PL-300 Practice Questions 2 — 50 Questions

Question 1

Which TWO are valid ways to distribute a Power BI report to users who do not have Power BI Pro licenses?

Accepted Answer

Embed the report in a Power BI app with Premium capacity.. Options B and C are correct. Power BI Premium capacity allows reports to be shared with users who do not have Power BI Pro licenses. Embedding a report in a Power BI app (Option B) within a Premium capacity workspace grants access to free users. Publishing a report to a workspace backed by Premium capacity (Option C) enables sharing with free users. Option A is incorrect because Power BI service sharing requires the recipient to have a Pro or Premium per user license. Option D is incorrect because exporting to PDF does not bypass license requirements; the user must still have appropriate access. Option E is incorrect because publishing to web makes the report public, which is not a controlled distribution method for non-Pro users.

Answer

Share the report via Power BI service sharing.

Answer

Export the report as PDF and email it.

Answer

Publish to web (public).

Question 2

You are a Power BI administrator. A user reports that their scheduled data refresh fails with error 'The data source credentials are no longer valid.' The dataset uses a SQL Server database with Windows authentication. What should you do first to resolve the issue?

Accepted Answer

Ask the user to update the data source credentials in the Power BI service dataset settings.. The error 'The data source credentials are no longer valid' typically occurs when the password has changed or expired. The user can update the credentials in the dataset settings in the Power BI service. Option A is incorrect because the on-premises data gateway is not the issue; a reinstall is unnecessary. Option B is incorrect because reassigning the dataset to a different Premium capacity does not address credential validity. Option C is incorrect because using 'Impersonate the authenticated user' still requires valid credentials and does not fix the problem.

Answer

Reinstall the on-premises data gateway on the server.

Answer

Reassign the dataset to a different Premium capacity.

Answer

Modify the dataset to use 'Impersonate the authenticated user' for data sources.

Question 3

You need to ensure that a Power BI report published to the service can be embedded in a secure internal SharePoint Online page. Only authenticated users from your Microsoft Entra ID tenant should be able to view the report. What should you do?

Accepted Answer

Use the 'Embed in SharePoint Online' option in Power BI service.. To embed a Power BI report securely in a SharePoint Online page, use the 'Embed in SharePoint Online' option in the Power BI service. This generates a secure embed link that respects Microsoft Entra ID authentication and permissions, ensuring only authorized users can view the report. After generating the link, add the Power BI web part to a SharePoint page and paste the link. Option B is incorrect because sharing a direct link does not embed the report; it only provides a hyperlink. Option C is incorrect because 'Publish to web' makes the report publicly accessible without authentication. Option D is also a method that generates a secure embed code, but the 'Embed in SharePoint Online' option is the most straightforward and recommended approach for SharePoint embedding, making Option A the correct choice.

Answer

Share the report directly with all users and provide a direct link.

Answer

Use the 'Publish to web (public)' option and embed the iframe in SharePoint.

Answer

Use the 'Embed' option in Power BI service to generate a secure embed code, then add the Power BI web part in SharePoint.

Question 4

Which THREE components must be in place to enable Power BI data sensitivity labels from Microsoft Purview? (Select exactly three.)

Accepted Answer

Power BI admin setting to enable sensitivity labels enabled. Options A, B, and D are correct. To enable Power BI data sensitivity labels from Microsoft Purview, three components are needed: the Power BI admin setting to enable sensitivity labels must be turned on (A), sensitivity labels must be published to users or groups in the Microsoft Purview compliance portal (B), and a Microsoft Purview Information Protection subscription (including Azure Information Protection P1/P2) is required (D). Option C is incorrect because Power BI Premium capacity is not a prerequisite; sensitivity labels work with both Power BI Pro and Premium capacities. Option E is incorrect because a Power BI Pro license is not required for all users; the feature can be used with any license type if the admin enables it and the necessary subscriptions are in place.

Answer

Power BI Premium capacity assigned to the workspace

Answer

Power BI Pro license for all users

Question 5

You have a Power BI dataset that uses a DirectQuery connection to Azure Synapse Analytics. Users report that the report is slow. You need to improve query performance without changing the data source. What should you do?

Accepted Answer

Reduce the number of visuals on each report page.. Reducing the number of visuals on each report page reduces the number of queries sent to the data source, improving performance for DirectQuery datasets. Option A is incorrect because reducing cardinality of measures may reduce data size but does not directly reduce the number of queries. Option B is incorrect because disabling RLS could change data access but does not significantly improve query performance. Option C is incorrect because increasing scheduled refresh frequency applies to import mode, not DirectQuery.

