#### 1. **What is Power BI?

**
**Answer:**
Power BI is a business analytics tool by Microsoft that enables users to visualize
data, share insights, and create interactive dashboards and reports. It integrates
data from various sources, processes it, and provides meaningful insights.
---
#### 2. **What are the key components of Power BI?**
**Answer:**
- **Power BI Desktop**: A development tool to create reports and dashboards.
- **Power BI Service**: A cloud-based service to share, collaborate, and publish
reports.
- **Power BI Mobile**: Mobile apps for accessing reports on the go.
- **Power BI Gateway**: Connects on-premises data sources to the cloud.
- **Power BI Report Server**: Hosts reports for on-premises data.
- **Power BI Embedded**: For developers to embed Power BI features into
applications.
---
#### 3. **What are the types of data sources supported by Power BI?**
**Answer:**
Power BI supports a wide range of data sources, including:
- Databases: SQL Server, MySQL, Oracle, PostgreSQL
- Cloud Services: Azure, Salesforce, Google Analytics
- Files: Excel, CSV, XML, JSON
- Online services: SharePoint, Dynamics 365, Power Platform

#### 4. **What is DAX in Power BI?**

**Answer:**
DAX (Data Analysis Expressions) is a formula language in Power BI used for creating
calculated columns, measures, and custom tables. It allows users to perform data
transformations and aggregations.
---
#### 5. **What are the differences between calculated columns and measures?**
**Answer:**
- **Calculated Columns**: Create new columns in the data model. Calculations are
row-level and stored in the model.
- **Measures**: Used for aggregations, such as sums or averages. Calculations are
dynamic and executed based on report filters.
---
#### 6. **What is the use of Power Query in Power BI?**
**Answer:**
Power Query is used for data extraction, transformation, and loading (ETL). It
allows users to clean and reshape data before loading it into the Power BI model.
---
#### 7. **What is the difference between Power BI and Tableau?**
**Answer:**
| Feature | Power BI | Tableau
|
|-----------------|-----------------------------------|----------------------------
------|
| Cost | Affordable (free for basic use) | Higher cost
|
| Integration | Best with Microsoft products | Good integration with many
apps |
| Learning Curve | Easier for beginners | More complex
|
| Visualization | Limited advanced visuals | Rich visuals and
customization |
---
#### 8. **How do you optimize Power BI reports for performance?**
**Answer:**
- Use **DirectQuery** for large datasets instead of Import Mode.
- Avoid complex DAX calculations in visualizations.
- Use **Aggregations** to reduce the volume of data.
- Remove unnecessary columns and rows in Power Query.
- Optimize data models by reducing relationships and using star schema.
- Disable auto-date/time in settings.
---
#### 9. **How do you handle row-level security (RLS) in Power BI?**
**Answer:**
RLS restricts data access at the row level based on user roles. Steps to implement
RLS:
1. Define roles in Power BI Desktop.
2. Use DAX filters in roles to control data access.
3. Assign users to roles in the Power BI Service.
---
#### 10. **What is the difference between DirectQuery and Import mode in Power BI?
**
**Answer:**
- **DirectQuery**: Queries the data source directly without importing data. Best
for real-time data but slower performance.
- **Import Mode**: Imports data into Power BI. Offers better performance but is not
real-time.
---
#### 11. **How would you troubleshoot slow dashboard performance?**
**Answer:**
- Check and optimize DAX queries.
- Reduce the number of visuals on a single page.
- Enable query diagnostics in Power BI Desktop to identify bottlenecks.
- Simplify data models and relationships.
- Use aggregations or summarized data instead of raw data.
---
#### 12. **Describe a Power BI project you worked on.**
**Answer:**
For example:
*"I developed a sales performance dashboard using Power BI. Data was sourced from
SQL Server and Excel files. I used Power Query for data cleaning and DAX for
creating KPIs. The dashboard provided insights into sales trends, regional
performance, and product profitability, helping stakeholders make data-driven
decisions."*
---
#### 13. **How do you schedule data refresh in Power BI Service?**
**Answer:**
1. Publish the report to Power BI Service.
