Update Check — ONCE PER SESSION (mandatory) The first time this skill is used in a session, run the check-updates skill before proceeding.
GitHub Copilot CLI / VS Code: invoke the
check-updates
skill.
Claude Code / Cowork / Cursor / Windsurf / Codex: compare local vs remote package.json version.

Skip if the check was already performed earlier in this session.

CRITICAL NOTES

To find the workspace details (including its ID) from workspace name: list all workspaces and, then, use JMESPath filtering

To find the item details (including its ID) from workspace ID, item type, and item name: list all items of that type in that workspace and, then, use JMESPath filtering

Power BI Semantic Model Authoring — CLI Skill

Task	Reference	Notes
Finding Workspaces and Items in Fabric	COMMON-CLI.md § Finding Workspaces and Items in Fabric	Mandatory — READ link first [needed for finding workspace id by its name or item id by its name, item type, and workspace id]
Fabric Topology & Key Concepts	COMMON-CORE.md § Fabric Topology & Key Concepts	Hierarchy; Finding Things in Fabric
Environment URLs	COMMON-CORE.md § Environment URLs	Production (Public Cloud)
Tool Selection Rationale	COMMON-CLI.md § Tool Selection Rationale
Authentication Recipes	COMMON-CLI.md § Authentication Recipes	`az login` flows, environment detection, token acquisition, and debugging
Fabric Control-Plane API via `az rest`	COMMON-CLI.md § Fabric Control-Plane API via `az rest`	Always pass `--resource` ; includes workspace/item operations, pagination, and LRO patterns
OneLake Data Access via `curl`	COMMON-CLI.md § OneLake Data Access via `curl`	Use `curl` not `az rest` (different token audience)
Job Execution (CLI)	COMMON-CLI.md § Job Execution	Run notebooks/pipelines, refresh semantic models, check/cancel jobs
OneLake Shortcuts	COMMON-CLI.md § OneLake Shortcuts	Create a Shortcut; List Shortcuts; Delete a Shortcut
Capacity Management (CLI)	COMMON-CLI.md § Capacity Management	List Capacities; Assign Workspace to Capacity
Composite Recipes	COMMON-CLI.md § Composite Recipes	End-to-end workspace→lakehouse→file, SQL endpoint→query, and notebook execution recipes
Gotchas & Troubleshooting (CLI-Specific)	COMMON-CLI.md § Gotchas & Troubleshooting (CLI-Specific)	`az rest` audience, shell escaping, token expiry
Quick Reference	COMMON-CLI.md § Quick Reference	`az rest` Template; Token Audience ↔ CLI Tool Matrix
DAX Queries & Metadata Discovery	powerbi-consumption-cli	Read-only DAX queries; use for post-creation validation
Tool Stack	SKILL.md § Tool Stack	`az rest` (primary), `jq` (JSON parsing), `base64` encoding
Authentication & API Audiences	SKILL.md § Authentication & API Audiences	Two audiences: Fabric API vs Power BI Datasets API
Must/Prefer/Avoid	SKILL.md § Must/Prefer/Avoid	Guardrails for semantic model authoring
SemanticModel Definition & Envelope	ITEM-DEFINITIONS-CORE.md § SemanticModel	TMDL format; required parts, envelope structure, support matrix
TMDL File Structure & Examples	SKILL.md § TMDL File Structure	Required parts, minimal content examples
TMDL CRUD (Create / Get / Update)	SKILL.md § Create Semantic Model	Create → Get/Download → Update; full lifecycle with LRO
Authoring Scope Matrix	SKILL.md § Authoring Scope Matrix	What Fabric API supports vs what to avoid
Refresh Operations	SKILL.md § Refresh Operations	Trigger, cancel, history, schedule (Power BI API)
Data Sources & Parameters	SKILL.md § Data Sources & Parameters	Get/update data sources and parameters
Permissions	SKILL.md § Permissions	Grant/update dataset user permissions
Deployment Pipelines	SKILL.md § Deployment Pipelines	List, get stages, deploy between stages
Agentic Workflow	SKILL.md § Agentic Workflow	Step-by-step: discover → create → verify → refresh → validate
Troubleshooting	SKILL.md § Troubleshooting	Common errors table: LRO, auth, TMDL encoding, refresh
Examples	SKILL.md § Examples	Create model, download definition, refresh, deploy
Property-to-API Mapping	semantic-model-properties-guide.md § Property-to-API Mapping	Maps each property category to the correct API surface
Owner, Storage Mode & Operational Metadata	semantic-model-properties-guide.md § Owner, Storage Mode	Power BI Datasets API properties
Refresh History Response Properties	semantic-model-properties-guide.md § Refresh History	Refresh detail response fields
Data Source Response Properties	semantic-model-properties-guide.md § Data Sources	Connection and gateway properties
DirectQuery / LiveConnection Refresh Schedule	semantic-model-properties-guide.md § DQ Refresh Schedule	DirectQuery/LiveConnection schedule settings
Upstream Dataflow Links	semantic-model-properties-guide.md § Upstream Dataflows	Dataflow dependency properties
Per-Table Storage Mode	semantic-model-properties-guide.md § Per-Table Storage	Table-level storage mode via TMDL
TMDL Syntax Rules	tmdl-authoring-guide.md § TMDL Syntax Rules	Tab indentation, object declaration, quoting rules
Modeling Best Practices	tmdl-authoring-guide.md § Modeling Best Practices	Naming conventions, column rules, measure & DAX rules, format strings
Relationships	tmdl-authoring-guide.md § Relationships	Relationship declarations, key rules
Hierarchies	tmdl-authoring-guide.md § Hierarchies	Hierarchy declarations and key rules
Direct Lake Guidelines	tmdl-authoring-guide.md § Direct Lake Guidelines	Direct Lake mode configuration and constraints
Calculated Tables	tmdl-authoring-guide.md § Calculated Tables	DAX-based calculated table definitions
Date/Calendar Table	tmdl-authoring-guide.md § Date/Calendar Table	Calendar table setup and marking
Parameters	tmdl-authoring-guide.md § Parameters	Expression-based parameter declarations
Annotations	tmdl-authoring-guide.md § Annotations	Model and object-level annotations
TMDL File Layout & Core Files	tmdl-advanced-features-guide.md § File Layout	Directory structure, database.tmdl, model.tmdl
Calculation Groups	tmdl-advanced-features-guide.md § Calculation Groups	Calculation group tables and items
Security Roles	tmdl-advanced-features-guide.md § Security Roles	RLS/OLS role definitions
Security Role Memberships	SKILL.md § Security Role Memberships	Add/list/delete users & groups in RLS roles (Power BI API)
Translations / Cultures	tmdl-advanced-features-guide.md § Translations / Cultures	Localization via culture files
Perspectives	tmdl-advanced-features-guide.md § Perspectives	Perspective definitions for subset views
Functions	tmdl-advanced-features-guide.md § Functions	User-defined DAX functions in the model
Calendar Objects	tmdl-advanced-features-guide.md § Calendar Objects	Auto date/time calendar table objects