Answer

Reduce the cardinality of calculated measures.

Answer

Disable row-level security (RLS) on the dataset.

Answer

Increase the scheduled refresh frequency.

Question 6

A company is deploying Power BI for the entire organization. They need to prevent users from sharing reports with external email addresses. Which configuration should the Power BI admin use?

Accepted Answer

Disable 'Share content with external users' in the Power BI admin portal.. The Power BI admin portal provides a tenant-level setting 'Share content with external users' that can be disabled to prevent sharing with external email addresses. Option B is incorrect because Conditional Access policies in Microsoft Entra ID control access based on conditions but do not specifically block external sharing within Power BI. Option C is incorrect because Microsoft Purview sensitivity labels classify and protect data but do not block sharing. Option D is incorrect because workspace sharing settings only control sharing within the workspace and do not prevent external sharing at the tenant level.

Answer

Configure a Conditional Access policy in Microsoft Entra ID.

Answer

Apply a Microsoft Purview sensitivity label.

Answer

Set the workspace sharing settings to 'Only existing users'.

Question 7

Your organization uses Microsoft Purview Information Protection to label sensitive data in Power BI datasets. You need to ensure that when a report is exported to Excel, the sensitivity label is automatically applied. What should you configure?

Accepted Answer

Ensure the dataset has a sensitivity label and that the export inherits the label.. When a Power BI dataset has a sensitivity label applied via Microsoft Purview Information Protection, any downstream exports (such as reports exported to Excel) automatically inherit that label. This inheritance ensures consistent protection across all outputs. Option D is incorrect because the Power BI admin portal setting 'Apply sensitivity labels to exported data' is used to apply labels when the data source does not have a label, but it does not override automatic inheritance from a labeled dataset. Option B is incorrect because DLP policies in Microsoft Purview monitor and protect data, but they do not automatically apply sensitivity labels to exports. Option C is incorrect because setting a default sensitivity label on a report is not a feature; sensitivity labels are inherited from the dataset, not configured per report.

Answer

Use data loss prevention (DLP) policies in Microsoft Purview.

Answer

Set a default sensitivity label on the report.

Answer

Enable 'Apply sensitivity labels to exported data' in the Power BI admin portal.

Question 8

A Power BI report uses a DirectQuery data source. The model includes a calculated column that uses the RELATED function to bring a value from another table. The report is performing slowly. What design change would most improve performance without compromising functionality?

Accepted Answer

Replace the calculated column with a calculated table that includes the related column.. Replacing the calculated column with a calculated table that includes the related column moves the join logic to query time, reducing the per-row overhead of the RELATED function in DirectQuery mode. In DirectQuery, calculated columns are evaluated row-by-row for each query, which can cause significant performance degradation; a calculated table is materialized once during refresh (or in DirectQuery, it is resolved as a single query to the source), avoiding repeated row-level lookups. This change preserves the functionality of having the related value available in the table while improving query performance.

Answer

Remove the RELATED function and merge tables in the source query.

Answer

Convert the model to Import mode.

Answer

Use a measure instead of a calculated column.

Question 9

Your organization uses Power BI Premium and wants to enforce that users can only see data relevant to their department (Sales, Marketing, Finance) using row-level security (RLS). The dataset contains a 'Department' column. You have created three RLS roles, each with a filter like [Department] = "Sales". You publish the dataset and add users to the roles. However, users in the Sales role can see all data. What is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The users are also assigned to workspace roles (e.g., Member) that grant them access to the dataset without RLS restrictions.. In Power BI, users assigned to workspace roles (Admin, Member, Contributor) have dataset-level permissions that bypass Row-Level Security (RLS). Since these users can access the dataset directly, RLS filters are not applied. Option A is incorrect because RLS roles are typically created in Power BI Desktop before publishing. Option B is incorrect; multiple roles combine filters using OR logic, so users in multiple roles see union of all allowed data, not all data. Option C is incorrect because RLS filters are case-insensitive by default. Option D correctly identifies that workspace roles override RLS.

Answer

The RLS roles were created in the Power BI service, not in Power BI Desktop.

Answer

The users are members of multiple RLS roles, so they see all data.

Answer

The RLS filter uses a string comparison that is case-sensitive and the data contains mixed case.

Question 10

Which TWO of the following are valid methods to share a Power BI report with external users (outside your organization)? (Choose two.)

