Tmdl Linter False Positives

TMDL Linter False Positives

The Problem

VS Code's TMDL (Tabular Model Definition Language) linter reports valid syntax as errors:

measure 'Total Sales' = SUM('Sales'[Amount])
    description = "Sum of all sales amounts"  // Linter: "Invalid property 'description'"

The description property IS valid — this is a linter limitation.

The Solution

Ignore these specific false positives:

Known False Positives

Verification

Test in Power BI Desktop or Tabular Editor:

1. Apply the TMDL
2. If it loads without error, the syntax is correct
3. The VS Code linter is wrong, not your code

Workaround Options

Option 1: Ignore the Squiggles

The TMDL will work — the linter is just incomplete.

Option 2: Suppress in Settings

// .vscode/settings.json
{
  "tmdl.validate": false
}

Option 3: Use Tabular Editor

Tabular Editor's TMDL support is more complete.

When Linter IS Correct

Verification

# Deploy to test
# If no error in Power BI/SSAS, linter was wrong

When to Apply

• TMDL development in VS Code
• Any unexpected linter error on common properties
• When syntax looks correct but shows errors

Tags

data tmdl power-bi linting false-positive