Troubleshooting Power BI UI Automation
To troubleshoot the update of pbix files using UI Automation, you first need to watch the process and identify the part where the UI automation fails:
Issue at the Start of the update:
If the update process fails at the start (before or shortly after opening Power BI desktop, the error message usally says “Could not find window matching condition.”) the problem is most likely a timeout due to a large model or a slow computer.
Resolutions:
Please set the WaitBeforeRefrhesh (ms) setting to at least 120000 in C:\Program Files\PowerPlanner\Power Update\PBIXUpdate.dll.config (copy the file to desktop, change setting in notepad, save, and copy it back).
Increase this setting further if Power BI Desktop takes more than 2 minutes to open up fully.
Issue during Refresh:
If you see that one of the datasources fails to refresh or hangs, it’s mostly a Power BI issue (e.g. expired password in the connection, gateway issue, other problem accessing the datasource).
Resolutions:
Check if you can manually refresh the pbix workbook and make sure all connections are working.
If it’s a temporary / intermittent issue, set the Retry Count and Retry wait settings in the Advanced Settings page of the task wizard (e.g. Retry Count: 5, Retry Wait: 5 min). If the Refresh hangs sometimes, also set up the following settings in Advanced Properties\Settings:
- Stop the tasks if runs longer than X minutes (based on the normal run time)
- If the task fails restart every X minutes (if the refresh issue is caused by a network problem leave a few minutes for it to recover)
If you don’t see that the Refresh fails then refer to the Other issues section below.
Issue during Publish:
If the issue occurs during publishing, it’s mostly due to an incorrect Sign in setting in Power BI desktop, or a new version of Power BI Desktop.
Resolutions:
Check if you are signed in correctly in Power BI Desktop
If you recently updated Power BI Deskop, please download and install the latest version of Power Update, if the still occurs with the latest version, contact us.
If publishing hangs sometimes, then it’s most likely a powerbi.com issue due to refreshing the report too often, in that case, try decreasing the frequency of updates, check with IT for network issues and set up the following settings in Advanced Properties\Settings:
- Stop the tasks if runs longer than X minutes (based on the normal run time)
- If the task fails restart every X minutes (if the refresh issue is caused by a network problem leave a few minutes for it to recover)
Other issues:
If you are experiencing another issue it can be due to various reasons depending on the IT environment, please try some of the common resolutions below to check if that resolves the issue.
Resolutions:
- Download and install the latest version of Power Update
- Increase the ModalWait setting in C:\Program Files\PowerPlanner\Power Update\PBIXUpdate.dll.config (copy the file to desktop, change setting in notepad, save, and copy it back).
- If the issue is intermittent try the Retry, Restart settings mentioned in the Refresh section above
- Try running Power Update on a different computer to rule out software and hardware environment issues
- Disable and custom DPI (text scale) settings in windows, and make sure that the resolution is at least 1024 x 768
- If the above doesn’t resolve the issue, contact us and send us the:
– C:\Users\[USER]\AppData\Local\Temp\PU.log, PU_UI.log files
– C:\Users\[USER]\AppData\Local\Power Update\Settings.xml file
– Power Update version in Control Panel\Programs\Power Update\Version
– Power BI Desktop version
