Energy BI 101, Report Authoring Instruments

That is my final weblog put up in 2021. I want you all a beautiful break and a cheerful new yr.

Within the first put up of my Energy BI 101 collection, we learnt that Energy BI is an information platform containing numerous instruments and companies. We additionally defined the presently out there subscriptions throughout the Energy BI platform. The main focus of the second put up of this collection is on what we should always be taught to attain our targets extra effectively. On this put up, we concentrate on the reporting instruments out there to us in line with our subscription plan. From this put up onwards, we talk about extra particular facets of the Energy BI platform.

We learnt thus far that Energy BI is not only a reporting instrument to construct refined stories; it’s certainly a platform supplying a variety of options from information preparation, information modelling and information visualization to contribute to an organisation’s information evaluation journey in some ways reminiscent of sharing datasets, stories, and dashboards. All of those are doable provided that we take the right steps in constructing our Energy BI ecosystem. However, it is extremely true that Energy BI provides us the pliability to create professional-looking and crowd pleasing visualisations offering simple to grasp insights round a topic. Probably the most famend instrument inside Energy BI is Energy BI Desktop, however it isn’t the one instrument out there to us to create stories. In addition to, Energy BI Desktop stories usually are not essentially the very best reply to all enterprise necessities. Actually, the enterprise necessities outline the Energy BI structure that helps these necessities. Primarily based on the structure, organisations resolve to amass a sure subscription plan, and based mostly on the subscription plan, we now have numerous reporting instruments out there to us. At this level, you may ask, “nicely, what structure helps my organisation requires?”. Let’s reply that query in a future weblog put up.

For the aim of this weblog put up, it is sufficient to know what reporting instruments can be found underneath which subscription plans. Let’s get began.

Reporting instruments out there in Energy BI

As talked about earlier, there are numerous reporting instruments out there to us. Let’s first see what reporting instruments can be found to us whatever the subscription plans. Then we are going to take a look at the subscription plans supporting these instruments.

Energy BI Service

Energy BI Service is a SaaS (Software program as a Service) providing from Microsoft within the cloud. The customers inside an organisation, relying on their entry rights, might create stories straight in Energy BI Service. The customers can even securely share and distribute these stories. Whereas creating or modifying stories is feasible in Energy BI Service, it’s strongly really useful to keep away from this methodology for a number of causes. The obvious one is that the adjustments we make to a report might quickly get overwritten by another person that republishes the identical report from Energy BI Desktop. Verify this weblog put up from SQLChick to see why you must keep away from creating or modifying stories straight from Energy BI Service. The stories are downloadable in PBIX format. 

You’ll be able to entry Energy BI Service right here.

Energy BI Desktop

It’s a desktop software constructed for information preparation, information modelling and information visualisation. When you prefer to study information modelling with Energy BI, take a look at my guide right here. We are able to use Energy BI Desktop to connect with greater than 250 completely different information sources, getting ready, reworking and cleaning that information and at lastly visualising the info. Energy BI Desktop is the predominant and most famed report authoring instrument out there within the Energy BI platform. It has many extra functionalities and is extra versatile than Energy BI Service. As an illustration, organising Role Level Security (RLS) is just not out there in Energy BI Service. The file format of the stories created in Energy BI Desktop is PBIX. 

Obtain Energy BI Desktop from right here.

Energy BI Report Builder (Paginated)

Paginated stories aka pixel-perfect stories are formatted in a method to match completely on a web page. That report web page may later be printed. We now have precise management over web page formatting to show our information in tables or charts. The stories usually are not as interactive because the stories created in Energy BI Desktop.

Paginated stories are based mostly on RDL know-how which is customary report format in SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS). The instrument for growing a paginated report within the Energy BI ecosystem is Energy BI Report Builder. The stories file sort is RDL. We are able to presently publish Paginated stories solely to a Workspace that’s backed with both a Premium Per User (PPU) or a Premium Capability. 

Obtain Energy BI Report Builder from right here.

