Semantic Model Takes a Long Time To Refresh

TARUGOKING 

Would it be possible you have many transformation steps in Power Query, like nested loops etc. ? or if all queries can be folded to SQL DB, could you run SQL query directly in SSMS and see how long they take? 

Also, if i'm in your situation I would consider consolidating these 2 datasets into a single semantic model.

Thankyou, pborah, MasonMA, for your response.

Hi TARUGOKING,

We appreciate your question on the Microsoft Fabric Community Forum.

From what I understand, the main reason for the 15-minute refresh time is the processing delay on the Power BI Service side, not the data source or how complex the data transformation is. This is because the SQL query runs in less than 1 second, Power Query steps are few, and the data volume is low (about 4,000 rows).

Please try the following steps to reduce the refresh time:

1. Turn off the Auto Date/Time feature. This feature can create hidden date tables for datetime fields, which can increase the model size and refresh time.
2. Check if Query Folding is working. Even if your transformations are simple, Power BI may not send all calculations to SQL. In Power Query Editor, right-click each step and choose “View Native Query.” If this option is not available, it means Power BI is processing data locally, which takes more time.
3. Refresh delay can happen if your dataset and Power BI workspace are in different regions.
4. Since your SQL job finishes at 7:59 AM, start the Power BI refresh at 8:05 AM to avoid heavy load on the backend during peak time.
5. You are currently using two datasets. Combining them into one can reduce metadata load and speed up refresh.

Also, please check these useful links:
Troubleshoot refresh scenarios - Power BI | Microsoft Learn
Optimization guide for Power BI - Power BI | Microsoft Learn

If you have any more questions, feel free to contact the Microsoft Fabric community.

Thank you.

Hi TARUGOKING,

We are checking in to know if the information we provided helped in resolving your issue.
If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to contact the Microsoft Fabric community.

Thank you.

Hi TARUGOKING,

Thank you for sharing the updates and the action plan.

We are checking to know if the information we shared helped you solve your problem.
If you have any more questions, please feel free to ask the Microsoft Fabric community.

Thank you.

Update (done yesterday): 

• Gateway version is now the latest
• Gateway server now has 16GB RAM

The 8AM scheduled run took 14 mins. I scheduled a 9:30 AM run to see how long this will take because it looks like at 8AM, another report update was scheduled to run as well.

An on-demand refresh takes +/- 15 secs.

Hi TARUGOKING,

Thank you for sharing the updates. Please keep us informed.

We are also checking to see if the information we shared helped you solve your problem.
If you have any more questions, feel free to ask the Microsoft Fabric community.

Thank you.