How to Check if Power BI Report is in Import Mode or Direct Query Mode

You have got a Power BI report and wondering if it is designed to work in Import mode or using direct query method. Let’s see how you can check this confidently –

If you are looking the report in Power BI Desktop –

One way of checking is that you will notice that there is NO “Data” tab. Only Report and Model tabs are there. This guarantees that your report is running in direct query mode.

Further, if you are running composite models in your report and having even a single table configured to run in import or dual mode starts showing the Data tab then you can check if the particular table in question is running in the import mode or direct query mode as follows –

Click on the Model tab, select the table as shown below and then navigate to the properties. Under the Advanced section, you will find the storage mode of the table –

If you want to verify the same thing in Power BI service

You can simply go to the dataset settings and look at the Scheduled Refresh configuration. If you are able to configure it as shown in the following snapshot then your report/dataset is running in the import mode.

Direct Query and Live Connections doesn’t have the scheduled refresh settings enabled.

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