Tool Stack

Tool	Role	Install
`az` CLI	Primary: `az rest` for Fabric and Power BI REST API calls, `az login` for auth.	Pre-installed in most dev environments
`jq`	Parse JSON from `az rest` responses	Pre-installed or trivial
`base64` (Linux/macOS) / `[Convert]::ToBase64String` (PowerShell)	Encode TMDL file content for definition payloads	Built-in

Agent check — verify before first operation:
bash
az version 2>/dev/null || echo "INSTALL: https://learn.microsoft.com/cli/azure/install-azure-cli"

Authentication & API Audiences

This skill uses two distinct API audiences. Using the wrong audience returns a 401.

API	Audience ( `--resource` )	Use For
Fabric Items API	`https://api.fabric.microsoft.com`	Create/get/update/delete semantic model definitions, list items, LRO polling
Power BI Datasets API	`https://analysis.windows.net/powerbi/api`	Refresh, data sources, parameters, permissions, deployment pipelines

bash

# Fabric Items API — semantic model definition operations
az rest --method post \
  --resource "https://api.fabric.microsoft.com" \
  --url "https://api.fabric.microsoft.com/v1/workspaces/$WS_ID/semanticModels" \
  ...

# Power BI Datasets API — refresh, data sources, permissions
az rest --method post \
  --resource "https://analysis.windows.net/powerbi/api" \
  --url "https://api.powerbi.com/v1.0/myorg/groups/$WS_ID/datasets/$DATASET_ID/refreshes" \
  ...

