Power BI Pro service access to external users

[kurrysamir]

Hi All,

I have a scenario where I a trail access for Microsoft Fabric on UAT environment, I build reports. Publish it Fabric workspace, give access to external users by adding them via Microsoft Entra ID as described here :

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/power-bi/enterprise/service-admin-azure-ad-b2b

On the Admin Portal -> Tenant settings, Have enabled the option under Export and Sharing settings to Gues users can access Microsoft Fabric and also Guest users can browse and access Fabric content.

Using this the external users are able to access the UAT workspace.

But, we have a Production workspace that is not Fabric. The external users are not able to access the reports here. 

The message they are getting is that they need to have a Power BI Pro license to access the reports on a non fabric workspace. 

Its extremely annoying and weird that they are able to access a fabric workspace and not regular power workspace.

Questions:

1. The Admin portal changes even if I have one Fabric Workspace(I have a trail workspace) ? If yes, I can delete the Fabric workspace so it returns to a regular workspace. 

2. Or the same works even for a non fabric workspace.

Thanks in Advance. 

[kurrysamir]

@Deku @Akash_Varuna its a pain on the pocket to shell out costs for technical users to have a power bi pro license. As the need is just to put filters on reports developed and check the data. 

Any other workaround we have to give a free access to the users added in Azure AD?

[Deku · Accepted solution]

You have option of Pro or PPU, or premium capacity of P1/F64 otherwise no

[Deku]

This is likely due to the UAT workspace being on a capacity and the prd version is not. A pro licence is required for users to view context on a shared capacity workspace. P1+/F64+ allows users with free licences to view content

[Akash_Varuna]

Hi @kurrysamir 

1. Does the Admin portal change even if I have one Fabric Workspace (I have a trial workspace)? If yes, can I delete the Fabric workspace so it returns to a regular workspace?

   Yes, enabling a Fabric workspace during the trial period may introduce settings specific to Fabric, such as guest user access policies. If you delete the Fabric workspace, it will revert to the regular Power BI environment. However, the licensing requirements (Power BI Pro) for non-Fabric workspaces remain unaffected.

2. Does the same work for a non-Fabric workspace?

   No, non-Fabric workspaces require external users to have a Power BI Pro license to access shared content, regardless of the Admin portal settings. The permissions for Fabric and non-Fabric workspaces are managed differently due to licensing and feature differences.
   If your case involves external users accessing reports without a Pro license, convert the production workspace to Fabric; otherwise, ensure they have Power BI Pro licenses.
   If this post helped please do give a kudos and accept this as a soltuion
   Thanks In Advance