Power BI Interview Questions and Answers
Freshers / Beginner level questions & answers
Ques 1. What is Power BI?
Power BI is a business analytics service by Microsoft that provides interactive visualizations and business intelligence capabilities with an interface simple enough for end users to create their own reports and dashboards.
Ques 2. What is a data model in Power BI?
A data model in Power BI is a collection of data tables, relationships, and calculations that are used to create meaningful visualizations and insights.
Ques 3. What is a slicer in Power BI?
A slicer in Power BI is a visual control that allows users to filter data in a report. It provides a way to easily select and view specific data points or ranges.
Ques 4. How can you share a Power BI report with others?
Power BI reports can be shared by publishing them to the Power BI Service, where users can access and view the reports online. Sharing options include sharing a dashboard, creating a shareable link, or embedding the report in a website.
Ques 5. How do you create a hierarchy in Power BI?
To create a hierarchy in Power BI, you can drag and drop related fields onto each other in the Fields pane. For example, you can create a date hierarchy by dragging the Year, Quarter, and Month fields onto the axis in a visual.
Ques 6. What is the purpose of the 'Card' visual in Power BI?
The 'Card' visual in Power BI is used to display a single, key data point. It is often used to show a summary or a key performance indicator (KPI) in a concise and easily readable format.
Ques 7. What is the role of the 'Card' visual in Power BI?
The 'Card' visual in Power BI is used to display a single, key data point. It is often used to show a summary or a key performance indicator (KPI) in a concise and easily readable format.
Intermediate / 1 to 5 years experienced level questions & answers
Ques 8. Explain the difference between Power BI Desktop and Power BI Service.
Power BI Desktop is a standalone application for creating Power BI reports, while Power BI Service is a cloud-based service for publishing, sharing, and collaborating on Power BI reports and dashboards.
Ques 9. How do you create calculated columns in Power BI?
Calculated columns in Power BI are created using Data Analysis Expressions (DAX) in Power BI Desktop. You can use DAX functions to define calculations based on existing columns in your data model.
Ques 10. Explain the concept of measures in Power BI.
Measures in Power BI are calculations applied to data in a report. Unlike calculated columns, measures are dynamic and can change based on user interactions. They are created using Data Analysis Expressions (DAX).
Ques 11. What is the role of Power BI Gateway?
Power BI Gateway is used to connect Power BI reports and dashboards to on-premises data sources. It acts as a bridge between Power BI Service in the cloud and the data stored locally.
Ques 12. Explain the difference between Power BI Report Server and Power BI Service.
Power BI Report Server is an on-premises version of Power BI Service. While Power BI Service is a cloud-based solution, Power BI Report Server allows organizations to host and manage reports on their own servers.
Ques 13. How do you handle row-level security in Power BI?
Row-level security in Power BI allows you to restrict data access based on user roles. It is implemented using DAX filters to control which data users can see based on their role assignments.
Ques 14. How can you create a calculated table in Power BI?
A calculated table in Power BI is created using DAX expressions. You can define calculations based on existing tables or columns in the data model. The new table is then used in the report.
Ques 15. What is the role of Power BI Dataflows?
Power BI Dataflows allow users to extract, transform, and load (ETL) data into a Power BI dataset. It provides a way to centrally manage and reuse data preparation steps across multiple reports and dashboards.
Ques 16. How can you implement time intelligence in Power BI?
Time intelligence in Power BI involves using DAX functions to analyze and compare data over time. Functions like TOTALYTD, SAMEPERIODLASTYEAR, and DATESBETWEEN are commonly used for time-based calculations.
Ques 17. What is the purpose of the 'Drillthrough' feature in Power BI?
The 'Drillthrough' feature in Power BI allows users to navigate from a summary report to a detailed report by clicking on a data point. It provides a way to explore data at a more granular level.
Ques 18. How can you create a calculated column in Power Query?
Calculated columns in Power Query are created using the 'Add Column' tab in Power Query Editor. You can use M language expressions to define calculations based on existing columns in the data.
Experienced / Expert level questions & answers
Ques 19. Explain the purpose of Power Query in Power BI.
Power Query is used for data transformation and shaping in Power BI. It allows you to connect to various data sources, clean and transform the data, and then load it into the Power BI data model.
Ques 20. What is the role of a Power BI gateway cluster?
A Power BI gateway cluster is a group of multiple gateway installations that work together to provide high availability and load balancing. It ensures continuous connectivity to on-premises data sources.
Ques 21. What is the purpose of the 'M' language in Power BI?
The 'M' language is used in Power BI's Power Query Editor for data transformation and manipulation. It is a functional language that helps define the steps to clean and shape data before loading it into the data model.
Ques 22. What is the purpose of the Power BI REST API?
The Power BI REST API allows developers to embed Power BI reports and dashboards into custom applications. It provides programmatic access to Power BI artifacts, enabling automation and integration with other services.
Ques 23. How can you handle errors in Power Query?
In Power Query, errors can be handled using the 'try...otherwise' construct. This allows you to specify alternate values or actions when an error occurs during data transformation.
Ques 24. How can you create custom visuals in Power BI?
Custom visuals in Power BI can be created using the Power BI Developer Tools in Visual Studio Code. Developers can use TypeScript and the Power BI JavaScript API to build and deploy custom visuals.
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