RSPowerBI starts but never opens a listening port on PBIRS 1.25.9558.32914 with SQL Server 2025

[Francis21]

Hi,

Environment:

Power BI Report Server 1.25.9558.32914 (15.0.1120.122) - Developer Edition
Windows Server 2022 Standard (10.0.20348) - two separate servers on the same domain
SQL Server 2025 Enterprise Edition (catalog database on a dedicated server)
Authentication: NTLM/Negotiate
HTTPS configured with internal certificate

Problem:
RSPowerBI.exe starts, connects to SQL Server, performs cleanup cycles every 15 minutes, but never opens any TCP listening port. Uploading .pbix files returns HTTP 503 because RSPortal calls https://powerbi-test.asd.local/powerbi/api/reportproperties and gets no response.

Root cause identified via Process Monitor: The listenerUrl environment variable is passed to ManagementProcess (RSManagement.exe) but NOT to ManagedProcesses (RSPowerBI.exe). RSManagement receives listenerUrl=http://+:8083/ and works correctly. RSPowerBI receives no listenerUrl and logs only The web server needs to run elevated followed by Web Server is running — but opens no port.

What has been verified and confirmed working:

All urlacl reservations correctly configured
SSL certificate binding on port 443
All local privileges (SeImpersonatePrivilege, SeCreateGlobalPrivilege, SeAssignPrimaryTokenPrivilege, SeIncreaseQuotaPrivilege, SeServiceLogonRight)
Folder permissions for NT SERVICE\PowerBIReportServer
Encryption key valid
RSPowerBI connects successfully to SQL Server
config.json is valid JSON with /app parameter and listenerUrl added manually to PowerBI Config section — but listenerUrl is still not transmitted as environment variable to RSPowerBI process
Trend Micro Deep Security Agent stopped during testing — no change
Issue persists across multiple PBIRS versions and service accounts

Why is listenerUrl not passed to RSPowerBI.exe as an environment variable by RSHostingService? Is there a known configuration requirement for PBIRS with SQL Server 2025?

Thank you in advance

[Francis21]

Critical update: Bug confirmed on clean VM installation - RSPowerBI never opens any TCP port
I have now reproduced the exact same issue on a completely clean environment:
Test environment (VirtualBox VM):

Windows Server 2022 (no domain, no antivirus, no SSL certificate, no GPO)
Fresh PBIRS 1.25.9558.32914 installation
SQL Server 2025
HTTP only configuration (no HTTPS)
Local SQL account used (no domain account)

Result: Identical behavior — RSPowerBI starts, connects to SQL Server, but never opens any TCP listening port:
powershellGet-NetTCPConnection | Where-Object OwningProcess -eq (Get-Process RSPowerBI).Id
# Returns nothing
Uploading any .pbix file (including a minimal file created with Power BI Desktop RS 2026 containing no data) returns the same 503 error.
This definitively rules out:

Active Directory / domain configuration
Antivirus (Trend Micro or other)
SSL certificate configuration
Group Policy Objects
Service account permissions
Network configuration
SQL Server 2025 compatibility

Key observation:
The only known working configuration is an upgrade from an older PBIRS version. A colleague running the same PBIRS 1.25.9558.32914 version, but installed via upgrade from an older version, works correctly and RSPowerBI does open a TCP listening port.
Conclusion: This appears to be a regression bug in fresh installations of PBIRS 1.25.9558.32914. RSPowerBI listener initialization silently fails on clean installs.

Can you confirm this is a known regression in fresh installations of PBIRS 1.25.9558.32914?
Is there a hotfix, patch or workaround available?
Is it possible to obtain an older PBIRS installer to perform an upgrade instead of a fresh install?

Thank you.
Francis

[v-hashadapu]

Hi @Francis21 , no i don't think this is a known regression, but I suggest you raise a Microsoft Support ticket, while providing them with all the necessary details. They will check this and find a solution for you.

Below is the link to help create Microsoft Support ticket:
How to create a Fabric and Power BI Support ticket - Power BI | Microsoft Learn

[v-hashadapu · Accepted solution]

Hi @Francis21 , Thank you for reaching out to the Microsoft Community Forum.

The missing listenerUrl in the RSPowerBI process shouldn’t be treated as the root cause by itself. PBIRS doesn’t document that every managed process receives the same environment variables and listenerUrl is specifically defined for the RSManagement web API endpoint. So, while your ProcMon finding is valid, its absence in RSPowerBI doesn’t, on its own, explain why no listener is opened.

What does matter is that RSPowerBI starts but never completes listener initialization. I suggest you validate what configuration it is actually receiving from RSManagement. Comparing GET http://localhost:8083/api/v1.0/ManagementState and the catalog configuration returned via GetAllConfigurationInfo between the working and non-working servers should surface any mismatch that won’t appear in config.json. Also, since SQL Server 2025 is officially supported for PBIRS catalog databases, it’s better treated as an A/B variable rather than the root cause.

[Francis21]

Hi,

Thank you for your guidance. I ran the suggested API calls and here are the results:

On the non-working server:

GET http://localhost:8083/api/v1.0/ManagementState → 401 Unauthorized (endpoint exists but authentication is denied)
GET http://localhost:8083/api/v1.0/GetAllConfigurationInfo → 404 Not Found
GET http://localhost:8083/ → 404 Not Found

I also tested several other paths (/api/v2.0/ManagementState, /api/v1.0/Configuration, /api/v1.0/ConfigurationInfo) — all return 404.

So RSManagement is running and listening on port 8083, but only /api/v1.0/ManagementState responds (with 401). I do not have the credentials for the NT SERVICE\PowerBIReportServer account to authenticate against this endpoint.

