The Power BI REST API is a protocol developed by Microsoft that enables developers to interact with the Power BI platform programmatically. REST, which stands for Representational State Transfer, is a widely used standard protocol for exchanging data between software applications.
The Power BI REST APIs provide service endpoints for various purposes, including embedding, administration, governance, and user resources. These APIs allow developers to perform actions such as embedding Power BI content, managing administrative tasks, enforcing governance policies, and accessing user-related information.
To utilize the Rest API Power BI, developers are required to register an Azure Active Directory (Azure AD) application in Azure. This Azure AD app establishes the necessary permissions for accessing Power BI REST resources.
Power BI Rest APIs are known for their lightweight and efficient nature as they leverage the HTTP standard. They are format-agnostic, supporting data formats like XML, JSON, HTML, and more. This characteristic contributes to their speed and versatility in data exchange.
What is Power BI Rest API?
The Power BI REST APIs provide service endpoints for embedding, administration, governance, and user resources within the Power BI ecosystem. Let’s dive into the details:
1. Manage Power BI Content:
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- You can use the Power BI REST APIs to manage various aspects of your Power BI content. This includes creating, updating, and deleting reports, dashboards, and datasets. You can also retrieve metadata about these objects.
- For example, you can programmatically create a new report, update an existing dataset, or retrieve a list of dashboards in a workspace.
2. Perform Admin Operations:
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- The APIs allow you to perform administrative tasks related to Power BI. This includes managing workspaces (formerly known as groups), users, and permissions.
- As an admin, you can add or remove users from workspaces, assign roles, and set up data source credentials.
3. Embed Power BI Content:
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- Embedding Power BI reports and dashboards into custom applications or websites is a powerful feature. The REST APIs enable you to programmatically generate embed tokens, which allow secure access to specific Power BI content.
- You can create an embed token for a report or dashboard, specify access permissions, and then use it to embed that content in your application.
4. Scopes and Permissions:
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- To use the Power BI REST APIs, you need to register an Azure Active Directory (Azure AD) application in Azure. This app establishes permissions for Power BI REST resources and allows access to the APIs.
- Scopes define the level of access your app has. You can add permissions to your Azure AD app by configuring delegated permissions for specific APIs.
- If you’re using a service principal (a type of app identity), scopes are not required. Service principals manage permissions through the Power BI admin portal.
5. Throttling:
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- Power BI uses throttling to maintain optimal performance and reliability. It limits the number of API calls within a time window per user.
- When an application exceeds the predetermined limit, Power BI returns an HTTP status code 429 (Too many requests) with a Retry-After header, indicating how long the application should wait before making a new request.
In short, the Power BI REST APIs empower developers to interact with Power BI programmatically, whether it’s managing content, embedding reports, or performing administrative tasks. If you’re building custom solutions around Power BI, these APIs are your go-to tools!
- Automatic dataset refresh upon failure.
- Immediate refresh of the dataset after successfully refreshing related dataflows.
- Creation of a deployment pipeline.
- Embedding Power BI reports or dashboards into web applications.
- Automation of documentation for Power BI service objects.
- Sending data rows to a streaming dataset in the Power BI service.
- Extracting usage information of Power BI objects by users.
Power BI API call.
A Power BI API call refers to the action of developers accessing and interacting with the Power BI platform using the Power BI REST API protocol. An API, or Application Programming Interface, serves as a software interface that facilitates communication between two applications, allowing them to exchange information and perform actions.
A Power BI API call is a specific request made by a developer to the Power BI REST API to perform a particular action or retrieve specific data from the Power BI platform. These API calls can be made using various programming languages, tools, and frameworks, and they allow developers to programmatically interact with and control Power BI resources such as datasets, reports, dashboards, workspaces, and more. By making API calls, developers can automate tasks, integrate Power BI functionality into their applications, and retrieve or manipulate data within the Power BI environment.
How to Connect Power BI to Rest API?
Connecting Power BI to a REST API involves a few steps, but it’s relatively straightforward. Let’s walk through the process:
1. Identify the REST API Endpoint:
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- First, you need to know the REST API endpoint you want to connect to. This is the URL where the API resides. It typically provides access to specific data or functionality.
- The endpoint might look something like
https://api.example.com/v1/data.
2. Configure Authentication:
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- Depending on the API, you might need to configure authentication. Common authentication methods include OAuth, API keys, or basic authentication.
- In Power BI, go to the Home tab and select Get Data. Choose the Web option.
- Enter the REST API endpoint and configure any required authentication settings. For example, if the API requires an API key, you’ll provide it here.
3. Transform and Shape the Data:
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- Once you’ve connected to the API, Power Query Editor allows you to transform and shape the data.
- You can filter, merge, pivot, and perform other data transformations to prepare it for visualization.
4. Create Visualizations:
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- After shaping the data, create visualizations using Power BI’s user-friendly interface.
- Build charts, tables, maps, and other visuals to represent the data.
5. Set Up Data Refresh:
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- If you want your Power BI report to stay up-to-date, set up automatic data refresh. This ensures that your visualizations reflect the latest data from the REST API.
Remember that the specific steps may vary based on the API you’re connecting to, but this general process should guide you. Happy data exploration!
How to Power BI Get Data from API with Token?
To retrieve data from a REST API in Power BI using an access token, follow these steps:
1. Generate an Access Token:
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- First, obtain an access token from the API. You can do this using tools like Postman or by making a direct API call.
- In Postman, create an API request to the authentication endpoint (e.g.,
https://<URL>/api/tokens/authenticate). Use the appropriate headers (e.g.,Content-Type: application/jsonandAuthorization: token <TOKEN>). - Copy the generated access token.
2. Connect to the API in Power BI:
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- Open Power BI Desktop.
- Click on Get Data and select Web.
- Click Connect.
- In the Advanced section, paste the API URL from where you want to retrieve data.
- In the Headers section, add the following:
- Name:
Authorization - Value:
Bearer <TOKEN>(replace<TOKEN>with the actual access token)
- Name:
3. Load Data and Transform:
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- Power BI will connect to the API using the provided token.
- You can now transform the data using Power Query Editor.
- Filter, merge, and shape the data as needed.
4. Create Visualizations:
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- Once the data is loaded, create visualizations (charts, tables, etc.) in your report.
5. Set Up Data Refresh:
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- If you want your report to stay up-to-date, configure data refresh settings.
- Specify how often Power BI should fetch new data from the API.
Remember to replace <URL> and <TOKEN> with the actual values relevant to your API. Happy data exploration!
