Creating Power BI Reports

Create and scaffold Power BI reports using pbir CLI. Install with uv tool install pbir-cli or pip install pbir-cli. Load the pbir-cli and pbi-report-design skills alongside this one.

Vague or Underspecified Prompts

When the user's request lacks specific measures, audience context, structural preferences, or formatting direction (e.g., "make me a dashboard", "create something with KPIs"), consult references/vague-prompts.md before proceeding. Close the gap between intent and specification with targeted questions; then apply sensible defaults (sqlbi theme, executive dashboard pattern, model-driven KPI selection) for anything the user can't or won't specify.

Rules

• Visuals must not overlap one another
• Favor theme changes over visual overrides for static formatting
• Favor extension measures with theme colors (like "bad") for conditional formatting
• Always create reports inside a named project folder (e.g., sales-dashboard/Sales.Report)
• Run pbir validate after every mutation
• New reports already include the sqlbi theme -- do NOT run pbir theme apply-template unless the user explicitly asks for a different theme
• New reports already include a default Page 1 with a textbox visual for the page title at position (20,20) with height 90 -- do NOT add a new textbox; rename the existing page with pbir pages rename instead. Place all visuals at y:120 or below to avoid overlapping the title textbox.

Quick Reference

1. Get the workspace and semantic model from the user. If the user wants to connect to Power BI Desktop or create a report with source data, explain that a published semantic model in Fabric or Power BI is required first.

2. Analyze the user's requirements. Consider missing information -- charts, filters, formatting, analyses. Use AskUserQuestion if something is unclear.

3. Assemble a design brief (audience, purpose, decision questions, page list with per-page intent, committed design identity, delivery target); get user approval before building; see references/design-brief.md.

4. Consider missing semantic model objects -- not just what the user asks for, but targets (1 year prior), baselines (avg for period), or trend aggregations (14-day rolling) that enrich visuals.

5. Create a project folder and report (default format is PBIP):

   mkdir -p /path/to/report-name
   cd /path/to/report-name
   pbir new report "Name.Report" -c "Workspace/Model.SemanticModel"
   

6. Rename the default page (do NOT add a new page unless the report needs multiple pages): pbir pages rename "Name.Report/Page 1.Page" --to "Overview" -f

7. Only if the user requests a custom theme: pbir theme apply-template "Name.Report" template-name (the sqlbi theme is already included by default)

8. Discover model fields: pbir model "Name.Report" -d

9. Query field values for filters or formatting: pbir model "Name.Report" -q "EVALUATE VALUES('Table'[Column])"

10. Inspect field data types: pbir model "Name.Report" -d -t Table

11. Add visuals (the page already has a textbox for the title): pbir add visual kpi "Name.Report/Overview.Page" --title "Revenue"

12. Configure query reduction (slicers + heavy visuals): see references/interactivity.md

13. Wire cross-filter overrides and page navigation: see references/interactivity.md

14. Add filters and slicers; configure slicer sync and reset: see references/interactivity.md

15. Validate: pbir validate "Name.Report"

16. Publish: pbir publish "Name.Report" "Workspace.Workspace/Name.Report"

17. Open in Fabric after publish: pbir publish "Name.Report" "Workspace.Workspace/Name.Report" -o

18. Or open locally in Power BI Desktop: pbir open "Name.Report"

Step-by-Step Process

Step 1: Understand the Business Process

Before creating visuals, explore the semantic model to understand the domain. Use pbir model "Report.Report" -d to inspect tables, columns, measures, and hierarchies. Consider:

• What domain does this model cover? (sales, finance, operations, logistics, etc.)
• What KPIs and measures matter most?
• What dimensions and hierarchies exist for slicing data?
• What time granularity makes sense? (daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly)

Present a concrete proposal via AskUserQuestion before building anything. The proposal should include:

• Which KPI cards to show and what measures they display
• What trend chart(s) to include and at what time granularity
• Which categorical breakdowns are most insightful
• What detail table/matrix to provide and with what hierarchies
• How filters should scope the data

Iterate on the design before executing -- revising a plan is cheaper than rebuilding visuals.

