Power BI embedded in PowerPoint – Live /Snapshot/Public Snapshot buttons not working (recent regr?)

[Guarne]

Hello,

I am experiencing a recurring issue with Power BI reports embedded in PowerPoint using the official Power BI add‑in, which appears to be related to the Live / Snapshot / Public Snapshot controls in the footer.

Context

• PowerPoint Desktop (Microsoft 365)
• Power BI reports previously embedded and working correctly
• No changes on reports, datasets, or permissions
• Issue started recently (worked before)

Problem The footer controls of the Power BI add‑in (Live Data / Snapshot / Public Snapshot):

• are visible but not always clickable, or
• appear selectable but do not apply any change, or
• prevent generating/updating a reliable snapshot

As a consequence, it is not possible to reliably update embedded Power BI content in PowerPoint. This blocks the update of executive / management presentations that rely on static but verified snapshots.

What we already checked

• PowerPoint Desktop (not web)
• Correct permissions on reports and datasets
• Reports already embedded and previously updated with no issues
• No recent changes on Power BI reports themselves

The behavior seems inconsistent and possibly related to:

• recent updates of the Power BI PowerPoint add‑in
• recent Microsoft 365 / Office updates
• regressions introduced with the “Improved Image Mode”

Impact Due to this issue, we are currently unable to update official management reports that depend on Power BI embedded in PowerPoint, as any refresh or snapshot operation is unreliable or blocked.

Questions

1. Are there known active issues or regressions affecting the Power BI add‑in for PowerPoint related to Live / Snapshot / Public Snapshot?
2. Is Microsoft aware of recent changes that may have affected this behavior?
3. Are there recommended workarounds or mitigations until a fix is available?

Thank you in advance for any clarification or official guidance.

Best regards, 
Matteo G.

[Guarne · Accepted solution]

Good morning everyone, today a thorough on-site verification was carried out with the internal corporate IT team and Microsoft support, and this is what emerged:

Problem description:

Loading in progress when opening Add-ins in Office desktop applications

Troubleshooting steps:

Based on the checks performed during the remote session, we observed that the issue is resolved by disabling Zscaler Zero Trust.

After logging out of Zscaler, Office correctly loads the add-ins.

Therefore, the topic is resolved. Thank you all for your attention and suggestions. See you soon.
Guarne

[jedward2]

hi @Guarne, 

Thank you for raising this issue. I am having the exact same problem in my organization. Would loved to be informed when a resolution is discovered. 

[Guarne]

Hello @jedward2 ,

thank you for the follow-up.

At the moment, the ticket with my internal IT team is still open and under analysis.

From the latest checks performed on my side:

• The issue related to the Office Add-ins management section persists and continues to show the same behavior as previously reported.
• Conversely, the issue regarding the Power BI embedding controls in PowerPoint (switching between Live and Snapshot modes) has been resolved. These buttons are now functioning correctly and as expected.

I am currently waiting for feedback from the internal IT team specifically on the add-ins framework/runtime behavior. I will share any concrete updates or findings as soon as they are available.

Please let me know if you need any additional details in the meantime.

[v-hjannapu]

Hi @Guarne,
Thanks for the Update.
It’s good to hear that the Snapshot  Live mode functionality is now working as expected. Regarding the remaining issue , Once you receive an update or root cause from your IT team, it would be really helpful if you could share it here. This will definitely help others who might run into a similar scenario.

Please feel free to reach out if you notice any changes or need further assistance from our side.

Regards,
Community Support Team.

[v-hjannapu]

Hi @Guarne  , 
Just following up on this issue.
Could you please check once with your IT team and share if there is any update or root cause identified?
It may help other community members facing the same situation.

Regards,
Community Support Team.

[Guarne]

Hi @v-hjannapu, 

My IT department, after carrying out the checks under their responsibility, was unable to identify the cause of the issue and therefore opened a ticket with Microsoft’s competence center. Further investigations were carried out last Friday during a call involving several participants; however, it was still not possible to determine the root cause of the problem.

At this point, additional actions to be performed with my internal IT team have been provided to me, and I am currently in the process of scheduling a meeting with the stakeholders who need to be involved.

