1. How can Power BI be explained and what are its key components?
Ans:
Power BI is a Microsoft analytics platform designed to connect diverse data sources, prepare data and generate interactive dashboards for business intelligence. Its main components include Power BI Desktop for building detailed reports, Power BI Service for publishing and collaboration and Power BI Mobile for accessing insights on the go. Together, these tools provide a complete environment for analyzing and visualizing data effectively.
2. How does Power Query assist in preparing and transforming data in Power BI?
Ans:
Power Query acts as the primary tool in Power BI for transforming raw data into structured formats suitable for reporting. It allows connections to multiple sources and supports tasks such as filtering, cleaning, splitting, merging and adjusting data types. This process ensures that the data is accurate, consistent and ready for analysis.
3. What is the purpose of DAX in Power BI and how does SUM differ from SUMX?
Ans:
DAX or Data Analysis Expressions, is a formula language used to create measures, calculated columns and tables for advanced analytics in Power BI. While SUM adds up all values in a column, SUMX evaluates each row in a table and computes a sum based on an expression. SUMX is therefore ideal for more detailed, dynamic calculations that consider row-level logic.
4. What is a data model in Power BI and why is it important?
Ans:
A data model in Power BI organizes tables, relationships and calculations to define how data interacts across the report. It allows information from different sources to work together in a unified framework, improving both accuracy and performance. A well-structured model ensures that visuals, calculations and reports function efficiently and provide reliable insights.
5. How are relationships established between tables in Power BI?
Ans:
Relationships in Power BI connect tables using shared fields such as IDs or codes, ensuring that data flows correctly across the model. Connections can be created manually or automatically detected by Power BI. One-to-many relationships are most common, linking a single entry in one table to multiple entries in another, which maintains consistency across reports.
6. What are calculated columns in Power BI and how do they differ from measures?
Ans:
Calculated columns are created using DAX and evaluated row by row, with results stored in the data model for future use. Measures, however, are computed dynamically during report interactions and are not stored, making them ideal for aggregations and summary calculations. This distinction impacts performance and how data calculations respond to filters and visuals.
7. How do Power BI Desktop and Power BI Service differ in functionality?
Ans:
Power BI Desktop is a local application used to connect data, prepare datasets and design interactive visuals. Power BI Service is cloud-based, allowing report publishing, refresh scheduling, permission management and team collaboration. While Desktop focuses on report creation, the Service enables sharing, monitoring and coordinated work across users.
8. How does Power BI control access so users see only the data intended for them?
Ans:
Power BI uses Row-Level Security (RLS) to restrict data access, applying filters that control visibility for different user roles. Security rules are defined within the data model, so users only see information related to their region, department or assigned category. This ensures that sensitive or restricted data remains protected.
9. What is the difference between Import mode and DirectQuery mode and when should each be used?
Ans:
Import mode brings data directly into Power BI for fast performance and offline usage but requires scheduled refreshes. DirectQuery keeps data at the source and queries it live during interactions, suitable for very large or frequently updated datasets, though it may be slower depending on the source system. The choice depends on data size, update frequency and performance requirements.
10. How can performance be improved for a complex Power BI dashboard?
Ans:
Complex dashboards with many visuals and datasets can slow down due to model size and heavy calculations. Performance can be enhanced by removing unnecessary visuals, deleting unused columns, simplifying DAX expressions and using aggregation tables. These techniques help reports load faster while preserving analytical accuracy.