/te2-cli

name: te2-cli
description: CLI syntax reference for Tabular Editor 2 (TabularEditor.exe); deployment, scripting, BPA analysis, and CI/CD integration. Automatically invoke when the user mentions "TabularEditor.exe", TE2 CLI flags (-D, -S, -A, -B, -TMDL, -O, -C), or asks to "deploy a model via CLI", "set up CI/CD for Power BI", "automate model deployment", "run BPA from command line", "save model as TMDL".

Tabular Editor 2 CLI

Command-line interface for Tabular Editor 2 (TE2). This skill covers the `TabularEditor.exe` executable; TE3 has its own CLI and is a separate product.

> [!NOTE] > The TE2 CLI (`TabularEditor.exe`) is still supported and stable, and remains a solid choice for existing Windows CI/CD pipelines. It is now considered outdated against the newer cross-platform Tabular Editor CLI (`te`), which is built on TE3 and is in preview until Q4 2026. For the `te` command set and a flag-by-flag migration, see the `te-cli` skill. Download `te` preview binaries from the [Tabular Editor CLI downloads page](https://tabulareditor.com/download-tabular-editor-cli).

Installation

Tabular Editor 2 (Free)

• Download: https://github.com/TabularEditor/TabularEditor/releases
• Extract to preferred location or use Chocolatey: `choco install tabulareditor2`

Executable

`TabularEditor.exe` -- free, Windows-only. For Mac/Linux, run via a Windows VM or container.

Connection Sources

Local Files

# model.bim (JSON format)
TabularEditor.exe Model.bim

# TMDL folder
TabularEditor.exe definition/

# PBIP project
TabularEditor.exe MyReport.pbip

Remote XMLA Endpoints

# Analysis Services
TabularEditor.exe "localhost\tabular" "AdventureWorks"

# Power BI Premium/Fabric
TabularEditor.exe "powerbi://api.powerbi.com/v1.0/myorg/WorkspaceName" "ModelName"

Power BI Desktop

# Auto-detect running instance
TabularEditor.exe localhost:PORT DatabaseName

Note: Find the port in PBIDesktop diagnostic files or use tools like DAX Studio.

Command-Line Reference

Basic Syntax

TabularEditor.exe <source> [options]

Script Execution

# Inline C# script
TabularEditor.exe Model.bim -S "Info(Model.Name);"

# Script file
TabularEditor.exe Model.bim -S script.csx

# Multiple scripts (executed in order)
TabularEditor.exe Model.bim -S script1.csx -S script2.csx

Deployment

# Deploy to XMLA endpoint
TabularEditor.exe Model.bim -D "server" "database"

# Deploy with options
TabularEditor.exe Model.bim -D "server" "database" -O -C -P -R -M -E -V -W

Deployment Options

| Flag | Long Form | Description | |------|-----------|-------------| | `-O` | `-OVERWRITE` | Overwrite existing database | | `-C` | `-CONNECTIONS` | Deploy/overwrite data sources (supports connection string placeholder substitution) | | `-P` | `-PARTITIONS` | Deploy/overwrite existing table partitions | | `-R` | `-ROLES` | Deploy roles | | `-M` | `-MEMBERS` | Deploy role members | | `-S` | `-SHARED` | Deploy shared expressions (within `-D` context; note: `-S` also means script outside `-D`) | | `-E` | `-ERR` | Return non-zero exit code if AS returns error messages after deployment | | `-V` | `-VSTS` | Output Azure DevOps logging commands | | `-W` | `-WARN` | Output warnings for unprocessed objects | | `-F` | `-FULL` | Full deployment (equivalent to `-O -C -P -S -R -M`) | | `-X` | `-XMLA` | Generate XMLA/TMSL script instead of deploying | | `-L` | `-LOGIN` | Disable integrated security for deployment | | `-Y` | `-SKIPPOLICY` | Skip incremental refresh policy partitions |

Save Output

# Save to model.bim
TabularEditor.exe Model.bim -S script.csx -B Output.bim

# Save to TMDL folder
TabularEditor.exe Model.bim -S script.csx -TMDL output/

# Save to legacy folder structure
TabularEditor.exe Model.bim -S script.csx -F output/

Best Practice Analyzer

# Run BPA rules
TabularEditor.exe Model.bim -A rules.json

# Run BPA with Azure DevOps logging output
TabularEditor.exe Model.bim -A rules.json -V

# Run BPA with GitHub Actions logging output
TabularEditor.exe Model.bim -A rules.json -G

# Analyze excluding rules embedded in model annotations
TabularEditor.exe Model.bim -AX rules.json

Schema Check

# Validate data source schemas against the model
TabularEditor.exe Model.bim -SC

Common Operations

1. Deploy Local Model to Service

TabularEditor.exe Model.bim ^
    -D "powerbi://api.powerbi.com/v1.0/myorg/Workspace" "SemanticModel" ^
    -O -C

2. Run Script and Save

TabularEditor.exe Model.bim -S format-dax.csx -B Model.bim

3. Run BPA Analysis

TabularEditor.exe Model.bim ^
    -A https://raw.githubusercontent.com/microsoft/Analysis-Services/master/BestPracticeRules/BPARules.json ^
    -V

4. Refresh Model Data

TabularEditor.exe "server" "database" ^
    -S "Model.RequestRefresh(RefreshType.Full);" ^
    -D "server" "database"

5. Export Model from Service

TabularEditor.exe "powerbi://api.powerbi.com/v1.0/myorg/Workspace" "Model" ^
    -TMDL output/definition

Authentication

For authentication methods (Windows, Service Principal, Interactive) and CI/CD integration (Azure DevOps, GitHub Actions), see **`references/auth-and-cicd.md`**.

Exit Codes

| Code | Description | |------|-------------| | 0 | Success | | 1 | Any error-level output (script error, deployment failure, BPA violations at severity >= 3) |

File Formats

Input Formats

• `model.bim` - Tabular JSON (legacy)
• `definition/` - TMDL folder (modern)
• `*.pbip` - Power BI Project (TE3)

Output Formats

| Flag | Format | Description | |------|--------|-------------| | `-B` | `.bim` | Tabular JSON | | `-TMDL` | folder | TMDL | | `-F` | folder | Legacy folder structure |

Troubleshooting

For common errors (database not found, authentication failed, script execution failed), see **`references/auth-and-cicd.md`**.

Quick Reference Card

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