Fix “Sorry, We Couldn't Find That App” or Report in Power BI
You publish a Power BI report or App, copy the link, and send it to a colleague or client. Seconds later, they reply with a screenshot reading: “Sorry, we couldn't find that app” or “Sorry, we couldn't find that report. It may have been deleted or you may not have access to view it.”
TL;DR Quick Diagnosis
- External guest user? Add
?ctid=YOUR-TENANT-IDto the end of the URL so Power BI opens your tenant instead of theirs. - Internal viewer? Check if the URL contains
/groups/(Workspace link) instead of/apps/(App link), and click Update app.
Sorry, we couldn't find that report
It may have been deleted or you may not have access to view it.
Or on Power BI App links:
“Sorry, we couldn't find that app” / “Sorry, we didn't find that app”
Why Power BI Pretends Your App or Report Doesn't Exist
For security reasons, Microsoft Power BI intentionally uses the same message when an object is actually deleted and when the signed-in user is looking in the wrong tenant or lacks permission. Depending on which link the viewer clicked, they will see one of three verbatim dialogs:
App Link Error #1
“Sorry, we couldn't find that app”
Shown when opening an /apps/<app-id>URL without Audience access or from an external guest's home tenant.
App Link Error #2
“Sorry, we didn't find that app”
Shown in the Power BI Apps gallery or mobile redirect when the App was unpublished or never updated after creation.
Report Link Error
“Sorry, we couldn't find that report. It may have been deleted or you may not have access to view it.”
Shown when an App viewer is sent a /groups/ Workspace URL, or a report was replaced with a new GUID.
Cause 1: External B2B Guest Clicking a Link Without ?ctid=
If the link works for everyone inside your company, and you already added the external user to Microsoft Entra ID (Azure AD) and the App Audience, the culprit is almost always a missing tenant ID (ctid) in the URL.
When an external user opens https://app.powerbi.com/groups/me/apps/<app-id>, Power BI signs them into their own company's Power BI tenant by default. It then looks for <app-id> inside their tenant, fails to find it, and displays “Sorry, we couldn't find that app.”
Fails for External Guests (Searches Home Tenant)
https://app.powerbi.com/groups/me/apps/9f4c2a10-.../reports/3b8e1102-...Works for internal staff, but routes external B2B guests to their own organization's tenant.
Works for External Guests (Forces Host Tenant)
https://app.powerbi.com/groups/me/apps/9f4c2a10-.../reports/3b8e1102-...?ctid=72f988bf-86f1-41af-91ab-2d7cd011db47Appending ?ctid=<Your-Entra-Tenant-ID>switches the guest's Power BI session into your directory before loading the App.
Cause 2: Sending a /groups/ Workspace URL to an App Viewer
This is the #1 cause of “Sorry, we couldn't find that report. It may have been deleted or you may not have access to view it” inside an organization.
As a report author, you have Admin, Member, or Contributor access to the Power BI Workspace. When you open a report from the workspace list and copy the URL from your browser's address bar, that URL points to the Workspace copy of the report (/groups/<workspace-guid>/reports/...). Business users who only have access via the Power BI App Audience have zero permission on the Workspace itself.
| URL Structure | Who Can Open It | Result for App Audience Viewers |
|---|---|---|
| app.powerbi.com/groups/<workspace-id>/reports/<id> | Only Workspace Admins, Members, Contributors, or Workspace Viewers | “Sorry, we couldn't find that report...” |
| app.powerbi.com/groups/me/apps/<app-id>/reports/<id> | Anyone assigned to an Audience tab inside the published Power BI App | Opens normally inside the App |
Cause 3: Sharing the Link Before Clicking “Update App” (or Hidden Eye Icon)
Power BI Apps are a published snapshot of your workspace, not a live view. Whenever you publish a new report to a workspace, add a new user to an Audience tab, or unhide a report, nothing changes for viewers until you click Update app.
3-Step Checklist When a Newly Added Report Returns “Couldn't Find That Report”:
- Add the report in the Content tab: Open your workspace, click Update app → Content → + Add content, and confirm the report is listed.
- Un-hide the eye icon in the Audience tab: Switch to the Audience tab. By default, Power BI often marks newly added reports as Hidden (crossed-out eye icon) on existing audience tabs. Click the eye icon so it is visible.
- Click Update app: Click the final Update app button in the bottom-right corner and wait for the confirmation toast before sending the link.
Cause 4: Forwarded “Specific People” Links or Deleted/Re-Uploaded Reports
When someone clicks Share on a report using the default “Specific people can view” setting and that recipient forwards the email to a manager, the manager receives “Sorry, we couldn't find that report.” Always manage access via Security Groups or App Audiences rather than one-off email links.
If a developer deletes a report in the workspace and re-uploads it (or publishes under a new filename and removes the original report), Power BI generates a brand-new Report ID. Anyone who bookmarked the deleted report's URL will receive “Sorry, we couldn't find that report.”
Give Every Viewer One Persistent Menu Inside Power BI
Power BI forces you to juggle /groups/ links, /apps/ links, ?ctid= guest query strings, and manual Update app clicks. With LumioBI, administrators organize verified report links once in the portal, and the LumioBI Chrome Extension displays a persistent, role-based sidebar directly inside app.powerbi.com while Microsoft continues to handle sign-in and permissions.
Right Link Every Time
Store the exact App or report URL (including ?ctid= for B2B guests) once in LumioBI so users never click a wrong link.
No Broken Bookmarks
If you republish a report with a new GUID, update the link once in LumioBI and every viewer's sidebar updates automatically.
Power BI Stays in Control
Microsoft Entra and Power BI continue to enforce user licensing, workspace permissions, and RLS rules.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does Power BI say "Sorry, we couldn't find that app" or "Sorry, we didn't find that app" when the app clearly exists?
Power BI returns this message for two reasons: either the user does not have permission on any Audience tab inside that published App, or the user is an external Entra B2B guest clicking a link that lacks the ?ctid=<Your-Tenant-ID> parameter (which causes Power BI to search for the App ID inside the guest's own company tenant, where it does not exist).
What causes "Sorry, we couldn't find that report. It may have been deleted or you may not have access to view it"?
Most commonly, an author copies the URL from their browser while viewing the report inside the Power BI Workspace (/groups/<workspace-id>/reports/<report-id>) and sends it to a viewer who only has permission to the Power BI App (/apps/<app-id>/reports/<report-id>), not the underlying Workspace. It also occurs when a new report was added to the Workspace, or when an existing report was overwritten with a new Report ID, and the author has not yet clicked Update app.
How do I get the right Power BI App link for external B2B guest users?
After clicking Update app in your workspace, copy the App link from the confirmation dialog or from the Finish tab, then verify it ends with ?ctid=<Your-Entra-Tenant-ID> (or &ctid=<Your-Entra-Tenant-ID>). Without the ctid query parameter, external users will be routed into their home Microsoft 365 tenant and see 'Sorry, we couldn't find that app'.
Why did a Power BI report link suddenly stop working after I republished from Power BI Desktop?
If you deleted the original report in the workspace and re-uploaded it (instead of replacing it in place), Power BI assigns a brand-new Report GUID, breaking bookmarks to the old Report ID. Similarly, if you published under a new filename and removed the old report from the workspace or App, old links will fail. Even when replacing a report in place, App viewers will not see updated App content until you click Update app.
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