Introduction to Power BI
Learn what Power BI is, how it works, and the core concepts behind Microsoft's business intelligence platform.
Introduction to Power BI
Power BI is Microsoft's business intelligence platform used to connect, transform, model, visualize, and analyze data.
It allows organizations to turn raw data from multiple sources into interactive reports and dashboards that support better decision-making.
What is Power BI?
Power BI combines several technologies:
- Data connectivity — Connect to databases, Excel files, cloud services, APIs, and other sources.
- Data transformation — Clean and reshape data using Power Query.
- Data modeling — Build relationships between tables and create analytical models.
- Data analysis — Create calculations using Data Analysis Expressions (DAX).
- Data visualization — Present insights through interactive charts, tables, and dashboards.
A typical Power BI workflow looks like:
1
Data Source
Connect to databases, files, APIs, and other sources.
2
Power Query
Clean, transform, and prepare data using M queries.
3
Data Model
Create relationships, dimensions, and fact tables.
4
DAX Calculations
Create measures, calculated columns, and business logic.
5
Reports & Dashboards
Build visualizations and share insights.
The Power BI Components
Power BI is made up of several applications.
Power BI Desktop
Power BI Desktop is the primary development tool.
Used for:
- Connecting to data
- Cleaning data
- Creating relationships
- Writing DAX measures
- Building reports
Most developers build their reports here before publishing.
Power BI Service
The Power BI Service is the cloud platform where reports are shared and managed.
Used for:
- Publishing reports
- Creating dashboards
- Managing workspaces
- Scheduling refreshes
- Controlling security
Power Query
Power Query is the data preparation engine inside Power BI.
It is used to:
- Remove unnecessary columns
- Change data types
- Combine tables
- Merge datasets
- Create repeatable transformations
Example:
let
Source = Excel.Workbook(File.Contents("Sales.xlsx")),
SalesTable = Source{[Name="Sales"]}[Data]
in
SalesTable