migrate incremental refresh enabled reports from one tenant to another

[powerbiexpert22]

i need to migrate some reports with incremental refresh enabled from one power bi tenant to another tenant, i cannot download those pbix fles since due to incremental refresh enabled , how to migrate?, the person who designed those reports has left organization and i do not know where those original pbix files are available 

[GilbertQ]

Hi @powerbiexpert22 

THere is an easy way to do this using Visual studio code and Power BI Studio.

Please follow this blog post to find how to get the file downloaded Download any Power BI Report from the Power BI Service - FourMoo | Microsoft Fabric | Power BI

[v-menakakota]

Hi @powerbiexpert22 ,
Thanks for reaching out to the Microsoft fabric community forum. 

I would also take a moment to thank @GilbertQ   , for actively participating in the community forum and for the solutions you’ve been sharing in the community forum. Your contributions make a real difference.

I hope the above details help you fix the issue. If you still have any questions or need more help, feel free to reach out. We’re always here to support you .

Best Regards, 
Community Support Team 

[v-menakakota]

Hi @powerbiexpert22 ,
Thanks for reaching out to the Microsoft fabric community forum. 

I hope the above details help you fix the issue. If you still have any questions or need more help, feel free to reach out. We’re always here to support you .

Best Regards, 
Community Support Team 

[Nasif_Azam · Accepted solution]

Dear @powerbiexpert22 ,

Unfortunately, once a Power BI dataset has incremental refresh enabled and is published to the Service, the original PBIX file can not be downloaded back. This is a limitation by design because the dataset in the Service is partitioned and optimized differently from the original model. However, you can try the possible options:

1) Check OneDrive or Source Control: First, try to locate the original PBIX file in any shared project folder (SharePoint, OneDrive, or version control like Git). Developers often store source PBIX files outside Power BI Service.

2) If You Still Have Access to the Workspace:

• Go to the dataset settings and note the data source like SQL Server, Fabric Lakehouse, etc.

• You can rebuild the PBIX manually by connecting to the same data source and reapplying the model settings and measures.

• Export the dataset schema using the Tabular Editor to recreate the model in the target tenant.

3) Use XMLA Endpoint (Premium/PPU Only):

• Connect to the existing dataset using Tabular Editor or SSMS.

• Export the model as a TMSL script or BIM file.

• In the new tenant, deploy it to a workspace using XMLA or Fabric endpoint.

4) If You Have Only the Report (No Dataset):

• You can use Power BI Desktop → Get Data → Power BI Datasets to connect to the existing dataset and rebuild the visuals.

• Then publish it to the new tenant after reconnecting to the migrated dataset.

Best Regards,
Nasif Azam

[GeraldGEmerick]

@powerbiexpert22 See if you can do the following:

1. Use Tabular Editor to connect to the dataset in the Power BI Service.

2. Select the table with the incremental refresh policy applied.

3. Disable the Incremental Refresh Policy for the table.

4. Add a new partition and write the M-code for a full refresh partition.

5. Remove the existing incremental refresh partitions.

6. Save the changes to the connected database.

Download database *should* now be available. You can download the PBIX, configure incremental refresh again (or not) and republish to the new tenant. 

To connect Tabular Editor to the Power BI Service, you need to use the XMLA Endpoint provided by Power BI Premium or Premium Per User (PPU) workspaces. Below are the steps to establish this connection.

Step 1: Enable XMLA Endpoint

1. Ensure your workspace is assigned to a Premium capacity or PPU license.

2. Go to the Power BI Admin Portal: Navigate to Settings > Admin Portal > Capacity Settings. Under your capacity, expand Workloads and enable the XMLA Endpoint for Read-Write.

Step 2: Retrieve Workspace Connection URL

• Open your Power BI workspace.

• Go to Settings > Premium > Workspace Connection.

• Copy the connection string, which will look like:

powerbi://api.powerbi.com/v1.0/myorg/<workspace_name>

Step 3: Connect Using Tabular Editor

1. Open Tabular Editor (version 2.x or 3.x).

2. In the connection dialog: For Server, paste the copied XMLA Endpoint URL. Use Active Directory Authentication (e.g., your organizational account).

3. If prompted, complete Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA).

Step 4: Deploy or Manage Models

• Once connected, you can: Deploy tabular models directly to the Power BI Service. Edit and manage existing models in the workspace.