Must/Prefer/Avoid

MUST DO

Read the relevant TMDL reference sections BEFORE generating any TMDL — at minimum read TMDL Syntax Rules and Modeling Best Practices. If the task involves relationships, hierarchies, calculation groups, security roles, or translations, also read the corresponding sections in tmdl-authoring-guide.md and tmdl-advanced-features-guide.md. Do not generate TMDL from memory.
Always pass
--resource
to
```
az rest
```
— omitting it causes silent auth failures. Use the correct audience per the table above.
Always pass
--headers "Content-Type=application/json"
on POST/PATCH/PUT calls with a
```
--body
```
to the Power BI Datasets API — omitting it causes
```
Unsupported Media Type
```
errors.
Include ALL definition parts in
```
updateDefinition
```
— modified + unmodified. The API replaces the entire definition; omitting parts deletes them.
Never include
.platform
in
```
updateDefinition
```
payloads — it is Git integration metadata and causes errors.
Poll LRO to completion —
```
createItemWithDefinition
```
,
```
getDefinition
```
, and
```
updateDefinition
```
return
```
202 Accepted
```
with an
```
Operation-Id
```
header. Poll until terminal state.
Base64-encode TMDL content — all
```
payload
```
values in definition parts must be base64-encoded.
Single-quote names with special chars — names containing spaces,
```
.
```
,
```
=
```
,
```
:
```
, or
```
'
```
must be wrapped in single quotes in TMDL.
Verify workspace has capacity before creating a semantic model — call
```
GET /v1/workspaces/{id}
```
and check
```
capacityId
```
.

PREFER

createItemWithDefinition
(single POST) over create-then-update for new semantic models.
TMDL format over TMSL — TMDL is text-based, diff-friendly, and the preferred format for Fabric.
Measures before columns in TMDL table files — follows TMDL convention.
Multi-line DAX in triple backticks — improves readability for complex expressions.
Route fine-grained changes to
powerbi-modeling-mcp
— for adding/modifying individual measures, columns, or relationships, the MCP server is more efficient than full definition round-trips.
Get definition before updating — always retrieve the current definition, modify, then POST back to avoid overwriting concurrent changes.
Cross-reference
powerbi-consumption-cli
for post-creation validation — run DAX queries to verify measures, relationships, and data.

AVOID

updateDefinition
for small changes — a full definition round-trip is heavy; route to
```
powerbi-modeling-mcp
```
for individual object edits.
Report creation — not supported by this skill. Reports require a separate definition format (PBIR/PBIR-Legacy).
lineageTag
on new objects — TMDL auto-generates lineage tags; adding them manually causes conflicts.
//
comments in TMDL — not supported. Use
```
///
```
descriptions instead.
description
property in TMDL — use
```
///
```
syntax above the object instead.
Hardcoded workspace/item IDs — resolve dynamically via REST API (see COMMON-CLI.md § Finding Workspaces and Items in Fabric).
Sending only modified parts in
updateDefinition
— the API replaces the full definition; missing parts are deleted.

TMDL File Structure

For the full definition envelope and part paths, see ITEM-DEFINITIONS-CORE.md § SemanticModel.

Required TMDL parts for

createItemWithDefinition

and

updateDefinition

Part Path	Content	Required
`definition.pbism`	Semantic model connection settings	Yes
`definition/database.tmdl`	Database properties (compatibility level)	Yes
`definition/model.tmdl`	Model properties (culture, default summarization)	Yes
`definition/tables/<TableName>.tmdl`	Per-table: columns, measures, partitions	Yes (≥1)

Critical:
updateDefinition
must include ALL parts — modified and unmodified. The API replaces the entire definition. Never include
.platform
in update payloads.

For TMDL syntax rules, naming conventions, and modeling best practices, see tmdl-authoring-guide.md.

Minimal TMDL Content Examples

definition.pbism

json

{
    "version": "4.2",
    "settings": {
        "qnaEnabled": true
    }
}

database.tmdl

tmdl

database
	compatibilityLevel: 1702
	compatibilityMode: powerBI

model.tmdl

tmdl

model Model
	culture: en-US
	defaultPowerBIDataSourceVersion: powerBI_V3
	discourageImplicitMeasures

Note:
defaultPowerBIDataSourceVersion: powerBI_V3
is required for Import-mode models. Without it, the API returns
Import from JSON supported for V3 models only
.

Import-Mode Table

tmdl

table Customer

	/// Total number of customers
	measure '# Customers' = COUNTROWS(Customer)
		formatString: #,##0

	column CustomerId
		dataType: int64
		isHidden
		isKey
		summarizeBy: none
		sourceColumn: CustomerId

	column 'Customer Name'
		dataType: string
		sourceColumn: CustomerName

	partition Customer = m
		mode: import
		source =
			let
				Source = Sql.Database(#"Server", #"Database"),
				Customer = Source{[Schema="dbo", Item="Customer"]}[Data]
			in
				Customer

