify blocked requests or failed authentication challenges. If PBIRS is behind a load balancer or proxy, ensure that it correctly forwards Windows Authentication headers to PBIRS.

You might also want to check service account permissions for PBIRS and ensure that your account has proper access by adding it explicitly in the PBIRS Security settings (even though you're an admin). If possible, try enabling Forms Authentication instead of Windows Authentication for external access to see if that resolves the issue.

[MarieKAA]

Thank you for your answer. The issue was with the firewall and was solved hereafter.