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Bharti Goel
- January 23, 2023
Planning to learn Microsoft Analytics & Visualization tool, Power BI? Then, you are at the right place. Today we will discuss External Tools in Power BI Desktop. This blog would really help you understand the external tools. We have also added Use cases for the best explanation.
Introduction to External Tools in Power BI Desktop
There is a lot of buzz around External Tools in the analytics market. The market is very up & everyone wants to learn various tools. Everyone wants to get that edge in their career.
But for that, one should have enough knowledge like which is the next tool in the list now.
What are External Tools in Power BI Desktop
Since July 2020, External Tools have become better integrated with Power BI Desktop. These external tools are third-party tools (not supported by Microsoft). These tools are based on Microsoft-supported .NET libraries.
The libraries are provided by Microsoft and can modify the Power BI model.
After January 2021 Power BI update, external tools have enough capability to deploy and edit models published on Power BI Premium through XMLA endpoints. These tools are more suitable for large and complex enterprise-level projects.
How to get External Tools in Power BI Desktop
Let’s about Power BI Desktop Environment. Apart from the 6 options available in the ribbon, one more option is External Tools.
External tools are installed locally and registered with Power BI Desktop. We can launch them through the External Tools ribbon in the Power BI Desktop. The tool then automatically connects and provides a seamless connection experience.
List of External Tools in Power BI Desktop
The list of these external tools is very long. Look at the list divided into some of the categories here.
a) Tools used for Semantic Modeling
DAX Studio, ALM Toolkit, Tabular Editor, Metadata Translator.
b) Tools used for Data Analysis
Power BI Report Builder, Excel, and tools that launch Python in Power BI Desktop.
c) Tools used for Miscellaneous purposes
PBI.tips tutorials, DAX Guide from sqlbi.com, and the PowerBI.tips Product Business Ops community tool.
d) Custom Tools
These include custom-made external tools and scripts that are integrated into Power BI Desktop.
Important External Tools in Power BI Desktop along with Use Cases
1) Business Ops
There are a lot of challenges with respect to installing each external tool. So, you can download this installer. Then, you can add all the best External Tools directly into Power BI Desktop. It enables you to have a one-stop shop for all the latest versions of External Tools.
2) DAX Studio
DAX Studio is a free tool. This is used to write, execute, and analyze DAX queries in all the tools whichever are using DAX formula language. For example, Power BI Designer, Power Pivot for Excel, and Analysis Services Tabular.
It helps with Object Browser, query editing and execution, formula, and measures editing. This also helps with syntax highlighting and formatting, integrated tracing, and query execution breakdowns.
Launch: December 2016.
Let’s discuss the Use Cases.
Learn DAX Language
DAX Studio helps you write DAX queries and analyse the performance of your data models. It also helps in learning the DAX language in a better manner. We also provide a course on DAX with several business case statements. Before DAX, we recommend you to learn Power Query and Power BI. A complete course – Power BI plus can be checked with us.
Optimize the Model Performance
We have the VertiPaq Analyser tool integrated with DAX Studio. This tool allows us to easily optimise the model performance. It provides an immediate report for the data distribution and memory consumption. Hence, helps you resolve the issues.
We can also run a measure in DAX Studio and leverage the Server Timings tool to see how the formula is being interpreted.
Visualize the result of DAX “table” Functions
In DAX Studio, we can easily visualize the result of measures that contain a table function in DAX. This allows us to see the result of a table to check if the desired table is being produced or not.
This feature is not available in Power BI Desktop. We can only see the final output of a measure. Also, it would be very helpful if we could really see the in-between results of a measure to check stepwise calculations.
Extract the measures into a Spreadsheet
We can easily extract a list of the measures from the DAX Studio data model into a Spreadsheet. This will make it easy for you to document and reuse them.
3) ALM Toolkit
ALM (application lifecycle management) Toolkit is a free and open-source tool. This tool helps to manage Microsoft Power BI datasets as Database compares. It also helps in Code merging, Easy deployment, Source-control integration, Reuse definitions, and Self-service to corporate BI.
