PBIXRay MCP Server V2.3 - Professional Edition
Version: 2.3 Professional Status: Production Ready Last Updated: 2025-01-06 Tools: 50+ professional Power BI development tools
What is This?
The PBIXRay MCP Server V2 is a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that enables Claude AI to analyze Power BI Desktop models with advanced performance analysis capabilities including Storage Engine (SE) and Formula Engine (FE) breakdown.
Key Features
Core Capabilities
Auto-detect Power BI Desktop instances
Full Model Exploration - Tables, columns, measures, relationships
DAX Analysis - Measures, calculated columns, with expressions
Power Query (M) - View data source configurations
Performance Analysis - Advanced SE/FE timing with SessionTrace
VertiPaq Stats - Storage and compression metrics
Search Capabilities - Find objects and text across the model
NEW: Advanced Features (v2.3)
Dependency Analysis - Analyze measure dependencies and find unused objects
Version Control - Export TMSL/TMDL for Git integration
Calculation Groups - Create and manage calculation groups (not possible in Desktop!)
Performance Optimization - Cardinality and encoding analysis with recommendations
Partition Management - View and refresh partitions for incremental refresh
Bulk Operations - Create/update/delete multiple measures at once
Model Validation - Comprehensive integrity checks and data quality validation
RLS Management - List roles, test filters, validate coverage
Documentation - Auto-generate markdown documentation
System Requirements
OS: Windows 10/11 (64-bit)
.NET Framework: 4.7.2+ (usually pre-installed)
Power BI Desktop: Latest version recommended
Claude Desktop: Latest version
Disk Space: ~200 MB
Quick Start
1. Extract the Package
Extract the entire folder to your preferred location, for example:
2. Verify Installation (Optional)
3. Configure Claude Desktop
This will automatically configure Claude Desktop for you.
4. Restart Claude Desktop
Fully close Claude Desktop (check Task Manager)
Reopen Claude Desktop
5. Test It!
Open Power BI Desktop with a .pbix file
In Claude, say: "Detect my Power BI Desktop instances"
Say: "Connect to instance 0"
Say: "What tables are in this model?"
You are now analyzing Power BI with Claude AI!
Documentation
Quick Reference - docs/QUICK_REFERENCE.md - Command cheat sheet
FAQ - docs/FAQ.md - Frequently asked questions
Troubleshooting - docs/TROUBLESHOOTING.md - Common issues
Deployment Guide - docs/DEPLOYMENT_GUIDE.md - Team deployment
Available Tools (50+ Tools)
Connection & Discovery
detect_powerbi_desktop, connect_to_powerbi
Model Exploration
list_tables, list_measures, list_columns, list_relationships
describe_table, get_measure_details, search_objects
DAX & Data
run_dax_query, preview_table_data, get_column_values
get_column_summary, validate_dax_query
Measure Management
upsert_measure, delete_measure
NEW: bulk_create_measures, bulk_delete_measures
Dependency Analysis (NEW)
analyze_measure_dependencies - See what uses what
find_unused_objects - Cleanup opportunities
analyze_column_usage - Impact analysis
Export & Version Control (NEW)
export_tmsl - TMSL JSON format for Git
export_tmdl - TMDL folder structure (modern)
generate_documentation - Auto-generate markdown docs
compare_models - Diff between versions
Calculation Groups (NEW)
list_calculation_groups
create_calculation_group - Create time intelligence patterns
delete_calculation_group
Performance & Optimization (NEW)
analyze_query_performance - SE/FE breakdown
analyze_relationship_cardinality - Find duplicates in one-side
analyze_column_cardinality - High cardinality detection
analyze_encoding_efficiency - VertiPaq compression analysis
get_vertipaq_stats - Storage metrics
Partition Management (NEW)
list_partitions - View partition details
refresh_partition - Refresh specific partition
refresh_table - Refresh entire table
Model Validation (NEW)
validate_model_integrity - Comprehensive checks
analyze_data_freshness - Last refresh times
analyze_model_bpa - Best Practice Analyzer
RLS Security (NEW)
list_roles - List all security roles
test_role_filter - Test RLS with queries
validate_rls_coverage - Check which tables have RLS
Folder Structure
Example Usage
Performance Analysis
Dependency Analysis (NEW)
Version Control (NEW)
Bulk Operations (NEW)
Calculation Groups (NEW)
Maintenance
Update Python Packages
Verify Health
For Team Distribution
To package for colleagues:
This creates a ready-to-share ZIP file on your Desktop.
Troubleshooting
No instances detected?
Ensure Power BI Desktop is running
Open a .pbix file (not just Power BI)
Wait 10-15 seconds after opening
Connection fails?
Verify instance index (usually 0)
Restart Power BI Desktop
Check docs/TROUBLESHOOTING.md
Claude does not see the server?
Run:
.\scripts\install_to_claude.ps1Restart Claude Desktop completely
Check JSON syntax in config
Credits
Built with:
MCP SDK - Model Context Protocol
Python.NET - CLR integration
Analysis Services Client Libraries - Microsoft
Power BI Desktop - Microsoft
Version History
V2.3 (Jan 2025) - 28 new tools! Dependency analysis, TMSL/TMDL export, calculation groups, cardinality analysis, partition management, bulk operations, model validation, RLS management
V2.0 Enhanced (Oct 2025) - SessionTrace integration, improved SE/FE analysis
V2.0 (Oct 2025) - WMI-based detection, stability improvements
V1.0 (Sep 2025) - Initial release
Privacy and Security
All processing is local - No data sent to external servers
Localhost only - Binds to 127.0.0.1
No network exposure - Completely offline capable
Claude conversations - May be stored by Anthropic (review their policy)
Happy Analyzing!
For questions or issues, see the FAQ or Troubleshooting Guide in the docs folder.
This server cannot be installed
local-only server
The server can only run on the client's local machine because it depends on local resources.
Enables Claude AI to analyze Power BI Desktop models with comprehensive capabilities including DAX analysis, performance monitoring with Storage Engine/Formula Engine breakdown, VertiPaq statistics, and natural language querying of model structure and data.