Energy BI Desktop Optimised for Report Server (RS)

Power BI Report Server (PBIRS) is an on-premises server able to rendering Energy BI report information (PBIX). If we now have a PBIRS up and working inside our organisation and we require to publish Energy BI stories to PBIRS, then we might want to create our stories in a particular version of Energy BI Desktop which is optimised for PBIRS. This version is completely different from Energy BI Desktop, which we often use to create and publish our stories to Energy BI Service. As an illustration, Energy BI Desktop RS doesn’t embrace the preview options we used to see in Energy BI Desktop till these options are launched. Constructing stories in Energy BI Desktop RS ensures that the stories are totally practical after being deployed to our PBIRS. We are able to set up Energy BI Desktop and Energy BI Desktop RS side-by-side on the identical machine. 

Obtain Energy BI Desktop RS from right here.

Microsoft Excel

Microsoft Excel is an incredible spreadsheet software program with many analytical capabilities. Certainly, Excel is one probably the most extensively used software program each accountant has of their toolbox. It’s sturdy, versatile and really highly effective in information visualisation and information evaluation. With Microsoft Excel, we are able to connect with many various information sources (identical to Energy BI Desktop). We are able to use Energy Question for Excel to load information into workbooks, rework and mix that information and cargo it into an information mannequin out there in Energy Pivot. We are able to additionally construct an information mannequin in Energy Pivot. Microsoft Excel gives a sturdy reporting expertise. We are able to publish the Excel information to Energy BI Service in two methods:

• Publishing Excel as an Excel workbook
• Publishing Excel information mannequin as a dataset

If we choose to publish the Excel stories as a workbook, then we are going to get a full Excel expertise inside Energy BI Service simply line how the Excel On-line works. In distinction, if we publish the info mannequin from Excel as a dataset then the datasets created in Excel, identical to every other datasets in Energy BI Service, can be found to authorised individuals.

The Excel datasets, like different revealed datasets in Energy BI Service, will also be used to create stories in Energy BI Service or Energy BI Desktop. 

Strive Excel without spending a dime from right here.

Report Builder

Report Builder is also referred to as SQL Server Report Builder. It’s a stand-alone report authoring instrument put in on our PC. We are able to create paginated stories within the Report Builder and deploy the stories to a Energy BI Report Server occasion. Report Builder is similar to Energy BI Report Builder. The distinction between the 2 is that with Report Builder you’ll be able to deploy the stories to an on-premises Energy BI Report Server however with Energy BI Report Builder you’ll be able to presently publish the stories to a Premium Workspace in Energy BI Service.

Obtain Report Builder from right here.

Cellular Report Writer (aka DataZen)

Microsoft SQL Server Cellular Report Writer is a report authoring instrument for SQL Server 2016 Reporting Companies (SSRS) and above. Cellular Report Writer’s unique title is DataZen which was initially launched in 2013 and bought by Microsoft in 2014. Microsoft built-in DataZen into SQL Server Reporting Companies 2016. You could ask “how Cellular Report Writer is expounded to Energy BI?“. The reply is that we are able to create Reporting Companies cellular stories utilizing the Cellular Report Writer and deploy these stories right into a Energy BI Report Server. The stories constructed with Cellular Report Writer are optimized for consumption in cellular units.

Obtain Cellular Report Writer from right here.

Now that we all know all our reporting choices within the Energy BI ecosystem, let’s learn the way these reporting instruments are supported on completely different subscription plans.

Energy BI Subscriptions and their Supported Reporting Instruments

One of the crucial vital selections each organisation ought to make is to give you an structure that helps the organisation’s analytical necessities. Relying on the structure, you could require one of many following subscription plans or a mix of them.

Here’s a very transient clarification of presently out there subscriptions and their out there reporting instruments.

Energy BI Free

Because the title resembles, that is the free providing from Microsoft. We don’t require to subscribe or pay something to create our stories in Energy BI Desktop and publish them to the Energy BI Service.

Out there reporting instruments:

• Energy BI Desktop
• Energy BI Service (creating report functionality)

Energy BI Professional

Energy BI Professional is the primary subscription tier providing from Microsoft. The next reporting instruments can be found underneath the Energy BI Professional:

• Energy BI Desktop
• Energy BI Service (creating report functionality)
• Microsoft Excel
  • Analyse in Excel
  • Connecting to Energy BI Datasets and creating stories in Excel

You could marvel how the Analyse in Excel and Connecting to Energy BI Datasets are completely different. Right here is the reply, relying on our permissions, we now have the previous two choices to connect with and create stories in Excel on prime of present Energy BI stories and datasets on the Energy BI Service.

