ConfigMgr Integrate Power BI Reporting Server with SCCM | Configuration Manager | Endpoint Manager

Hello, folks; let me share my experience, with how to integrate Power BI reporting server with SCCM CB. Let’s understand more details about Power BI and the implementation of the Power BI reporting server from this post.

You also need to install the Power BI desktop app to create custom reports. Before that, we should know Power BI and why it is required?

To answer this, Power BI is a business analytics solution provided by Microsoft to visualize your data and share users to create their reports and dashboard. Using Power BI, users can customize the report and dashboard according to requirements.

Well, Mohan has already written about How to Build Power BI Live Dashboard Integration with SCCM. You can read that post if you want to know more about Power BI SCCM Dashboard implementation details. There is a video tutorial also to help with the Dashboard demo.

Prerequisites

The following is the quick list of prerequisites to integrate the Power BI Reporting server with ConfigMgr (a.k.a SCCM). Apart from the items mentioned below, you need to have appropriate SQL and SCCM permissions.

• Power BI license required. Licensing Power BI Report Server.
• Download Microsoft Power BI Report Server-September 2019, or later.
• Download Microsoft Power BI Desktop (Optimized for Power BI Report Server – September 2019), or later

Backup SSRS Encryption Keys

If you have already configured the reporting service point on the site, follow the below step.

• Go to Reporting Server Configuration Manager and backup the Encryption Keys.

• Store encryption keys in some location and while saving the keys it will ask to provide the password. While restoring the key use the same password.
• Remove Reporting Server Role from the Primary site (if already installed).
• Uninstall SQL Server Reporting Services.
  • Note: Keep the database.
• Once all the steps have been completed, then follow the step “Configure Power BI Reporting Service Point“

Configure Power BI Reporting Service Point

Let’s start the integration process.

Step-1

• Download & Install Microsoft Power BI Report Server-September 2019 as admin on Primary site.

• Once installation is completed click on configure the report server.

Configuring Power BI Report Server

Step-2 – In this step, the Primary server name and Report Server Instance must be PBIRS (Power BI Report Server) and should come automatically. Click on Connect.

Once you connect to the report server, you will find Report Service Status “Started.“

Step-3

Go to the Database option and click on Change Database to configure the report server database.

Select “Choose an existing report server database” and click Next.

Provide SQL server name and choose Authentication Type as below in the picture. Provide user name and password and click Test Connection. Once the connection succeeds, then click Next.

Choose “Report Server” from the Report Server Database filed in the Database section and click Next.

Provide database credentials to connect to the SQL database and click Next.

Verify all the details provided in the previous step in Summary and Click Next. Once this configuration is completed, click on Finish.

Once the configuration is completed, you will see in results below. Click on Apply.

• Click on Encryption Keys
• Click on the Restore button to restore the Encryption Key.

Once the database is successfully configured, go to the”Encryption Keys” option and click on “Restore” Then select the backup file location and provide the password, click “Ok.” You will see the encryption key will be restored successfully.

NOTE! – Use SQL Server Reporting Services Configuration Manager to test and verify the configuration. For more information, see Verify SQL Server Reporting Services installation.

The next step goes to “Web Service URL” if you see the URLs present, click on Apply. Also, verify in the “Web Portal URL” and click Apply.

ConfigMgr Configurations

Note: If you do not configure the Power BI Reporting server and the go-ahead to the SCCM site and add the Reporting Services Point role, you will not find the Reporting services server instance.

Step-4

Once the Power BI Report server configuration is completed, go to the ConfigMgr site and add “Reporting Services Role” on the Primary site.

Now you can see the Reporting Services server instance will automatically come as “PBIRS.” Then Click Next.

Now the Reporting Services Point role will be successfully added to the site. Click Close to complete the action.

Step-5

Now install the Microsoft Power BI Desktop (Optimized for Power BI Report Server – September 2019) run as admin on the primary site.

NOTE! After installing the Power BI Desktop app, launch Power BI Desktop at least once before you open the SCCM Admin console.

Results

Now you can launch the Power BI reports from a web portal. Also, you can create custom SCCM reports using Power BI desktops.

Now in the SCCM console Monitoring\Overview\Reporting node, you will see the Power BI Reports option will be available. Right-click on the Power BI Reports and Click on Create Report.

Author

Debabrata Pati has more than 7+ years of experience in IT. Skilled in MEMCM, Azure, and Powershell. More than five (5) years of experience in MEMCM (SCCM) administration, OSD, and Troubleshooting for the environment with more than 100K client devices.