Analysis Mode for Power BI

Install

Analysis Mode for Power BI is installed from Microsoft AppSource. It signs in with navida's multi-tenant Microsoft Entra application, so no application registration is required in your own tenant; an administrator approves it once. Using your own registration instead is supported and described below.

Before you start

  • Business Central online, version 26 or later. A sandbox works for evaluation.
  • A Power BI semantic model in a workspace, and a Power BI licence for everyone who will use the analysis. Pro is sufficient; Fabric capacity is only needed for number formats (see below).
  • Every analysis user needs Read and Build permission on that semantic model — through a workspace role or granted directly on the model.
  • The Fabric tenant setting “Semantic Model Execute Queries REST API” must be enabled (Fabric admin portal → Tenant settings → Integration settings).
  • A Global Administrator to approve the application once.
  • Browsers must allow pop-ups and cookies for businesscentral.dynamics.com and login.microsoftonline.com.

Set-up steps

1 · Install and grant access

Done once per environment, by an administrator.

1
Install Analysis Mode for Power BI from Microsoft AppSource into your Business Central environment.
2
Assign the permission sets: NBI Analysis Admin for administrators, NBI Analysis User for everyone who will build analyses.
3
Open Power BI Analysis Setup (search for it with Tell Me). The Status field confirms which application is in use and where its credential comes from.
4
Choose Grant Admin Consent and sign in as Global Administrator. This approves the application for your whole tenant, so your users are never prompted.
5
Choose Test Sign-In. A token stage of Cache or SilentSSO confirms sign-in works.

2 · Connect a semantic model

Repeat for each semantic model; multiple models per environment are supported.

1
Open Power BI Analysis Models and choose Add Model….
2
Pick the workspace, then the semantic model. Both lists only ever show what you can already access in Power BI.
3
If listing is not possible in your tenant, type the IDs instead: both GUIDs appear in the Power BI service URL of the model — …/groups/<workspace>/datasets/<model>.
4
Choose Test Connection on the row. It acquires a token and runs a minimal query against the model.

3 · Open an analysis

Performed by each analysis user.

1
Select the model and choose Open Analysis. On first use, one Microsoft sign-in window appears; afterwards it is silent.
2
In the field list, tick a measure — it goes to Values. Tick a column — it goes to Row Groups. The grid is populated with the result.
3
Drag fields between Row Groups, Column Labels and Values, expand and collapse levels, and click column headers to sort.
4
Use the + to add more analysis tabs. Tabs are saved per user automatically and are there again next time.

Optional settings

Number formats. On Fabric or Premium capacity, choose Refresh Format Strings on the model row to take currency, percentage and decimal formats from the model definition. It takes about 15 seconds. The user who runs it needs contributor rights on the model. On Pro workspaces this API does not exist — the app formats by data type instead, and you can maintain individual formats under Format Strings. Manual entries always win.

Run DAX through AL proxy. Off by default. When switched on, queries travel through the Business Central server instead of directly from the browser. It is slower, but avoids the browser sign-in window in environments with restrictive browser policies.

Your own app registration. If your organisation prefers to use its own Microsoft Entra application, set App Registration to Own App Registration and enter client ID and secret. Leave the tenant ID empty to use your own tenant. The registration needs a Web redirect URI https://businesscentral.dynamics.com/OAuthLanding.htm, a single-page application redirect URI https://businesscentral.dynamics.com/oauthlanding.htm (lower case), and the delegated Power BI permission Dataset.Read.All.

If something does not work

What you seeWhat it means
A sign-in window on every session instead of silent sign-in The browser is blocking storage for the sign-in library. Everything keeps working — check third-party cookie and site-data policies to make it silent.
“Unauthorized” or an empty field list The user is missing Build permission on the semantic model, or the tenant setting Semantic Model Execute Queries REST API is switched off.
Test Connection succeeds, but the designer stays empty The user is missing the NBI Analysis User permission set, or the model contains no visible measures.
Format cache shows Unavailable Normal on Pro workspaces — the model definition API needs Fabric or Premium capacity. Use manual formats instead.
Workspaces cannot be listed Business Central could not reach Power BI for your user. Check the Power BI licence, then enter the workspace and model IDs manually.
“HTTP send failed” in Business Central Allow HttpClient Requests is switched off for the extension (Extension Management → Configure).

Learn more

Architecture explains how queries are evaluated, how subtotals are produced, and which components run in which tenant.

Contact us

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