Analyse in Excel

This selection is accessible from the Energy BI Service on prime of the present stories or datasets on the Energy BI Service itself. After we login to the service, if we now have permission, we are able to…

1. Click on on the Extra Choices button on a report or a dataset
2. Click on Analyse in Excel

3. If you have already got the most recent model of Excel libraries put in in your machine then click on Obtain in any other case click on the I’ve already put in these updates hyperlink. A I’ve the Excel libraries put in on my machine, I click on the hyperlink

The above course of downloads an Excel file related to the underlying dataset. You’ll be able to open the Excel file and begin creating your stories.

Connecting to Energy BI Datasets and creating stories in Excel

On this situation, we join from Excel to the datasets out there to us on the Energy BI Service. The next steps clarify how to take action:

1. Open Excel and login to your M365 account

2. Click on the Information tab
3. Click on the Get Information button
4. Click on From Energy BI Dataset
5. You require to move your Energy BI credentials, then you’ll be able to choose the specified dataset to connect with

Observe

We require to M365 account to have the ability to use connect with a Energy BI dataset.

Energy BI Premium Per Consumer (PPU)

The PPU subscription permits organisations to get the premium options by subscribing to a PPU for every person. Learn extra about PPU and its options right here. The next reporting instruments can be found to us when we now have a PPU subscription:

• Energy BI Desktop
• Energy BI Service (creating stories functionality)
• Microsoft Excel
  • Analyse in Excel
  • Connecting to Energy BI datasets and stories from Excel
• Energy BI Report Builder (Paginated stories)
• Thirdpatry reporting instruments reminiscent of Tableau through XMLA endpoints

Energy BI Premium Capability

Energy BI Premium is an enterprise-grade BI providing within the Energy BI ecosystem. It is a capacity-based subscription which means we get devoted sources and gives larger scale and efficiency for Energy BI. The Energy BI Premium capability allows extra customers throughout the organisation to get probably the most out of all out there Energy BI contents with higher efficiency. Learn extra about Energy BI Premium capability right here. The next reporting instruments can be found to us when we now have a Premium capability:

• Energy BI Desktop
• Energy BI Service (creating stories functionality)
• Microsoft Excel
  • Analyse in Excel
  • Connecting to Energy BI datasets and stories from Excel
• Energy BI Report Builder (Paginated stories)
• Thirdpatry reporting instruments reminiscent of Tableau through XMLA endpoints
• Energy BI Desktop Optimised for Report Server (RS)
• Report Builder
• Cellular Report Writer (aka DataZen)

Energy BI Embedded

Energy BI Embedded is one other service providing from Microsoft primarily for software program growth firms who wish to embed Energy BI reporting performance into their purposes. You could use Energy BI Embedded in your organisation both you’re a software program vendor (ISV) otherwise you’re constructing in home purposes that embrace Energy BI reporting performance otherwise you’d like to check some Energy BI Premium Capability functionalities. Sure! That’s proper. Energy BI Embedded capability works similar to Energy BI Premium capability and lots of Premium functionalities can be found in Embedded capability as nicely like the power to make use of XMLA endpoints over each Embedded and Premium capacities. You’ll be able to take a look at an Embedded capability without spending a dime. Learn this put up to learn the way. Be taught extra about Energy BI Embedded right here. The next reporting instruments can be found to us when we now have an Embedded capability:

• Energy BI Desktop
• Energy BI Service (creating stories functionality)
• Microsoft Excel
  • Analyse in Excel
  • Connecting to Energy BI datasets and stories from Excel
• Energy BI Report Builder (Paginated stories)
• Thirdpatry reporting instruments reminiscent of Tableau through XMLA endpoints
• Energy BI Desktop Optimised for Report Server (RS) (Solely out there in A4 SKU and above)

Right here you go. Now you’ve a greater understanding of the reporting instruments out there on the Energy BI ecosystem and when you need to use them. You probably have any feedback, please share it with us within the feedback part under.