Direct Lake Table

tmdl

expression DL_Lakehouse =
	let
		Source = AzureStorage.DataLake("https://onelake.dfs.fabric.microsoft.com/<WorkspaceId>/<LakehouseId>", [HierarchicalNavigation=true])
	in
		Source

table Sales

	/// Total revenue
	measure 'Total Sales' = ```
			SUMX(
				Sales,
				Sales[Quantity] * Sales[UnitPrice]
			)
			```
		formatString: \$#,##0.00

	column SalesKey
		dataType: int64
		isHidden
		isKey
		summarizeBy: none
		sourceColumn: sales_key

	column Quantity
		dataType: int64
		sourceColumn: quantity

	column UnitPrice
		dataType: decimal
		summarizeBy: none
		sourceColumn: unit_price

	partition Sales = entity
		mode: directLake
		source
			entityName: Sales
			schemaName: dbo
			expressionSource: DL_Lakehouse

Create Semantic Model

Full lifecycle: author TMDL → base64-encode → construct payload → POST → poll LRO.

Per COMMON-CLI.md § Item CRUD Operations and ITEM-DEFINITIONS-CORE.md § Definition Envelope:

bash

WS_ID="<workspaceId>"

# 1. Base64-encode each TMDL file
PBISM=$(base64 -w 0 < definition.pbism)
DB=$(base64 -w 0 < definition/database.tmdl)
MODEL=$(base64 -w 0 < definition/model.tmdl)
TABLE=$(base64 -w 0 < definition/tables/Customer.tmdl)

# 2. Construct payload and create — use --verbose to capture HTTP status and LRO headers
cat > /tmp/body.json << EOF
{
  "displayName": "MySalesModel",
  "definition": {
    "format": "TMDL",
    "parts": [
      {"path": "definition.pbism", "payload": "$PBISM", "payloadType": "InlineBase64"},
      {"path": "definition/database.tmdl", "payload": "$DB", "payloadType": "InlineBase64"},
      {"path": "definition/model.tmdl", "payload": "$MODEL", "payloadType": "InlineBase64"},
      {"path": "definition/tables/Customer.tmdl", "payload": "$TABLE", "payloadType": "InlineBase64"}
    ]
  }
}
EOF
az rest --method post --verbose \
  --resource "https://api.fabric.microsoft.com" \
  --url "https://api.fabric.microsoft.com/v1/workspaces/$WS_ID/semanticModels" \
  --headers "Content-Type=application/json" \
  --body @/tmp/body.json

PowerShell — use

[Convert]::ToBase64String([System.IO.File]::ReadAllBytes("file"))

instead of

base64 -w 0

If the response is

202 Accepted

, poll using the LRO pattern from COMMON-CLI.md § Long-Running Operations.

Get/Download Definition

Retrieve TMDL definition for backup, migration, or inspection.

getDefinition

is a POST (not GET).

bash

WS_ID="<workspaceId>"
MODEL_ID="<semanticModelId>"

# 1. Request definition — may return 200 (inline) or 202 (LRO)
RESPONSE=$(az rest --method post --verbose \
  --resource "https://api.fabric.microsoft.com" \
  --url "https://api.fabric.microsoft.com/v1/workspaces/$WS_ID/semanticModels/$MODEL_ID/getDefinition?format=TMDL" \
  --body '{}' \
  --output json 2>/dev/null)

# 2. If 202, poll the Location header URL until Succeeded, then GET /result

# 3. Decode each part
echo "$RESPONSE" | jq -r '.definition.parts[] | .path + " " + .payload' | \
while read -r path payload; do
  mkdir -p "$(dirname "$path")"
  echo "$payload" | base64 -d > "$path"
done

Update Definition

Critical rules: Must include ALL parts (modified + unmodified). Never include
.platform
. The API replaces the entire definition — omitted parts are deleted.

bash

WS_ID="<workspaceId>"
MODEL_ID="<semanticModelId>"

# 1. Get current definition (see Get/Download Definition above)
# 2. Modify the relevant TMDL files
# 3. Re-encode ALL parts and POST

cat > /tmp/body.json << EOF
{
  "definition": {
    "format": "TMDL",
    "parts": [
      {"path": "definition.pbism", "payload": "$PBISM", "payloadType": "InlineBase64"},
      {"path": "definition/database.tmdl", "payload": "$DB", "payloadType": "InlineBase64"},
      {"path": "definition/model.tmdl", "payload": "$MODEL", "payloadType": "InlineBase64"},
      {"path": "definition/tables/Customer.tmdl", "payload": "$TABLE", "payloadType": "InlineBase64"}
    ]
  }
}
EOF
az rest --method post \
  --resource "https://api.fabric.microsoft.com" \
  --url "https://api.fabric.microsoft.com/v1/workspaces/$WS_ID/semanticModels/$MODEL_ID/updateDefinition" \
