Limitations for A or EM SKUs?

[SamTrexler]

I have been working in the Service with a Pro account for more than a year. We are just now starting down the road of using Power BI Embedded, and we're not sure whether we will use A or EM SKUs - we won't use Sharepoint or Teams, and we're still projecting usage patterns, etc. to choose the most cost effective solution.

I have not been able to find documentation, blog posts or forum posts defining some of the limitations we might encounter with A or EM SKUs. Specifically:

1. Is there a limit to the size of a dataset or report, such as the 10GB limit for a Pro user?
2. Can all data sources be used? We're most interested in SQL Server, both DirectQuery and Import modes, but also some other data sources.
3. Can embedded reports connect to their data via the on-premises gateway? (I think the answer is "yes".)
4. Is there a limit to the number of refreshes per day? Does this limit apply to refreshes we initiate within the application as well as scheduled refreshes? For example, if we schedule the maximum refreshes per day (such as 48 with P nodes), can the application still initiate refreshes when it needs to?
5. I see documentation that gives the limit of DirectQuery connections per second for some of the node sizes. How is this defined, and does it include refreshes (scheduled and/or programmatic) of a DirectQuery dataset?
6. Are there any limitations on the visualizations and other features of the report, like Power BI Report Server has (e.g., no ArcGIS visuals, no Q&A, etc.)? As a Pro user developing reports for Embedded use, do I need to consider any feature limitations? From my reading so far, it appears that the reports are deployed in the Service (in a specified capacity), so they can do anything the Service does - as soon as the feature is announced in the Service. Is that correct?

Thanks for your help.

Sam

[v-ljerr-msft]

Hi @SamTrexler,

Here is great article which could help you better understanding the Power BI Capacity Based SKUs. 

Regards

[SamTrexler]

Hi @v-ljerr-msft,

Thanks for the reply. That is a great article. I have previously read it (as well as others) and it really helps clarify the different SKUs available. And I have just read it again.

However, it doesn't address size constraints (can a report be > 1GB, like Premium? Can a workspace be greater than 10GB? Can we purchase additional space?), refresh (8 per day like Pro? 48 per day like Premium? As many times as the app wants to do it?), any limitations on data sources or visualizations or connectivity, whether Preview features of the Service are available, etc.

So that's the reason for my post with a list of my questions. Before purchasing an A or EM SKU, I'd like to know if they wil meet our needs. We're certainly not going to keep scaling up until we find a SKU that does what we need. And we don't want to start going down a path that won't get us where we want to go.

So if anyone can point me in the direction of documentation that describes the capabilities and limitations of A and EM SKUs (not just their pricing and use cases), or directly provide answers to my questions, I'd greatly appreciate it. Even if it's just a blog post that authoritatively states that A and EM SKUs have the identical capabilities, features and limitations of P SKUs.

Regards,

Sam

[nimrod · Accepted solution]

A SKUs and EM/P SKUs are identical in their resources and capabilities.

i.e, A1=EM1, A3=EM3, A4=P1 and so on...

It means that what ever EM/P SKU that you can upload a 10GB report, you can do that for the equivalent A SKUs.

Same goes for refreshes and DirectQuery, and so on..

Main differences are:

1. A SKUs valid on for Power BI Embedded scenario, while EM can be valid in embedding for Power BI users as well.

2. P SKUs can be used for consuming content through PBI.com or the mobile app, while A/EM do not.

3. A is billed by the hour, and can be paused, while P&EM are billed on monthly/ yearly commitment.

See more about the differences here- https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/power-bi/developer/embedded-faq

[u02cm62]

@nimrod

I think the link https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/power-bi/developer/embedded-faq needs to be updated now.

There are things in there coming here shortly that would change a lot of this.

Do you see PBIE PRemium (A SKU's getting SSRS)?  Or do we have to use P SKU's?

[SamTrexler]

Hi @nimrod,

Thanks, that's exactly what I needed to know and couldn't find.

By the way, the link you provided gave me a 404 error - perhaps it's not publicly available? Anyway, it did provide links to other helpful sites.

Thanks for your help.

Sam

[nimrod]

Fixed. Thanks for letting me know