Fabric API for GraphQL frequently asked questions

GraphQL is a query language for APIs that lets apps request exactly the data they need. Key benefits include:

• Strong type system - Clearly describes available data
• Precise data fetching - Reduces over-fetching by allowing specific requests
• Backward compatibility - Makes API updates easier without breaking existing code
• Rich tooling - Enables use of a broad set of developer tools

It's a more efficient way for applications to communicate with servers and databases.

Microsoft Fabric API for GraphQL is a managed service that enables you to create a GraphQL API in seconds.

Supported data sources:

• Microsoft Fabric Data Warehouses
• Microsoft Fabric Lakehouses
• Microsoft Fabric Mirrored Databases
• Microsoft Fabric SQL Databases
• Azure SQL Databases

It provides a unified API layer for querying and mutating data from these supported data sources.

Only GraphQL queries (read) and mutations (write) are supported currently. Data sources exposed via SQL Analytics Endpoints are read-only thus only supporting Queries. For Data Warehouses, a primary key needs to be defined for mutations to be automatically generated.

Resolvers are GraphQL components that provide the business logic to resolve fields in the API and perform operations with data residing in the data sources.

Automatic generation: Fabric automatically generates resolvers whenever you attach a new data source or select new objects to be exposed from an existing data source.

Customization: Currently, it's not possible to customize resolvers directly. For customized business logic in API for GraphQL, you can create a stored procedure in the data source and expose it in the GraphQL API.

Microsoft Entra ID authentication: API for GraphQL requires applications to use Microsoft Entra ID for authentication. Your client application must be registered and configured to execute API calls against Fabric.

Required permissions:

• The app registered in Microsoft Entra requires GraphQLApi.Execute.All permissions for the Power BI service. For more information, see Create a Microsoft Entra app in Azure.

Single sign-on (SSO) configuration: If the API is configured to use SSO, the authenticated user or service principal requires access to both:

• The GraphQL API (Run Queries and Mutations permission)
• The data source (read or write access as needed)

Workspace-level access option: Alternatively, assign the user or service principal as a workspace member with a contributor role where both the API and data source items are located. This gives the required access to both items from a single place. For more information, see Give users access to workspaces.

Saved credentials configuration: If the API is configured to use saved credentials, the authenticated user or service principal only needs access to the API (select Run Queries and Mutations option when adding direct access permissions to the API).

Examples: You can find an end-to-end example with sample code for both user principals and service principals at Connect Applications.

To get help from Microsoft Support on any issue related to Fabric API for GraphQL, visit our Fabric Support site and choose the Data Engineering option.

API for GraphQL doesn't support Private Link at this time.

There are two main reasons for this "cold start" behavior:

Data source warm-up:

• The first request might take longer if a data source needs to be warmed up from a cold state
• Even if the data source isn't cold, data retrieval might not be as efficient the first time GraphQL issues a query if the data source doesn't have the necessary data loaded in memory

API endpoint initialization:

• The first request to an API for GraphQL endpoint might take longer because the system needs to load your schema and configuration
• Subsequent requests are faster because the system is already warmed up and ready to serve your requests

You can find more information in the performance best practices.

We welcome your feedback and suggestions! You can provide feedback through Fabric Ideas. Our team actively monitors the feedback and suggestions submitted through this platform. You can also reach out to us via Microsoft Fabric Support for any specific queries or concerns.

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