  --body @/tmp/body.json

Use

?updateMetadata=true

query parameter only when the

.platform

file must be included to update display name or description via definition.

Authoring Scope Matrix

Operation	Supported	Method
Create semantic model with TMDL	✅	`POST /v1/workspaces/{id}/semanticModels` with definition
Get/download TMDL definition	✅	`POST .../semanticModels/{id}/getDefinition?format=TMDL`
Update full TMDL definition	✅	`POST .../semanticModels/{id}/updateDefinition`
Delete semantic model	✅	`DELETE /v1/workspaces/{id}/semanticModels/{id}`
Refresh dataset	✅	Power BI Datasets API (Phase 4)
Add/modify single measure or column	⚠️ Route to `powerbi-modeling-mcp`	Full definition round-trip is inefficient
Create reports	❌	Not in scope — separate definition format (PBIR)

Refresh Operations

All refresh operations use the Power BI Datasets API audience (

https://analysis.windows.net/powerbi/api

bash

WS_ID="<workspaceId>"
DATASET_ID="<semanticModelId>"
PBI="https://api.powerbi.com/v1.0/myorg"

# Trigger full refresh
cat > /tmp/body.json << 'EOF'
{"notifyOption": "NoNotification"}
EOF
az rest --method post --verbose \
  --resource "https://analysis.windows.net/powerbi/api" \
  --url "$PBI/groups/$WS_ID/datasets/$DATASET_ID/refreshes" \
  --headers "Content-Type=application/json" \
  --body @/tmp/body.json

# Get refresh history (latest first)
az rest --method get \
  --resource "https://analysis.windows.net/powerbi/api" \
  --url "$PBI/groups/$WS_ID/datasets/$DATASET_ID/refreshes?\$top=5"

# Cancel an in-progress refresh
az rest --method delete \
  --resource "https://analysis.windows.net/powerbi/api" \
  --url "$PBI/groups/$WS_ID/datasets/$DATASET_ID/refreshes/<refreshId>"

# Get refresh schedule
az rest --method get \
  --resource "https://analysis.windows.net/powerbi/api" \
  --url "$PBI/groups/$WS_ID/datasets/$DATASET_ID/refreshSchedule"

# Update refresh schedule
cat > /tmp/body.json << 'EOF'
{
  "value": {
    "enabled": true,
    "days": ["Monday", "Wednesday", "Friday"],
    "times": ["02:00", "14:00"],
    "localTimeZoneId": "UTC"
  }
}
EOF
az rest --method patch \
  --resource "https://analysis.windows.net/powerbi/api" \
  --url "$PBI/groups/$WS_ID/datasets/$DATASET_ID/refreshSchedule" \
  --headers "Content-Type=application/json" \
  --body @/tmp/body.json

Data Sources & Parameters

bash

# Get data sources for a dataset
az rest --method get \
  --resource "https://analysis.windows.net/powerbi/api" \
  --url "$PBI/groups/$WS_ID/datasets/$DATASET_ID/datasources"

# Get parameters
az rest --method get \
  --resource "https://analysis.windows.net/powerbi/api" \
  --url "$PBI/groups/$WS_ID/datasets/$DATASET_ID/parameters"

# Update parameters
cat > /tmp/body.json << 'EOF'
{
  "updateDetails": [
    {"name": "Server", "newValue": "newserver.database.windows.net"},
    {"name": "Database", "newValue": "ProductionDB"}
  ]
}
EOF
az rest --method post \
  --resource "https://analysis.windows.net/powerbi/api" \
  --url "$PBI/groups/$WS_ID/datasets/$DATASET_ID/Default.UpdateParameters" \
  --headers "Content-Type=application/json" \
  --body @/tmp/body.json

After updating parameters or data source credentials, trigger a refresh for changes to take effect.

Permissions

bash

# List dataset users
az rest --method get \
  --resource "https://analysis.windows.net/powerbi/api" \
  --url "$PBI/groups/$WS_ID/datasets/$DATASET_ID/users"

# Grant dataset permissions to a user
cat > /tmp/body.json << 'EOF'
{
  "identifier": "user@contoso.com",
  "principalType": "User",
  "datasetUserAccessRight": "Read"
}
EOF
az rest --method post \
  --resource "https://analysis.windows.net/powerbi/api" \
  --url "$PBI/groups/$WS_ID/datasets/$DATASET_ID/users" \
  --headers "Content-Type=application/json" \
  --body @/tmp/body.json

# Update existing user permissions
cat > /tmp/body.json << 'EOF'
{
  "identifier": "user@contoso.com",
  "principalType": "User",
  "datasetUserAccessRight": "ReadReshare"
}
EOF
az rest --method put \
  --resource "https://analysis.windows.net/powerbi/api" \