Questions:

What credentials are required to call http://localhost:8083/api/v1.0/ManagementState?
What is the correct path for GetAllConfigurationInfo?
Is there a way to check what configuration RSManagement is actually sending to RSPowerBI without authenticating against the management API?

I can also provide these same results from my colleague's working server for comparison if that would help.

Thank you again for your support.

Best regards, Francis

[v-hashadapu]

Hi @Francis21 , thanks for sharing the results. A 401 on /api/v1.0/ManagementState is normal because that endpoint is NTLM/Negotiate–protected and intended for internal calls made by RSHostingService under the Power BI Report Server service identity. Running a browser or PowerShell as administrator doesn’t change the Windows identity being used, so authentication will fail unless the request is executed under the actual service account.

The 404s you’re seeing for GetAllConfigurationInfo and other API paths are also expected. GetAllConfigurationInfo is not an HTTP endpoint at all, it’s a stored procedure in the ReportServer catalog database that RSManagement executes internally. That’s why there is no valid URL for it and why it can’t be queried directly over HTTP.

Because of this, there isn’t a supported way to directly inspect what RSManagement sends to RSPowerBI via the management API without authenticating as the service account. At this point, the most effective next step is a side‑by‑side comparison between the working and non‑working servers: RSManagement and RSPowerBI startup logs and the catalog configuration/state via SQL. Given that RSManagement is up and listening, the problem most likely sits in the configuration or state handshake between RSManagement and RSPowerBI, not networking, environment variables or SQL Server 2025.

[Francis21]

Hi,

Thank you very much for your detailed and insightful response regarding my PBIRS issue.

Your clarification about listenerUrl being specific to the RSManagement web API endpoint is very helpful and gives me a much better understanding of the architecture.

I will follow your suggestion and investigate the configuration that RSPowerBI actually receives from RSManagement by querying:
- GET http://localhost:8083/api/v1.0/ManagementState
- GET http://localhost:8083/api/v1.0/GetAllConfigurationInfo

I will compare the results between my non-working server and my colleague's working installation to identify any mismatch.

I will post my findings back on the forum as soon as I have results.

Thank you again for taking the time to help — your guidance is greatly appreciated.

Best regards,

[Francis21]

UPDATE - Extensive diagnostic performed, root cause partially identified

After weeks of investigation, here is a complete summary of everything tested and discovered.

Environment:

Power BI Report Server 1.25.9558.32914 (15.0.1120.122) - Developer Edition
Windows Server 2022 Standard (10.0.20348) - two separate servers on the same domain personnel.asd.local
SQL Server 2025 Enterprise Edition on a dedicated server
Authentication: NTLM/Negotiate
HTTPS configured with internal certificate
.NET Framework 4.8 installed
Trend Micro Deep Security Agent installed (tested with agent stopped - no change)

Symptoms: RSPowerBI.exe starts, connects to SQL Server, performs cleanup cycles every 15 minutes, but never opens any TCP listening port. Uploading .pbix files returns HTTP 503 because RSPortal calls https://powerbi-test/powerbi/api/reportproperties and gets no response.

Root cause identified via Process Monitor: Comparing environment variables received at startup between RSManagement.exe (working) and RSPowerBI.exe (not working):

RSManagement receives:

listenerUrl=http://+:8083/rsConfigFilePath=..\ReportServer\rsreportserver.configmanagementUrl=http://localhost:8083

RSPowerBI receives:

managementUrl=http://localhost:8083(no listenerUrl)

RSPowerBI log shows:

The web server needs to run elevatedWeb Server is running.

...but opens no TCP port whatsoever.

Everything verified and confirmed correct:

All urlacl reservations correctly configured for NT SERVICE\PowerBIReportServer
SSL certificate binding on 0.0.0.0:443 with AppID {1d40ebc7-1983-4ac5-82aa-1e17a7ae9a0e} and certstorename=(null)
All local privileges: SeImpersonatePrivilege, SeCreateGlobalPrivilege, SeAssignPrimaryTokenPrivilege, SeIncreaseQuotaPrivilege, SeServiceLogonRight
Folder permissions for NT SERVICE\PowerBIReportServer
Encryption key valid (ManagementState=Valid, Encryption key present=True)
RSPowerBI connects successfully to SQL Server
config.json is valid JSON, identical to a working PBIRS installation
"parameters": "" for PowerBI ManagedProcess (confirmed correct vs working server)
Trend Micro Deep Security Agent stopped during testing — no change
Multiple PBIRS versions tested — same behavior on all
Multiple service accounts tested (NT SERVICE, domain account with all required privileges) — same behavior on all
listenerUrl added manually to PowerBI Config section in config.json — not transmitted as environment variable to RSPowerBI process
.NET Framework 4.8 confirmed installed

Key comparison with working PBIRS server: A colleague has a working PBIRS installation (same version) on Windows Server 2022 with SQL Server 2022. His installation was done by first installing an older version then upgrading. His RSPowerBI.exe correctly opens a TCP listening port. The config.json is identical between both servers.

Specific questions:

Why does RSHostingService transmit listenerUrl to ManagementProcess but NOT to ManagedProcesses like RSPowerBI?
Is there a known compatibility issue between PBIRS 1.25.9558.32914 and SQL Server 2025?
Is there a known difference in behavior between a fresh installation and an upgrade from an older version?
What is the correct mechanism by which RSPowerBI should obtain its listener URL — via RSManagement API on port 8083, or via environment variables?
Are there any Windows Server 2022 specific configurations (beyond standard urlacl and privileges) required for RSPowerBI to open its HTTP listener?