Power Bi Interview Questions
Power Bi Interview Questions
Power BI is a business analytics tool developed by Microsoft. It allows users to analyze data and
share insights through interactive visualizations, reports, and dashboards.
Power BI Desktop: It is a Windows application used for creating reports and visualizations.
Power BI Service: It is a cloud-based service that allows users to publish, share, and collaborate on
reports and dashboards.
Power BI Mobile: It is a mobile application that enables users to access and interact with Power BI
content on mobile devices.
Import: Data is loaded into Power BI and stored in its internal data model.
Direct Query: Power BI connects directly to the data source, and queries are executed in real-
time against the source.
Live Connection: Power BI connects directly to an external analysis services model for real-time
analysis.
DAX (Data Analysis Expressions) is a formula language used in Power BI to create custom calculations
and aggregations on data. It allows users to define complex calculations and create calculated
columns, measures, and tables.
What is the difference between a measure and a calculated column in Power BI?
Calculated Column: It is a column that is added to a table in Power BI, and its values are computed
row by row. Calculated columns are processed during data loading and are suitable for calculations
that are not context-dependent.
Measure: It is a calculation that operates on the entire dataset or a specific subset of data. Measures
are defined using DAX expressions and are used for calculations such as aggregations, averages,
counts, etc.
How can you create relationships between tables in Power BI?
Relationships between tables in Power BI can be created by selecting the fields that represent the
relationship and defining the cardinality (one-to-one, one-to-many, or many-to-many) between the
tables. This can be done in the Power BI Desktop using the Relationship view.
Power Query is a data transformation and data preparation tool in Power BI. It allows users to
connect to various data sources, transform, clean, and shape the data before loading it into Power BI
for analysis. Power Query provides a user-friendly interface for performing data transformations.
Data refresh can be scheduled in Power BI Service. You can navigate to the dataset settings and
configure the refresh frequency and credentials for the data source. Power BI Service can
automatically refresh the data at the scheduled intervals.
Power BI allows you to share reports and dashboards with others. You can publish your reports to
the Power BI Service and share them with specific users or groups. Additionally, you can create
workspaces and share content with members of those workspaces.
Yes, Power BI supports connecting to on-premises data sources using the Power BI On-premises
Gateway. The gateway allows secure data transfer between Power BI Service and on-premises data
sources without exposing them directly to the internet.
1.Visual-level Filters
2.Page-level Filters
3.Report-level Filters
4.Slicer Filters
5.Drillthrough Filters
6.Cross-filtering
7.Top N Filters
What are the main components of Power BI?
Answer: Power BI consists of Power BI Desktop, Power BI Service, and Power BI Mobile.
Answer: Power BI Desktop is a Windows application for report creation, while Power BI Service is a
cloud-based platform for sharing and collaboration.
Answer: Power Query is a data transformation tool that helps clean, shape, and load data into Power
BI.
Answer: DAX (Data Analysis Expressions) is a formula language used for creating custom calculations
and measures.
Answer: You can connect to on-premises data sources using the Power BI On-premises Data Gateway.
Answer: A calculated column is a column in a table that is created using a DAX formula.
Explain the difference between a calculated column and a measure in Power BI.
Answer: A calculated column is computed row-by-row and stored in the data model, while a measure
is a calculation that works on the entire dataset.
Answer: You can create a hierarchy by selecting columns and using the "New Hierarchy" option in the
"Modelling" tab.
Answer: Data refresh can be scheduled in Power BI Service by configuring data source credentials
and refresh frequency.
Answer: Power BI Report Server is used to publish and share Power BI reports on-premises.
Answer: Power BI Pro is for individual use and sharing, while Power BI Premium is for large-scale
deployments and dedicated capacity.
Answer: You can create custom visuals using the Power BI developer tools like Power BI Visualizations
SDK.
Answer: Calculated columns are computed during data loading, while measures are calculated on the
fly based on user interactions.
Answer: The LOOKUPVALUE function searches for a value in a table and returns a result based on
specified conditions.
Answer: DAX performance can be optimized by avoiding unnecessary calculations, using CALCULATE
wisely, and optimizing data models.
Answer: DISTINCT returns unique values from a single column, while VALUES returns unique
combinations of columns.
What are the different types of joins in DAX?
Answer: DAX supports INNER JOIN, LEFT JOIN, and CROSSJOIN operations.
Answer: Row-level security can be implemented using DAX expressions and user roles to restrict data
access.
Answer: DAX functions like IFERROR and ISERROR can be used for error handling in DAX expressions.
Explain the difference between Power BI Desktop and Power BI Report Builder.
Answer: Power BI Desktop is for creating interactive reports, while Power BI Report Builder is for
creating paginated reports.
Answer: Bookmarks are used to save the current view of a report page, allowing users to navigate
back to that view.
Answer: Power BI Embedded is used to integrate Power BI reports into custom applications.
Answer: Power BI REST APIs are used for programmatic interaction with Power BI Service.
Answer: Dynamic grouping can be achieved using SWITCH or SWITCH(TRUE) functions in DAX.
Explain the difference between calculated tables and calculated columns in Power BI.
Answer: Calculated tables are created using DAX expressions, while calculated columns are
computed row-by-row.
Answer: The ALL function removes filters from a table or column, enabling calculations over the
entire table.
Answer: Data profiling can be done by using Power Query to explore data and generate data quality
statistics.
Answer: Power Query automatically detects data types, but you can modify them using the
"Transform" tab.
Answer: The M code is the underlying language used in Power Query for data transformations.
Answer: Power Query provides options to replace, remove, or keep null values based on the data
cleansing requirements.
Answer: You can use the "Append Queries" option in Power Query to combine tables vertically.
Answer: The MERGE function is used to perform join operations between two tables in Power Query.
Answer: Power Query lets you set data privacy levels for different data sources to control data
sharing and loading behaviour.
Explain the difference between calculated columns and calculated tables in Power BI.
Answer: Calculated columns are added to existing tables, while calculated tables are new tables
created using DAX expressions.
Answer: The EARLIER function is used to reference a previous row in the table during iteration.
Answer: The FILTER function is used to filter tables or columns based on specified conditions.
Answer: CONTAINS checks if a text contains a specific substring, while RELATED returns a related
value from a different table based on the relationship.
Answer: Time intelligence functions like TOTALYTD, SAMEPERIODLASTYEAR, etc., help perform
calculations based on time periods.
Answer: The UNION function is used to combine two or more tables with the same structure.
Answer: The RANKX function ranks values based on a specified column and a ranking measure.
Answer: Power BI is a business intelligence tool used for data visualization, while Power Pivot is an
add-in for Excel for data modelling.
Answer: The DIVIDE function performs division while handling cases where the denominator is zero.
Answer: The TREATAS function modifies the filter context by treating specified columns as if they
were in a different filter context.
How do you implement bidirectional filtering in Power BI?
Answer: Bidirectional filtering can be implemented by enabling bidirectional relationships in the data
model.
Explain the difference between calculated columns and calculated tables in Power BI.
Answer: Calculated columns are added to existing tables, while calculated tables are new tables
created using DAX expressions.
Answer: The EARLIER function is used to reference a previous row in the table during iteration.
Answer: The FILTER function is used to filter tables or columns based on specified conditions.