ALM is based on the source code of BISM Normalizer, which carries similar features to Tabular models.
Launch: December 2019.
Talking about the use cases, how do schema changes to the model without refreshing the entire model? Have you ever thought about it?
This is especially required for large models that are using the incremental refresh features of Power BI. Refreshing the entire data set puts a lot of load on the engine. It takes a long time to process. The ALM toolkit really helps to solve this problem.
4) Power BI Report Builder
Power BI Report Builder is a free tool. The tool creates paginated reports which you can publish to the Power BI cloud. We print (hard copy) or share the paginated reports.
Paginates reports fit well on a page, so they are called paginated reports. They display all the data in a table, even if a table is present across multiple pages.
Launch: July 2019.
5) Tabular Editor
The Editor is a paid tool that makes the work with the Power BI Desktop data model more effective. Using Tabular Editor, we can directly write to Power BI Desktop file. So if we change something in Tabular Editor, we can save it in Tabular Editor. Hence, the change appears in Power BI. The same works vice versa.
We can easily manipulate and manage measures and calculated columns. We can also try to work on display folders, perspectives, and translations in Analysis Services Tabular and Power BI Models using this tool.
Launch: 2016
Let’s Quickly understand the use cases below.
- Quick and friendly User Interface
- Calculation Groups
- Scripting
- Best Practices Analyzer
- Create Custom KPI
- Object Level Security
Final Words
These external tools help in one way or the other. These tools enhance the use of Power BI Desktop as a Business Intelligence development tool. Hence, learners who already know Power BI Desktop can start using these tools. Learners should always enhance their skills.
Let’s quickly check the takeaways here:
1) If you know Power BI already then you know the next tool in the list now.
2) If you don’t know Power BI then we suggest you learn Power BI. You can grow fast in your career.
We hope you are quite serious about learning Power BI Course. Why don’t you read other blogs related to Power BI? We suggest you check ways to optimize DAX queries & Power BI Report.
Happy Learning!
FAQ: External Tools in Power BI Desktop
1. How do I install multiple external tools without messing things up?
You can install them one by one, but a tool like Business Ops makes it super easy by bundling the best external tools together for seamless setup.
2. Can I make changes to my Power BI report using external tools without opening Power BI?
Not really. External tools need Power BI Desktop to be open, they connect directly to your model to make changes.
3. Are all external tools free, or do I need to pay for some?
Most are free, like DAX Studio and ALM Toolkit, but tools like Tabular Editor have paid versions if you want advanced features.
4. Can these tools handle really big datasets, or will they crash?
Yes! Tools like ALM Toolkit and DAX Studio are built for large enterprise models, so they can optimize and work with big data without slowing things down too much.
5. Will using external tools slow down my Power BI performance?
Sometimes. Running heavy queries or scripts can temporarily make your model sluggish, but it usually clears once the process is done.
6. Can I use external tools to collaborate with my team in real time?
Not directly. Most external tools are meant for single users, though you can share your work through version control or dataset deployment.
7. Can external tools replace learning DAX or Power Query?
Nope. They’re there to make your life easier, debugging, optimizing, or visualizing, but you still need solid DAX and Power Query skills.
8. Are external tools safe to use? Could they break my reports?
If you stick to trusted sources, they’re safe. Always check compatibility with your Power BI version to avoid issues.
9. How can I automate repetitive tasks using external tools?
Tools like Tabular Editor and ALM Toolkit let you script tasks and batch operations, which is perfect for automating things like model updates or deployments.
10. I want to get really good with external tools, what’s the fastest way?
The best way is hands-on practice. Edu4Sure’s Power BI courses guide you through DAX Studio, ALM Toolkit, and Tabular Editor with real-life projects, so you can learn and apply at the same time.
If you need professional training or want to discuss your needs with our trainers? You can contact us via partner@edu4sure.com or WhatsApp at +91-9555115533.