Step 1b: Assemble and Lock the Design Brief

Consolidate the Step 1 exploration and any vague-prompt findings into one design brief. This is not a second round of requirements gathering; it freezes what is already known into a single spec the build steps execute against. The brief names the audience, the purpose, the 2-5 decision questions a viewer must answer, a page list where each page carries one stated intent, the committed design identity (tone plus signature), and the delivery target. See references/design-brief.md for the copy-able template and how to fill each field.

Present the brief once via AskUserQuestion for explicit "yes" or "change X" approval. On approval, treat it as frozen: the build steps run against it without re-litigating scope, and any later scope change re-opens the brief rather than silently drifting the visuals.

The approved brief routes to the pbi-report-design skill (which owns the design canon: commit the identity there, and map each page intent to a concrete layout), then into the build steps below. Reference identity and page-intent-to-layout by concept; pbi-report-design is the home for that reasoning, so do not restate it here.

Step 2: Identify Location and Connection

Determine where to create the report and which model it connects to. Purpose, audience, and decision questions are already settled in the locked brief (Step 1b); do not re-elicit them here.

pbir model                                       # List all known reports/models
pbir connect MyWorkspace MyReport                # Set active connection

If the user provides a workspace location, create the report locally in a project folder, then publish.

Step 3: Create the Report

Create a project folder first, then the report inside it. Default format is PBIP.

mkdir -p sales-dashboard && cd sales-dashboard
pbir new report "Sales.Report" -c "MyWorkspace/Sales.SemanticModel"

The resulting structure:

sales-dashboard/
  Sales.Report/
    definition/
      pages/
      report.json
    StaticResources/
    definition.pbir
  Sales.pbip

Step 4: Rename Default Page and Add More Pages

The report comes with a default "Page 1" that already has a textbox for the page title. Rename it rather than creating a new page. Only add additional pages if needed.

pbir pages rename "Sales.Report/Page 1.Page" --to "Overview" -f  # Rename default page
pbir add page "Sales.Report/Detail.Page" -n "Detail"              # Add extra pages only if needed
pbir pages active-page "Sales.Report" "Overview"

Step 5: Configure Theme (only if user requests)

The sqlbi theme is already included by default. Only modify the theme if the user explicitly asks for a different theme or custom colors.

# Only if user wants a different theme:
pbir theme apply-template "Sales.Report" custom-theme

# Or to customize specific colors:
pbir theme set-colors "Sales.Report" --good "#00B050" --bad "#FF0000"
pbir theme set-text-classes "Sales.Report" title --font-size 16
pbir theme set-formatting "Sales.Report" "card.*.border.radius" --value 8

Step 6: Add Visuals to Pages

Check actual page dimensions first -- do not assume 1280x720. Use pbir pages json "Report.Report/Page.Page" to verify. The object model validates that visuals fit within page bounds.

Fill the canvas with a purposeful visual hierarchy. Standard composition for a 1280x720 page:

• Row 1 (y: 20-160): KPI visuals -- 2-3 kpi visuals showing headline metrics with targets and trend lines
• Row 2 (y: 180-460): Trend + Breakdown -- Line/area chart (~60% width) + bar/column chart (~40% width)
• Row 3 (y: 480-700): Detail table/matrix -- Full-width tableEx or matrix with hierarchies and conditional formatting

For a complete layout example with exact coordinates, spacing verification, and visual commands, consult references/layout-example.md.

Key principles:

• Consistent spacing: Calculate positions from (margin, gap, page_width, page_height). For 1280x720 with margin=24, gap=16, usable width = 1232. Verify arithmetic before placing visuals.
• No redundant titles: Page title = subject ("Order Lines"), visual titles = differentiator ("by Key Account", "Monthly Trend"). Hide subtitles: pbir visuals subtitle "path" --no-show
• Sorting: Charts auto-sort descending by first measure. After pbir visuals bind, set sort explicitly: pbir visuals sort "path" -f "Table.Measure" -d Descending

For reports where users pick which measure or dimension to view, use field parameters to collapse N near-duplicate visuals into one. See references/interactivity.md (Field Parameters section).

Step 7: Configure Query Reduction

For any report with slicers or a busy page (matrices, maps, high-cardinality tables), apply query reduction at creation -- not after. Retrofitting leaves stale interaction pairs and the page may already have unintended cross-filtering wired in.

