v2.1.0 - Fix issue with field parameters + additional insights

In this release, a long running issue #39 has been resolved by updating the NuGet packages for the vpax extractor in the Model Documenter application. Besides resolving this major issue, some minor enhancements are made related to other issues. All listed below:

List of issues resolved:

• #27 Column descriptions are now shown more explicitly in the tooltips on the Columns page.
• #29 Model issue with duplicate rows when using perspectives is fixed.
• #39 Exporting vpax failed since introduction of Field Parameters has been resolved.
• #42 Incremental refresh information is added on the Partitions page.
• #44 (Technical) Model name is shown. Depending on connection type, it will show a GUID or the actual name of the pbix.

New enrichments:

• Insights in Power Query parameters and referenced queries - Read more
• Partitions and policies page, to show incremental refresh policies if applicable and show partition expressions - Read more
• Introducing a dedicated page to calculation groups - Read more
• Dedicated page for Field parameters - Read more
• Enhanced security page to split row-level-security and object-level-security - Read more

Shout out to all who submitted above issues with bugs and ideas! Very much appreciated!
Attached the latest installer as MSI.

What's Changed

• Fix loading assemblies by @tonswart in #23
• Update ModelDocumentationTemplate_v2.0.0.pbit by @fuglphoenix in #25
• Revert "Update ModelDocumentationTemplate_v2.0.0.pbit" by @marclelijveld in #26
• Remove vs cache folder and add to gitignore by @tonswart in #38

New Contributors

• @fuglphoenix made their first contribution in #25

Full Changelog: v2.0.1...v2.1.0

v2.0.1 - Minor fix with loading assembly - Microsoft.AnalysisServices

• Some users encountered issues with running the tool, due to missing assemblies, related to issue #22
• Minor update to way how expressions are displayed in the report. Replacing spaces for UTF8 character to keep spacing and formatting of expressions. Thanks @fuglphoenix for contributing!

With PR #23 and release version 2.0.1 this issue is resolved by loading assemblies from the application directory.

v2.0.0 - Rebuild of the Model Documenter

With Model Documenter v2 we take a massive step forward by solving a bunch of common challenges! Now Model Documenter has an easy next-next-finish installer which helps you to put the files in the right location. Also, the entire backend of the tool has changed to be more reliable and avoid common encountered challenges. A massive shout out to @tonswart for helping out with rebuilding!

Previous challenges with Model Documenter v1

Previous challenges are listed below:

• Installing the external tool was a pain, as manual changes in the Program Files folder were required.
• Model documenter v1 used PowerShell on the backend, where Execution policies were conflicting with organizational policies which prevented usages for some folks.
• Model documenter v1 used Dynamic Management Views (DMVs) to read metadata from the model on local host. This run through the OleDB connector which executed SQL queries. By executing native queries in SQL, some users had to approve every single query run in Power BI (due to local Power BI settings).
• Model documenter v1 caused issues with loading the data due to privacy level configurations in the local Power BI instance.
• Model documenter v1 was only able to read from local host data models in Power BI Desktop.

New in this version

New in Model Documenter v2 is:

• Easy next-next-finish installer to put the files in the right location on the computer.
• New and enhanced backend of the tool, which is not relying on DMVs nor PowerShell anymore.
• Ground-up rebuild model documentation Power BI Template file, to present all information in a report.
• Support for live connected Analysis Services models, or through XMLA endpoint connected Power BI Premium datasets..
  (Live connected Power BI datasets are not supported yet)
• No longer pop-up windows to allow native query execution.
• No more failing loads due to privacy levels (though, ignoring privacy levels improves Model Documenter run time).
• Deprecation of the Excel model documenter report. Going forward, only Power BI report will be supported.

v1.2.1 - Row Level Security

Just updated the Power BI template file to also include Row Level Security roles

v1.2.0 - Minor update

New in this version:

• Introduced a small menu to choose the output format of your preference.
• Power BI Template
• Excel Template
• Better error handling while running the script
• Enhanced logging for debugging
• Several minor improvements