rest-api-automation

Power BI REST API and Automation

Overview

The Power BI REST API provides programmatic access for embedding, administration, dataset management, and automation. The base URL is https://api.powerbi.com/v1.0/myorg/ for user context or https://api.powerbi.com/v1.0/myorg/groups/{workspaceId}/ for workspace context.

Authentication

Service Principal (Recommended for Automation)

1. Register app in Azure AD: Azure Portal > App registrations > New registration
2. Create client secret: Certificates & secrets > New client secret
3. Grant Power BI permissions: API permissions > Add > Power BI Service
4. Enable in Power BI Admin: Tenant settings > Allow service principals to use APIs > add security group
5. Add SP to workspace: Workspace > Access > Add the app as Member or Contributor

Get access token:

curl -X POST "https://login.microsoftonline.com/{tenantId}/oauth2/v2.0/token" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/x-www-form-urlencoded" \
  -d "grant_type=client_credentials&client_id={clientId}&client_secret={secret}&scope=https://analysis.windows.net/powerbi/api/.default"

PowerShell:

$body = @{
    grant_type    = "client_credentials"
    client_id     = $clientId
    client_secret = $clientSecret
    scope         = "https://analysis.windows.net/powerbi/api/.default"
}
$token = (Invoke-RestMethod -Uri "https://login.microsoftonline.com/$tenantId/oauth2/v2.0/token" `
    -Method Post -Body $body).access_token

Master User (Legacy, Not Recommended)

Uses a real user account with username/password grant. Requires Pro/PPU license. Subject to MFA and Conditional Access issues. Avoid for production.

API Operation Groups

Group	Base Path	Purpose
Datasets	/datasets	Manage semantic models, refresh, parameters
Reports	/reports	Get, clone, export, rebind reports
Dashboards	/dashboards	Get dashboards and tiles
Groups (Workspaces)	/groups	Workspace CRUD, membership
Imports	/imports	Upload PBIX/XLSX files
Pipelines	/pipelines	Deployment pipeline automation
Admin	/admin	Tenant-wide operations (scanner, activity)
EmbedToken	/GenerateToken	Create embed tokens
Gateways	/gateways	Gateway and data source management
Dataflows	/dataflows	Dataflow management
Apps	/apps	App management
Capacities	/capacities	Capacity management
Goals	/goals	Scorecards and goals

Common API Operations

Refresh a Semantic Model

POST https://api.powerbi.com/v1.0/myorg/groups/{workspaceId}/datasets/{datasetId}/refreshes
Authorization: Bearer {token}
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "notifyOption": "MailOnFailure",
  "retryCount": 2,
  "type": "Full",
  "commitMode": "transactional",
  "applyRefreshPolicy": true
}

Enhanced refresh (selective tables/partitions):

{
  "type": "Full",
  "commitMode": "transactional",
  "objects": [
    { "table": "Sales", "partition": "Sales_Current" },
    { "table": "Products" }
  ]
}

Get Refresh History

GET https://api.powerbi.com/v1.0/myorg/groups/{workspaceId}/datasets/{datasetId}/refreshes?$top=10

Import a PBIX File

POST https://api.powerbi.com/v1.0/myorg/groups/{workspaceId}/imports?datasetDisplayName=SalesReport&nameConflict=CreateOrOverwrite
Authorization: Bearer {token}
Content-Type: multipart/form-data

[PBIX file as form data]

Python:

import requests

url = f"https://api.powerbi.com/v1.0/myorg/groups/{workspace_id}/imports"
params = {"datasetDisplayName": "SalesReport", "nameConflict": "CreateOrOverwrite"}
headers = {"Authorization": f"Bearer {token}"}

with open("SalesReport.pbix", "rb") as f:
    response = requests.post(url, params=params, headers=headers,
        files={"file": ("SalesReport.pbix", f, "application/octet-stream")})

Export Report to File

# Initiate export
POST https://api.powerbi.com/v1.0/myorg/groups/{workspaceId}/reports/{reportId}/ExportTo
{
  "format": "PDF",
  "powerBIReportConfiguration": {
    "pages": [
      { "pageName": "ReportSection1" }
    ],
    "defaultBookmark": { "name": "BookmarkName" }
  }
}

# Poll for completion
GET https://api.powerbi.com/v1.0/myorg/groups/{workspaceId}/reports/{reportId}/exports/{exportId}

# Download when status is "Succeeded"
GET https://api.powerbi.com/v1.0/myorg/groups/{workspaceId}/reports/{reportId}/exports/{exportId}/file

Supported formats: PDF, PPTX, PNG, XLSX, CSV, XML, MHTML, IMAGE, ACCESSIBLEPDF

Update Dataset Parameters

POST https://api.powerbi.com/v1.0/myorg/groups/{workspaceId}/datasets/{datasetId}/Default.UpdateParameters
{
  "updateDetails": [
    { "name": "ServerName", "newValue": "prod-server.database.windows.net" },
    { "name": "DatabaseName", "newValue": "ProdDB" }
  ]
}

