SQL Server connection in Power BI - Cell-by-Cell Formula Trace

Sample Data

This data represents the key details needed to connect Power BI to a SQL Server database: server name, database name, username, password, and the resulting connection string.

Cell	Value
A1	ServerName
B1	SQLServer01
A2	DatabaseName
B2	SalesDB
A3	Username
B3	user123
A4	Password
B4	********
A5	ConnectionString
B5	Server=SQLServer01;Database=SalesDB;User ID=user123;Password=********;

Formula Trace

CONCATENATE("Server=", B1, ";Database=", B2, ";User ID=", B3, ";Password=", B4, ";")

Step 1: CONCATENATE("Server=", B1)

Step 2: CONCATENATE("Server=SQLServer01", ";Database=", B2)

Step 3: CONCATENATE("Server=SQLServer01;Database=SalesDB", ";User ID=", B3)

Step 4: CONCATENATE("Server=SQLServer01;Database=SalesDB;User ID=user123", ";Password=", B4)

Step 5: CONCATENATE("Server=SQLServer01;Database=SalesDB;User ID=user123;Password=********", ";")

Cell Reference Map

    A           B
1 |ServerName |SQLServer01|
2 |DatabaseName|SalesDB   |
3 |Username   |user123   |
4 |Password   |********  |
5 |ConnectionString|---------> Uses B1, B2, B3, B4 to build string

Cells B1 to B4 provide the values for server, database, username, and password that are combined to form the connection string in B5.

Result

    A               B
1 |ServerName     |SQLServer01                      |
2 |DatabaseName   |SalesDB                         |
3 |Username      |user123                         |
4 |Password      |********                        |
5 |ConnectionString|Server=SQLServer01;Database=SalesDB;User ID=user123;Password=********;|

The final connection string in cell B5 shows all parts combined correctly. This string is used by Power BI to connect to the SQL Server database.

Sheet Trace Quiz - 3 Questions

What value does the formula use from cell B2?

A SalesDB

B SQLServer01

C user123

D ********

Key Result

CONCATENATE joins text and cell values step-by-step to build a connection string.