Microsoft Power BI Integration
HeaderNotes_AboutThisIntegration
IntegrationIntroduction
You can integrate third-party systems with Service Manager in many ways. The method you select will depend on business requirements, architectural and security constraints as well as the characteristics specific to each third-party application or service.
This document describes an integration process that has already been implemented in a customer context.
To find out more about this integration (e.g. scripts to be used), please do not hesitate to contact your EasyVista contact, or your service provider and integrator.
HeaderNotes_CautionPerformances
Caution: Extracting and refreshing high volumes of Service Manager data when running Power BI reports can severely impact the performances of the Service Manager platform.
- Consequently, you should schedule the execution of Power BI reports when users do not need to access Service Manager, i.e. at night or during weekends.
Should you need more information, see How to configure Power BI report scheduled refresh
- If you work in an international organization with different service hours for each country, you should run Power BI reports on a dedicated Report server, rather than on the production environment. Should you need more details, please contact your EasyVista consultant.
Overview of the integration
Power BI is a business analytics service by Microsoft. It aims to provide interactive visualizations and business intelligence capabilities with an interface simple enough for end users to create their own reports and dashboards.
- Using Power BI Desktop, you can manipulate data from hundreds of local and cloud-based data sources, such as Dynamics 365, Azure SQL Database, Salesforce, Excel, SharePoint, etc.
- You can use Power Query Editor to edit queries for connecting to data sources, and format and convert data based on customer requirements.
EasyVista offers:
- Integration examples with Power BI to help you create reports using your Service Manager data.
- Ready-to-use reports to help you display dashboards in charts, indicators, etc. using your Service Manager data.
| Integration Data Feed (direction) | Authentication Type | Integration Connector Options | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Available versions | ||
|---|---|---|
| SaaS-based | On-premises | |
| Service Manager |  |
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| Power BI service (cloud) | |
N/A |
| Power BI Desktop (local) | |
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Useful links to documentation
Power BI - definitions
What is the difference between Power BI and Power BI Desktop?
- Power BI is a cloud-based service.
- It is used to connect to data sources but its modeling functionalities are limited.
- It is used to make simple modifications to reports and page numbering.
- It is used to share reports among users who have a Microsoft account.
- Power BI Desktop is an interface installed on a local machine.
- It is used to analyze data and create reports.
- It includes Power Query Editor for connecting to numerous data sources in order to combine them in a data model (modeling).
- It cannot be used to create paginated reports or to share reports.
Overview of Power BI Desktop
Power BI Desktop offers three views:
- Report view: This is used to generate and format visualizations using queries.
- Data view: This is used to view data in reports in a data model format, add measures, create columns, manage relationships, etc.
- Relationship view: This is used to generate a map of relationships in the data model, manage and modify them if required.
Overview of the integration
Each integration in Power BI is made up of several key steps:
1. Run Power BI Desktop.
2. Connect to the data source.
3. Extract data.
4. Format data using Power Query Editor.
5. Generate and save the Power BI report in PBIX format.
6. Enhance the report by adding contextual links, etc.
7. Distribute the report using the Power BI service, i.e. sharing, export, etc.
Examples of integration
Each example helps you create Power BI reports using your Service Manager data.