Power BI Tutorial - A Complete Guide

Power BI helps organisations acquire actionable information by converting raw data from various sources into interactive dashboards and reports. Given the myriad of use cases, as a beginner you might require the assistance from a Power BI Tutorial.

According to a 2021 survey by Gartner, Power BI topped charts as a business intelligence and analytics platform. The same survey also revealed that Power BI is available in 44 different languages, making it a globally diverse solution for business analytics.  

Are you looking to learn Power BI? Our step-by-step Power BI Tutorial will teach you the basics of Data Visualisation, report building, and dashboard creation. 

Table of Contents 

1) Understanding Power BI  

2) History of Power BI 

3) Components of Power BI  

4) Architecture of Power BI  

5) Why do we need Power BI?

6) Features of Power BI

7) Tools of Power BI 

8) Advantages and disadvantages of Power BI  

9) Conclusion  

Understanding Power BI

Before diving into this Power BI Tutorial, let's discuss the concept of BI. BI, short for 'Business Intelligence', refers to the analysis of raw data using a collection of methods and tools. Companies use methods and strategies to analyse business information data. BI works on the process of ETL or 'Extract, Transform, and Load', which involves integrating data from various sources into a consistent storage of data, followed by loading the data into a data warehouse. 

Power BI is a process that quickly converts raw data into meaningful and valuable information. Microsoft Power BI is one such tool that was released in 2014. A part of the Microsoft Power Platform, the tool is an interactive Data Visualisation software that focuses on Business Intelligence. Power BI is essentially a collection of services that work together to transform raw data into coherent and visual insights. 

Raw data can typically be taken from a database or spreadsheets. The Power BI suite includes various software tools, connectors, and services. Organisations use these services to consume data and build Business Intelligence reports.



 

History of Power BI 

In 2006, Thierry D’hers and Amir Netz worked with Microsoft’s SQL Server Reporting Services team on a project code-named ‘Gemini’. The duo harnessed the power of Microsoft’s SQL Server Analysis Services (SSAS) by turning it into an in-memory storage engine. 

Project Gemini made its debut in 2009 under the name 'PowerPivot'. Microsoft PowerPivot expert Rob Collie published a blog about the software, introducing it to the data science community. The organisation later added Data Explorer to the collection of Excel add-ins. However, there were no means to schedule data refreshes, which were crucial for delivering accurate results. Data refreshes help organisations ensure their data stays continuously updated. 

When using Power BI, data refreshes involve querying the underlying data sources, loading the source data into the dataset, and updating any visualisations that rely on the organisation's reports. The number of phases involved in the data refreshing process depends on the storage modes of the datasets. Data refresh requirements vary for different storage modes and types of datasets. A user can either import the data into Power BI again or perform a query for the data straight from the source. 

In 2015, Microsoft combined PowerPivot and PowerQuery to create a new Business Intelligence tool, which they named 'Power BI'. Over 500,000 users contributed to testing and designing the new product, which quickly garnered massive popularity. The new application went into public usage shortly after this phase. 

Components of Power BI 

 

PowerBI comprises components that perform tasks from searching and accessing data to modelling and visualising for business analysis. These components include: 

1) Power Query: A crucial component of Power BI used for searching, accessing, and transforming data from both public and internal sources. 

2) Power Pivot: Takes care of data modelling for in-memory analytics in Power BI. 

3) Power View: Enables users to perform visualisation, analysis, and data display in Power BI. 

4) Power Map: Allows for the creation of interactive geographical visualisations of data.

5) Power BI Desktop: A free Windows application for creating interactive data visualisations and reports. 

6) Power BI Q&A: Enables users to post questions and get immediate answers through natural language queries, without any special format or syntax alteration. 

7) Power BI Website: A cloud-based platform that allows users to publish, share, and collaborate on Power BI reports and dashboards.

8) Power BI Mobile Apps: Allows users to access and interact with Power BI reports and dashboards on the go from their iOS or Android mobile devices. 

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The architecture of Power BI

The Power BI architecture comprises the following elements: 

Data sources 

Power BI makes connections with various data sources for importing file data into the system. The data sources could also be cloud-based sources. A few key examples of data sources include: 

1) Microsoft Excel 

2) Dataverse 

3) SQL Server 

4) MySQL Database 

5) Google Analytics 

6) Facebook 

7) GitHub 

Data foundation 

Users can collect data from various cloud locations in different file formats and integrate them into a unified data model using Power BI. One such cloud source is Azure Dataverse, which securely stores and manages data in tabular formats for use in business applications. 

Data analytics 

The Power BI application has robust data analysis capabilities that range from descriptive to diagnostic forms, utilising DAX-based logic and analytical frameworks. With these functionalities, users can execute a wide range of calculations and experiments on foundational data, and even integrate with cloud-based machine learning applications like Azure ML. 

Data Visualisation

Power BI provides users with a diverse range of Visualisation options that cater to both basic and advanced Data Visualisation needs, resulting in visually appealing and insight-driven dashboards. The intuitive and user-friendly interface of Power BI makes it an ideal tool for creating and implementing unified data models. 

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Why do we need Power BI?

Power BI offers interactive visualisation of data with self-service Business Intelligence capabilities. With the help of Power BI, end users can create their own interactive Business Intelligence reports and dashboards without relying on IT personnel or database administrators. Most of the leading organisations use Power BI as their business analytics solution.