  --url "$PBI/groups/$WS_ID/datasets/$DATASET_ID/users" \
  --headers "Content-Type=application/json" \
  --body @/tmp/body.json

Permission levels:

Read

ReadReshare

ReadExplore

ReadReshareExplore

Security Role Memberships

After defining RLS/OLS roles in TMDL (see Security Roles), use the Power BI Datasets API to assign users and groups to those roles.

bash

PBI="https://api.powerbi.com/v1.0/myorg"

# List members of a security role
az rest --method get \
  --resource "https://analysis.windows.net/powerbi/api" \
  --url "$PBI/groups/$WS_ID/datasets/$DATASET_ID/users" \
  | jq '[.value[] | select(.datasetUserAccessRight == "Read" and .roles != null)]'

# Add a user to a security role
cat > /tmp/body.json << 'EOF'
{
  "identifier": "user@contoso.com",
  "principalType": "User",
  "datasetUserAccessRight": "Read",
  "roles": ["SalesRegion"]
}
EOF
az rest --method post \
  --resource "https://analysis.windows.net/powerbi/api" \
  --url "$PBI/groups/$WS_ID/datasets/$DATASET_ID/users" \
  --headers "Content-Type=application/json" \
  --body @/tmp/body.json

# Add a security group to a role
cat > /tmp/body.json << 'EOF'
{
  "identifier": "<group-object-id>",
  "principalType": "Group",
  "datasetUserAccessRight": "Read",
  "roles": ["SalesRegion"]
}
EOF
az rest --method post \
  --resource "https://analysis.windows.net/powerbi/api" \
  --url "$PBI/groups/$WS_ID/datasets/$DATASET_ID/users" \
  --headers "Content-Type=application/json" \
  --body @/tmp/body.json

# Update role membership (e.g., move user to a different role)
cat > /tmp/body.json << 'EOF'
{
  "identifier": "user@contoso.com",
  "principalType": "User",
  "datasetUserAccessRight": "Read",
  "roles": ["EuropeOnly"]
}
EOF
az rest --method put \
  --resource "https://analysis.windows.net/powerbi/api" \
  --url "$PBI/groups/$WS_ID/datasets/$DATASET_ID/users" \
  --headers "Content-Type=application/json" \
  --body @/tmp/body.json

The
roles
array accepts one or more role names that must match roles defined in the semantic model's TMDL. The user/group must also have at least
Read
permission on the dataset.
principalType
can be
User
,
Group
, or
App
.

Deployment Pipelines

Deployment pipelines use the Fabric API audience (

https://api.fabric.microsoft.com

bash

FABRIC="https://api.fabric.microsoft.com/v1"

# List deployment pipelines
az rest --method get \
  --resource "https://api.fabric.microsoft.com" \
  --url "$FABRIC/deploymentPipelines"

# Get pipeline stages
az rest --method get \
  --resource "https://api.fabric.microsoft.com" \
  --url "$FABRIC/deploymentPipelines/<pipelineId>/stages"

# Deploy from one stage to the next (e.g., Dev → Test)
cat > /tmp/body.json << 'EOF'
{
  "sourceStageOrder": 0,
  "targetStageOrder": 1,
  "items": [
    {
      "sourceItemId": "<semanticModelId>",
      "itemType": "SemanticModel"
    }
  ],
  "options": {
    "allowCreateArtifact": true,
    "allowOverwriteArtifact": true
  }
}
EOF
az rest --method post \
  --resource "https://api.fabric.microsoft.com" \
  --url "$FABRIC/deploymentPipelines/<pipelineId>/deploy" \
  --headers "Content-Type=application/json" \
  --body @/tmp/body.json

Omit the
items
array to deploy all items in the stage. The deploy call returns
202 Accepted
— poll using the LRO pattern.

Agentic Workflow

Tool Selection Priority

powerbi-modeling-mcp
available → use MCP tools for fine-grained object changes (measures, columns, relationships)
MCP unavailable, TMDL files available → edit TMDL files directly, deploy via
```
az rest
```
updateDefinition
MCP unavailable, workspace only → use this skill: getDefinition → edit TMDL → updateDefinition

Workflow Steps

Discover workspace → list workspaces, find target by name (see COMMON-CLI.md § Finding Workspaces and Items)
List semantic models →
```
GET /v1/workspaces/{id}/semanticModels
```
to find existing models or confirm name availability
Analyze source schema → inspect source tables/columns via SQL, DAX, or Lakehouse metadata to inform star schema design
