3.2 Common Connectors
Excel workbook
Get data › Excel workbook › select file › Navigator shows sheets, tables (formatted Excel tables) and named ranges. Prefer formatted tables (Ctrl+T in Excel) – they have clear boundaries and headers, and new rows are picked up reliably.
Text/CSV
Get data › Text/CSV › select the file. Power BI detects the delimiter (comma, tab, semicolon…), file origin/encoding (use 65001: Unicode UTF-8 for Hindi/Marathi text or ₹ symbols) and data type detection (based on the first 200 rows by default).
Databases (SQL Server, MySQL and others)
Get data › SQL Server database (or More… › Database › MySQL database) › enter the server and database › choose Import or DirectQuery › sign in. Module 4 covers databases step by step: authentication (ओळख पडताळणी), native SQL queries, query folding, MySQL driver setup, DirectQuery vs Live connection (आधीच तयार मॉडेलशी थेट जोडणी), and gateways.
Web pages, APIs and Google Sheets
Get data › Web reads HTML tables, CSV/JSON files at a URL and REST APIs (दोन सॉफ्टवेअरमधील संवादाचा मार्ग). Get data › More… › Online Services › Google Sheets reads a Google Sheet. Module 5 covers both, including Add table using examples, paginated pages and refresh limits.
Folder and SharePoint folder
Get data › More… › Folder combines many files with the same structure (for example monthly Blinkit order CSVs or monthly bank statements). Refresh picks up a new file that is dropped into the folder. Module 9 is a full walkthrough.
SharePoint folder
If files are stored in SharePoint or OneDrive for work, use the SharePoint folder connector (with the site URL) instead of a local folder path. Scheduled refresh in the Service then works without an on-premises data gateway.
Enter data
Home › Enter data lets you type or paste a small table manually – useful for small mapping tables, targets or test data.
Ravindra Bagale's Tip
Friends, many students use the generic Web or ODBC connector when a dedicated connector exists. Search the Get Data window first. A dedicated connector (SQL Server, SharePoint folder, Google Sheets) usually supports better authentication, query folding and refresh. Never forget this.
Ravindra Bagale's Tip – मराठी
मित्रांनो, dedicated connector असताना बरेच students generic Web किंवा ODBC connector वापरतात. आधी Get Data window मध्ये शोधा. Dedicated connector (SQL Server, SharePoint folder, Google Sheets) साधारणपणे authentication, query folding आणि refresh चांगलं support करतो. हे अजिबात विसरू नका.
Ravindra Bagale's Tip – हिंदी
दोस्तों, dedicated connector मौजूद होने पर भी बहुत से students generic Web या ODBC connector इस्तेमाल करते हैं. पहले Get Data window में search करो. Dedicated connector (SQL Server, SharePoint folder, Google Sheets) आमतौर पर authentication, query folding और refresh को बेहतर support करता है. यह बिल्कुल मत भूलना.