Power Query is a powerful tool within the Microsoft Fabric environment, enabling users to manage data sources and transform data efficiently. However, a common issue you may face is that after publishing the Semantic Model, the Power Query parameters either do not appear or are greyed out, making them non-editable. In this post and its accompanying YouTube video, I’ll walk you through the steps to diagnose and fix these problems, ensuring that your parameters work as expected in your published semantic models.
Why Do Power Query Parameters Become Unavailable?
There are a few reasons why your Power Query parameters might not appear or be editable after you’ve published your report to Microsoft Fabric. These issues generally relate to either the way the parameters are set up within Power Query in Power BI Desktop or how they interact with the data sources.
Common Cause and Fix
1. Parameter Data Type in Power Query
One of the most common reasons your parameters might be greyed out or non-editable is due to the parameters’ data types defined in Power Query within Power BI Desktop. If your parameters are of type any, then they won’t show up, or they are read-only (greyed out). The fixation is easy:
- Open Power Query Editor in Power BI Desktop.
- Click Manage Parameters.
- Ensure the correct data type is defined for the parameters.
2. Incremental Refresh Parameters
Another potential issue is related to incremental refresh parameters. When implementing Incremental Data Refresh, we must create two parameters with specific names: RangeStart and RangeEnd. These names are reserved and cannot be used for anything other than implementing Incremental Data Refresh. These two parameters will be hidden in Microsoft Fabric after being published.
If you are interested in learning more about implementing Incremental Data Refresh in Power BI, I have published several blogs about this topic in the past:
- Incremental Refresh in Power BI, Part 1: Implementation in Power BI Desktop
- Incremental Refresh in Power BI, Part 2; Best Practice; Do NOT Publish Data Model Changes from Power BI Desktop
- Incremental Refresh in Power BI, Part 3: Best Practices for Large Semantic Models
Learn More
If you want to dive deeper into working with Power Query parameters, I’ve written a detailed blog series covering this topic extensively. You can find the blog series here:
- Power BI Desktop Query Parameters, Part 1, Introduction
- Power BI Desktop Query Parameters, Part2, Dynamic Data Masking and Query Parameters
- Power BI Desktop Query Parameters, Part 3, List Output
- Quick Tips, Power BI Desktop, Query Parameters, Part 4, Passing Power Query Parameter Values to SQL Server Stored Procedures
Additionally, I have also covered Query Parameters in Chapter 3, Data Preparation in Power Query Editor in my book, Expert Data Modelling with Power BI, 2nd Edition. If you’re interested, you can purchase the book here.
Conclusion
Dealing with Power Query parameters not appearing or being non-editable can be frustrating, but with the right troubleshooting steps, you can resolve these issues and ensure that your reports work as intended. Follow the tips outlined above, and you should be able to get your parameters functioning properly in no time.
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