Design star schema → identify fact and dimension tables, define relationship keys, plan measures
Author TMDL files → create
```
definition.pbism
```
,
```
database.tmdl
```
,
```
model.tmdl
```
, and table files per Minimal TMDL Content Examples and tmdl-authoring-guide.md
Create relationships → define in table TMDL files before creating measures that depend on them
Create measures → add explicit measures with
```
formatString
```
for all aggregatable values
Deploy → base64-encode all parts → POST createItemWithDefinition (see Create Semantic Model)
Verify → run validation checks (see below)
Refresh → trigger dataset refresh via Refresh Operations
Validate with DAX → use powerbi-consumption-cli to run DAX queries against the deployed model

Post-Creation Validation

TMDL structure — verify all required parts are present (definition.pbism, database.tmdl, model.tmdl, ≥1 table)
Test measures — run
```
EVALUATE { [Measure Name] }
```
for each measure via DAX
Verify relationships — confirm cardinality, cross-filter direction, matching
```
dataType
```
on both sides
Verify columns — confirm
```
sourceColumn
```
mappings and
```
dataType
```
match source schema
Check for duplicates — no duplicate measure names or orphan objects

Troubleshooting

Early-abort rule: If both
getDefinition
returns
404 EntityNotFound
(on an item you can list/GET) and the Power BI refresh API returns
403 Forbidden
with
"identity None"
, stop retrying immediately — the user almost certainly has only Viewer role on the workspace. Verify by calling
GET /v1/workspaces/{id}/roleAssignments
; if that also returns
403 InsufficientWorkspaceRole
, confirm to the user they need Contributor or higher role. Do not retry with different URL formats, endpoints, or parameters — the issue is permissions, not API usage.

Symptom	Cause	Fix
`403 Forbidden` with `"identity None"` on Power BI API	User has Viewer role — refresh, data sources, and permissions APIs require Contributor+	Stop immediately. Ask user to request Contributor/Member/Admin role on the workspace
`404 EntityNotFound` on getDefinition but item exists in list	Insufficient permissions masquerading as 404 — getDefinition requires Contributor+	Check workspace role first; do not retry with different URL formats
`403 InsufficientWorkspaceRole` on roleAssignments	User is Viewer on the workspace	Confirms Viewer role — all authoring and most read operations are blocked
`401 Unauthorized` on Fabric API	Wrong or missing `--resource`	Use `--resource "https://api.fabric.microsoft.com"`
`401 Unauthorized` on Power BI API	Wrong audience	Use `--resource "https://analysis.windows.net/powerbi/api"`
`411 Length Required` on getDefinition	Missing request body	Pass `--body '{}'` — getDefinition is a POST
LRO poll never completes	Token expired during long operation	Re-acquire token in poll loop; increase Retry-After interval
`202 Accepted` but no result	Didn't follow LRO to completion	Poll `Location` header URL until `Succeeded` , then GET `/result`
TMDL validation error on create/update	Syntax error in TMDL content	Check TMDL rules in tmdl-authoring-guide.md; validate before encoding
Parts missing after updateDefinition	Only modified parts were sent	Must include ALL parts (modified + unmodified) in every update
Error including `.platform` in update	`.platform` not accepted by default	Remove `.platform` from parts, or use `?updateMetadata=true`
Base64 decode produces garbled content	Wrong encoding or line wrapping	Use `base64 -w 0` (no line wrap) or `[Convert]::ToBase64String()`
Refresh fails with data source error	Credentials expired or parameters wrong	Check data sources and parameters; update credentials if needed
Deployment pipeline fails	Workspace not assigned to stage	Assign workspace to pipeline stage before deploying
`lineageTag` conflict on new objects	Manually added `lineageTag`	Remove `lineageTag` from new objects — it is auto-generated
DAX error testing measures	Measure name case mismatch	DAX measure names are case-sensitive; match exactly
