What is Power BI ?

Power BI is a data visualization tool that is used to transform data into visually pleasing reports and dashboards.

Power BI is made up of 4 components, which are :

  1. A windows of desktop application called Power BI Desktop.
  2. An online SaaS (Software as a Service) service called the Power BI service.
  3. The Power BI mobile apps for Windows, iOS, and Android devices.
  4. The Power BI Report Server.

These four components are used to build reports and dashboards that help the business users analyze the organization and make strategic decisions.

So what are these components ?

  • Power BI Desktop : the Power BI Desktop, is a desktop application that allows you to connect to numerous data sources and merge the data retrieved via the data connectors into a data model that is used to build reports and dashboards.
    • There are 3 views available in the Power BI Desktop, and they are :
    • Report: this view is used to create the reports.
    • Data: this view contains the tables and other data that are used in building the reports.
    • Model: this view is used to manage and view the table relationships.
  • Power BI service : The Power BI service (app.powerbi.com), also known as Power BI online, is the SaaS (Software as a Service) part of Power BI. When the reports are ready to be shared, the Business Intelligence Analysts (BIA’s) can publish the report using the Power BI service.
  • Power BI mobile apps : Power BI mobile apps are applications that are designed to be used on mobile and tablet devices. They enable users to have easy access to published Power BI reports and dashboards.
  • Power BI Report Server : Power BI Report Server is a report server that is on-premise, which means that the organization hosts its own server. The Power BI Report Server has a web portal which allows the BIA to display and manage the reports and dashboards.

So why should I use Power BI ?

Power BI is one of the available Business Intelligence tools, so what are some of the advantages of using Power BI ?

Some of the advantages of using Power Bi include the following :

  1. Power BI is easy to use and understand.
  2. It has a powerful data modelling engine which allows it to compress databases. The data compression capability enables the application to process large amount of data without compromising its performance.
  3. It supports scripting languages like R which enables it to build powerful data analytical reports and dashboards.
  4. It has a seamless integration with excel to enable the users to use familiar excel features in their data analysis.
  5. It has enhanced security features which prevent unauthorized access to its reports and dashboards.