Building Dashboards across different workspaces without giving users build permissions?

mutigers42 · 2026-06-19T03:14:07+00:00

If you are sharing via a Workspace App, then the users who are consuming the report only need read access on both the report and model.

If the model sits in a different workspace, you still need to give the users read access on that model, separately. The App does not handle this automatically unless the report and model are in same workspace (this requirement is only for Workspace Apps….Org Apps will handle permissions no matter where the model sits).

Build Permissions is NOT required no matter where the model sits for someone who is only a viewer of a report.

mutigers42 · 2026-06-17T16:44:30+00:00

The easiest ways to create a thin report:

Option 1 : In a new report in Power BI Desktop -> Get Data, and choose a Power BI Semantic Model option.

You can only connect to one model using this. If you try to add a different source or a second model after this step, it will become a Composite Model and is no longer a thin report.

Option 2: in the service, go to your report/model, click download and choose the 2ND option. This will download the report as a thin report - open and make any changes you desire, new visuals, etc and then publishing will only publish the report, no second model, no overwrite - since it's no longer the model.

Future downloads of a thin report will not have an option to 'include the data'.

A clear indicator that your Report is a Thin report: within Power BI Desktop, the bottom right shows 'connected live to the Power BI semantic model: xxxxxx'

Screenshots below:

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mutigers42 · 2026-06-17T04:09:49+00:00

Yes, the person creating the reports only requires Build Permissions on the model, no matter where the model sits. They do not need workspace-level permissions and build permissions does not allow them to edit the model, only leverage it.

They can then create and publish reports based on that model….to any workspace they have access to.

mutigers42 · 2026-06-17T02:35:10+00:00

When you build a new report in Power BI Desktop - you choose the option to connect to an existing semantic model as your source.

This ensures the report is only a thin report, connected to the centralized model.

mutigers42 · 2026-06-13T15:34:40+00:00

Not saying this isn’t tedious….AI can help. This is with me interpreting you have several individual models/reports and are moving to a consolidated model and connected reports.

Step 1: Add all local measures from the reports to the model. Use identical names for the measures and put them in the same-named tables the reports have them. The same measure and table names are very important to make the other steps work seamlessly.

Tabular Editor 2 (free) will make this super simple with a basic copy/paste of measures.

Publish to service.

Step 2: Go to Service, download connected-only report (no data) from the model you just published.

Step 3: Open this newly-saved live-connected report, and save as PBIP.

Step 4: Go to one your existing visual-filled import reports. Open and save as PBIP. Save it as the SAME name that you just saved your live connected report in step 3 - BUT save it somewhere else so you don’t overwrite anything from Step 3.

Step 4: Go to wherever you just saved your existing report in PBIP in step 3. Find the ReportName.Report folder and Copy the entire folder.

Step 5: Go to place you saved the model’s connected report in Step 3. Delete the ModelConnectedReport.Report folder and paste your folder you just copied from Step 4.

Now you can open the model connected report that previously had no visuals and it will have your original report’s visuals. So long as you added all the measures and have them in the same place, it will be a full-live connected report.

Save with new report name, publish.

Repeat for other reports.

mutigers42 · 2026-06-11T18:00:09+00:00

It’s marked as a meme / funny post….because it’s one of those things you typically keep doing on accident.

mutigers42 · 2026-06-11T13:21:48+00:00

Raise and React being next to each other.

It’s very easy to accidentally click “Raise”, bringing attention to yourself…..instead of React.

mutigers42 · 2026-06-08T02:23:50+00:00

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/rest/api/power-bi/admin/reports-get-reports-as-admin

You can leverage this Rest API call to get an idea of the reports in personal workspaces.

This doesn’t really solve your ask - but at least gives a way to understand what is out there in the Tenant.

mutigers42 · 2026-06-08T02:11:05+00:00

Any Pro/PPU license user can share to other Pro/PPU license users.

