Excel, PowerPivot

Basics of Power Pivot for Excel – 2013

Dear friends, I have published couple of posts on this topic. I will be adding more advanced features and details related to this in my upcoming posts.

For your ready reference below I present Links to those posts.

PowerPivot for Excel

Start the Power Pivot in Microsoft Excel add-in

Troubleshooting: Power Pivot Ribbon Disappears

PowerPivot Creating a Data Model in Excel 2013

Adding more tables to the Data Model using Existing Connection – In PowerPivot

Add relationships to Data Model in PowerPivot

How to add Filter for data retrieval in PowerPivot Data model.

Create a calculated column in PowerPivot

Creating My First Report using PowerPivot

In Excel 2013, PowerPivot and Power View are no longer separate add-ins that need to be downloaded and installed. These add-ins are natively included.

PowerPivot in Excel 2013 is functionally very similar to the PowerPivot add-in for Excel 2010.

PowerPivot is an add-in that lets end users gather, store, model, and analyze large amounts of data in Excel. Power View provides intuitive data visualization of PowerPivot models and SQL Server Analysis Services (SSAS) tabular mode databases.

If you’re unfamiliar with either PowerPivot or Power View, I encourage you to first review my previous post links provided above to understand the basics.

Some parts of the PowerPivot architecture is embedded inside of Excel 2013.

  • The PowerPivot version in Excel 2013 no longer uses a separate PowerPivot Fields list. Instead, the built-in PivotTable Fields list is used. This means that some capabilities from the Excel 2010 add-in (e.g., searching for fields by name, creation of slicers from the field list, surfacing of column descriptions when hovering over a field) are no longer available.
  • Workbooks with PowerPivot models are no longer limited to 2GB in size in Excel 2013. However, the 2GB limit still applies to workbooks that will be published to SharePoint.
  • In Excel 2013, a refresh of a PivotTable or PivotChart will, by default, initiate a refresh of the underlying data connections in the Data Model. This is very different from Excel 2010, where a PivotTable refresh only re-queries the model. The new refresh behaviour can be changed by clicking Connections on the Data tab, selecting Properties, and clearing the Refresh this connection on Refresh All check box.
  • Stay tuned for more information on this topic. Till then keep practicing & exploring.
  • In Excel 2013, a Power View “report” is a worksheet rather than an .rdlx file. There’s no concept of multiple report views. Instead, multiple Power View worksheets can be created within a single Excel workbook.

Stay tuned for more information on this topic. Till then keep practicing & exploring.

Development Tips, Excel, How To, Office Integration, PowerPivot, Report

Creating My First Report using PowerPivot

In my earlier posts we have created the Data model for Analysis.

If you missed them you can follow below links to refresh all information.

PowerPivot for Excel

PowerPivot Creating a Data Model in Excel 2013

Adding more tables to the Data Model using Existing Connection – In PowerPivot

Add relationships to Data Model in PowerPivot

How to add Filter for data retrieval in PowerPivot Data model.

Create a calculated column in PowerPivot

We have learned basic actions, let’s create our first Report.

I will be creating Pivot Matrix Customer Vs Item Sales.

Open the Excel in which we created our Data model and imported our table data.
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Select PivotTable From Ribbon under Home Tab.
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Select New Worksheet or Existing Worksheet as per the case.
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You will see a Pivot is inserted, in right side you will find all the tables available in the Data model of this Worksheet.
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Design the Pivot as above screenshot.
The output of this report will be as below if executed without Date Filter.
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I will come up with more details and features of PowerPivot in my upcoming posts. Till then keep practicing and stay tuned for more details on this topic.

Development Tips, Excel, How To, Office Integration, PowerPivot, Report

Create a calculated column in PowerPivot

If you have missed earlier post, please walkthrough them for better understanding from below links:

PowerPivot for Excel

PowerPivot Creating a Data Model in Excel 2013

Adding more tables to the Data Model using Existing Connection – In PowerPivot

Add relationships to Data Model in PowerPivot

How to add Filter for data retrieval in PowerPivot Data model.

In Power Pivot, you can use Data Analysis Expressions (DAX) to add calculations. In this task, I will add simple Excel Formula =ABS (Quantity) in Item Ledger Entry Sheet. You can add formulas either simple calculation from two fields or referencing from other tables and sheet. I will come with more details on this in separate post.

