PL-300 Workspace Roles Practice Question
A user reports that they cannot publish a Power BI Desktop file to the Power BI service. The error message indicates insufficient permissions. The user is a member of a workspace and has the Viewer role. What is the most likely cause?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap is that users often confuse data access permissions (RLS) with workspace permissions. The question tests whether you know that Viewer role cannot publish, regardless of data access or licensing.
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
The user has the Viewer role in the workspace
The correct answer is A: the user has the Viewer role in the workspace. In Power BI, the Viewer role only allows viewing and interacting with existing content; it does not grant permission to publish or import .pbix files into the workspace, which requires at least the Contributor role. That directly matches the reported 'insufficient permissions' error when attempting to publish from Power BI Desktop. Option B is incorrect because RLS filters data rows for viewers and would not block publishing. Option C is not the most likely cause, since a Pro license is needed to publish to shared workspaces but the error specifically points to workspace role permissions. Option D is unrelated, as the .pbix file's storage location does not determine Power BI service publishing rights.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
The user has the Viewer role in the workspace
Why this is correct
In the Power BI service, workspace roles form a permission hierarchy: Admin, Member, Contributor, and Viewer. All roles except Viewer can create, edit, and publish items in the workspace; the Viewer role grants only read-only access and does not include content management rights. Because the user is assigned Viewer, the service rejects the publish attempt with an insufficient-permissions error, which directly matches the symptom.
- ✗
Row-level security (RLS) is preventing the user from seeing the data
Why it's wrong here
Row-level security (RLS) operates exclusively on data retrieval: it applies filtering predicates at query runtime so users only ever see rows they're authorized for, but it does not govern who can publish, edit, or otherwise manage content in a workspace. The inability to publish is a metadata/management permission issue handled by workspace roles, not by row-level restrictions on the semantic model. Therefore, even if RLS is configured, it wouldn't suppress the Publish button or generate an 'insufficient permissions' error on publication.
- ✗
The user does not have a Power BI Pro license
Why it's wrong here
Cannot publish to Power BI service without a Pro (or PPU) license is a real prerequisite, but this error is not describing a license failure; if licensing were the issue, the user would typically see a license-prompt or upgrade message, not a workspace-role permission denial. The reported problem stems from the user's role in the target workspace being Viewer, which blocks the publish action regardless of whether they hold a Pro license. In short, licensing answers 'may I use the service?' while the workspace role answers 'may I write to this container?'; the latter is what failed here.
- ✗
The .pbix file is stored on a network share that restricts write access
Why it's wrong here
The physical location of the .pbix file on a network share is unrelated to the Power BI service publishing pipeline. Publishing sends a copy of the desktop file's model and visuals up to the service through the cloud; whether that share permits write access only determines if you can save local changes back to the original file. If the user has rights to open and publish, a restrictive share permission would manifest as a save-as error, not as a denial from the service when Publish is clicked.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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