SQL direct query credentials

[mahimabedi]

scienario

"A" has access to SQL DB

"A" creates a report/dashbaord using direct query. uses SQL admin credntials in the gateway

"B" does not have access to the SQL DB

"A" shares the report/dasboard with "B"

Since for SQL only the admin credentials are passed to the gateway,  and not the user credentials- will "B" be able to view the report content?

[Seth_C_Bauer · Accepted solution]

@mahimabedi "B" will see whatever "A" can in this scenerio. There are no additional perms needed on the database for Direct Query. 

[Eric_Zhang]

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@mahimabedi wrote:

scienario

"A" has access to SQL DB

"A" creates a report/dashbaord using direct query. uses SQL admin credntials in the gateway

"B" does not have access to the SQL DB

"A" shares the report/dasboard with "B"

Since for SQL only the admin credentials are passed to the gateway,  and not the user credentials- will "B" be able to view the report content?

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@mahimabedi

The SQL admin credential determines that gateway can access the database.

Whoever you share your dashboard with can access the shared dashboard,report and data.

[Seth_C_Bauer · Accepted solution]

@mahimabedi "B" will see whatever "A" can in this scenerio. There are no additional perms needed on the database for Direct Query. 

[mahimabedi]

Is this also true for Azure SQl, where no gateway is required?

In effect for all datasources expect SSAS- if any dashboard is shared  with another user (B), B can see the content even if B dosnt not have acess to the database?

[Seth_C_Bauer · Accepted solution]

@mahimabedi

Is this also true for Azure SQl, where no gateway is required?

 As long as you haven't applied RLS, the same should apply. The author passes on their creds with the report.

In effect for all datasources expect SSAS- if any dashboard is shared  with another user (B), B can see the content even if B dosnt not have acess to the database? Direct Query, is not "Live Connection" - SSAS uses Live connection, and it requires that all end users have read access on the tabular model. If they don't, they won't be able to see the visualizations - they will just show as gray boxes.

[jwatson05]

we have a situation where we are NOT using SSAS Live Connection and when the person who creates the dashboard based on the direct connection to the on premise SQL Database (without using the Gateway) shares the dashboard, the person who received the shared dashboard cannot see the panes on the dashboard - they are all gray boxes with circles with X's in the circles. This worked a couple of weeks ago but quit working.

[Seth_C_Bauer]

@jwatson05 DQ without a gateway shouldn't be possible... Do the author and end user have Pro licenses?

[jwatson05]

yes, they both have PBI Pro licenses and the creator did not use the Gateway.

[jwatson05]

Correction: the creator did not use the Gateway, but used the Import Data connection from the Database, and NOT the Direct Query.

[Seth_C_Bauer]

@jwatson05 I assume the creator can see the reports with no issue? Validate that the dataset connection is ok. Try re-sharing the dashboard. There isn't anything in your description that leads me to believe the end user shouldn't see it... Are there any warnings or errors at the top of the page for them, or is it just gray boxes?
Is RLS applied to the report?

[jwatson05]

yes, the creator can see the dashboard and the associated reports just fine. Already tried re-sharing the dashboard but we get the same error. For the person not able to view the dashboard, he actually for a brief second see each report (graph, table, donut chart, etc.) begin to display but then quickly they're replaced in each report on the dashboard with a circle with an X in the circle and a message below the circle saying "you cannot view the report because row level security is preventing you". yet the creator never configured row level security. the creator used PBI Desktop and used the Import function not Direct Query. Also pulled in data from some excel tables to build relationships.

.

[Seth_C_Bauer]

@jwatson05 The report author needs to check the Roles in the Desktop file. Based on the error, I have to assume that there is a role applied in the Desktop. You can apply row level security in the Power BI Desktop itself. This is most likely the cause...

[jwatson05]

Thank you. I will double check but she walked me through the process of using the Import method in PBI Desktop to access a SQL Server database and she did not set up any row level security. Could there be some sort of default setting that could be happening which automatically turns on RLS?

[Seth_C_Bauer]

@jwatson05 Not to my knowledge.