Semantic Model Types
Tabular Editor can work with several different model types. Below is an overview of which model types work with Tabular Editor and the capabilities that can be used with each model type.
| Model Type | Import | Direct Query | Direct Lake on OneLake | Direct Lake on SQL | .pbix | .pbip |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Connect in Tabular Editor | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | |
| Create new model | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Write Measures | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Create & Edit Tables | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️1 | ✔️1 | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Create & Edit Partitions | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️1 | ✔️1 | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Create & Edit Columns | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️1 | ✔️1 | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Create & Edit Calculated Tables | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️2 | ✔️4 | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Create & Edit Calculated Columns | ✔️ | ✔️ | ❌ | ❌ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Create & Edit Calculation Groups | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | |
| Create & Edit Relationships | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | |
| Create & Edit Roles | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Create & Edit Perspectives | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Create & Edit Translations | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Use Best Practice Analyzer | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | |
| Edit All TOM properties | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Create Diagrams3 | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Use Preview Data3 | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Use Pivot Grids3 | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Use DAX Queries3 | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Use DAX Debugger3 | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Use VertiPaq Analyzer3 | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Process Model and Tables3 | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Delete Objects | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
Legend:
- ✔️: Supported
- ❌: Unsupported
1 - The table partition must be an Entity Partition to work correctly. Direct Lake models can only have one partition per table. 2 - Calculated Tables cannot refer to Direct Lake on OneLake tables or columns. Calculation groups, what-if parameters and field parameters are supported.
3 - Tabular Editor 3 features only. Operations performed through the XMLA endpoint requires a Business or Enterprise license. More information. 4 - Direct Lake on SQL only supports calculation groups, what-if parameters and field parameters, which implicitly create calculated tables. General calculated tables are not supported.
Note
The June 2025 release of Power BI Desktop lifted all modeling limitations for third-party tools. Prior to that, various modeling operations were not supported. See Power BI Desktop Limitations.
Tip
For further details on restrictions on Direct Lake models refer to Microsoft's Direct Lake documentation
Unsupported Semantic Model types
The following semantic model types are unsupported, as they do not support XMLA write operations.
- Reports based on a live connection to an Azure Analysis Services or SQL Server Analysis Services model.
- Reports based on a live connection to a Power BI dataset.
- Models with Push data.
- Models stored in Power BI My Workspace.
- Models stored in Power BI Pro Workspace.
- Direct Lake Default Semantic Models. As of September 2025, Power BI no longer automatically creates default semantic models when a warehouse, lakehouse or mirrored item is created. By November 2025, all existing default semantic models were disconnected from their items and became independent semantic models. It is possible to connect to a default semantic model, but it is not possible to change it through the XMLA endpoint.
- Excel workbook Semantic Models.