Power Automate/ Flow patterns tips and tricks after 3 years with Doctor Flow
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This document discusses best practices and key insights from three years of implementing Microsoft Power Automate in enterprise environments. It emphasizes the importance of maintainability, reusability of code, managing approvals efficiently, understanding limitations, and utilizing AI and PowerApps. Additionally, it provides practical tips for optimizing flows, managing errors, and leveraging Microsoft Graph and Power BI.
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Power Automate/ Flow patterns tips and tricks after 3 years with Doctor Flow
- 2. Microsoft Power Automatetips & tricks, best practices after 3 years Doctor Flow ShareQL, Belgium
- 3. Here is ourexperience after 3 years and 12 enterprise flow projects… Agenda Make IT happy Know the limitations Maintainability Reusability Master Approvals Use AI Learn PowerApps Learn Power BI Microsoft Graph Code fast & scalable Manage throttling CDS
- 4. Watch my Ignite2019 Orlando sessions BRK3159 “Become a flow super-hero” (= Flow Advanced-Part 2) BRK3152 “Energize mission critical enterprise business processes with Microsoft Flow: patterns, tips and tricks” (= Flow Advanced -Part 1)
- 5. Office Apps &services MVP Business Applications MVP O365 Architect @sergeluca ShareQL Brussels Office365 Flow Dev Architecture Bullshit Doctor Flow aka “Serge Luca”
- 6.
- 7.
- 8. Power Architecture Business iterates fast, Talk toIT Support Model Monitoring Application Lifecycle Licensing Make IT Happy
- 9. Business Layer Storage Layer UI Layer Flows SharePoint lists &Document libraries, SQL, Analysis Services, Common Data Service… Communication LayerExchange Online Analytics Layer PowerBI Logging Layer Azure Applications Insights SharePoint Forms PowerApps Forms SharePoint Views Search Power Architecture
- 10. You give them your packages (.Zip)or Solutions updated They must create a Maker/Service Account Make IT Happy You give them your packages (.Zip) or Solutions
- 11.
- 12.
- 13.
- 14. Make Your FlowsFast And Scalable
- 15. Minimize Loops Avoid variables Use Compose Filter on the serverfirst Use batch Use The Filter action Use concurrencyFast
- 16.
- 17.
- 18. Log centrally (for IT) Manage Warning and Errors Log locally (forthe business) Use coalesce() Use ?
- 19.
- 20. Azure Application InsightsMicrosoftFlow Analytics (Admin Center)
- 21.
- 22. Key Flow Limitations No StateMachine Code Reusability Loops 500 250 actions/flow Flow Approval duration : 30 days Flow duration : 30 days No guest access ALM/devops weak Cannot resume flow API Calls limitation Controller Pattern 5.000 iterations in Do until and 5.000 in Apply to Each (Premium gives 100.000 in Apply to each) Create nested flows or raise a support ticket Use the CDS trigger : “when a record is updated” (Premium) or Use the Controller Pattern Controller Pattern Requires 1 Office 365 license for each guest Power Platform Azure Devops Component or export/unzip/rezip In the roadmap 500 calls/5 minutes/user + limitation/24h depending on the license (2.000 calls/user for O365 license)
- 23. Make Your CodeReusable
- 24.
- 25. Boss validates thefinal document Secretary Office validates style Advisors validate content User Publishes a new “legal” document State Machine State Machine Case 1. Publish a legal document
- 26. State Machine An employee submitsa travel expense The expense must be approved by a First Line Manager If the line manager doesn’t react, it must be escalated to the Big Boss Minimize the number of human approvals Do not approve if we reach the max monthly corporate expense State Machine Case 2. Submit a travel expense
- 27. Flow Controller Pattern Normal flow Service flow Case:Approve a travel expense Controller Launcher flow Line Manager Boss timeout approved rejected approved rejected timeout
- 28. Flow Call Flow Implemen- tations Messages (Service Bus) Database (SQL Azure) Http& When an HTTP Request… Requires Premium Requires Premium Requires Premium Messages (SharePoint List) Run a child flow
- 29.
- 30. Demo Approval Escalation Approval Adaptive& Teams Controller Pattern
- 31. Controller Launcher flow Line ManagerVirtualBoss Boss Normal flow Service flow User x • Approved • Rejected • I don’t know • Timeout • Cancelled Listen to reaction Create approval (don’t wait) Create approval (don’t wait) New Generation
- 32. New use case Anemployee submits a travel expense The expense must be approved by a First Line Manager If the line manager doesn’t react, it must be escalated to the Big Boss Minimize the number of human approvals State Machine Case 2. Submit a travel expense
- 33. Use AI (but onlyin real business cases)
- 34. Flow Controller Pattern andAI Controller Launcher flow Line ManagerVirtual Boss Boss timeout approved rejected timeout approved rejected approved rejected I don’t know Normal flow Service flow Case: Approve a travel expense
- 35.
- 36.
