New name for Power BI datasets
Microsoft has renamed the Power BI dataset content type to semantic model.
The rename was necessary for two main reasons.
- The term dataset is considered too generic. It has different meanings in the context of other data-related activities, especially now that Power BI is one of many experiences in Microsoft Fabric.
- The term semantic model better reflects the rich functionality of Analysis Services data models, upon which Power BI reports are based.
Important
This change is a rename only. There's no interruption to usage or service. You can expect a continuation of service because administrators, developers, and other users aren't required to make any changes.
Tip
To avoid confusion and support requests, be sure to notify your community of practice of this change.
Name changes
Here are some examples of name changes.
| Old name | New name |
|---|---|
| Dataset | Semantic model |
| Shared dataset | Shared semantic model |
| Import dataset | Import semantic model |
| DirectQuery dataset | DirectQuery semantic model |
| Composite dataset | Composite semantic model |
| Live connection dataset | Live connection semantic model |
| On-premises dataset | On-premises semantic model |
| Dataset owner | Semantic model owner |
| Large dataset | Large semantic model |
Note
The name change has been rolled out in the Power BI service and in documentation, though there might be some instances where the change hasn't occurred yet.
Name change exceptions
The following concepts aren't affected.
- Generic references to datasets
- Power BI paginated report dataset
- Power BI real-time dataset, including:
- Push dataset
- Streaming dataset
- Hybrid dataset
- PubNub dataset
- All Power BI REST API operations related to datasets
- Power BI activity log operations
- Other types of datasets that aren't related to Power BI, for example, Azure Open Datasets
Related content
For more information related to this article, check out the following resources.
- Blog post: Datasets renamed to semantic models
- Questions? Try asking the Fabric Community.
- Suggestions? Contribute ideas to improve Fabric.