worloads and functions

[powerbiexpert22]

i need to know more details about these two options (workloads and functions) in power bi service. what is their purpose and when we should use them?

[Nasif_Azam · Accepted solution]

Hey @powerbiexpert22 ,

In Power BI Service, both Workloads and Functions are advanced options mainly used in Fabric / Premium capacities to manage resources and extend capabilities:

Workloads:

1. Purpose: Workloads let you manage how capacity resources (memory/CPU) are allocated across different features in Power BI/Fabric like Dataflows, Datasets, Paginated Reports, AI, Real-Time Analytics.

2. When to use:

   • If you are an admin of a Premium capacity and want to optimize performance.

   • For example, if dataflows are consuming too many resources and slowing down report refreshes, you can adjust workload settings like max memory, or concurrency.

   • It’s mainly about tuning performance and stability across multiple workloads running in the same capacity.

Functions:

1. Purpose: Functions are reusable, parameterized queries you can create in Power BI dataflows. Instead of rewriting the same logic in multiple dataflows, you define it once as a Function and then call it with different inputs.

2. When to use:

   • If you need to apply the same transformation logic like currency conversion, date formatting, API call across multiple tables/dataflows.

   • It saves time, reduces duplication, and keeps transformations consistent.

Summary:

• Workloads = optimize how Premium/Fabric capacity is used.

• Functions = create reusable transformations inside dataflows.

If you found this solution helpful, please consider accepting it and giving it a kudos (Like) it’s greatly appreciated and helps others find the solution more easily.

Best Regards,
Nasif Azam

[v-kpoloju-msft · Accepted solution]

Hi @powerbiexpert22,

Thank you for reaching out to the Microsoft Fabric Community Forum. Also, thanks to @Nasif_Azam, @tayloramy, for those inputs on this thread.

I can share some clarity on the two options you mentioned Workloads and Functions in Power BI Service and when you might use them.

Workloads: These are part of capacity management in Power BI Premium/Fabric. They let you control how much memory and resources are allocated to different features like Datasets, Dataflows, Paginated Reports, or AI. For example, if you run many Dataflows but fewer reports, you can assign more resources to Dataflows. This helps improve performance and stability.

Refer these links:
1. https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/fabric/data-warehouse/workload-management 
2. https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/fabric/enterprise/powerbi/service-admin-premium-workloads 

Functions: These are mainly used in Power Query and Dataflows. Functions allow you to create reusable transformations or logic that you can apply across multiple queries or tables. For example, if you often need to remove weekends or convert time zones, you can write it once as a function and reuse it everywhere.

Refer this link:
1. https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/power-query/custom-function 

Use Workloads if you are an admin managing capacity resources. Use Functions if you are building dataflows or queries and want to reuse transformations.

Hope this clears it up. Let us know if you have any doubts regarding this. We will be happy to help.

Thank you for using the Microsoft Fabric Community Forum.

[v-kpoloju-msft]

Hi @powerbiexpert22,

Just checking in to see if the issue has been resolved on your end. If the earlier suggestions helped, that’s great to hear! And if you’re still facing challenges, feel free to share more details happy to assist further.

Thank you.

[v-kpoloju-msft]

Hi @powerbiexpert22,

Hope you had a chance to try out the solution shared earlier. Let us know if anything needs further clarification or if there's an update from your side always here to help.

Thank you.

[v-kpoloju-msft]

Hi @powerbiexpert22.

Just wanted to follow up one last time. If the shared guidance worked for you, that’s wonderful hopefully it also helps others looking for similar answers. If there’s anything else you'd like to explore or clarify, don’t hesitate to reach out.

Thank you.

[tayloramy]

Hi @powerbiexpert22, 

One correction to @Nasif_Azam's helpful post: 
Workloads are different feature sets in Fabric. The workloads tab does not allow you to confiure memory/CU settings for existing workloads, but rather allows a fabric administrator to add more workloads to add features to Fabric: 
Microsoft Fabric workload environment - Microsoft Fabric | Microsoft Learn

Functions allow you to view all User Data Functions that have been created: Overview - Fabric User data functions (preview) - Microsoft Fabric | Microsoft Learn

Quickstart - Create a Fabric User data functions item (Preview) - Microsoft Fabric | Microsoft Learn

User data functions is a feature that allows you to host and run your own code on Fabric. This empowers data developers to write their business logic and embed it into their Fabric ecosystem. This feature supports the Python 3.11.9 runtime and allows you to use public libraries from PyPI, Fabric data connections and much more.

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[Nasif_Azam]

Hey @tayloramy ,

Thanks a lot for the clarification; really appreciate your explanation along with reference.

I explained Workloads and Functions more from a classic Power BI / Premium capacity perspective, which is why my answer was a bit less accurate for the current Fabric context.  Your provided reference make the confusion clear to me. So thanks again for helping improve the explanation for everyone reading this thread.

If you found this solution helpful, please consider accepting it and giving it a kudos (Like) it’s greatly appreciated and helps others find the solution more easily.

Best Regards,
Nasif Azam

[Nasif_Azam · Accepted solution]

Hey @powerbiexpert22 ,

In Power BI Service, both Workloads and Functions are advanced options mainly used in Fabric / Premium capacities to manage resources and extend capabilities:

Workloads:

1. Purpose: Workloads let you manage how capacity resources (memory/CPU) are allocated across different features in Power BI/Fabric like Dataflows, Datasets, Paginated Reports, AI, Real-Time Analytics.

2. When to use:

   • If you are an admin of a Premium capacity and want to optimize performance.

   • For example, if dataflows are consuming too many resources and slowing down report refreshes, you can adjust workload settings like max memory, or concurrency.

   • It’s mainly about tuning performance and stability across multiple workloads running in the same capacity.

Functions:

1. Purpose: Functions are reusable, parameterized queries you can create in Power BI dataflows. Instead of rewriting the same logic in multiple dataflows, you define it once as a Function and then call it with different inputs.

2. When to use:

   • If you need to apply the same transformation logic like currency conversion, date formatting, API call across multiple tables/dataflows.

   • It saves time, reduces duplication, and keeps transformations consistent.

Summary:

• Workloads = optimize how Premium/Fabric capacity is used.

• Functions = create reusable transformations inside dataflows.

If you found this solution helpful, please consider accepting it and giving it a kudos (Like) it’s greatly appreciated and helps others find the solution more easily.

Best Regards,
Nasif Azam