- 37. Learn and UsePowerApps
- 38. No elevation of privilege Alex FlowService Account Alex access SharePoint PowerApps
- 39. Messages Elevation of Privilege This patterncan be used for elevation of privilege but also to minimize usage of premium license Flow Service Account Flow Service Account PowerApps Only this one requires premium Premium Alex
- 40.
- 41. Learn and Use theMicrosoft Graph
- 42.
- 43. New use case Anemployee submits a travel expense The expense must be approved by a First Line Manager If the line manager doesn’t react, it must be escalated to the Big Boss Minimize the number of human approvals Do not approve if we reach the max monthly corporate expense State Machine Case 2. Submit a travel expense
- 44.
- 45. FLOW DATA ALERTS DATA SOURCE POWERBI REPORTS & DASHBOARDS STREAMING DATA LIVE POWERQUERY ON SQL AZURE Requires Premium Data On premises REFRESH DATASET) Query DATASET including with DAX expressions(in 2019) POWERQUERY SCHEDULED REFRESH LIVE DATASET DATASET SCHEDULE REFRESH Doctor Flow & Isabelle Van Campenhoudt, 2019 Flow & PowerBI
- 46. Conclusions : thereis more than that… • Learn & share • Make IT happy • Know the limitations • Maintainability • Reusability • Master Approvals • Use AI • Learn PowerApps • Learn Power BI • Microsoft Graph • Code fast & scalable • Adaptive Cards • PowerApps Portal • Common Data Service • Microsoft Forms • Azure Functions • Services Bus • Azure Event Grid • Azure API Management • SQL Azure • …
Editor's Notes
- #2 This is the Pre-Title Screen. Please do not place any content on this screen.
- #3 To add your image, first delete the place holder image as shown in the white box. Then insert your picture and scale it to be bigger than the size of the white box shown. Finally, right click on your image and select ‘Send to back’ – your image should now be framed correctly.
- #8 Open source picture: https://unsplash.com/photos/j9PpIy_x4EE
- #13 Get my timesheet: https://emea.flow.microsoft.com/manage/environments/Default-892b3446-d5f0-489e-a68d-605c1613aead/flows/edd198fb-15bb-4fce-96f9-25473cc9ce5e
- #14 End of demo: 11’ 10’ 10’ 10’ Open gettimesheet maintainable: Show documentation compose talk about deployment Try and catch Show scope Show if_debug
- #16 Most of the time this is not important When user interaction is involved this is important : PowerApps calls flows Automated flow : ex: create a global counter
- #17 End of demo 15’ 15’ 14’ 13’
- #19 In error demo, show that the condition block does not fail if value is null, but the switch does (the status is a choice field)
- #20 End of demo : 17’ , 19’, 18’ 17’ 16’
- #23 End of slide : 21’ 22’ ,21;20’
- #29 End of this : 26 27’
- #31 End of : 32’,30’,32’,29
- #32 Todo : CDS diagram : how to cancel Controller pattern video 1 : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e8Nuswofodw Controller pattern video 2 : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qSYMC20aDiE
- #37 34’ 36’ 35’ 32
- #41 Using views instead of tables Instead of traversing from table to table to get your data, expose views where the joins have been made for you. Provided that you’ve correctly indexed your tables, this approach should be very fast, and it will be even faster if you limit the results by using a delegable function that runs on the server. Using stored procedures through a flow for performance The biggest performance improvement that you can make for a PowerApps app that uses Microsoft SQL Server is to call stored procedures from an implementation of Microsoft Flow (that is, a flow). This approach has the added benefit of decoupling your database design from the PowerApps app. Therefore, you can change the underlying table structure without affecting your app. As we’ll explain later, this approach is also more secure. To use this approach in a PowerApps app that already uses the SQL Server connector, you must first completely remove the SQL Server connector from the app. Then create a new SQL Server connector that uses a SQL sign-in that’s restricted to EXECUTE permissions on stored procedures in the database. Finally, in the flow, call the stored procedure, and pass in the parameters from the PowerApps app. For a detailed explanation of how to create the flow and return its results to PowerApps, see Brian Dang’s article, Return an array from a SQL Stored Procedure to PowerApps (Split Method). This approach has these performance benefits: • The stored procedure will be optimized through a query execution plan. Therefore, data will be returned faster. • Delegable calls become less of an issue, because your stored procedure will be optimized to read or write only pertinent data. • Your optimized flow is now a reusable component. Therefore, it’s available to other makers in the environment for common read and write scenarios. https://pahandsonlab.blob.core.windows.net/documents/PowerApps%20canvas%20app%20coding%20standards%20and%20guidelines.pdf
- #42 Approval antwerpen Create Team End of 37’, 37’ 38’ 36’
- #44 End of 40’ 40’
- #47 Powerquery <> oData Refresh dataset and query a dataset + reusing the result https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sn3XvkIGBOs&t=401s
- #49 To add your image, first delete the place holder image as shown in the white box. Then insert your picture and scale it to be bigger than the size of the white box shown. Finally, right click on your image and select ‘Send to back’ – your image should now be framed correctly.