Technical requirements – Connecting to Data Sources
Technical requirements
The following are the prerequisites in order to complete the work in this chapter:
- Microsoft Power BI Desktop installed on a Microsoft Windows PC.
- Access to some data to use. We’re also providing synthetic data that can be used. This is available in the GitHub repository for this book here: https://github.com/PacktPublishing/Microsoft-Power-BI-Data-Analyst-Certification-Guide/tree/main/example-data.
Identifying data sources
In this section, we will review the various data source options that Power BI provides.
Local data sources, files, and databases
Most BI developers will work from a local Windows PC. Usually, that PC is not also running an enterprise database or functioning as a corporate file server. Power BI provides the ability to connect local data on your PC just the same as if the data is stored on a corporate file server (using network connectivity or Windows file share) or if you’re running a development server on your local machine. For ad hoc and testing purposes, many users will also want to import data files, such as CSV or Excel, from their local PC as well. Power BI supports various formats and makes it easy to import local files/data.
You can also import a folder of files or a Microsoft SharePoint folder of files.
Power BI also supports connecting to databases in the most popular databases. Most enterprise organizations run their business using data stored in databases, so sourcing data from a database is a common occurrence using Power BI. Some of the most popular databases include Microsoft SQL Server, Oracle Database, and SAP.
To see a complete list of supported files and databases, be sure to review the official documentation at https://docs.microsoft.com/power-bi/connect-data/power-bi-data-sources.
Cloud and SaaS data sources
In recent years, as more organizations have seen the value and adopted the cloud to help digitally transform their business, support for common cloud databases and SaaS providers has also been very important. Power BI supports a wide range of Microsoft Azure cloud services, including Azure Synapse Analytics and Amazon Redshift.
Outside of these dedicated connectors to databases and cloud services, Power BI also includes capabilities that enable connectivity using open or standards-based solutions, such as ODBC, REST API, and OData.
To see a complete list of supported cloud and SaaS data sources, check the official documentation at https://docs.microsoft.com/power-bi/connect-data/power-bi-data-sources.
It’s important for BI tools to connect to the data sources where data is stored. If an organization uses a data store that the BI tool does not support, then the data needs to be moved to a supported data store. For the exam, it is important to know some of the common data sources supported by Power BI. The wide connectivity to data has helped Power BI become one of the leading BI tools on the market today.