The answer is time zone differences between Power BI Desktop and the service. When a measure calculates year-over-year growth using functions like SAMEPERIODLASTYEAR or DATEADD, the Power BI service applies UTC conversion to date fields, which can shift date boundaries and cause the measure to return blank values because no matching dates exist in the shifted period. On the Microsoft Power Platform Fundamentals PL-900 exam, this scenario tests your understanding of how environment settings affect data behavior—a common trap is assuming the measure logic itself is broken, when in fact the service’s time zone configuration silently alters date calculations. Remember that Power BI Desktop uses your local time zone, while the service defaults to UTC unless explicitly changed. A useful memory tip: “Desktop is local, service is UTC—if your measure goes blank, check the time zone bank.”
PL-900 Demonstrate capabilities of Power BI Practice Question
This PL-900 practice question tests your understanding of demonstrate capabilities of power bi. Read the scenario carefully and evaluate each option against the stated constraints before committing to an answer. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.
A Power BI report contains a measure that calculates year-over-year growth. The measure works correctly in Power BI Desktop but shows blank values after publishing to the service. What is the most likely cause?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "most likely"
Why it matters: Probability qualifier — the question wants the most probable cause or outcome, not a guaranteed one. Eliminate low-probability options.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
The time zone settings in the service differ from Desktop
Option C is correct because time zone settings in the Power BI service can cause date-based measures like year-over-year growth to return blank values. When a measure uses functions such as SAMEPERIODLASTYEAR or DATEADD, the service may interpret date boundaries differently than Power BI Desktop, especially if the dataset uses a different time zone or if the service applies UTC conversion. This mismatch can result in no matching dates for the calculation, leading to blank results.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
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 dataset was deleted from the service
Why it's wrong here
If deleted, the report would not open at all.
✗
The user does not have permission to view the measure
Why it's wrong here
Permissions control access, not calculation.
✓
The time zone settings in the service differ from Desktop
Why this is correct
Year-over-year calculations often depend on date functions that are sensitive to time zone.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "most likely" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
The scheduled refresh is not configured
Why it's wrong here
Scheduled refresh does not affect measure calculation; it only updates data.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often assume blank values are caused by missing data or permissions, but the real issue is the subtle difference in time zone handling between Power BI Desktop and the Power BI service, which is a frequent source of confusion in PL-900 exam questions.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Power BI Desktop uses the local system time zone by default, while the Power BI service stores and processes data in UTC. When a measure uses time intelligence functions like TOTALYTD or SAMEPERIODLASTYEAR, the service may shift date boundaries, causing the measure to return blank if the date table does not account for the offset. A common fix is to mark the date table as a date table in the model or use explicit time zone conversion in Power Query to ensure consistent behavior across environments.
KKey Concepts to Remember
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Find the constraint that changes the correct option.
Eliminate answers that are true in general but not in this case.
TExam Day Tips
→Watch for words such as best, first, most likely and least administrative effort.
→Review why wrong options are wrong, not only why the correct option is correct.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A company's IT admin needs to give a contractor read-only access to production logs without sharing account credentials. Using role-based access control (RBAC) and temporary scoped permissions — not a permanent shared password — is the correct pattern. Questions like this test whether you can apply least-privilege access across cloud identity services.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Demonstrate capabilities of Power BI — This question tests Demonstrate capabilities of Power BI — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: The time zone settings in the service differ from Desktop — Option C is correct because time zone settings in the Power BI service can cause date-based measures like year-over-year growth to return blank values. When a measure uses functions such as SAMEPERIODLASTYEAR or DATEADD, the service may interpret date boundaries differently than Power BI Desktop, especially if the dataset uses a different time zone or if the service applies UTC conversion. This mismatch can result in no matching dates for the calculation, leading to blank results.
What should I do if I get this PL-900 question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Are there clue words in this question I should notice?
Yes — watch for: "most likely". Probability qualifier — the question wants the most probable cause or outcome, not a guaranteed one. Eliminate low-probability options.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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