Step-by-step guides for Power Platform developers

Learn how to use calculated columns and formula columns in Dataverse to automate field calculations without writing code or building flows. This guide covers formula syntax for both column types, understanding calculation timing differences, choosing between calculated and formula columns, and comparing declarative columns versus Power Automate flows and C# plugins for calculation scenarios.

Learn how to configure parent-child relationships in Dataverse with proper cascade behaviour for record deletion, assignment, sharing, and merging. This guide covers understanding relationship types, configuring parental versus referential behaviour, implementing restrict delete to prevent orphaned records, customising cascade rules for business requirements, and managing relationship dependencies across complex data models.

Learn how to customise the rich text editor in Dataverse model-driven apps by adding custom fonts, colours, and formatting options through JSON configuration. This guide covers understanding the default editor configuration, creating custom JSON settings files, modifying toolbar options, adding custom colour palettes, and deploying enhanced rich text editing capabilities across your model-driven apps.

Learn how to build Power Automate flows that automatically create relationships between Dataverse records when importing data from Excel tables. This guide covers preparing Excel data with lookup columns, uploading files to SharePoint or OneDrive, parsing Excel tables, matching records using unique identifiers, and setting lookup field values to establish parent-child relationships during automated imports.

Learn how to implement deep linking in Power Apps model-driven apps to navigate directly to specific records, views, and forms. This guide covers URL structure, parameter syntax, opening records in edit mode, filtering views, and integrating deep links into Power Automate flows and external applications for seamless navigation.

Learn how to extract workflow metadata from Power Automate flows using the workflow() function. This guide covers retrieving flow names, run IDs, environment details, and other flow properties for use in logging, error tracking, notifications, and audit trails without hardcoding flow-specific information.

Learn how to integrate ChatGPT into Power Automate workflows using the OpenAI API. This guide covers setting up API authentication, making HTTP requests to ChatGPT endpoints, parsing AI responses, and using generated content in emails, Teams messages, and other flow actions for intelligent automation.

Learn how to build dynamic Power Automate flows that route updates to different Dataverse tables without hardcoding table names. This guide covers extracting entity metadata from triggers, pluralising entity logical names, using Switch controls for routing, and handling polymorphic lookups to create flexible, maintainable flows that work across multiple table types.

Learn how to make REST API GET requests in Power Automate to retrieve data from external services. This guide covers creating HTTP actions, configuring request parameters, testing API calls, parsing JSON responses, and using retrieved data in subsequent flow actions like sending emails or posting to Teams.

Learn how to work with polymorphic lookups in Dataverse using Power Automate. Polymorphic lookups can reference multiple table types, requiring special handling to determine which table the lookup points to and construct the correct entity reference. This guide covers the Customer and Regarding lookup types, checking lookup tables, and setting polymorphic lookup values.

Learn how to work with Dataverse lookup columns in Power Automate flows, including creating lookup values, retrieving lookup data, and understanding the entity set name vs entity logical name difference. This guide covers the two methods for getting lookup values and best practices for working with Dataverse relationships.

Learn how to handle errors in Power Automate flows using Configure run after, Scope actions, and Parallel branch methods. This guide covers detecting failures, implementing try-catch patterns, preventing flow failures from stopping automation, and building robust error handling for production workflows.

Learn how to extract the first value from an array in Power Automate without using Apply to each loops. This guide covers the wrong approach using variables and loops, the correct method using array indexing with [0], and accessing nested properties within the first array item.

Learn how to trigger child flows from parent flows in Power Automate to build modular, reusable automation workflows. This guide covers creating child flows with parameters, passing data between flows, handling response values, and best practices for flow orchestration and error handling.

Learn how to build automated email reminder flows in Power Automate that check for upcoming due dates and send notifications to users. This guide covers scheduled triggers, filtering records by date, looping through results, and sending personalised reminder emails with dynamic content.

Learn how to clear or remove Dataverse lookup column values in Power Automate by setting them to null. This guide covers the empty() expression method, proper syntax for nullifying lookup references, handling EntitySetName errors, and using conditional logic to set lookups to null only when needed.

Learn how to trigger Power Automate cloud flows from Power Apps canvas apps, pass parameters between the app and flow, and receive return values. This guide covers building the Power Automate flow with PowerApps trigger, adding the flow to canvas apps, and handling responses for seamless app-to-flow integration.

Learn how to use the Patch function to create and update SharePoint list items from Power Apps canvas apps. This guide covers patch syntax, working with different column types (text, choice, person, lookup, date), and practical examples for forms and galleries.

Learn how to use the formatDateTime expression in Power Automate to display dates and times in any format you need. This guide covers common date formats, time formats, custom patterns, and practical examples for emails, notifications, and file naming conventions.

Learn how to extract unique values from SharePoint list columns using Power Automate. This guide covers the Select action to isolate specific columns, the union expression to remove duplicates, and building HTML tables to display unique data in emails or notifications.

Learn how to attach files to emails in Power Automate flows, whether from SharePoint lists, OneDrive, Dataverse attachments, or dynamic content. This guide covers both single and multiple file attachments, with step-by-step instructions for retrieving file content and adding it to Send an email actions.

Learn the difference between conditions and expressions in Power Automate, when to use each approach, and how to build dynamic flow logic. This guide covers condition syntax, expression functions, and practical examples for both techniques to help you build smarter, more flexible automations.

Learn how to use environment variables in Power Automate to build portable, maintainable flows that work across Development, Test, and Production environments. This guide covers creating environment variables, referencing them in flows, and managing configuration without hard-coding values.

Learn how to build your first Power Automate cloud flow from scratch. This comprehensive beginner's guide covers triggers, actions, conditions, approvals, and testing—everything you need to start automating repetitive tasks and building powerful workflows in the Microsoft Power Platform.

Master self-referencing relationships in Dataverse to build hierarchical data structures. Learn how to create parent-child relationships within a single table, configure cascade behavior, and visualize hierarchies for organizational charts, project structures, and nested categories.

Learn how to design professional Dataverse forms for Model-Driven Apps. This comprehensive guide covers form components, field types, layout best practices, business rules, and advanced features like quick view forms and related records.

Master Dataverse table relationships to build connected, scalable data models. Learn the difference between one-to-many and many-to-many relationships, how to create them, and critical limitations to avoid common pitfalls.

Learn how to build your first Canvas App in Power Apps from scratch. This comprehensive guide walks you through every step—from creating a blank app to understanding controls, properties, and formulas that bring your app to life.

Learn how to build custom Dataverse tables from scratch. This comprehensive guide covers table creation, all available column types, properties, and best practices for structuring your data foundation in the Power Platform.

Master Power Apps environments to build secure, scalable solutions. Learn the differences between Production, Sandbox, Developer, Trial, and Default environments, plus how to choose the right one for your project.