  • In the Power Pivot window, switch to Data View.
  • Select the Item Ledger Entry table/ sheet.
  • Click Design > Add.

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Alternatively you can Add by selecting Column, Right Click and choose Insert Column as you do in Excel.

New Column Will be Added.

  • In the formula bar above the table, type the following formula. AutoComplete helps you type the fully qualified names of columns and tables, and lists the functions that are available. You can also just click the column and Power Pivot adds the column name to the formula.

In my case it is =abs([Quantity])

  • When you have finished building the formula, press Enter to accept the formula.

Values are populated for all the rows in the calculated column. If you scroll down through the table, you will see that rows can have different values for this column, based on the data that is in each row.

Rename the column by right-clicking and selecting Rename Column.
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  • Type Sales Quantity, and then press Enter.

Below is the Screen after populating the value post formula application to Calculated Column.
PowerPivot-20

I will come up with more details in my upcoming post, Till then keep practicing and stay tuned for more details and updates on this topic.

Development Tips, Excel, How To, Office Integration, PowerPivot, Report

How to add Filter for data retrieval in PowerPivot Data model.

Recall from previous posts we have added Item Ledger Entry Table to our Data Model of PowerPivot.

Adding more tables to the Data Model using Existing Connection – In PowerPivot

Add relationships to Data Model in PowerPivot

My requirement is to retrieve only records related to Sales.

We will apply filter on Entry Type field to value [1]-[Sales] this way Item Leger Entry Sheet will have only Sales Data.

To do this we will add this filter to the query used for data retrieval.
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Select the Sheet for table – Item Ledger Entry from bottom.

Click on Design Tab on Top.

Now From Ribbon choose Table Properties.

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Select Query Editor from Switch to.

Add the Filter to your query.

Save your Query.

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From Home Tab, Select Refresh from Ribbon.

On Success completion Close the window.

Now your Item Ledger Entry is populated with Fresh data as per the modified Query.

I.e: All Entries which have Entry Type = 1 [Sales].

I will come up with more details in my upcoming post, till then keep practicing and stay tuned for future updates & posts on this topic.

Development Tips, Excel, How To, Office Integration, Report

Add relationships to Data Model in PowerPivot

You can systematically create table relationships for all new tables that you import. If you’re sharing the workbook with colleagues, having predefined relationships will be appreciated if they don’t know the data as well as you do.

When creating relationships manually, you will work with two tables at a time.

For each table, you’ll choose columns that tell Excel how to look up/ join related rows in another table.

Recall from my previous posts I will be continuing the example from using same Data Model

PowerPivot Creating a Data Model in Excel 2013

Adding more tables to the Data Model using Existing Connection – In PowerPivot

With your Data model sheet opened
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Click on Diagram View in Upper Right Side as highlighted in above screenshot.

Window will switch to Diagram View as shown in above screenshot, showing all the tables available in the Data model.

Click No_ in Customer Table and Drag to Item Ledger Entry Table and release the mouse button pointing to Source No_ field, you will see the Link is Established between these two tables showing the Link via Arrow line.

Repeat above step again between Item->No_ and Item Ledger Entry -> Item No_ fields.

Now we have Established connection between these three tables Customer, Item & Item Ledger Entry.

I will come up with more option on this topic in my next post, till then start practicing and stay tuned.

Development Tips, Excel, How To, Office Integration, PowerPivot, Report

Adding more tables to the Data Model using Existing Connection – In PowerPivot

For Introduction please see PowerPivot for Excel

Recall from my earlier post we have created a connection to SQL Navision Database in my previous post.

PowerPivot Creating a Data Model in Excel 2013

I will be modifying same connection to include more tables to the Data model.
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Click on PowerPivot-> Manage.

From the PowerPivot Sheet click on Existing Connections.

This will open Connection Window Listing all available connection to PowerPivot for this Sheet.

Double Click the Connection in my case Nav2015DB_SQL_Connection.
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Select first option as we used in previous post and then Next for next Step.
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Select Item & Item Ledger Entry Tables and then Finish to import Data to the Sheet.
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On Success Click Close to return to Data Model Sheets.
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You will find two new sheets have been added to PowerPivot Sheet.

I will come up with more option on this topic in my next post, till then start practicing and stay tuned for more details & Updates on this topic.