Power BI Dashboard Publishing Checklist (Start to Finish)

​

​

⚠️ Important Note - Please click on each step for the complete explanation

​

​​

Step 1: Download Power BI Desktop

​

• Open Microsoft Store.

• Search for Power BI Desktop.

• Click Get to download and install.

​

​

Step 2: Connect PBIX to Your Local Excel File (With My Help)

​

• I will assist you live in linking your PBIX file to your Excel file for the first time.

• After that, do not change:

  • The file path.

  • File name.

  • Sheet name.

  • Column names.

​

​

Step 3: Upload PBIX to Power BI Service

​

• Go to app.powerbi.com.

• Navigate to My Workspace.

• Click + New > Import a file > From this device.

• Upload the PBIX file.

​

​

Step 4: Manage Permissions (One-Time Setup)

​

• Check if you have Admin Rights in Power BI Service.

• If you do, go to Admin Portal > Tenant Settings > Embed.

• Enable everything under Publish to Web.

​

​

Step 5: Manual Refresh (Inside Power BI Service)

​

• Click the vertical three dots (⋮) next to the Semantic Model (Dataset).

• Select Refresh now.

• Wait until the refresh time updates and no error icon appears.

​

​

Step 6: Setup Gateway (If Using Offline Files)

​

• If your Excel file is offline, install Power BI Gateway (Personal Mode).

• Sign in and connect your dataset to the gateway.

• Skip this step if your Excel file is online (OneDrive, SharePoint, etc.).

​

​

Step 7: Setup Scheduled Refresh

​

• Inside dataset Settings, scroll to Scheduled Refresh.

• Turn on Keep data updated.

• Select time zone and preferred refresh slots.

• Click Apply.

​

⚠️ Notes:

• Your PC must stay ON during refresh times if you are using a gateway.

• 4 consecutive refresh failures will automatically pause the schedule.

​​​

​

Step 8: Republishing (When Given a New PBIX File)

​

• Re-upload the updated PBIX file.

• Open the Report inside Power BI Service.

• Click Edit, then immediately Save to apply the new changes on the public link.

​

​

🎉 All Done!
Your dashboard is now fully automated, refreshed, and publicly shareable.

​

​