Blueprint · Microsoft 365 Report Builders
Power BI owners inherit reports with unknown data sources, measures and refresh schedules. This macro-free Excel workbook provides six structured tabs and status-controlled rows so unknown items remain visible until reviewed.
V1 builds a macro-free .xlsx workbook template for a Power BI report owner who has inherited a report they cannot safely change yet.
The workbook takes manual inspection findings from one inherited report: source systems, Power Query steps, measures, refresh rituals, open risks, ownership questions, and evidence notes. It produces one output: a Handover Summary tab that counts row statuses and shows whether unresolved unknown rows still block review.
The workbook has six worksheet tabs: five input audit tables (Sources, Query Steps, Measures, Refresh and Rituals, Risks and Questions) and one formula-driven Handover Summary. This distinction matters for building: the five input tabs use Excel Tables with explicit names; the Handover Summary uses COUNTIFS formulas referencing those table names.
First success test: a reviewer opens the workbook and can answer what has been checked, what is verified, what is risky, what is obsolete, and what is still unknown.
Proof boundary: the workbook proves that a structured audit record exists. It does not prove the Power BI report is correct, secure, performant, or production-ready until a human validates the findings against the real PBIX, semantic model, workspace, source systems, and business owners.
Finding Power Query steps and DAX measures requires Power BI Desktop (not the Power BI service). The analyst opens the PBIX locally to inspect the Applied Steps in Power Query Editor and the list of measures in the Fields pane. If they do not have the PBIX file or access to Power BI Desktop, those rows stay unknown until resolved. Power BI service lineage view (requires Contributor role or above, not Viewer) shows data source connections and refresh information but does not expose individual Power Query steps or DAX formula text.
A ready-built version of this workbook ships as the downloadable material in the course "Audit an Inherited Power BI Report and Make Your First Safe Change" (post YNS4AxsFIXjucYSOrNC7T). Use that course material if you just want to open a finished workbook and fill it in. Use this Blueprint if you want to build the workbook yourself, understand how every tab, status, and formula works, or adapt the structure to your own report.
Everything above plus the build steps, prompts, and export live in Microsoft 365 Report Builders. Own the Space for US$139 one-off — or a plan covers it and more.
See the full blueprint