LibGuides: Power BI for the End User: 1.1 Buttons

Header image for Buttons section. Reads: Buttons.

Buttons

There are 2 types of buttons in Power BI

in-report buttons are set by the report creator, so can have unique use cases
outside the report buttons are part of Power BI online, and will always have the same purpose

In-Report Buttons

In report buttons can have one of the following use cases:

Page navigation
Link to outside the report
Clear all slicers (you might call them filters)
Apply all slicers
Drill-through (See "1.4 Drilling" section)
Open a Q&A visual (See "Q&A" under "2. Visualization Types")
Go to bookmark...

... "bookmarks" in Power BI are a saved version of the report. This could be certain filters applied, metrics being shown, visualizations being hidden or shown. Regardless, It should be communicated by the button label what it does. Sometimes slicers/ filters look like buttons (See "1.2 Filters" section for what these might look like).

Check out the Microsoft documentation on buttons

Examples

The following are examples of common button icons, and what they are usually used for (but, again, it's up to the report creator):

Common Buttons

Back	Back	Reset
Information	Help	Apply Slicers
Clear all slicers	Go to Bookmark	Open a Q&A visualization

Buttons can also have custom icons, text, and shape the following are examples:

Custom Styling, General Buttons

The following buttons are general buttons with some styling. in this case they link away from the report.

rounded rectangle buttons with colour and shadow

Page Navigation Buttons with Custom Style and Icons

This is an example of page navigation buttons with custom styling and custom icons.

page navigation buttons with custom style and icons

Outside Report Buttons

You will likely be viewing a report in one of 2 ways - in Power BI service or in a Power BI App. Both have similar buttons.

Page Navigation

The report creator can choose to hide or show page navigation outside of the report. The following are examples of page navigation, if it is shown by the report creator.

Examples

Power BI Service

This is an example of page navigation buttons from the Power BI Service for a report.

Power BI App

This is an example of page navigation in a Power BI App. Notice that you can see the name of the App, "LIBR - Access Services"; the name of the report(s), "Access Services Report"; the names of all the pages in the report; and additional pages outside of the report(s) , "Tour".

Top Navigation Bar

The top navigation bar in Power BI online has several useful and buttons. The bar might look like one of the following:

power bi service top navigation buttons

power bi top navigation buttons for Power BI App

The bars have the same buttons and functionality, but the icons and colours may be slightly different. Let's go through what each button does, one-by-one.

Image of Button	Explanation
	With the file button you can print a static (PDF) version of the report embed the report - with all existing file permissions generate a QR code
	With the share button you can copy the link to the report and share it using the link.
	With the Export button you can Open an excel file with a direct link to the data to create pivot tables (the data in your file will update if the data in the Power BI report updates). Open in Powerpoint as either: a static version of your report in its current state where each page in the report is a page in the PowerPoint. The live Power BI report Embedded in a PowerPoint. You will need the Power BI add-in on PowerPoint for this. Create a static PDF version of the report in it's current state.
	There are more buttons under the ellipses button: Chat in teams: share the report in Microsoft Teams Explore this data: use the data from the report to do your own quick light weight analysis. similar to making a report, but using the existing data and underlying model. Subscribe to the report: get email updates about the report on a timeline of your choosing (Weekly, monthly, etc.). See related content: see other reports using the same underlying data model. Open lineage review: this shows where the data is coming from (e.g. SQL database, Python, Excel spreadsheet, etc.). View semantic model: Redirects to the underlying dataset. See the unaggregated data.
	Reset filters, slicers, and other data view changes you've made.
	With the bookmarks button you can capture a state of the report in its current view, including all filters and slicers applied, to return to later. Any bookmarks you have previously created will also appear here.
	The views button (1) allows you to Change the way the report fits to the screen Apply high contrast colouring (2) to see more distinct colours. This is discussed in more detail in the "Accessibility" section. Show visuals as tables: all visuals in the report will show the data represented as aggregated numbers in a table. This is discussed in more detail in the "Accessibility" section.
	Refresh visuals button: when the data model has been updated, refreshing will update the visuals to the latest data.
	Add a comment to a page or visualization on the report.
	Add to favourites button: Your favourite reports appear on the homepage of your Power Bi Service (Power BI online) account for easy access.
	App Info button: For Power BI Apps only. See the App name, owner and description.