Accepted Answer

Invite the external user as a guest in your Microsoft Entra ID (Azure AD) and share the report directly with them.. The correct answers are C and E. Option C: By inviting external users as guests in your Microsoft Entra ID (Azure AD) using Azure AD B2B, you can share Power BI reports directly with them without requiring them to have a Power BI license. Option E: 'Publish to web' creates a public embed code that anyone on the internet can view, making it suitable for sharing with external users. Option A is incorrect because exporting to PDF creates a static file, not an interactive report, and is not a sharing method. Option B is incorrect because external users need to be set up as guests or use publish to web; a direct link alone will not work without proper authentication. Option D is incorrect because embedding in SharePoint Online requires the external user to have access to the SharePoint site, which typically involves additional setup such as guest access.

Answer

Export the report to PDF and email it to the external user.

Answer

Send the external user a direct link to the report via email; they can view it without any additional setup.

Answer

Embed the report in a SharePoint Online page using the Power BI web part.

Question 11

Which THREE of the following are valid methods to enhance the accessibility of a Power BI report? (Choose three.)

Accepted Answer

Provide keyboard navigation support by setting tab order.. Setting tab order in Power BI allows keyboard-only users to navigate through report visuals in a logical sequence, which is a core requirement of WCAG 2.1 success criterion 2.4.3 (Focus Order). Option C is correct because Power BI provides built-in high contrast themes that enhance readability for users with visual impairments. Option E is correct because adding alt text to visuals ensures screen readers can convey the content to visually impaired users. Option D is not considered a valid method for this question; while using a color-blind friendly palette is a good design practice, it is not specifically a method to enhance accessibility in the context of the exam. Option A is incorrect as animations can distract and are not an accessibility feature.

Answer

Add animations to visuals to draw attention.

Answer

Use a color-blind friendly palette.

Question 12

Refer to the exhibit. The Power Query M code connects to a SQL Server database and performs data transformation. However, the query is failing with a privacy level error. What is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The query combines data from SQL Server and another data source with incompatible privacy levels.. A privacy level error in Power Query occurs when combining data from multiple sources with incompatible privacy levels. The query connects to SQL Server and performs transformations, but if it also references another source (e.g., from a previous step or additional data) with a privacy level that conflicts with SQL Server's privacy level, the Power Query firewall blocks the query. In this scenario, the most likely cause is that the query combines SQL Server data with another data source (such as a CSV file or another database) that has a privacy level set to 'Private' while SQL Server is set to 'Organizational' or 'Public', causing the error. Option D correctly identifies this. Options A and B are incorrect because a single data source cannot cause a privacy level error, and inconsistent privacy levels across environments do not trigger the firewall on a single source.

Answer

The SQL Server credentials are not correctly configured in the data source settings.

Answer

The privacy levels for the SQL Server data source are set inconsistently across the environment.

Answer

The query uses a CSV file from a local folder that has a privacy level set to 'Private'.

Question 13

You are reviewing a Power BI dataset configuration in the service. The JSON shows a data source for an Azure SQL Database. Which statement about the configuration is correct?

Accepted Answer

The dataset uses cloud-only data sources and does not require a gateway.. Azure SQL Database is a cloud-native data source in Power BI, and cloud data sources do not require a gateway, whether using DirectQuery or Import. The configuration shown in the JSON is for an Azure SQL Database, which is inherently cloud-only, so no gateway is needed. Option A is incorrect because key-based authentication is not supported for Azure SQL Database; using 'Key' credential type would cause a connection failure. Option B is incorrect because the JSON does not indicate single sign-on (no 'SingleSignOn' property set to true). Option C is incorrect because a cloud gateway is not required for Azure SQL Database; it is only needed for on-premises or virtual-network sources.

Answer

The dataset uses key-based authentication and does not use single sign-on.

Answer

The dataset uses single sign-on with Azure AD.

Answer

The dataset is configured to use a cloud gateway for direct query.

Question 14

You are preparing data for a Power BI report. You have a table that contains a 'ProductID' column with some null values. You need to ensure that the 'ProductID' column does not contain any null values in the data model. Which Power Query transformation should you apply?

Accepted Answer

Replace Values -> Replace null with a default value. Replacing null values with a default value directly ensures that the ProductID column has no nulls in the data model. This transformation can be applied to a specific column using 'Replace Values' in Power Query, where you replace null with a chosen default. Options A and B do not address null values. Option C, 'Remove Blank Rows', only removes rows where all columns are blank, so rows with data in other columns but null ProductID remain, failing the requirement.

Answer

Group By

Answer

Remove Duplicates

Answer

Remove Rows -> Remove Blank Rows

Question 15

You have a Power BI workspace that contains several dashboards and reports. You need to ensure that the workspace is certified and that only certified datasets can be used in reports across the tenant. You also want to display a certification badge on the workspace. What should you do?

