What Is PowerBI?

PowerBI is a business analytics service provided by Microsoft that offers data preparation, data discovery, and interactive dashboards. It enables users to visualize data, share insights across an organization, or embed them in an app or website. PowerBI connects to a wide range of data sources, transforming data into interactive reports and dashboards with powerful visualization tools. This service is widely used for its ability to integrate with other Microsoft products, such as Excel and Azure, and its user-friendly interface which makes it accessible to users of all skill levels.

Associated Exams

• Exam Code: DA-100 (Analyzing Data with Microsoft Power BI)
• Certification: Microsoft Certified: Data Analyst Associate
• Format: Multiple choice, multiple response, and case studies
• Delivery Method: Online proctored or test center

Exam Costs

• Estimated Cost: $165 USD (varies by country)

Exam Objectives

• Prepare the data
• Model the data
• Visualize the data
• Analyze the data
• Deploy and maintain deliverables

Frequently Asked Questions Related to PowerBI

Key Term Knowledge Base: Key Terms Related to What Is Power BI?

Power BI is a collection of software services, apps, and connectors that work together to turn unrelated sources of data into coherent, visually immersive, and interactive insights. Your data may be an Excel spreadsheet, or a collection of cloud-based and on-premises hybrid data warehouses. Power BI lets you easily connect to your data sources, visualize what’s important, and share that with anyone or everyone you want. Understanding the key terms related to Power BI is crucial for professionals working with data analytics, business intelligence, and for those who aim to leverage Power BI to its fullest potential. These terms help in navigating through the tool, understanding its capabilities, and applying its features effectively to derive meaningful insights from data.

Term	Definition
Power BI Desktop	A free application available for PCs that lets users create reports and data visualizations on the desktop.
Power BI Service	A cloud-based service (sometimes referred to as Power BI Online) that enables users to share, collaborate on, and distribute Power BI reports and dashboards.
Power BI Pro	A subscription-based service offering more storage and refresh capabilities than the free version, allowing for collaboration and distribution of reports and dashboards among users.
Power BI Premium	A capacity-based offering that provides dedicated resources for your organization or team, giving you more consistent performance and larger data volumes, without requiring per-user licenses.
DAX (Data Analysis Expressions)	A library of functions and operators used to build formulas and expressions in Power BI, SQL Server Analysis Services, and Power Pivot in Excel.
Power Query	A data connection technology that enables you to discover, connect, combine, and refine data across a wide variety of sources.
Data Model	A collection of tables and their relationships reflecting the real-world entities and interactions for analytical processes in Power BI.
Visualizations	The visual representations of data insights within Power BI, including charts, graphs, maps, and other visual elements.
Dashboards	A single-page, often called a canvas, that uses visualizations to tell a story. They are meant to provide a high-level overview of key metrics at a glance.
Reports	A collection of data visualizations that appear together on one or more pages. Unlike dashboards, reports are more detailed and can be filtered and drilled into.
Slicers	Power BI visuals used to filter the data displayed in other visualizations on a report page.
Tiles	Single visualizations in a dashboard, each representing a snapshot of your data at the time you create the dashboard.
Q&A Feature	A question and answer feature in Power BI that allows users to explore their data by using natural language queries.
Power BI Gateway	Software that enables secure data transfer between Power BI service and on-premises data sources.
Data Refresh	The process of updating the data in your reports and dashboards to reflect more current data.
Power BI Embedded	A Microsoft Azure service that allows developers to embed Power BI reports and dashboards into custom applications.
Power BI Mobile Apps	Applications for iOS and Android devices that allow users to view and interact with Power BI reports and dashboards on the go.
Workspace	A collaborative environment in Power BI where datasets, reports, dashboards, and other Power BI assets are stored and managed.
Publish to Web	A feature that allows users to publish reports for public or organizational consumption on the web.
Power BI Apps	A collection of pre-built Power BI dashboards and reports that provide insights into a service’s data, which are often bundled together for a specific department or team.