Kill via XMLA (online removal)

Remove unused columns, measures, and tables directly from a model in the Power BI Service via the XMLA endpoint — no .pbix round-trip needed.

Feature facts

Available in

—Free✓Enterprise✓Automation

Where in the app

Kill via XMLA action on selected unused items after running a scan

Prerequisites

Desktop path — Measure Killer desktop app with a paid Enterprise license, or request a free trial
Automation path — an MK Automation subscription, run via the Notebook sample we provide on setup
Target workspace must be on Premium / PPU / Fabric capacity with the XMLA endpoint set to Read/Write

Permissions required

Build / write permission on the target semantic model in the Power BI Service
Workspace Admin or Member, with the XMLA endpoint set to Read/Write at the tenant (or capacity) level

Limited tenant analysis

Supported

Free trial

Available (with restrictions)Trial licences can see what would be removed in the UI but cannot apply the changes — automatic kill via XMLA and all exports (Excel, JSON) are disabled until a paid licence is applied.

What you get

TODO: 2–3 sentences — describe the difference from the desktop “Kill” action: this writes the change back to the live model in the Service via XMLA, so users picking up the next refresh see the cleaned model.

Run the action

TODO: step-by-step — scan the model, select the unused items, hit “Kill via XMLA”, confirm, verify.

Safety checks

TODO: explain the dry-run / preview flow, what gets logged, what to do if the write fails partway through.

Common workflows

TODO: 2–3 workflows — e.g. “Clean up a model nobody owns anymore”, “Bulk-remove auto-generated columns after a migration”.

What to do afterwards

TODO: re-run a scan to confirm, communicate with downstream report owners.

Run your first online scan — find what’s safe to kill before you kill it
Find and remove unused measures