paginated-report-ops

name

paginated-report-ops

description

Export, modify, and re-import Fabric Paginated Reports (.rdl) via REST APIs. Covers data source rebinding, renaming, folder placement, and known platform limitations. Use when the user wants to: (1) export a paginated report .rdl from Fabric, (2) change the data source / semantic model of a paginated report, (3) import a modified .rdl back into a Fabric workspace, (4) move paginated reports between workspace folders. Triggers: "paginated report", "rdl file", "change data source", "rebind paginated", "export report", "import rdl", "move report to folder".

Paginated Report Operations — Skill

Quick Reference

Operation	API	Key Notes
Export .rdl	PBI GET /groups/{wsId}/reports/{id}/Export	Returns raw .rdl bytes
Import .rdl	PBI POST /groups/{wsId}/imports?datasetDisplayName={name}.rdl	Must include .rdl extension in displayName
Move to folder	Fabric POST /workspaces/{wsId}/items/{id}/move	Use targetFolderId in body
List folders	Fabric GET /workspaces/{wsId}/folders	Folders are NOT in generic items list
List folder items	Fabric GET /workspaces/{wsId}/items?rootFolderId={fId}	Filter items by folder
Get datasources	PBI GET /groups/{wsId}/reports/{id}/datasources	Inspect current bindings
Delete report	PBI DELETE /groups/{wsId}/reports/{id}	Clean up before re-import
Clone report	PBI POST /groups/{wsId}/reports/{id}/Clone	Server-side copy (no .rdl upload)

Workflow: Change Data Source of a Paginated Report

Step 1 — Export the .rdl

$pbiToken = (az account get-access-token --resource "https://analysis.windows.net/powerbi/api" --query accessToken -o tsv)
Invoke-RestMethod "https://api.powerbi.com/v1.0/myorg/groups/$wsId/reports/$reportId/Export" `
  -Headers @{ Authorization = "Bearer $pbiToken" } `
  -OutFile "report.rdl"

Step 2 — Modify the .rdl XML

The .rdl is standard XML. Data source references appear in these locations:

Line Pattern	Element	What to Change
<wa:DataSourceName>	Filter selections	Semantic model display name
<DataSource Name="">	DataSources section	Semantic model display name
<ConnectString>...Initial Catalog=sobe_wowvirtualserver-{guid}...	Connection string	Semantic model internal ID (GUID)
<DataSourceName> inside <Query>	Dataset queries	Semantic model display name

All occurrences must be updated consistently. The Initial Catalog GUID format is:

sobe_wowvirtualserver-{semantic-model-id}

Step 3 — Import the modified .rdl

# CRITICAL: datasetDisplayName MUST include .rdl extension
$url = "https://api.powerbi.com/v1.0/myorg/groups/$wsId/imports?datasetDisplayName=ReportName.rdl&nameConflict=Abort"

# Use System.Net.Http.HttpClient for proper multipart encoding
Add-Type -AssemblyName System.Net.Http
$httpClient = [System.Net.Http.HttpClient]::new()
$httpClient.DefaultRequestHeaders.Authorization = [System.Net.Http.Headers.AuthenticationHeaderValue]::new("Bearer", $pbiToken)
$content = [System.Net.Http.MultipartFormDataContent]::new()
$fileContent = [System.Net.Http.ByteArrayContent]::new([System.IO.File]::ReadAllBytes($rdlPath))
$fileContent.Headers.ContentType = [System.Net.Http.Headers.MediaTypeHeaderValue]::new("application/octet-stream")
$content.Add($fileContent, "file", "ReportName.rdl")
$response = $httpClient.PostAsync($url, $content).Result

Step 4 — Move to folder (optional)

$fabricToken = (az account get-access-token --resource "https://api.fabric.microsoft.com" --query accessToken -o tsv)
$body = @{ targetFolderId = $folderId } | ConvertTo-Json
Invoke-RestMethod "https://api.fabric.microsoft.com/v1/workspaces/$wsId/items/$reportId/move" `
  -Method POST -Headers @{ Authorization = "Bearer $fabricToken"; "Content-Type" = "application/json" } `
  -Body $body

Import API Details

Parameter	Required	Notes
datasetDisplayName	Yes	Must end in .rdl — this is how the API identifies paginated report uploads
nameConflict	Recommended	Abort or Overwrite only for RDL files
subfolderObjectId	Optional	Import directly into a workspace folder
Content-Type	Yes	multipart/form-data with file as form data

Token Audiences

API	Resource / Audience
Power BI REST API	https://analysis.windows.net/powerbi/api
Fabric REST API	https://api.fabric.microsoft.com

Use PBI tokens for report CRUD; Fabric tokens for workspace/folder/item operations.

Known Platform Limitations (as of April 2026)

Operation	Status	Error
Rebind API	Not supported for paginated reports	PowerBIOperationNotSupported
Clone with targetModelId	Not supported for RDL reports	InvalidRequest
UpdateDatasources API	Selector never matches for PBIDATASET sources	ItemNotFound — datasource selector doesn't work with PBIDATASET provider
updateDefinition (Fabric)	Not supported for PaginatedReport items	OperationNotSupportedForItem
SetAllConnections API	Endpoint doesn't exist for paginated reports	404
Import via Invoke-RestMethod	Unreliable multipart encoding	Use System.Net.Http.HttpClient instead

Workaround for Data Source Change

Since no server-side rebind API works, the only reliable approach is:

1. Export the .rdl
2. Modify the XML (data source name + Initial Catalog GUID)
3. Delete the old report (if overwriting)
4. Import the modified .rdl via multipart POST with .rdl in displayName

Finding Semantic Model IDs

To get the internal ID for the Initial Catalog connection string:

# List all semantic models in workspace
$datasets = Invoke-RestMethod "https://api.powerbi.com/v1.0/myorg/groups/$wsId/datasets" `
  -Headers @{ Authorization = "Bearer $pbiToken" }
$datasets.value | Where-Object { $_.name -eq "YourModelName" } | Select-Object name, id
# Use the id in: sobe_wowvirtualserver-{id}

Scripts

Two production-ready scripts are available in creator/skills/paginated-report-ops/scripts/:

Script	Purpose
Replace-PaginatedReportDataSource.ps1	Export → modify .rdl → save locally
Import-PaginatedReport.ps1	Import .rdl into Fabric workspace with optional folder placement