Power BI workspaces give report viewers and developers a space to collaborate and share reports after being published. They play a fundamental role in report organization and controlling user access. We’ll explain what workspaces are and how to get started using them in Power BI.
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What is a Power BI Workspace?
A Power BI Workspace is an environment within the Power BI service (PowerBI.com) where users can collaborate on or share data sets, reports, dashboards, or apps. Workspaces are similar to shared folders in that they contain sets of assigned reports or data and can be shared with specific individuals or groups.
When users are given access to a workspace, they are also given access to all of the files within that workspace. Different permission levels control whether the user can add, modify, or view reports that are contained within the workspace.
The screenshot below shows a Power BI workspace available on PowerBI.com where a number of reports, dashboards, and semantic models have been published for users to work with or view.
Workspaces can be as simple as containing a single report to more complex, containing sub-folders of dozens of different reports and semantic models (data sets).
How to Use Power BI Workspaces
All Power BI workspaces are managed through PowerBI.com and users must have an appropriate level of access to create or edit them. Here is a quick breakdown of how to perform some common functions to get you started using Power BI workspaces.
How to Create a Workspace
First login to the Power BI Service at PowerBI.com. Use the navigation buttons on the left side of the screen to select “Workspaces” and click the “New Workspace” button at the bottom of the page. Name your workspace, give it a description and optionally select a license mode under advanced settings.
Thew newly added workspace will appear under the Workspaces tab where you can access it in the future.
Workspace License Modes
When you create a New Workspace in Power BI, you have the option to select a license type. The default type for most will be “Pro” this is the standard license Microsoft requires for creating workspaces and sharing reports with other users once they’ve been built. Other licenses include Premium Per User which adds features to the Pro license which are nice for large Enterprises, a Premium Capacity license and a Fabric Capacity license typically available in larger Power BI Deployments.
You can learn more about each type here: Power BI service features by license type – Power BI | Microsoft Learn
Managing Workspace Access
Open a workspace, and select “Manage Access” in the top right corner to invite members to your workspace and assign roles based on their needs (Viewer, Member, Contributor, or Admin).
Anybody within your organization with an Entra ID can be added. Users outside of a Premium Capacity SKU will need a Power BI license to access the workspace. If they don’t have a license, they will receive an e-mail inviting them to try Power BI with a free trial. You can add individual users or groups.
When adding users, you can use the drop-down menu to assign a security role to them.
Here’s a simplified breakdown of the different access levels.
- Admin – Full control within the workspace
- Member – Full control of workspace, but cannot add or remove users, update or delete workspace.
- Contributor – Can publish, edit and share reports.
- Viewer – Can only view reports.
Microsoft also publishes more detailed information on each role here: Roles in workspaces in Power BI – Power BI | Microsoft Learn
The manage access button also lets you remove users or groups that have previously been granted access to a workspace.
Managing Power BI Workspace Settings
Additional workspace settings are available under Workspace Settings in the top right corner of a workspace. This section will allow you to adjust the assigned licensing mode and modify advanced settings such as Git Integration, connect Azure Data Lake Gen2 Storage, control whether data models can be modified in the Power BI service and more.
A dialogue box will appear giving you a number of options for the Workspace and for Power BI actions that can be restricted or granted at the workspace level.
Settings can be adjusted and typically take several minutes to take effect after being saved.
Deleting a Power BI Workspace
Power BI Workspaces can be deleted from the Workspace Settings tab under the “Other” section. While logged in as a workspace Admin, you can select delete a workspace, and confirm the deletion. The workspace and all of its contents will be removed.
In case of accidental workspace deletion, the Power BI Tenant Admin can restore it for a limited period of time after the initial deletion. How to Delete and Restore a Power BI Workspace
Conclusion
Power BI Workspaces are the backbone of collaboration and sharing on the Power BI platform. Workspaces exist within the Power BI Service at PowerBI.com. Workspace admins can control the content of a workspace, who the workspace is shared with, and what each user has permissions to do.