Partial Semantic Model Refresh

[alfBI]

Hi,

We have created a data pipeline that manages following steps:

- Ingest data on a Fabric Lakehouse (Bronze) - notebook based

- Transform data on Fabric WareHouse (Gold)  - views based on lakehouse tables

- Update a Power BI Semantic model (import) based on warehouse tables

Last step uses the action "Semantic Model Refresh" to update a given Power BI Semantic Model.

So, we have noticed that despite all steps ends succesfully (Status = Succeeded) the model appears sometimes partially refreshed... I mean some of Warehosue tables are imported only partially (some rows are missing)

When this happens we check fabric warehouse tables and all looks ok, so we have to manually refresh the model directly and then issue disappears. But the problem is quite annoying as it erodes the reliability of our systems as the figures of the reports consuming the model sometimes are right but sometimes not......

I have not been able to find a single clue on the logs that allow us to identify the root cause problem.

Might be the warehouse tables took some time before being fully available to Power BI model?

Has anyone noticed some similar behaviour when using this pattern?

Thanks,

[pranayreddy]

Hi @alfBI 

I understand that you are experiencing issues with your Power BI model displaying incomplete data, despite the refresh process completing successfully. It appears that during the refresh of the Power BI model, some data from the Fabric Warehouse is not fully loaded. You have verified the warehouse tables and confirmed they are correct. 

To resolve this matter, I suggest you to follow the below steps:

• Add a brief waiting period ( 2-5 minutes) after updating the data in the Fabric Warehouse before you refresh the Power BI model. This allows the data to stabilize and ensures all records are accessible for the refresh.
• Implement a staging table where you can first load and verify new data before moving it to the main tables. This ensures that only complete and validated data is transferred for Power BI reporting.
• If you're not already using it, setting up incremental refresh in Power BI can help. This method refreshes only the new or modified data, improving refresh performance and reducing the risk of incomplete data.
• Configure alerts in Power BI to notify you if any refresh fails or takes longer than expected. This will help you address issues before they impact report accuracy.
• Before refreshing the Power BI model, run validation checks on your datasets in the warehouse to ensure completeness and correctness. 

Please try these recommendations and monitor the results. 

If you find the answer reached your goal, make it as a solution. So that it will help more users with the same problem.

Thank you in advance!

[alfBI]

Only first option take sense to us, and this is precisely the one we were considering to implement. I will let you know the result in some days.....

Thanks

[Anonymous]

Hi, @alfBI 

Have you solved your problem? If so, can you share your solution here and mark the correct answer as a standard answer to help other members find it faster? Thank you very much for your kind cooperation!

Best Regards

Yongkang Hua