Power BI Sharing Methods for Guest Users

The chart shows the options available for sharing Power BI reports with outside users who are classified as guests. Guest users, as compared with outside users who are classified as internal users, have limited functionality and are restricted to viewing Power BI reports through a browser interface. The following sections describe how links to reports can be shared and the interface guest users will encounter.

E-mail

Internal users (designated with sharing rights) can send links to Power BI reports to guests via e-mail. The feature, called Shareable Links, provides a secure method for sharing reports on an ad hoc or ongoing basis. Key to Shareable Links is the ability to grant access to individual reports without granting access to the Power BI workspace hosting the report, which simplifies administrative efforts. Guest users can retain the link and access the shared report repeatedly whenever they want. For example, a monthly status report can be updated by the internal users, and guest users can access it without waiting for a new link. Shareable Links can also prevent the guests from downloading the report or seeing the underlying data, preventing data loss. Links are tied to the guests’ e-mail addresses, which are used for user authentication, licensing compliance, and row-level security to the underlying data if applied. However, sharing via e-mail is limited to 500 users per report. Consequently, sharing with a large audience may require using an embedded option.