Impact Analysis¶
Follow the dependencies of a Power BI item level by level in a graph: which reports use a semantic model, which data sources feed it, which apps and dashboards show it, and which workspaces and capacities hold it.
How it works¶
View Impacted Objects... opens a closable Power BI IA tab with the selected items as the graph root. You expand any node into one related section at a time. Each expansion is answered by the MetaMiner Server (MMS) from collected metadata, so the graph does not call Microsoft and reflects the state at the last collection.
| Section in the graph | Items |
|---|---|
| Environments | Power BI environments (tenants) |
| Workspaces | Workspaces |
| Capacities | Capacities that host workspaces |
| Apps | Apps |
| Reports | Reports |
| Dashboards | Dashboards |
| Dataset | Semantic models |
| Dataset Table | Tables of a semantic model |
| Datasources | Data sources used by semantic models and dataflows |
| Dataflows | Dataflows |
You can start a graph from a workspace, app, report, dashboard, semantic model, semantic model table, data source or dataflow. Fabric items such as lakehouses and notebooks are not part of the graph.
With Power BI sign-in, the graph is limited to what you can see in the Power BI Explorer.
Before you begin¶
- A Power BI environment is loaded in the Power BI Explorer.
- Choose the view in File > Preferences...: Use modern impact graph (beta) off for the classic view (default), on for the modern view. Reopen the graph to apply. See Preferences and Shortcuts.
Steps¶
- In the Power BI Explorer, select one item, or several items of the same kind.
- Right-click and choose View Impacted Objects.... The Power BI IA tab opens with the selection as root.
- Right-click a node. The menu lists each related section with a count, for example Reports (12) [+].
- Choose a section to add that level to the graph.
- Repeat on the new nodes to go further. Select several nodes of the same kind first to expand them together.
Image of the Power BI IA tab with a semantic model as root expanded to its reports and data sources, the node menu open showing section counts
../../images/client/pbi-impact-classic.png
Classic view¶
| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
| Zoom out, zoom level, zoom in | Change the zoom. Double-click the zoom level to reset it to 100 % |
| Export | Exports the graph's nodes to CSV |
| Right alignment | Lays the graph out from right to left |
| Auto select | Selects the nodes that match the search text |
| Filter pane | One section per item kind in the graph; untick items to hide them |
Node menu actions:
| Action | What it does |
|---|---|
| Section entries, for example Dataset (3) [+] | Adds that related level |
| Open in Default Browser | Opens the item in the Power BI portal (needs Open in Default Browser) |
| Open in New Tab | Opens the selected nodes in a closable Power BI Explorer tab |
| Set as Graph Root... | Rebuilds the graph with this node as root |
| Set as Root in New Tab... | Opens a new graph tab with this node as root |
| Hide, Hide Others, Hide Unrelated | Hides nodes to declutter the graph |
| Properties... | Shows the item's attributes |
Modern view (beta)¶
The modern view draws the same graph with icons, a filter panel and hover tracing. Hover over a node to highlight its path to the root.
| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
| Minus, Reset, + | Zoom out, reset zoom to 100 % and center, zoom in |
| Re-layout | Recomputes the tree layout |
| Overview | Shows a bird's-eye view of the whole graph; drag the box to pan |
| Filters panel | Untick nodes or kinds to hide them; the reset button shows everything again |
Node menu actions: section entries to expand, Expand all, Open in browser, Set as graph root, Properties, Collapse, Hide, Hide others and Select same level.
If the modern view cannot open a graph, the client opens the classic view instead.
Image of the modern impact graph for a report with the Filters panel, the Overview box and a hovered path highlighted
../../images/client/pbi-impact-modern.png
Examples¶
| Question | Start from | Expand |
|---|---|---|
| Which reports break if this semantic model changes? | Semantic model | Reports, then Apps and Dashboards |
| Which semantic models read this database? | Data source | Dataset, then Reports |
| What runs on this capacity? | Workspace on that capacity | Capacities, then Workspaces |
| Where is this dataflow used? | Dataflow | Dataset, then Reports |