Authentication Methods in Power BI

In Power BI, there are several authentication methods available to connect to data sources and authenticate users. The choice of authentication method depends on factors such as the type of data source, security requirements, and organizational policies. Here are the main authentication methods used in Power BI:

1. Basic Authentication:

   • Basic authentication involves providing a username and password to authenticate users against a data source. It is a simple and widely supported authentication method but may not be suitable for high-security scenarios as passwords are sent in clear text.
   • Basic authentication is commonly used with on-premises data sources that support it, such as SQL Server databases.

2. Windows Authentication:

   • Windows authentication uses the user's Windows credentials (e.g., Active Directory credentials) to authenticate users against a data source. It is more secure than basic authentication as it does not require transmitting passwords over the network.
   • Windows authentication is commonly used with on-premises data sources in Windows environments, such as SQL Server databases or Analysis Services.

3. OAuth2 Authentication:

   • OAuth2 (Open Authorization) is an industry-standard protocol for authorization that allows users to grant third-party applications access to their resources without sharing their credentials.
   • Power BI supports OAuth2 authentication for connecting to various cloud-based data sources, such as Microsoft 365, Azure SQL Database, SharePoint Online, Google Analytics, and Salesforce.
   • OAuth2 authentication involves redirecting users to a login page where they can sign in with their credentials, and then obtaining an access token that is used to authenticate subsequent requests.

4. Azure Active Directory (Azure AD) Authentication:

   • Azure AD authentication allows users to authenticate to Power BI using their Azure AD credentials. It provides single sign-on (SSO) capabilities and integrates with Azure AD's identity and access management features.
   • Azure AD authentication is commonly used in organizations that use Azure AD as their identity provider and have integrated Power BI with Azure AD.

5. Service Principal Authentication:

   • Service principal authentication involves using an Azure Active Directory service principal (a non-personal identity used by applications and services) to authenticate to Azure services.
   • Service principal authentication is commonly used in scenarios where Power BI is integrated with other Azure services or applications, such as Azure Data Lake Storage or Azure Synapse Analytics.

6. Personal Access Tokens (PAT):

   • Personal access tokens (PAT) are a secure way to authenticate users and applications to the Power BI service without requiring user credentials or service principals.
   • PATs can be generated in the Power BI service and used as authentication tokens in API requests, PowerShell scripts, or custom applications.

These are the main authentication methods used in Power BI for connecting to data sources and authenticating users. The choice of authentication method depends on factors such as the type of data source, security requirements, and organizational policies.