Attempting `INFO.ROLES()` / `INFO.ROLEMEMBERSHIPS()` via DAX to retrieve role members	DAX `INFO` functions do not reliably return role membership data and may return empty or incomplete results	Use the Power BI REST API instead: `GET /v1.0/myorg/groups/{workspaceId}/datasets/{datasetId}/users` and filter by `roles` field (see Security Role Memberships)

Examples

Create a Semantic Model from TMDL

bash

WS_ID="<workspaceId>"

# Encode all TMDL files
PBISM=$(base64 -w 0 < definition.pbism)
DB=$(base64 -w 0 < definition/database.tmdl)
MODEL=$(base64 -w 0 < definition/model.tmdl)
CUSTOMER=$(base64 -w 0 < definition/tables/Customer.tmdl)
SALES=$(base64 -w 0 < definition/tables/Sales.tmdl)

cat > /tmp/body.json << EOF
{
  "displayName": "SalesModel",
  "definition": {
    "parts": [
      {"path": "definition.pbism", "payload": "$PBISM", "payloadType": "InlineBase64"},
      {"path": "definition/database.tmdl", "payload": "$DB", "payloadType": "InlineBase64"},
      {"path": "definition/model.tmdl", "payload": "$MODEL", "payloadType": "InlineBase64"},
      {"path": "definition/tables/Customer.tmdl", "payload": "$CUSTOMER", "payloadType": "InlineBase64"},
      {"path": "definition/tables/Sales.tmdl", "payload": "$SALES", "payloadType": "InlineBase64"}
    ]
  }
}
EOF
az rest --method post --verbose \
  --resource "https://api.fabric.microsoft.com" \
  --url "https://api.fabric.microsoft.com/v1/workspaces/$WS_ID/semanticModels" \
  --headers "Content-Type=application/json" \
  --body @/tmp/body.json

Download a Semantic Model Definition

bash

WS_ID="<workspaceId>"
MODEL_ID="<semanticModelId>"

# Get definition (may return 202 — follow LRO)
RESULT=$(az rest --method post \
  --resource "https://api.fabric.microsoft.com" \
  --url "https://api.fabric.microsoft.com/v1/workspaces/$WS_ID/semanticModels/$MODEL_ID/getDefinition?format=TMDL" \
  --body '{}' --output json)

# Decode and save all parts
echo "$RESULT" | jq -r '.definition.parts[] | .path + "\t" + .payload' | \
while IFS=$'\t' read -r path payload; do
  mkdir -p "$(dirname "$path")"
  echo "$payload" | base64 -d > "$path"
  echo "Saved: $path"
done

Trigger a Refresh and Check Status

bash

WS_ID="<workspaceId>"
DATASET_ID="<semanticModelId>"
PBI="https://api.powerbi.com/v1.0/myorg"

# Trigger refresh
cat > /tmp/body.json << 'EOF'
{"type": "Full"}
EOF
az rest --method post \
  --resource "https://analysis.windows.net/powerbi/api" \
  --url "$PBI/groups/$WS_ID/datasets/$DATASET_ID/refreshes" \
  --body @/tmp/body.json

# Check latest refresh status
az rest --method get \
  --resource "https://analysis.windows.net/powerbi/api" \
  --url "$PBI/groups/$WS_ID/datasets/$DATASET_ID/refreshes?\$top=1"

Deploy to Production via Pipeline

bash

FABRIC="https://api.fabric.microsoft.com/v1"
PIPELINE_ID="<pipelineId>"

# Deploy from Test (stage 1) to Production (stage 2)
cat > /tmp/body.json << 'EOF'
{
  "sourceStageOrder": 1,
  "targetStageOrder": 2,
  "items": [
    {"sourceItemId": "<semanticModelId>", "itemType": "SemanticModel"}
  ],
  "options": {
    "allowCreateArtifact": true,
    "allowOverwriteArtifact": true
  }
}
EOF
az rest --method post \
  --resource "https://api.fabric.microsoft.com" \
  --url "$FABRIC/deploymentPipelines/$PIPELINE_ID/deploy" \
  --body @/tmp/body.json

powerbi-authoring-cli

NPX Install

Tags

SKILL.md Content

Power BI Semantic Model Authoring — CLI Skill

Table of Contents

Tool Stack

Authentication & API Audiences

Must/Prefer/Avoid

MUST DO

PREFER

AVOID

TMDL File Structure

Minimal TMDL Content Examples

definition.pbism

database.tmdl

model.tmdl

Import-Mode Table

Direct Lake Table

Create Semantic Model

Get/Download Definition

Update Definition

Authoring Scope Matrix

Refresh Operations

Data Sources & Parameters

Permissions

Security Role Memberships

Deployment Pipelines

Agentic Workflow

Tool Selection Priority

Workflow Steps

Post-Creation Validation

Troubleshooting

Examples

Create a Semantic Model from TMDL

Download a Semantic Model Definition

Trigger a Refresh and Check Status

Deploy to Production via Pipeline