2. Configure the data gateway if connecting to on-premises data sources.
3. Go to the **Dataset Settings** in Power BI Service.
4. Set the data refresh schedule (daily, weekly, etc.).
5. Provide authentication credentials for data sources.
---
#### 14. **What are some types of filters in Power BI?**
**Answer:**
1. **Visual-Level Filters**: Apply to a single visual.
2. **Page-Level Filters**: Apply to all visuals on a page.
3. **Report-Level Filters**: Apply across the entire report.
4. **Drillthrough Filters**: Allow users to drill into details of a specific data
point.
5. **Cross Filters**: Filters applied when selecting data in one visual that
affects other visuals.
6. **Top N Filters**: Filters based on the top or bottom N values.
---
#### 15. **What is the difference between star schema and snowflake schema in Power
BI?**
**Answer:**
- **Star Schema**:
- Central fact table surrounded by dimension tables.
- Simplified model, better for performance in Power BI.
- **Snowflake Schema**:
- Dimension tables are normalized, leading to a more complex structure.
- Requires additional joins, which may reduce performance.
---
#### 16. **Explain the concept of Drillthrough in Power BI.**
**Answer:**
Drillthrough allows users to navigate to a detailed report page by clicking on a
data point in a visual. Steps to implement:
1. Create a new page in the report.
2. Add a field to the Drillthrough filter pane on the page.
3. Design the detailed report page.
4. Users can right-click a data point to drill through to the new page.
---
#### 17. **How do you handle large datasets in Power BI?**
**Answer:**
- Use **DirectQuery** for real-time access to large datasets.
- Implement **aggregations** to summarize data.
- Reduce data size by filtering irrelevant rows and columns during data import.
- Use a star schema for efficient data modeling.
- Optimize data relationships by avoiding many-to-many relationships.
- Partition datasets for incremental data refresh.
---
#### 18. **What is a KPI in Power BI, and how do you create one?**
**Answer:**
A KPI (Key Performance Indicator) is used to measure the progress of a business
metric. Steps to create a KPI in Power BI:
1. Create a measure using DAX for the metric you want to track (e.g., revenue).
2. Add a target value as a second measure.
3. Use the KPI visualization to combine the current value, target, and trend.
---
#### 19. **Explain incremental data refresh in Power BI.**
**Answer:**
Incremental refresh loads only new or updated data instead of reloading the entire
dataset.
Steps:
1. Define parameters for the date range (e.g., start and end date).
2. Set up filtering in Power Query.
3. Configure incremental refresh in Power BI Desktop under dataset settings.
---
#### 20. **How do you implement bookmarks in Power BI?**
**Answer:**
Bookmarks save the current state of a report (filters, visuals, etc.).
Steps:
1. Set up the report in the desired state.
2. Go to the **View** tab and open the Bookmarks Pane.
3. Click "Add" to create a bookmark.
4. Use bookmarks for navigation or to show different perspectives of the report.
---
#### 21. **How would you create a year-over-year comparison in Power BI?**
**Answer:**
1. Use DAX to create measures for the current year and the previous year (e.g.,
`Sales` and `Sales LY`).
2. Use the `SAMEPERIODLASTYEAR` function in DAX for the previous year:
```DAX
Sales LY = CALCULATE(SUM(Sales[Amount]), SAMEPERIODLASTYEAR(Calendar[Date]))
```
3. Visualize the data using a line or bar chart to show trends.
---
#### 22. **How do you share Power BI reports?**
**Answer:**
- **Power BI Service**: Publish reports to the cloud and share via a link or email.

- **Power BI App**: Bundle multiple dashboards/reports and share them as an app.

- **On-premises**: Use Power BI Report Server for internal sharing.
- Export reports to PDF, PowerPoint, or Excel for distribution.
---
#### 23. **What challenges have you faced in Power BI, and how did you resolve
them?**
Answer: "I faced performance issues when handling a large dataset. To resolve this,
I optimized the data model using a star schema, removed unnecessary columns, and
used aggregations. I also switched to DirectQuery mode for real-time data access,
improving report speed significantly."