For a more detailed description, I am attaching the actions to be carried out, as indicated by Microsoft Support:

"I am sending you the tests to be executed on your device. To carry them out, the involvement of the security/network department will be required.

Reproduce the scenario by:

1 – Using a non-corporate network (mobile phone hotspot)
2 – Without VPN
3 – Disabling the antivirus

Below, I am also sending you the mandatory endpoints required for add-ins.

https://appsource.microsoft.com
https://.appsource.microsoft.com
https://.officeapps.live.com
https://officeapps.live.com
https://.office.com
https://.microsoft.com
https://login.microsoftonline.com
https://.login.microsoftonline.com
https://aadcdn.msauth.net
https://.msauth.net
https://*.cdn.office.net
https://res.cdn.office.net
https://static.officecdn.microsoft.com"

I would like to point out that the issues related to the real-time data and snapshot buttons for Power BI embedding in PowerPoint have started working again without any action taken, approximately one week after I first observed them.

However, the inability to access the add-ins section from the desktop app still persists.

I will keep you updated.

Thank you,
Matteo

[Guarne]

Hi @jedward2 ,

thanks for confirming that you’re experiencing the same issue. Below is a fully corrected and precise summary of what we observed and verified so far, including the outcomes of the troubleshooting session with Microsoft Support.

Observed behavior

• The issue was first identified in PowerPoint Desktop while updating an existing presentation with the latest available monthly data.
• ❌ In PowerPoint Desktop, it was not possible to switch the embedded report from Public Snapshot to Live Data, refresh the data, and then switch back to Public Snapshot.
• ❌ In PowerPoint Desktop, switching from Public Snapshot → Live Data does NOT work.
• ✅ The switch from Public Snapshot → Live Data works only in PowerPoint for the web, but once switched, it is not possible to switch back to Snapshot or Public Snapshot in Desktop.
• ❌ When inserting a new Power BI report in PowerPoint Desktop, it is only possible to keep Live Data mode; switching to Snapshot or Public Snapshot is not possible.
• ❌ Snapshot and Public Snapshot buttons are visible but non‑responsive.
• ❌ For the affected users, the Power BI add-in in PowerPoint Desktop remains stuck in “Loading…”.
• ✅ The same reports open correctly in Power BI Service via browser.

Scope

• The issue is reproducible across multiple reports (not report-specific).
• Only 1 user out of 4 can successfully use Snapshot.
• The other users cannot, despite having:
  • ✅ the same Office build (Version 2604)
  • ✅ the same Power BI Pro license
  • ✅ the same workspace role
  • ✅ reports hosted in a Premium (Fabric) workspace

Checks performed

• ✅ Office version prerequisite (2312+) verified and met
• ✅ Workspace type (Premium capacity) verified
• ✅ Licenses and workspace permissions verified
• ✅ Tenant snapshot/export settings verified (since the feature works for at least one user)
• ✅ Office Trust Center add-in settings verified (fully permissive, no blocking)
• ❌ Reset of Office Web Add-ins cache (%LOCALAPPDATA%\Microsoft\Office\16.0\Wef) did NOT resolve the issue

Microsoft Support findings (remote session)

• ❌ Power BI app not visible under File > Account > Apps
• ❌ In the Add-ins pane, the Power BI add-in attempts to load but eventually errors out
• ❌ Office add-ins do not load correctly in PowerPoint Desktop
• ✅ Limited interaction is possible only via PowerPoint for the web, as described above
• 👉 Microsoft concluded that the issue is likely related to the Office add-in framework on desktop, not to Power BI Service or report configuration

At this point, causes related to configuration, licenses, workspace, and reports have been excluded.
The issue appears to be desktop-only, account/runtime-specific, and potentially related to a regression or initialization failure in the Office add-in framework.

The case is now being handed over to our internal IT team for further investigation, as requested by Microsoft.

[v-hjannapu]

Hi @Guarne,

Thank you  for reaching out to the Microsoft fabric community forum.
If you find any solution from your IT team or Microsoft support, please share it here. It will really help others who are facing the same issue.

Regards,
Community Support Team.

[Guarne]

Hello @v-hjannapu ,

thank you for the follow-up.