Features of Power BI

Some most important Power BI features are given below: 

a) Data Visualisation: Power BI is used by organisations to develop interactive reports and dashboards that visualise data in various ways, including charts, graphs, and maps.

b) Collaboration: Power BI allows multiple users to work on the same report or dashboard simultaneously. This makes it easy for teams to collaborate and share data and insights.

c) Data transformation: Power BI can transform raw data into useful information in a more usable format by cleaning and manipulating data. This allows businesses to work with clean, accurate data that is easy to analyse.

d) Integration: Power BI works well with other Microsoft products or applications like Excel, SharePoint, and Teams. It helps in the workflow of the projects

e) APIs for integration: This feature is helpful for developers with sample code and APIs for embedding the Power BI dashboard in other software products. 

Tools of Power BI

Now’s the time that you consider learning the Tools associated with Power BI in this Power Bi Tutorial. Power BI offers a range of tools for data connectivity, data transformation, data modelling, Data Analysis, and Data Visualisation. Let’s discuss a few of them.

Power BI Report Server

The Power BI Report Server tool enables users to display and manage their data reports and KPIs. The server also hosts paginated reports, dashboards, and Power Apps, and allows modifications of existing reports created by the development team. Users can apply filters for a customised experience and access reports on web browsers, mobile devices, or email.

Power BI Gateway

The Power BI Gateway tool is installed by a Power BI admin to act as a secure bridge between on-premises data sources such as Microsoft Excel and Azure Analysis Services, allowing data extraction for analysis and reporting. This tool provides easy data access by directly connecting the client platform to the on-premises data source.

Power BI Apps

The Power BI mobile application, Power BI Apps, is available on all major mobile platforms, including Windows, iOS, and Android devices. Users can easily share data reports and dashboards with others by utilising Microsoft Intune, a cloud-based endpoint management service that extends the functionality of Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager to the Microsoft Azure Cloud. 

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Power BI Service

Power BI Service also known as Power BI Online is a web-centric platform designed for sharing reports created in Power BI Desktop. This online service integrates collaboration by allowing users to easily create dashboards and reports. Operating as a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) tool, Power BI Service hosts Power BI models, dashboards, and reports. The platform integrates the seamless sharing of reports, administrative tasks, and collaborative efforts.

Power BI Desktop

Power BI Desktop is a no-cost Data Analytics and Visualisation tool which empowers users to generate data models, dashboards, and reports. Seamless connectivity to various data sources is created through Power BI Desktop. Thus, making the process more user-friendly. 

For many engaged in Business Intelligence initiatives, Power BI Desktop is a go-to platform for report creation and sharing. Some of the main uses of Power BI Desktop are given below: 

a) Connecting to multiple data sources

b) Data Visualisation

c) Creating reports

d) Data transformation

e) Sharing reports

Power BI Mobile

Power BI Mobile is a mobile application that can run on various platforms like iOS, Android, and Windows. It allows you to view reports and dashboards anytime and anywhere.

Advantages and disadvantages of Power BI 

Power BI provides its users with the benefit of analysing their data through visual insights on their dashboards. The tool has its own specialties; however, it also limits users to a fixed range of services and functionalities. Here are the advantages and disadvantages of Power BI for its users: 

Advantages of Power BI: 

1) Power BI offers pre-built dashboards and data reports for SaaS solutions to its users. 

2) Power BI provides users with real-time updates to their dashboards. 

3) Power BI ensures a secure and reliable connection between users and their cloud-based or on-premises data sources. 

4) Power BI allows for fast deployment and hybrid configuration in a secure environment. 

5) Power BI enables users to explore databases using natural language queries. 

6) Power BI offers a variety of visualisation options for users' dashboards. 

7) Power BI regularly adds new features and functionalities for its users of Excel. 

8) Power BI allows users to utilise visualisations through its integration with programming languages such as Python and R. 

9) PowerQuery offers users various options for cleaning their data. 

10) Users can schedule automatic data refreshes after publishing their data on the Power BI web service. 

11) Users can take advantage of Power BI's support for Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning. 

Disadvantages of Power BI:

Discussed below are some of the disadvantages of Power BI:

1) Users can only share their dashboards and data reports with others with access to the same email domain. 

2) It's not possible to combine imported data with real-time connections in Power BI. 

3) Free users are limited to uploading data files no larger than 2GB. 

4) Power BI struggles to handle complex relationships between tables that have multiple links between them. 

5) Users have limited options for customising their data visualisations in Power BI. 

6) Upgrading to the paid version of Power BI is necessary to import data files larger than 2GB. Power BI may also experience lag or hanging when processing large datasets. 

7) Power BI is easy to use for simple tasks such as importing data and creating basic reports, but more advanced tools like Gateways, Power BI Services, and Power BI Report Server may require a steeper learning curve. 

Conclusion 

This Power BI tutorial describes how the tool enables users to extract and transform data from various sources, whether in the cloud or on-premises. Unlike traditional BI tools, Power BI offers self-service features that allow users to extend and visualise their data models easily. 

In addition, Power BI provides faster development cycles and helps save on IT resources. With real-time data insights, users can make faster and better-informed decisions. 

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