In the dynamic landscape of modern business, the ability to make informed decisions based on real-time data is a game-changer. Microsoft understands this need intimately, and its suite of powerful tools—Power BI and Dynamics 365 Business Central—has emerged as a transformative combination for businesses worldwide. Let’s delve into how the integration of these two platforms brings unparalleled benefits, driving efficiency, insights, and growth for organizations of all sizes.
What you can do with Power BI & Business Central
Business Central and Power BI offer a variety of features. Some tasks can be performed directly from Power BI, while others need to be handled within Business Central. Additionally, certain features are exclusive to Business Central online and are not available in the on-premises version. The following table provides an overview.
| FEATURE | DESCRIPTION | ONLINE | ON-PREMISE |
| View Business Central data in Power BI | You can view your data from Business Central in reports in Power BI. Business Central online includes some predefined Power BI reports. Or, your organization might have some custom reports. |  | |
| View Power BI reports in the Business Central client. | Power BI reports that display Business Central data can be embedded directly in parts of Business Central pages. You can switch the part to display any report that is made available to you. | | |
| Create reports and dashboards in Power BI that display Business Central data. | Use Power BI Desktop to create your reports and dashboards. You can publish the reports to your own Power BI Service or share them with others within your organization. | | |
| Business Central apps in Power BI | Business Central publishes three apps for Power BI on Microsoft AppSource. These apps create detailed reports and dashboards in your Power BI service for viewing Business Central data. Available apps include: Dynamics 365 Business Central – CRM Dynamics 365 Business Central – Finance Dynamics 365 Business Central – Sales | | |
| Work with Business Central data in datamarts and dataflows | Starting in July 2022, you can use the Business Central connector in Power Query Online to dataflows that you share across different reports and dashboards. | |
Getting Started with Power BI
Before you can start using Power BI with Business Central, there are a few tasks that need to be completed. These tasks vary depending on your role within the organization and your intended use of Power BI:
- As a business user: You want to view Power BI reports, either in the Power BI Service or within Business Central.
- As an administrator: You are responsible for managing the organization-wide settings that control how Business Central and Power BI integrate.
- As a report creator: You want to build custom Power BI reports that can be shared with other users.
| TASK | BUSINESS USER | ADMINISTRATOR | REPORT CREATOR | MORE INFORMATION |
| Get a Power BI account |  | | | Go to https://powerbi.microsoft.com. To sign up for an account, use your work email address and password. Sign-up requires that you have a license, but in most cases you should already have a free license, For more information, see Power BI Licensing. |
| Get Power BI Desktop | | To download, go to Power BI Desktop. For more information, see Get Power BI Desktop. | ||
| Expose Business Central data to Power BI | | | Expose data through API pages or OData web services | |
| Enable Power BI integration (on-premises only) | | Set up Business Central on-premises for Power BI integration |
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