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Customize fields list ordering

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Ian Bennett on 17 Feb 2017 08:50:54

At least as an option, allow fields to be ordered the same as the source query rather than alphabetical. This way they can be put in a logical and consistent order.

Obviously, a workaround is to prefix each column name with a number but this is clunky, unattractive and a pain if the columns change often.

Comments (76)
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Fred Stimler on 06 Jul 2020 00:07:34

RE: Customize fields list ordering

Please use the sort order of the source - I can never find my fields

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Power BI User on 06 Jul 2020 00:07:27

RE: Customize fields list ordering

This is really super-annoying. Users complain a lot because in Excel PowerPivot it works by setting a checkbox - alphabetic order, data source order - in the option window.

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Power BI User on 06 Jul 2020 00:06:54

RE: Customize fields list ordering

allow fields to be ordered the same as the source query rather than alphabetical.

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AlainD on 06 Jul 2020 00:06:38

RE: Customize fields list ordering

Typically the type of distinctive feature between professional and amateur software. Please implement asap.

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Missy Jaroneski on 06 Jul 2020 00:06:29

RE: Customize fields list ordering

Some time back, MS added the ability to group the queries in the Query Builder - this has helped tremendously. BUT, we need to have these groupings ("Folders") carry into the report-building experience. In a model that has dozens of queries, we need something more than alphabetical order as the organization of them in the "fields" pane.

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Jesse Glidden on 06 Jul 2020 00:06:21

RE: Customize fields list ordering

Seems like this would be easy to do. The alphabetical list is super-annoying and unnecessarily requires me to use my recollection of the alphabet.

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Tad Borowski on 06 Jul 2020 00:06:11

RE: Customize fields list ordering

When you query into Power BI the columns stay in order for the data view. However, the Fields Pane sorts the column titles (headers) alphabetically. This is slightly problematic as it creates inconsistencies in how the data is organized. Not a big deal, but it would be nice if things would all stay sorted the same way.

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bob the builder on 06 Jul 2020 00:06:00

RE: Customize fields list ordering

the default design is studid. it should be based on original order as it loads into the query. the ideal case is to have an option in the panel.

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Adam on 06 Jul 2020 00:05:49

RE: Customize fields list ordering

just started getting into using power BI and this nuance is making me want to look elsewhere for creating reports. this increases the amount of time i have to spend creating reports because i constantly have to look back at my original table to confirm the order of fields.

Microsoft, why are you applying any type of sort here. This just seems silly. If you think you are being helpful then you are very wrong.

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Linda Sarace on 06 Jul 2020 00:05:38

RE: Customize fields list ordering

When building reports (what we call "thin" reports) in Power BI Desktop from an existing data model (used Power BI Dataset option for the Get Data to retrieve a data model), we need the table/query structure from the model to be the way the table/query structure in presented in the Fields section within Power BI.


For example:
In Query Editor within a data model a table/query structure may look like this:

Order Subject Area [5]
Order line
Unified Order
Standing Order
Unified Order Line
Order Reconciliation
Shipment Subject Area [3]
Shipment Number
Shipment Status
Shipment Reconciliation

When this model is sourced into Power BI Desktop, the Fields panel should present the structure just as it appears above. At current it simply places the queries in alphabetical order