At the moment, the ticket with my internal IT team is still open and under analysis.

From the latest checks performed on my side:

• The issue related to the Office Add-ins management section persists and continues to show the same behavior as previously reported.
• Conversely, the issue regarding the Power BI embedding controls in PowerPoint (switching between Live and Snapshot modes) has been resolved. These buttons are now functioning correctly and as expected.

I am currently waiting for feedback from the internal IT team specifically on the add-ins framework/runtime behavior. I will share any concrete updates or findings as soon as they are available.

Please let me know if you need any additional details in the meantime.

[Guarne]

Hi @GilbertQ ,

Thanks for the suggestion. We’ve already completed the following checks:

• PowerPoint version: PowerPoint is fully up to date (Microsoft 365 – latest build installed).
• Power BI add-in: There is no separate Power BI add-in to update. The Power BI integration in PowerPoint is native and updated together with PowerPoint itself. The Insert → Power BI button is present and working.
• Workspace: The report is hosted in a Premium capacity workspace (Fabric, SKU F128) — not Shared, not PPU.
• User license: The user has a Power BI Pro license, which is sufficient for embedding content from a Premium capacity workspace.
• Report access: The user has direct access to the report with View permissions.
• Baseline functionality: The same report opens correctly in Power BI Service via browser. The issue occurs only in PowerPoint when selecting/updating the public snapshot.
• Regression: This scenario was working correctly until recently; the issue started without configuration changes.

Based on these checks, the issue does not appear to be related to PowerPoint versioning, add-ins, licensing, or workspace capacity, and seems more likely related to a recent regression or service-side issue in the Power BI–PowerPoint integration (specifically around public snapshots).

[GilbertQ]

Hi @Guarne 

The first place I would start off is making sure that you are running the latest version of Powerpoint and 2nd to that make sure you are in the latest version of the Power BI add in in Powerpoint. If you can please let us know.

[Guarne]

Hello @GilbertQ 

I’ve opened a support ticket with Microsoft because we’re seeing inconsistent behavior with the Snapshot / Public Snapshot buttons in Power BI for PowerPoint.

With the same Office build, same Power BI license, and same workspace role, the functionality works only for 2 users, while it does not work for 4 others. For the affected users, the snapshot buttons are visible but do not respond, and the content remains in live data mode.

We tested with multiple reports and different colleagues, with the same results. Since the configuration is identical across users, this does not appear to be user- or report-specific. For this reason, we suspect a service-side issue or a recent regression in the Power BI–PowerPoint integration, and we have asked Microsoft to investigate.

[Guarne]

Hi @GilbertQ ,

Thanks for the suggestion. We’ve already completed the following checks:

• PowerPoint version: PowerPoint is fully up to date (Microsoft 365 – latest build installed).
• Power BI add-in: There is no separate Power BI add-in to update. The Power BI integration in PowerPoint is native and updated together with PowerPoint itself. The Insert → Power BI button is present and working.
• Workspace: The report is hosted in a Premium capacity workspace (Fabric, SKU F128) — not Shared, not PPU.
• User license: The user has a Power BI Pro license, which is sufficient for embedding content from a Premium capacity workspace.
• Report access: The user has direct access to the report with View permissions.
• Baseline functionality: The same report opens correctly in Power BI Service via browser. The issue occurs only in PowerPoint when selecting/updating the public snapshot.
• Regression: This scenario was working correctly until recently; the issue started without configuration changes.

Based on these checks, the issue does not appear to be related to PowerPoint versioning, add-ins, licensing, or workspace capacity, and seems more likely related to a recent regression or service-side issue in the Power BI–PowerPoint integration (specifically around public snapshots).

[Guarne]

Additionally, the buttons highlighted in green in the attached screenshot are not working (specifically the snapshot-related options, including the public snapshot).

This behavior is consistent and reproducible:

• it occurs across multiple different reports, not a single one;
• the same issue is observed when other colleagues perform the same action;
• changing report or user does not alter the outcome.

Given these tests, local configuration issues and report-specific problems can be reasonably excluded.
For this reason, we believe this is likely an issue on the Power BI Service and/or Microsoft side, potentially related to a recent regression in the Power BI–PowerPoint integration.