22-25 April 2026 
Demystifying the on-premises data gateway (for Power BI Semantic Models)
Proposed session for SQLBits 2026TL; DR
An overview of the Power BI on-premises data gateway: how it works, what impacts performance, how to tune and right-size it, and how to monitor health. Learn to move beyond “it just works” and manage it with confidence.
Session Details
The on-premises data gateway. A crucial link in the chain for our Power BI Reports, yet so often overlooked. For many it’s a mysterious piece of technology that “just works”, until it doesn’t. And when it doesn’t, then what do we do?
We’ll dive into the underlying architecture of the on-premises data gateway, to understand what types of activities it does, and how they influence the overall performance and working of our end-to-end flow for Power BI Reports.
We’ll cover the options you have available to you to tweak and optimize some of the processes that make the on-premises data gateway tick, and make sure you’re aware of the options available to right-size the underlying machines.
But of course, once it’s all up and running, how do monitor it to make sure it’s in a healthy state? We’ll discuss some of the native options that are available to you, and what you can do to use these to your advantage.
When all is said and done, you should have new and improved insights in the inner workings of the on-premises data gateway, which options you have to optimize and tweak, how to plan for sizing, and some ideas for monitoring the overall health.
We’ll dive into the underlying architecture of the on-premises data gateway, to understand what types of activities it does, and how they influence the overall performance and working of our end-to-end flow for Power BI Reports.
We’ll cover the options you have available to you to tweak and optimize some of the processes that make the on-premises data gateway tick, and make sure you’re aware of the options available to right-size the underlying machines.
But of course, once it’s all up and running, how do monitor it to make sure it’s in a healthy state? We’ll discuss some of the native options that are available to you, and what you can do to use these to your advantage.
When all is said and done, you should have new and improved insights in the inner workings of the on-premises data gateway, which options you have to optimize and tweak, how to plan for sizing, and some ideas for monitoring the overall health.
3 things you'll get out of this session
- Explain the role and architecture of the Power BI on-premises data gateway
- Identify gateway activities and understand their impact on report performance
- Apply configuration and optimization options to improve gateway efficiency
- Plan and right-size gateway infrastructure based on workload needs
- Use native monitoring tools to assess gateway health and troubleshoot issues
Speakers
Benni De Jagere's other proposed sessions for 2026
A Whirlwind Tour of the Fabric Capacity Metrics App - 2026
Copilot in Fabric - Explained for the Administrator! - 2026
Deep Dive into Microsoft Fabric Capacities: Fundamentals, Concepts, and Advanced Strategies - 2026
End-to-end Monitoring for Microsoft Fabric - 2026
Exploring permission boundaries in Microsoft Fabric - 2026
Fabric Capacities, beyond the obvious - 2026
Panel Debate: Real-World Microsoft Fabric Administration - Lessons from the Trenches - 2026
Slide Karaoke - Ultimate Showdown! - 2026
Star Schema ALL the things! But why? - 2026
Understanding Fabric Capacities - 2026
Benni De Jagere's previous sessions
Nose-Dive Narratives: Slide Karaoke 2024
Get ready to wrap up a serious day of learning with a dash of humor, spontaneity, and friendly competition! SQLBits presents "Slide Karaoke" where SQLBits speakers reveal their hidden talents while vying for bragging rights. This session promises to be a one-of-a-kind experience that will leave you in stitches and awe, and the speakers scrambling for their non-existent notes!
Asking questions to get meaningful answers
By making sure we're supplying the other party with the compact information they need, and making sure we're "forcing" them to give a decent answer, there's a lot more information we can receive. By getting the information we need, we'll be able to proceed quicker, and getting to results faster.
Setting yourself up for success when submitting to present
During this session we'll cover how you find those elusive speaking opportunities and how you can make the most of it with just a few simple things to keep in mind. Most importantly, what can you do to help understand organizers or selection committees why exactly your session would be a good fit for them, and why you think it would be a good fit for their audience.
Star Schema ALL the things! But why?
Come along in this journey from source to model to report using a practical mindset, thinking about the design decisions and ramifications along the way. At the core of the session lies the message to think about best practices, with the added step to test, assess, and benchmark what exactly they do for you.
You're a Power BI Admin? Let's get your threads aligned for Fabric!
This session will focus on the life of a Power BI Admin moving over to the extended Fabric realm, and keeping their things in check. We'll look at the familiar topics of capacity and workspace management, and how they align with the new workloads that have been introduced. We'll notice there's a very large overlap, as Fabric has been built on the foundations of Power BI.
How to write a Session Abstract, to get chosen to speak
Writing an abstract is hard, especially for a session you'll probably only be presenting a few months down the road. But have you considered consciously on the words you're writing in there, and what kind of expectations they set to other parties?
Having a balanced abstract will help set the expectations for your presentation correctly, before it actually starts. Clearly outlining the goals helps all parties involved, most importantly yourself!
Troubleshooting Power BI Reports
Starting off with the new Performance Analyzer Pane, we'll demonstrate how you can pinpoint bottlenecks in your report, and take actions on these insights.
With the myriad of root causes that are out there, an elimination approach might suit us very well.
Some of the main causes will be explained, and we'll get you going on how you can fix it for yourselves.
Asking questions to get meaningful answers
Asking questions is a very powerful tool, but can be bothersome to wield. By making sure we're supplying the other party with the compact information they need, and making sure we're "forcing" them to give a decent answer, there's a lot more information we can receive. By getting the information we need, we'll be able to proceed quicker, and getting to results faster.
Power BI dataflows? Why you need to implement it!
During this session, the core concepts of Power BI Dataflows will be explained, and we'll discuss how Power BI Dataflows could alleviate some of the specific problems you might be experiencing in your current architecture.
Troubleshooting Power BI Report Performance
Starting off with the new Performance Analyzer Pane, we'll demonstrate how you can pinpoint bottlenecks in your Power BI reports, and take actions on these insights.