Power BI
There is no direct connector to Power BI. Three routes work, and they differ in one thing that matters for Power BI specifically: whether the report can refresh on its own in the Power BI service.
| Route | Refreshes on a schedule | Setup |
|---|---|---|
| Google Sheet | yes | least |
| SQL Server (or any database) | yes | a table and a pull |
| The API directly | only with a gateway | a query |
Through a Google Sheet — recommended for most
Connect the form to a Google Sheet, then in Power BI use Get data → Google Sheets (or Web with the sheet’s export URL). The sheet is always current, Power BI refreshes from it on whatever schedule you set in the service, and nothing expires.
Column headings are the field labels; choice fields hold values. Add a small
lookup table in Power BI to turn northgate into Northgate Depot for the
report.
Through a database
If records are already landing in SQL Server or another database, point Power BI at that. This is the right route when the same data feeds several reports, or when you need history the form does not keep.
Directly from the API
Get data → Web, advanced, with the records URL and two headers —
apikey and Authorization: Bearer <token>. This works for a one-off
report or Power BI Desktop.
A token expires after an hour. A report published to the Power BI service cannot refresh from this route on its own, because the stored header goes stale. For scheduled refresh you need an on-premises data gateway with a query that renews the token, at which point the database route is simpler.
To try it: in the query, expand the returned list to a table, expand the
data record into columns, and set types. Repeatable sections arrive as lists
and can be expanded to rows.
Shaping the data
Whichever route, the same two steps make the report easier:
- Turn choice values into labels with a lookup table, or take labels from the export’s label columns.
- Expand a repeatable section into its own table joined on record ID, rather than leaving it as a list in a cell.
Want a hand getting a first report refreshing? Ask us at customer.service@firedragontech.com. We will help you get the data into Power BI in the shape you need.