SharePoint Online is a great way for organizations to create portals and team sites for distributing Power BI reports. However, users consuming Power BI reports through SharePoint Online have not had access to the full capabilities of Power BI. We’re addressing this limitation with a new option to enable the Power BI report action bar in SharePoint Online.
The action bar lets report viewers access important capabilities to be more productive with the reports they use in SharePoint.
With the action bar, users can now easily Analyze in Excel, Export to PowerPoint, and Export to PDF. This enables users to use data and insight in more places to more quickly get their jobs done.
Report viewers can now create and view personal bookmarks right in SharePoint, making it easier to get to the data they individually need. The bookmarks are also available in the Power BI service and Microsoft Teams so no matter where a user views the report, they get the same personalized experience.
Another great option is printing report pages, to save an archive of the data for later reference or to share the data with others.
The action bar also provides a range of accessibility options. For example, users can now go into full screen or high-contrast mode to better see and understand report content data.
Several options in the action bar are currently only available from within the Power BI service itself. For example, options for commenting or sharing access to a report prompt the user to open the report in Power BI to complete these actions. We’re continuing to evaluate which options to bring into the webpart itself and are open to feedback on how to further optimize how Power BI integrates into SharePoint.
To turn on the report action bar, simply edit the webpart options and set ‘show action bar’ to ‘on’. This option is on by default for newly added Power BI webparts, but is off by default for existing places where you’re already using it.
We’re excited to continue to provide flexible ways to connect individuals in your organization with data and insights. The key to driving a data culture is equipping every team and individual with data and insights right in the context of where they work and collaborate.
Using data shouldn’t be a secondary task – it needs to be part of everything we do. With Power BI integrations in SharePoint Sites, SharePoint lists, Teams channels, meetings, and chats, Excel, Power Apps, mobile, and more we’re committed ensuring Power BI data is always “1-click away everywhere people work”.
If you have feedback on our SharePoint integration or ideas on how to bring Power BI even more into the context of where people work please let us know in the Power BI Ideas forum.