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Medium severitydata source

Power BI Refresh Error:
DF-SQLDW-ExportErrorRowFailed

What does this error mean?

ADF is configured to redirect error rows to a file, but the write to that error output path failed. The error is in the redirect storage — not the Synapse table.

Common causes

  • 1The error row linked service points to a storage account or container that no longer exists
  • 2The credentials for the error row storage (account key, SAS token, managed identity) are invalid or expired
  • 3The folder path configured for error row output is invalid or the storage account has insufficient permissions
  • 4The error row linked service was not updated when the pipeline was migrated to a new environment

How to fix it

  1. 1In ADF Studio, open the data flow and click the Synapse sink transformation.
  2. 2Go to Settings > Error row handling and find the 'Error row linked service' and path.
  3. 3Open the linked service and click Test connection to verify it is reachable with valid credentials.
  4. 4Verify the container and folder path exist in the storage account — create them if missing.
  5. 5If credentials have expired (account key, SAS token), update them in the error row linked service.
  6. 6Save the updated linked service and retry the pipeline.

Frequently asked questions

Can I disable error row redirect to stop this error?

Yes — in Sink Settings > Error row handling, set 'Fail on first error'. ADF won't write error rows to a file; the pipeline fails at the first bad row instead.

How is ExportErrorRowFailed different from ErrorRowsFound?

ErrorRowsFound means Synapse rejected rows for data quality. ExportErrorRowFailed means ADF could not write those rejected rows to the error output — the problem is the error output storage, not the Synapse table.

Can I use managed identity for the error row output storage?

Yes — using managed identity for the error row linked service avoids expiring credentials. Assign the 'Storage Blob Data Contributor' role to the ADF managed identity on the error output storage account.

Will downstream Power BI datasets be affected?

Yes — the pipeline fails without completing the Synapse write. Dependent datasets will show stale data.

Official documentation: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/data-factory/data-flow-troubleshoot-guide

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