Changes in common semantic model is not reflecting in local model

[Gunasekaran]

Hi All, 

I have a power bi report with below architecture, Datasource -> Common Semantic Model -> Local Semantic Model (local to report) -> Power BI report. I am facing an issue when I rename a column in Common Semantic Model, the changes are not reflecting in Local Model and visuals are breaking. I have tried refreshing the Local Model in service (manual & schedule refresh) but it is not fixing the issue. But if I refresh the Local Model in Power BI desktop then the Model is automatically picking the changes from Common Semantic Model. Is there any way to achive this in Power BI Service?. Would appreciate any workarounds or help with this.

Thanks!.

[Poojara_D12 · Accepted solution]

Hi @Gunasekaran 

In your Power BI architecture, where your report relies on a Common Semantic Model as a shared dataset, and then a Local Semantic Model acts as an intermediary before feeding into the final report, the issue you're facing stems from how Power BI handles metadata updates between chained models. When you rename a column in the Common Semantic Model, those schema changes are not automatically propagated to downstream semantic models in the Power BI Service, even if you trigger a refresh. This is because dataset refresh in the Service only updates the data, not the schema. However, when you open the Local Semantic Model in Power BI Desktop and refresh it, the Desktop client is capable of re-evaluating the schema references and auto-aligning the metadata, which is why it picks up the renamed column and updates dependent visuals accordingly.

Unfortunately, as of now, Power BI Service does not support automatic schema synchronization across chained datasets or semantic models. A workaround would be to open the Local Semantic Model in Power BI Desktop, refresh it there to pick up schema changes, and then re-publish it to the Service. Another more scalable workaround—if schema changes are frequent—is to flatten the chain by reducing the intermediate semantic model or centralizing modeling logic as much as possible. Alternatively, consider using XMLA endpoints and Tabular Editor to automate schema syncing and script model updates for large-scale deployments.

Until Microsoft introduces schema-aware refresh capabilities in the Service, manual intervention via Power BI Desktop remains necessary to handle schema changes like renaming columns.

[v-dineshya]

Hi @Gunasekaran ,

Thank you for reaching out to the Microsoft Fabric Community forum.

Hi @BhavinVyas3003 , Thank you for posting valuable information in this community .

Hi @Gunasekaran ,

The solution suggested by @BhavinVyas3003  is resolved your issue, please accept it as a solution, to assist other community members in resolving similar issues more efficiently.
Thank you.

[v-dineshya]

Hi @Gunasekaran ,

We haven’t heard from you on the last response and was just checking back to see if you have a resolution yet.do click Accept Answer and Yes for was this answer helpful. And, if you have any further query do let us know.

Thank you.

[BhavinVyas3003]

Power BI Service does not automatically update schema changes like column renames from the Common Semantic Model to the Local Semantic Model on refresh. If you refresh only in the Service, the Local Model’s metadata stays the same, causing visuals to break. The correct way is to open the report in Power BI Desktop, refresh the Local Model there so it picks up changes from the Common Semantic Model, and then republish the report to the Service. Currently, there is no option in Power BI Service to sync these changes automatically. To avoid this problem, it’s better to connect reports directly to the Common Semantic Model using a live connection without using a Local Model.