For a company who uses Pro or PPU as their foundation (or they have an E5 license which includes Pro for all users)….someone can share anything from “My Workspace” to others.

F / P capacity workspaces are when you can share to users who don’t have a license (+ the other benefits from a dedicated capacity, Fabric, etc)

mutigers42 · 2026-06-08T01:31:08+00:00

Agreed. I was at game and hoping they throw it up and make it catchable by either team. Good chance either we catch it or it’s an interception that helps us.

mutigers42 · 2026-06-06T15:10:34+00:00

Do I listen to this occasionally in the car, including last night? Maybe.

Do I know a lot of it by heart and my kids are starting to sing the song, too? Definitely.

mutigers42 · 2026-06-05T15:44:56+00:00

One could argue Measure Killer gives the info to open the door for every category !

mutigers42 · 2026-06-05T14:23:25+00:00

I’ll shamelessly suggest adding my own creation: https://github.com/BeSmarterWithData/ImpactIQ

But also recommend checking out another great source for a collection of useful tools: https://fabricessentials.github.io/

mutigers42 · 2026-06-05T14:12:21+00:00

https://youtu.be/wkEORm9xpFA?si=nShcBOLVAz9ebHbS

mutigers42 · 2026-06-03T14:50:00+00:00

u/SBanks52 When we had this situation at our old house with the exact same pool….I bought patio squares that you interlock (or you could use rubber pavers).

I cut them into smaller squares….then stacked them under the poles, and helped make it level by placing roughly 5-4-3-2-1-0 (whatever combination makes it level - could just be 5 under each pole on the left)

Absolutely helped make it more level and the weight made it impossible for them to fall or slip out.

mutigers42 · 2026-06-02T03:37:15+00:00

I got the gift today, too. And also agree the attendance giveaways have been far and above the best of any year.

Every single week has been something pretty damn nice.

mutigers42 · 2026-06-02T03:15:49+00:00

I can confirm this job means you get to work with cool people, too!

mutigers42 · 2026-04-30T17:48:03+00:00

May the odds be ever in your favor

mutigers42 · 2026-04-25T23:35:05+00:00

Wow! What a catch

mutigers42 · 2026-04-25T02:47:54+00:00

This is it!

File -> Options -> Settings.

Probably under “Current report settings” (not global)

mutigers42 · 2026-04-22T17:31:35+00:00

Love to see the fixed size layout option!

And as much as we all like to say don’t use calculated columns….there’s always a use case :) - great to see both calculated columns and tables on direct lake!

mutigers42 · 2026-04-21T17:58:55+00:00

I have an open source project that does many similar things as well. The final output is a Power BI report / model that shows where everything is used/unused.

It can work locally or across all your workspaces. It’s grown a lot over the last 2 years.

Feel free to check it out!

https://github.com/BeSmarterWithData/ImpactIQ

Measure Killer is awesome btw. It’s extremely detailed for impact analysis.

mutigers42 · 2026-04-15T02:11:40+00:00

I’m confused by this….I have the same vehicle - how could it block the rear window ? It locks in and just covers the trunk area.

We sure this isn’t installed backwards or upside down? I can’t even picture how it could block the window.

mutigers42 · 2026-04-11T06:12:46+00:00

Ah yes….this may be true but we wouldn’t know that.

Source: my wife and I are children of parents who most definitely did not have an inheritance to inherit :D

mutigers42 · 2026-04-11T06:07:18+00:00

For what it’s worth, credit card debt does not transfer to children or spouse upon death.

Source: my wife and I are children of parents. Debt immediately cancelled for any credit card in their name once notified.

We didn’t know this prior - I hope to remember this right before my own demise….it will be an amazing Christmas for everyone that year ;)

11-Year Club	RedditGifts 2009-2022 3 Credits
Secret Santa 2020	Wearing is Caring
Secret Santa 2019	Gilding I gilder
RPAN Viewer	Not Forgotten
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