Forum Discussion
Sharepoint List Importing Problems
Hi Sogi,
Even though the error message looks like a UI/JavaScript failure (
ImageHtmlManagerBase.ts), the root cause is almost never the UI. That message appears when Power BI fails to retrieve or expand the SharePoint list metadata, and the UI crashes while trying to render the preview.In other words: Power BI can see the list, but cannot materialize it into a table.
Some potential solutions may be:
1. The SharePoint site URL is slightly wrong. Instead maybe try:
SharePoint.Tables("https://newnanga.sharepoint.com/sites/Maintenance")2. The list contains unsupported column types. These columns load in preview, but fail when Power BI tries to expand them, triggering the UI crash suggested. Can try:
https://newnanga.sharepoint.com/sites/Maintenance/_api/web/lists/getbytitle('YourListName')3. You’re using the v2.0 SharePoint connector. Switching to the legacy connector often fixes the issue instantly.
The v2.0 connector is faster but much more fragile. It may break on:
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Large lists
-
Lists with complex fields
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Lists with hidden system columns
-
Lists with attachments enabled
4. Permissions mismatch.
If this does not resolve the issue, Could you share if:
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The SharePoint list column types ?
-
Double check that the site name is spelled correctly
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Whether you’re using Power BI Desktop or Power BI Service ?
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Whether the list is large (10k+ items) ?
Mask any sensitive data necessary.-
That error is usually not your M code – it’s the Power Query UI failing while rendering the SharePoint preview/result, most often because one of the columns contains rich content (image/html/attachments/people fields) that the editor struggles with.
A few quick fixes that typically resolve it:
1) Don’t load the whole “tables navigator” object
Right now you’re returning SharePoint.Tables(...) directly. Instead, pick the list and only return its items.
Example pattern:
let
Source = SharePoint.Tables("https://newnanga.sharepoint.com/sites/Maintenace", [Implementation="2.0", ViewMode="All"]),
MyList = Source{[Id="YOUR_LIST_ID"]}[Items]
in
MyList(You can also select by [Name="Your List Name"] if it’s stable.)
2) Remove “problem” columns early (common culprits)
In the query, immediately remove columns like:
Attachments
Thumbnail / Image
Rich text / HTML columns
Person or Group
Lookup (multi-select)
Even if you need them later, load the basic table first, then add them back carefully.
3) Try switching the connector behavior
In your code you already use Implementation="2.0". If it still fails, try Implementation="1.0" (some tenants/lists behave better with the older API):
SharePoint.Tables("https://.../sites/Maintenace", [Implementation="1.0", ViewMode="All"])4) If the list is large, filter rows early
Very large lists can preview but fail on transform/load. Add a filter early (e.g., only last 90 days) to confirm it’s not a volume/throttling issue.