Import mode vs Live Connection recommendation

[jozsef_braun]

Hi All,

I would like to see your opinions, experience, recommendation on when to go to the bigger paid services, like AAS/SSAS or Power Bi Premium from normal import mode. I know the general answer is "it depends", but I would like to see experiences. I'm curious simply on performance, not the functions that each service can provide in extra
How many users can query a report simultaneously without a huge performance issue on a default PBI service ?
What is the max recommended model size in import mode?

Thanks in advance

Joey

[v-xicai]

Hi @jozsef_braun ,

Power BI Pro or Power BI Free supports uploading Power BI Desktop (.PBIX) files that are up to 1 GB in size. Power BI Premium supports uploading Power BI Desktop (.PBIX) files that are up to 10 GB in size.

If you need to upload PBIX file that is larger than 10 GB, consider to move data from your source to SQL Server, Oracle or SSAS, then use DirectQuery/Live connection.

Best Regards,

Amy 

Community Support Team _ Amy

If this post helps, then please consider Accept it as the solution to help the other members find it more quickly.

[lbendlin]

The one big thing that is holding us back is the absence of the unified data model ( it think it was promised for october at MBAS).  Right now as soon as you use a live connection you are dead in the water, unable to blend in your own reference data.

[GilbertQ]

Hi there

If you are importing the data, you can always blend it with your existing dataset.

The same applies for AAS, where you can blend the data within AAS?

[lbendlin · Accepted solution]

Exactly. I was making an argument against Live connections in their current incarnation.

One more comment on the number of users.  That is largely irrelevant as the actual mechanics of the Power BI Service are very different.  It is much more a question of the available capacity memory and the ability to evict other datasets than how many users access a dataset that is currently loaded in memory.

[GilbertQ]

Hi there

Even though you alluded to it depends, it does always depend on what you are looking to do with your dataset. This also means how large your dataset is in terms of PBIX size.

I do know that the PBI Service can handle quite a lot of users.

I would recommend testing out your dataset size and concurrent users to see performance.