Automate PBIX using PBI-Tools

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I recently worked on a project where the Power BI file was connected to a SSAS cube model. The original intent while developing this report was to have a single pbix file catering multiple projects/groups. However, in the end due to certain security restrictions within the company we were asked to split pbix files based on projects / groups :(

This might be a bad dream for a developer, but its a nightmare for people deploying in production since they need to update the project filters in pbix desktop file manually and deploy it.

After exploring a lot of options, I came across a tool called ‘pbi-tools’

What is pbi-tools?

A command line tool that enables making changes to the pbix source code.

Applications of pbi-tools

1. Update pbix in bulk: Imagine you have a bunch of Power BI files which are to be updated for some data sources, filters, queries, images etc. Pbi tools along with Power shell can help automating this task.
2. Generate pbix in bulk: Pbi tools with Power Shell can help generate multiple pbix files (based on different filters) from a single file.
3. Export tables: Pbi tools gives you the capability to export all the tables available within your pbix file to a csv format.