Bookmarks and Buttons in Power BI
Bookmarks save the state of a report page (filters and which visuals are visible). Buttons play that state so a reader can toggle a chart and a table, reset filters, or jump like an app — without hunting menus.
Friends! Managers ask for “one button that shows the table”. Why? The chart is pretty, but the table settles arguments. How? We save two bookmarks on a fictional FreshBasket sales page, hide one visual each time with the Selection pane, and wire two buttons. Ctrl+click in Desktop. Slow and clear.
मित्रांनो! Managers विचारतात “एक बटण जे table दाखवेल”. का? Chart सुंदर आहे, पण table वाद संपवते. कसे? FreshBasket च्या sales पेजवर दोन bookmarks सेव्ह करायचे, Selection pane ने एक visual hide करायचे, दोन buttons जोडायचे. Desktop मध्ये Ctrl+click. हळू आणि स्पष्ट.
मित्रों! Managers पूछते हैं “एक बटन जो table दिखाए”. क्यों? Chart सुंदर है, लेकिन table बहस खत्म करता है. कैसे? FreshBasket के sales पेज पर दो bookmarks सेव करें, Selection pane से एक visual hide करें, दो buttons जोड़ें. Desktop में Ctrl+click. धीरे और साफ़.
Quick answer
Vertical path:
- View → Bookmarks and View → Selection.
- Show chart, hide table → Add bookmark → name it Chart View.
- Tick Data and Display as you need for that bookmark.
- Hide chart, show table → Add Table View.
- Insert → Buttons → set Action to each bookmark.
- In Desktop, hold Ctrl while you click to test.
State on canvas → Bookmark saves it → Button restores it
Real example: chart or table for the same shop sales
Tiny FreshBasket (fictional) totals:
| City | Sales |
|---|---|
| Mumbai | 1000 |
| Pune | 160 |
The owner wants a bar chart for the meeting screen, and a table when someone asks “exact number?”. Same page. Two bookmarks. Two buttons labelled Chart and Table.
What happens when they click Table:
- The bar chart is hidden.
- The table is shown.
- City slicer stays on Mumbai if Data was part of that bookmark — or stays as the reader left it if Data was off.
- Sales still read 1000 for Mumbai. The visual shape changed, not the maths.
What do I need before this guide?
- A page with at least two visuals (choose a chart and a table or matrix).
- Slicers if you want bookmarks that also capture filters.
- Course: What a bookmark saves.
Before and after (look at the tables first)
Before
आधी (Before)
पहले (Before)
After
नंतर (After)
बाद में (After)
What a bookmark actually stores
A bookmark saves the page state: filters (Data), what is visible (Display), and optionally the current page.
Bookmark पेजची state सेव्ह करतो: फिल्टर (Data), काय दिसते (Display), आणि हवे असल्यास current page.
Bookmark पेज की state सेव करता है: फ़िल्टर (Data), क्या दिखे (Display), और चाहें तो current page.
- Data — Filters pane, slicer selections, sort, drill position.
- Display — Which visuals are visible or hidden (Selection pane), spotlight.
- Current page — Whether clicking the bookmark also jumps to this page.
- All visuals / Selected visuals — Whether the bookmark updates everything or only the visuals you had selected when you updated it.
Why these toggles exist: a “show table” bookmark should usually change Display. If it also rewrites Data, it may snap the City slicer back to last week’s selection and confuse the owner.
Chart / table toggle (classroom pattern)
Chart/table toggle: two bookmarks, two buttons, Selection pane hides one visual and shows the other.
Chart/table toggle: दोन bookmarks, दोन buttons, Selection pane एक visual hide करतो आणि दुसरा show करतो.
Chart/table toggle: दो bookmarks, दो buttons, Selection pane एक visual hide करता है और दूसरा show करता है.
- Place a bar chart and a table on the same spot (or overlapping).
- Selection pane: eye icon hides the table. Add bookmark Chart View (Display on).
- Hide the chart, show the table. Add Table View.
- Insert two buttons. Action → Bookmark → pick each name.
- Optional: Bookmark navigator instead of hand-made buttons when you have many views.
What you see: only one visual at a time. The sales number for Mumbai stays 1000; only the shape changes.
Buttons and the Ctrl+click rule
Buttons run an action: Bookmark, Page navigation, Back, or Web URL. In Desktop, hold Ctrl while you click to test.
Buttons एक action चालवतात: Bookmark, Page navigation, Back, किंवा Web URL. Desktop मध्ये टेस्ट करताना Ctrl धरून क्लिक करा.
Buttons एक action चलाते हैं: Bookmark, Page navigation, Back, या Web URL. Desktop में टेस्ट करते समय Ctrl दबाकर क्लिक करें.
- Insert → Buttons → Blank (or use a navigator).
- Action On → type Bookmark (or Page navigation / Back / Web URL).
- In Desktop, hold Ctrl while you click to fire the action.
- In the Service, a normal click works for readers.
- Back buttons on drill-through pages follow the same Ctrl rule in Desktop.
Mistakes and calm fixes
| Symptom | Likely cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Slicer jumps oddly | Data ticked on a display toggle | Untick Data, Update bookmark |
| Both visuals show | Display off / eyes wrong | Selection pane → Update |
| Button dead in Desktop | No Ctrl | Ctrl+click |
| Wrong page opens | Current page ticked | Untick if you only wanted state |
Ravindra Bagale's Tip
Interview line: “A bookmark stores Data and Display separately, so my chart/table toggle uses Display only.” Then show Ctrl+click in Desktop. Got it?
Ravindra Bagale's Tip – मराठी
Interview line: “Bookmark Data आणि Display वेगवेगळे store करतो, म्हणून माझा chart/table toggle फक्त Display वापरतो.” नंतर Desktop मध्ये Ctrl+click दाखवा. समजलं का?
Ravindra Bagale's Tip – हिंदी
Interview line: “Bookmark Data और Display अलग-अलग store करता है, इसलिए मेरा chart/table toggle सिर्फ Display इस्तेमाल करता है.” फिर Desktop में Ctrl+click दिखाओ. समझ में आया?
Practice task
- Build Chart View and Table View on one page.
- Add two buttons.
- Break it on purpose with Data ticked, watch the slicer jump, then fix it.
- Write one sentence: which toggles each bookmark uses.
Got it? Bookmark saves state, button plays it, Selection pane hides and shows. Next: paint the numbers with conditional formatting. Let us go ahead.
समजलं का? Bookmark state सेव्ह करतो, button तो चालवतो, Selection pane hide आणि show करतो. पुढे: conditional formatting ने numbers रंगवणे. आता पुढे जाऊया.
समझ में आया? Bookmark state सेव करता है, button उसे चलाता है, Selection pane hide और show करता है. आगे: conditional formatting से numbers रंगना. अब आगे बढ़ते हैं.
Frequently asked questions
What does a bookmark save?
Data (filters and slicers), Display (which visuals are hidden), and optionally Current page. You choose the toggles per bookmark.
Why did my slicer reset?
Data was ticked when you updated the bookmark, so it wrote the old slicer values back. Untick Data for a display-only toggle.
Chart and table both show?
Selection pane visibility was not part of the bookmark, or Display was off. Hide one visual, update the bookmark with Display on.
Button does nothing in Desktop?
Hold Ctrl while you click. Desktop needs Ctrl for button actions; the Service does not.
Bookmark vs page navigator?
A bookmark restores state on a page (or jumps with Current page). A page navigator only changes pages.
Course lessons?
What a bookmark saves, and navigators and buttons, in the bookmarks chapter.