Take Over a Dataset

POST https://api.powerbi.com/v1.0/myorg/groups/{workspaceId}/datasets/{datasetId}/Default.TakeOver

Update Data Source Credentials

PATCH https://api.powerbi.com/v1.0/myorg/gateways/{gatewayId}/datasources/{datasourceId}
{
  "credentialDetails": {
    "credentialType": "OAuth2",
    "credentials": "{\"credentialData\":[{\"name\":\"accessToken\",\"value\":\"...\"}]}",
    "encryptedConnection": "Encrypted",
    "encryptionAlgorithm": "None",
    "privacyLevel": "Organizational"
  }
}

Push Datasets (Real-Time)

Create and push data to datasets via API for real-time dashboards:

# Create push dataset
POST https://api.powerbi.com/v1.0/myorg/groups/{workspaceId}/datasets
{
  "name": "RealTimeMetrics",
  "defaultMode": "Push",
  "tables": [
    {
      "name": "Metrics",
      "columns": [
        { "name": "Timestamp", "dataType": "DateTime" },
        { "name": "Sensor", "dataType": "String" },
        { "name": "Value", "dataType": "Double" },
        { "name": "Status", "dataType": "String" }
      ]
    }
  ]
}

# Push rows
POST https://api.powerbi.com/v1.0/myorg/groups/{workspaceId}/datasets/{datasetId}/tables/Metrics/rows
{
  "rows": [
    { "Timestamp": "2026-04-03T10:30:00Z", "Sensor": "Temp-01", "Value": 23.5, "Status": "Normal" },
    { "Timestamp": "2026-04-03T10:30:00Z", "Sensor": "Temp-02", "Value": 45.2, "Status": "Warning" }
  ]
}

# Clear table
DELETE https://api.powerbi.com/v1.0/myorg/groups/{workspaceId}/datasets/{datasetId}/tables/Metrics/rows

Embed Tokens (Power BI Embedded)

Generate Embed Token for Report

POST https://api.powerbi.com/v1.0/myorg/groups/{workspaceId}/reports/{reportId}/GenerateToken
{
  "accessLevel": "View",
  "identities": [
    {
      "username": "[email protected]",
      "roles": ["RegionManager"],
      "datasets": ["{datasetId}"]
    }
  ]
}

Generate Token for Multiple Items

POST https://api.powerbi.com/v1.0/myorg/GenerateToken
{
  "datasets": [
    { "id": "{datasetId}" }
  ],
  "reports": [
    { "id": "{reportId}", "allowEdit": false }
  ],
  "targetWorkspaces": [
    { "id": "{workspaceId}" }
  ],
  "identities": [
    {
      "username": "[email protected]",
      "roles": ["ViewerRole"],
      "datasets": ["{datasetId}"]
    }
  ]
}

JavaScript SDK Embedding

<div id="reportContainer" style="height:600px;"></div>
<script src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/powerbi-client/dist/powerbi.min.js"></script>
<script>
  const embedConfig = {
    type: 'report',
    id: reportId,
    embedUrl: embedUrl,
    accessToken: embedToken,
    tokenType: models.TokenType.Embed,  // Use Embed for app-owns-data
    settings: {
      panes: {
        filters: { visible: false },
        pageNavigation: { visible: true }
      },
      bars: { statusBar: { visible: false } }
    }
  };

  const container = document.getElementById('reportContainer');
  const report = powerbi.embed(container, embedConfig);

  // Token refresh handler
  report.on('tokenExpired', async () => {
    const newToken = await fetchNewToken();  // Call your backend
    await report.setAccessToken(newToken);
  });

  // Event handlers
  report.on('loaded', () => console.log('Report loaded'));
  report.on('rendered', () => console.log('Report rendered'));
  report.on('error', (event) => console.error(event.detail));
</script>

Admin APIs

Scan Workspaces (Inventory)

# Initiate scan
POST https://api.powerbi.com/v1.0/myorg/admin/workspaces/getInfo
{
  "workspaces": ["{workspaceId1}", "{workspaceId2}"],
  "datasetExpressions": true,
  "datasetSchema": true,
  "datasourceDetails": true,
  "getArtifactUsers": true
}

# Get scan results
GET https://api.powerbi.com/v1.0/myorg/admin/workspaces/scanResult/{scanId}

Activity Events (Audit)

GET https://api.powerbi.com/v1.0/myorg/admin/activityevents?startDateTime='2026-04-01T00:00:00Z'&endDateTime='2026-04-02T00:00:00Z'&$filter=Activity eq 'ViewReport'

List All Datasets in Tenant

GET https://api.powerbi.com/v1.0/myorg/admin/datasets?$top=100

Additional Resources

Reference Files

• references/api-endpoints-complete.md -- Complete API endpoint reference with all parameters, response schemas, and error codes