"Workspace OneDrive" and "SharePoint - Team Sites". What's the difference?

[GarryPope]

Hello Power BI Community,

Can you help please?

When in a Workspace, if I click "Get data" > Navigate to "Files" > click "Get", I am presented with four options.

For the "SharePoint - Team Sites" option I can go to a SharePoint folder and upload a saved PBIX file to Power BI Service and follow the practice of version control. That's all good and understood. 

But what I've noticed is for some Workspaces I have a fifth option, "OneDrive - NameOfMicrosoftTeamteam".

I understand that this Workspace got created as a result of a Microsoft Teams team being created.
It inserted the "Microsoft 365 Group" that also got created due to the creation of the Microsoft Teams team, into the "Workspace OneDrive" of the "Settings" of the Workspace.

So, my questions are:

1. What's the different between the "SharePoint - Team Sites" or the "OneDrive - NameOfMicrosoftTeamteam" options?
2. Is one option giving me more over the other?

Thanks in advance for any help you can provide.

Garry

PS. I believe I've read all the documentation in Microsoft Docs about this, but can't find any answer to my exact questions. 

[Anonymous]

Hi @GarryPope ,

Please refer to the four options' differences.

• Microsoft OneDrive: Microsoft OverDrive: If you are working in a corporate environment, this is not the ideal storage option. OneDrive is intended specifically for your home PC and your personal files. Some companies will allow the use of OneDrive in the office, and while that does not cause any harm, it is best to think about OneDrive for your personal files, such as your photos, family documents, or personal documents which you don’t want to share with others, especially in a business setting.
• Microsoft SharePoint: SharePoint is an enterprise tool made for securely sharing files within departments and teams, and across different departments. If you will need to share your file at any point, think SharePoint. In addition to the easy sharing capabilities, there is a sync button in SharePoint which will sync the files to your OneDrive for Business. It is always recommended to use OneDrive for Business whenever you need to synchronize SharePoint files to your local device.
• Microsoft OneDrive for Business: This can be used to store document such as a report you are not sharing with your team, or across multiple teams. You can store OneDrive for business files intended for individual use, up to one terabyte per person. Note that SharePoint limits are decided by your company’s tenant limit, however, OneDrive for business has a one terabyte per person limit by default.
• Microsoft Teams: Teams is immensely powerful as it allows you to chat with your team, hold meeting calls, collaborate, and co-author documents, all in one place. You can easily include files in ongoing conversations, and even tag the file for co-authoring. Teams is ideal to use for the more cohesive, quick online collaboration and is highly recommended.

Best Regards

Community Support Team _ Polly

If this post helps, then please consider Accept it as the solution to help the other members find it more quickly.

[GarryPope]

Hello @Anonymous,

Thank you so much for the reply, I appreciate it. 

I'm sorry, but I don't think I explained myself correctly. 

Really I want to know, why would I choose the "OneDrive for Business" option over the "SharePoint - Teams Site" to sync my BPIX files on the Power BI Service?

If I look at this Microsoft Docs it says:

"OneDrive - Business – If you have OneDrive for Business and you sign into it with the same account you sign into Power BI with, this is by-far the most effective way to keep your work in Excel, Power BI Desktop, or a .CSV file and your dataset, reports, and dashboards in Power BI in-sync. Because both Power BI and OneDrive are in the cloud, Power BI connects to your file on OneDrive about every hour."

"SharePoint Team-Sites – Saving your Power BI Desktop files to SharePoint – Team Sites is much the same as saving to OneDrive for Business. The biggest difference is how you connect to the file from Power BI. You can specify a URL or connect to the root folder."

The only differences I see it:

1. If you use the "OneDrive for Business" option it takes me directly into the folders, so I click folder A, then folder B etc to find my PBIX file... Plus, in the above it says "this is by-far the most effective way"...
2. If you use the "SharePoint Teams - Sites" option, then I have to provide a SharePoint URL to the folder to find my PBIX file. Plus, in the above it confirms what I'm saying.

[Anonymous]

Hi @GarryPope ,

Please refer to the following document for more details.

https://docs.microsoft.com/power-bi/collaborate-share/service-create-the-new-workspaces#set-a-worksp...

Best Regards

Community Support Team _ Polly

If this post helps, then please consider Accept it as the solution to help the other members find it more quickly.

[GarryPope]

Hello @Anonymous,

Once again, thanks so much for the reply.

I've had a look at the above Microsoft Docs before. I'm not seeing where it answers my question; and what's more confusing is the document tells you how to "Access the workspace OneDrive location" and it shows you in an image to "2. Select SharePoint - Team Sites". 

Haha. Maybe I'm just being dim, but it doesn't make sense. No worries, though. And again, thanks for all your help.