The three components (see references/interactivity.md for full detail):

1. Add NoFilter visualInteractions pairs from each slicer to heavy visuals
2. Enable the filter-pane Apply button: pbir filters pane-set
3. Enable per-slicer Apply buttons: pbir visuals format on each slicer

For Import-mode reports with cheap queries, evaluate whether disabling cross-highlight is worth the loss of interactivity before applying.

Step 8: Wire Interactions and Navigation

After placing visuals, set cross-filter overrides and build navigation. Default is everything cross-filters everything, so author only the exceptions. For multi-page reports, add a pageNavigator visual rather than individual buttons.

See references/interactivity.md (Wiring Interactions and Navigation section) for the step-by-step and pitfalls.

Step 9: Add Filters and Slicers

pbir add filter Date Year -r "Sales.Report" --values 2025
pbir add filter Geography Region -r "Sales.Report"
pbir add filter Products Category -p "Sales.Report/Detail.Page"

For slicer type selection, sync groups, and reset/persist filter patterns, see references/interactivity.md (Slicer Type, Sync, and Reset section).

Step 10: Format Visuals

Most formatting should come from the theme (Step 5). Apply bespoke formatting only for genuinely one-off cases.

# Bulk formatting via glob (requires -f for glob patterns)
pbir set "Sales.Report/**/*.Visual.title.show" --value true -f
pbir set "Sales.Report/**/*.Visual.border.show" --value true -f

# Individual visual formatting
pbir visuals title "Sales.Report/Overview.Page/Revenue.Visual" --fontSize 14 --bold
pbir visuals background "Sales.Report/Overview.Page/Revenue.Visual" --color "#F8F9FA"

For titles that react to slicer selections or change color with status, use a _Report extension measure:

# Author a selection-aware title measure
pbir dax measures add \
  "Sales.Report" \
  -n "Title_Sales" \
  -e 'IF(ISFILTERED(Region[Region]), "Sales: " & SELECTEDVALUE(Region[Region], "multiple regions"), "Sales: all regions")' \
  -t _Report

# Bind via title CF, or drive a textbox text run with the measure

Key rules for dynamic titles:

• SELECTEDVALUE(..., "<fallback>") is mandatory; without it the title disappears under multi-select
• Keep the text measure and color measure separate (one returns the string, one returns a theme token like "good"/"bad"); each is independently testable
• A measure-driven title and a literal title cannot coexist; clear the literal first
• Test across no/single/multi selection by reasoning about ISFILTERED/HASONEVALUE, then confirm via render

Step 11: Validate

pbir validate "Sales.Report"
pbir tree "Sales.Report" -v

Step 12: Publish or Open

pbir publish "Sales.Report" "MyWorkspace.Workspace/Sales.Report"      # Publish
pbir publish "Sales.Report" "MyWorkspace.Workspace/Sales.Report" -o   # Publish and open in browser
pbir open "Sales.Report"                                               # Open in Power BI Desktop

Common Report Patterns

Executive Dashboard

• 2-3 KPI cards at top (revenue, orders, margin)
• 1 trend line/area chart (monthly if yearly filter, daily/weekly if monthly)
• 1-2 breakdown charts (bar/column) by key categories
• 1 detail table or matrix with hierarchies and conditional formatting
• Page size: 1280x720 (16:9)

Detailed Analysis

• Slicer bar at top (date range, category filters)
• Large table or matrix as main content with conditional formatting
• Supporting KPI cards for context
• Page size: 1280x720 or 1920x1080

Tooltip Pages

• Small page (320x240 or similar)
• 2-3 focused visuals
• Set via pbir pages type "path" --type tooltip

Reference Files

• references/vague-prompts.md -- Handling underspecified prompts: targeted questions, sensible defaults, propose-before-building workflow
• references/design-brief.md -- Locked design-brief template: decision questions, per-page intent, committed design identity (tone plus signature), delivery target, approval gate, routing to pbi-report-design
• references/layout-example.md -- Complete layout with coordinates, spacing verification, time granularity guidance
• references/interactivity.md -- Query reduction, cross-filter wiring, navigation, slicer type/sync/reset, field parameters
• references/limitations.md -- Agent limitations to communicate to users