Accepted Answer

Apply certification to the datasets in the workspace via the dataset settings.. Certification is applied to datasets, not workspaces. To certify a workspace, you must certify each dataset individually via the dataset settings. The certification badge appears on datasets, not on the workspace itself. Option B is incorrect because updating the workspace description does not certify anything. Option C is incorrect because marking the workspace as 'Featured' is unrelated to certification. Option D is incorrect because the 'Endorsement' setting controls endorsement (promotion) of content, not certification.

Answer

Update the workspace description to include 'Certified'.

Answer

Mark the workspace as 'Featured' in the admin portal.

Answer

Enable the 'Endorsement' setting for the workspace.

Question 16

A company has a fact table with sales data and multiple dimension tables. They want to create a measure that calculates the total sales amount for the current year, but the measure returns incorrect results when used in a visual with a date hierarchy. What is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The relationship between the date table and the fact table is inactive.. If the relationship between the date table and the fact table is inactive, measures that rely on time intelligence functions (like TOTALYTD, SAMEPERIODLASTYEAR, or a simple SUM with date filtering) will not automatically propagate filters from the date hierarchy to the fact table. In Power BI, only one active relationship can exist between two tables; inactive relationships require explicit activation via USERELATIONSHIP in DAX. Without that, the measure ignores the date filter and returns incorrect or blank results.

Answer

The date table is not marked as a date table in Power BI.

Answer

The fact table is not in a star schema; it is snowflaked.

Answer

The relationship between the date table and the fact table is set to bidirectional cross-filtering.

Question 17

Which TWO actions can you take in Power Query Editor to improve data quality and reduce load time? (Choose two.)

Accepted Answer

Filter out empty rows.. Filtering out empty rows in Power Query Editor directly reduces the number of rows loaded into the data model, which decreases memory usage and improves refresh performance. This action also enhances data quality by removing incomplete records that could cause errors in measures or relationships. The other options either do not reduce load time or may increase it.

Answer

Split columns by delimiter to create more columns.

Answer

Sort the data by a key column.

Answer

Promote headers to use the first row as column names.

Answer

Merge queries to combine data from multiple sources.

Question 18

A data analyst creates a Power BI report that uses a date table with a continuous date range. They want to calculate the running total of sales over the last 12 months, ending on the last date in the current filter context. Which DAX expression should they use?

Accepted Answer

CALCULATE(SUM(Sales[Amount]), DATESINPERIOD('Date'[Date], MAX('Date'[Date]), -12, MONTH)). DATESINPERIOD('Date'[Date], MAX('Date'[Date]), -12, MONTH) returns a contiguous set of dates from 12 months before the last date in the current filter context up to that last date, providing an exact 12-month window. This function handles month boundaries correctly and is the standard way to calculate rolling 12-month totals in DAX. Option A uses 365 days, which can be imprecise due to leap years.

Answer

CALCULATE(SUM(Sales[Amount]), DATESBETWEEN('Date'[Date], MAX('Date'[Date]) - 365, MAX('Date'[Date])))

Answer

TOTALMTD(SUM(Sales[Amount]), 'Date'[Date])

Answer

CALCULATE(SUM(Sales[Amount]), DATESYTD('Date'[Date]))

Question 19

You manage a Power BI workspace that contains a dataset refreshed daily from an on-premises SQL Server. Users report that the report shows data from two days ago. You verify that the scheduled refresh ran successfully this morning. What is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The on-premises data source is misconfigured, causing the refresh to load data from an outdated source.. The most likely cause is that the on-premises data source is misconfigured (e.g., pointing to a stale backup or snapshot). This results in the scheduled refresh loading data from an outdated source, making it appear successful yet yielding old data. The gateway does not cache data; the issue lies in the data source reference.

Answer

The refresh took longer than expected and timed out.

Answer

The scheduled refresh is not set to refresh the dataset.

Answer

The on-premises data gateway is offline.

Question 20

A data analyst is designing a star schema in Power BI. The model includes a table named 'Orders' with columns: OrderID, CustomerID, OrderDate, ProductID, Quantity, and SalesAmount. Which column should NOT be included in the fact table to maintain a proper star schema?

Accepted Answer

OrderID. In a proper star schema, fact tables should contain quantitative measures and foreign keys to dimension tables. Columns like CustomerID and ProductID serve as foreign keys linking to dimension tables, so they should remain in the fact table. OrderID is a natural key that typically belongs in an Order dimension table; the fact table should use a surrogate OrderKey instead. Including OrderID directly would duplicate dimensional data and reduce modeling flexibility.

Answer

Quantity

Answer

SalesAmount

Answer

CustomerID