Cleaning up comments in the power bi service

[MarkDenHeijer]

Hi, 

We are currently looking at the commenting functionality, which at first glance looks great. But we foresee some issues when a report is used for a longer period of time. For as far as I can see there is no option to hide / clean-up old comments. When we delete a comment, a comment with "This remark has been deleted" remains visible. Over time this will grow substantially. 

Is there a way to truly remove comments?

[MarkDenHeijer]

Thanks for your comprehensive response. One of the remarks triggered me (solution 4). Clean up and republish seems to be a fitting solution for us. 

[Poojara_D12 · Accepted solution]

Hi @MarkDenHeijer 

In Power BI, the built-in comment functionality currently has limitations regarding permanent deletion and cleanup, as you observed. When you delete a comment, it leaves behind a placeholder ("This remark has been deleted"), which can indeed clutter the report if the commenting feature is used extensively over time.

Here are a few strategies you might consider to manage or work around this limitation:

1. Use Report Page Tooltips for Contextual Comments

• Instead of using Power BI’s commenting feature, you could create a separate page in the report with text boxes for comments and link them to visual elements using Report Page Tooltips.
• This way, you can add contextual comments or notes for specific visuals and update or remove them as needed without leaving behind any placeholders.

2. Implement a Custom Commenting System

• Another approach is to set up a custom comment table in your data source (e.g., SQL Server, SharePoint list, or Azure), where users can add comments with timestamps and specific identifiers related to visuals or data points.
• You could build a custom Power App or use Power Automate to collect, edit, or delete comments in this table. By connecting this comment table to Power BI, you can have more control over displaying and managing comments and remove them completely when needed.

3. Use Bookmarks with Dynamic Titles or Text Boxes for Commentary

• If you have specific comments or annotations that are relevant for certain report states or periods, consider using dynamic titles or text boxes with Bookmarks.
• For example, you can create dynamic measures for comments that change based on slicer selections (e.g., by year or month). This way, comments can be dynamically updated without leaving residual placeholders.

4. Regular Cleanup of Comments Using Export and Re-Publish

• As a temporary solution, you could periodically export the report as a .pbix file, delete comments entirely in the Power BI Service, and then re-publish it. This process removes the comments in the published report version, but it is a bit of a workaround and may not be ideal for ongoing use.

5. Feedback to Microsoft

• If managing comments is a critical feature for your organization, consider submitting this as feedback to Microsoft via Power BI Ideas If this feature request gains enough support, Microsoft may prioritize enhancing the commenting functionality, such as providing options for fully removing comments or archiving old ones.

Currently, options to fully delete comments directly in Power BI are limited, so implementing one of these workarounds or waiting for an update to the commenting feature are the main options. The custom table or app-based approach would likely give you the most control over comment management in the long term.

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Kind Regards,
Poojara
Data Analyst | MSBI Developer | Power BI Consultant