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This guide shows you how to display a Microsoft Power BI dashboard on your digital signage screens, perfect for showcasing business intelligence, data visualizations, and key performance indicators.

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Prerequisites

Before you begin, make sure you have:
  • A Microsoft account with access to the target Power BI report
  • The full report URL copied from your browser
  • 2-Factor Authentication (2FA) enabled on the account, with the secret key saved
See our guide: How to Set Up 2FA and Get a Secret Key
This integration requires a direct Microsoft account login with an email and password. Federated login methods such as signing in with a Google, work/school Microsoft account, or Apple account are not compatible. Use an account with basic authentication credentials.
Best Practice: For security, use a dedicated Microsoft service account with Viewer permissions on the specific Power BI workspace or report you want to display.

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Step-by-Step Configuration

1

Navigate to Apps and search for the Dashboard app

In the Pickcel Console, expand Content in the left menu and select Apps. Search for Dashboard and click the Dashboard app card.
Pickcel Apps page with Dashboard searched and the Dashboard app card shown
2

Create the app and select Power Bi as the dashboard type

Click Create App in the top-right corner. Enter a name for this app instance, then select Power Bi from the Select the Dashboard Type dropdown. The Power Bi Dashboard Configuration panel opens on the right side of the screen.
Dashboard app creation page with Power Bi selected in the dropdown and the configuration panel open on the right
3

Enter your Power BI Dashboard URL

In the Dashboard URL field on the right panel, paste the full URL of the Power BI report you want to display. Copy it directly from your browser’s address bar while viewing the report in Power BI.
Power Bi Dashboard Configuration panel with a report URL entered in the Dashboard URL field
4

Fill in your Microsoft credentials and generate the Auth Token

Complete the remaining fields in the configuration panel:
  • Microsoft Email: The email address for your Microsoft account.
  • Microsoft Password: The password for that account.
  • Authenticator Secret: The 2FA secret key you saved when setting up 2FA.
Once all fields are filled, click Generate Auth Token. The token is generated and automatically populated in the Auth Token field on the left.
Configuration panel showing all fields filled including Microsoft email, password, Authenticator Secret, with Generate Auth Token button highlighted
5

Enter the Screen Selection Code

After the Auth Token is generated, use the Pickcel Dashboard Screen Mapper Chrome extension to select the exact area of the dashboard you want to show on screen. Once you confirm the selection, the code is copied to your clipboard. Paste it into the Screen Selection Code field.
App configuration showing the generated Auth Token and the Screen Selection Code field filled in
For a detailed walkthrough: How to Use the Dashboard Screen Mapper Chrome Extension
Click Open Dashboard next to the Screen Selection Code field to verify the dashboard loads correctly before saving.
6

Set Refresh Interval and Session Expiry

  • Refresh Interval: How often the dashboard screenshot is updated. For data that changes daily, 60 minutes is a suitable value.
  • Session Expiry: Forces a fresh login to prevent session timeouts from the service provider. A value of 5 hours is recommended.
Refresh Interval set to 60 minutes and Session Expiry set to 5 hours
7

Configure auto scroll (optional)

If your dashboard is taller than the visible screen area, enable scrolling:
  • Enable Auto Scroll: Sets a scroll duration in seconds. The dashboard scrolls from top to bottom over that time. For example, 60 seconds scrolls the full height over one minute.
  • Enable Auto Scroll Height: Scrolls down by a fixed number of pixels each cycle.
Enable Auto Scroll toggled on with a 60-second duration, and Enable Auto Scroll Height toggled on with 600 pixels
8

Click Create App

Once all settings are configured, click Create App in the top-right corner to save the app instance.
Dashboard app configuration with the Create App button highlighted in the top-right corner
9

Find the app in Content > Media

The new app instance appears in Content > Media. Find it by the name you gave it. The type shows as App.
Pickcel Media library showing the PowerBI Dashboard app listed with type App
10

Preview the dashboard

Click the app’s thumbnail to open a preview. The Power BI report renders inside the preview modal. If the data looks correct, assign the app to your digital signage screens via a Composition or Quick Play.
Preview modal showing the PowerBI Dashboard app with a live Power BI report rendered inside
The dashboard may take up to 2 minutes to load on first render, depending on the report size and authentication speed.
If the credentials are incorrect, the app will stall on the Microsoft login screen instead of showing the dashboard.

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What’s Next?