Workflows

These walkthroughs show how the CLI fits together in real work. Each one is a sequence you can copy and adapt, not just isolated command examples.

Create a Simple Report

Use this flow when you are starting from a semantic model and want a minimal, valid report quickly.

pbir new report "Sales.Report" --connection "My Workspace.Workspace/SalesModel.SemanticModel"
pbir pages rename "Sales.Report/Page 1.Page" "Overview"
pbir model "Sales.Report" -d
pbir add visual card "Sales.Report/Overview.Page" --title "Revenue" -d "Values:Sales.Revenue"
pbir add visual lineChart "Sales.Report/Overview.Page" --title "Trend" -d "Category:Date.Date" -d "Values:Sales.Revenue"
pbir validate "Sales.Report"

Why this order works:

• new report gives you a clean starting point
• model -d shows the fields you can bind safely
• visuals are added only after the page and data model are clear
• validation closes the loop before more changes stack up

Bulk-Format a Report

Use this when the report structure is already right and you want consistency across many visuals.

pbir backup "Sales.Report" -m "Before bulk formatting"
pbir set "Sales.Report/**/*.Visual.title.fontSize" --value 14 -f
pbir set "Sales.Report/**/*.Visual.border.show" --value true -f
pbir set "Sales.Report/**/*.Visual.border.radius" --value 8 -f
pbir validate "Sales.Report"

The backup matters here because bulk changes can touch dozens of visuals at once.

Theme-First Styling

Use theme commands when you want consistent defaults rather than one-off overrides on each visual.

pbir theme set-colors "Sales.Report" --primary "#2B579A" --secondary "#217346"
pbir theme set-formatting "Sales.Report" "*.border.radius" --value 8
pbir theme set-formatting "Sales.Report" "card.*.border.show" --value true
pbir validate "Sales.Report"

This is usually easier to maintain than pushing the same formatting to every visual manually.

Download, Edit, Publish

Use this flow when the source of truth starts in Fabric but the actual editing work happens locally.

pbir download "My Workspace.Workspace/Sales.Report" -o ./working --format pbir
cd working
pbir tree "Sales.Report" -v
pbir visuals title "Sales.Report/Overview.Page/Revenue.Visual" --text "Net Revenue" --bold
pbir validate "Sales.Report"
pbir publish "Sales.Report" "My Workspace.Workspace/Sales.Report" -f

The key point is that download and publish are the edges of the workflow. The real inspection and editing still happen against the local report folder.

Audit an Existing Report

Use this when you inherit a report or need to understand it before changing anything.

pbir tree "Sales.Report" -v
pbir fields list "Sales.Report"
pbir filters list "Sales.Report"
pbir annotations list "Sales.Report"
pbir validate "Sales.Report" --all

This gives you a strong high-level picture:

• tree for structure
• fields for data bindings
• filters for report behavior
• annotations for internal metadata
• full validation for structural confidence

Prepare a Report for Safer Changes

Use this mini-workflow before any risky operation such as convert, merge, split, or large formatting passes.

pbir backup "Sales.Report" -m "Before risky changes"
pbir tree "Sales.Report" -v
pbir validate "Sales.Report" --all

It is simple, but it prevents a large share of avoidable mistakes.