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Microsoft Power Apps Documentation

repository·main·Indexed 20 days ago

https://github.com/microsoftdocs/powerapps-docs

Technical product documentation for Microsoft Power Apps, including guides on on-premises data gateways, Application Lifecycle Management (ALM) for code apps, and integrating Dataverse as a data source using the Power Platform CLI (PAC).

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What's inside Power Apps

  1. Overview of Dataverse development tools

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    Microsoft Dataverse provides several specialized tools for code development, deployment, and configuration management:

    • Configuration Migration tool (CMT): Used to transport configuration and test data between environments.
    • Package Deployer (PD): Deployed packages containing solutions, custom code, HTML files, and more to Dataverse environments.
    • Plug-in Registration tool (PRT): Used to register custom code (plug-ins, custom workflow activities) and service endpoints.
    • SolutionPackager tool (SP): Reversibly decomposes Dataverse compressed solution files into XML and other files for source control management.
    • Code Generation tool (CG): CrmSvcUtil.exe can generate early-bound (strong-typed) .NET Framework classes. However, it is recommended to use pac modelbuilder build instead for better cross-platform support.

    Note: CMT, PD, and PRT provide a Windows (WPF) user interface and require a Windows operating system. The pac tool command is only available on Windows installations of the Power Platform CLI.

  2. Overview of Catalog in Power Platform

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    The Catalog in Power Platform allows organizations to manage, share, and reuse customized components and templates. It enables a 'fusion teams' model where pro-developers, makers, and admins collaborate by crowd-sourcing and discovering authoritative versions of work within an organization.

    Key Requirements & Constraints:

    • Admin Setup Required: An administrator must set up the catalog and configure permissions before use.
    • Dataverse Dependency: The catalog only works with Microsoft Dataverse environments. Environments without Dataverse are not supported.
    • Managed Environments: You must use a Managed Environment to submit solutions to the catalog. However, you can install (acquire) catalog items from any environment.

  3. Overview of Microsoft Dataverse capabilities

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    Microsoft Dataverse is a cloud-based SaaS data service designed to help organizations manage, analyze, and secure data with high agility. It serves as the data foundation for the Microsoft Power Platform, allowing both knowledge workers (low-code) and professional developers (pro-code) to build applications.

    Key capabilities include:

    • Data Versatility: Supports relational, non-relational, file, image, search, and data lake data types.
    • App Integration: Works natively with Power Apps (including mobile offline functionality), custom apps via REST APIs/SDKs, and bot-based apps via Microsoft Copilot Studio.
    • Analytics: Integrates with Power BI, AI Builder, and provides a managed data lake for advanced machine learning and Azure Synapse Analytics.
    • Security & Compliance: Built on Azure, utilizing Microsoft Entra for identity management and offering granular role-based, row-level, and column-level security.

  4. Overview of Azure Synapse Link for Dynamics 365 finance and operations data

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    Azure Synapse Link for Dataverse enables continuous export of data from Dynamics 365 finance and operations apps into Azure Synapse Analytics and Azure Data Lake Storage Gen2. This service is designed for enterprise big data analytics, providing scalable high availability and disaster recovery.

    Key features include:

    • Support for both standard and custom finance and operations entities and tables.
    • Continuous replication of data, including Create, Update, and Delete (CUD) transactions.
    • Ability to link or unlink environments to Azure Synapse Analytics or Data Lake Storage Gen2 directly without using the Azure portal or Microsoft Dynamics Lifecycle Services.
    • Data is stored in the Common Data Model format for semantic consistency.
    • By default, data is saved in Parquet Delta Lake format to optimize query response times.
    • Table limits applicable to the legacy 'Export to Data Lake' service do not apply here.

  5. Integrate Dataverse with external data sources

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    Dataverse provides several mechanisms to interact with data outside of the platform:

    • Import data: Bringing external data into Dataverse.
    • Synchronize data: Keeping Dataverse and external systems in sync.
    • Virtual tables: Accessing external data as if it were stored within Dataverse tables without physically moving it.
    • Azure Integration: Connecting with Azure services.
    • Webhooks: Sending data from Dataverse to external web services via HTTP requests.

  7. Navigate the Power Apps mobile Home screen

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    The Home screen provides several primary navigation elements:

    • Site map: Access the menu to move between apps, view favorite/recent rows, and access settings.
    • Search: Search for app rows within Microsoft Dataverse.
    • New: Quickly create a new row and enter information.
    • Assistant: Monitor and track daily actions via insight cards that provide tailored, actionable insights.

  8. Configure Microsoft Dataverse auditing

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    Microsoft Dataverse auditing is configured using settings within the organization table and the definitions of individual tables and columns. These settings determine what audit history data is captured.

    Permissions: While anyone can view the configuration, you must have the System Administrator or System Customizer role to modify these settings. Changes made to the audit configuration are themselves recorded in the audit history.

  9. Use the Microsoft Dataverse Web API

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    The Microsoft Dataverse Web API allows you to work with data, table definitions, and column definitions in Dataverse using a RESTful approach. It implements the OData (Open Data Protocol) version 4.0 standard, making it accessible across various programming languages, platforms, and devices.

    Key characteristics:

    • Standard-based: Built on OData v4, allowing the use of many third-party OData-compatible libraries.
    • Versatile: Can be used with any language capable of sending authenticated HTTP requests.
    • Relationship to Organization Service: While the Web API provides a RESTful experience, all operations ultimately go through the underlying Dataverse organization service. CRUD operations in the Web API use standard HTTP methods (GET, POST, PATCH, DELETE), while specialized platform messages are exposed as OData functions or actions.

  10. Choose a method to work with Dataverse data

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    Microsoft Dataverse provides several interfaces for interacting with business data via code. Your choice depends on your programming language and use case:

    • Retrieve, add, and modify data: Use the SDK for .NET, SDK for Python, or the Web API (OData v4 RESTful endpoint).
    • Search data: Use Dataverse search for fast, relevance-sorted results across multiple tables, supporting suggestions and autocompletion.
    • Query data with SQL: Use the Tabular Data Stream (TDS) endpoint to run Dataverse SQL (a subset of Transact-SQL) via the Power Query Dataverse connector or SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS).

  11. Explore community learning resources for PCF

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    The Power Apps community provides various external resources for learning the Power Apps component framework (PCF).

    Video Tutorials

    Community videos cover topics such as:

    • Basics: Getting started, building your first component, and requirements.
    • Advanced Implementation: Using React and Office UI fabric, working with additional frameworks, and deep dives into manifest files (for both dataset and field templates).
    • Debugging: Using source maps and Fiddler to debug minified production code.
    • Deployment: Packaging and importing components into Dataverse.

    Technical Blogs

    Community blogs offer deep dives into specific implementation details, including:

    • Styling: Adding styles to code components.
    • Environment Setup: Configuring Node.js and TypeScript.
    • Logic & Lifecycle: Understanding when updateView is called, handling events via bound properties, and localization.

  12. Develop offline-capable canvas apps

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    You can build canvas apps that allow users to remain productive during limited or no connectivity by performing three main tasks:

    1. Run apps offline: Open the app using the native Power Apps Mobile player on iOS, Android, or Windows.
    2. Monitor connectivity: Use the Connection signal object to determine if the app is offline, online, or on a metered connection.
    3. Synchronize data: Manage data flow between the local device and the server.

    Implementation Strategies

    • Dataverse-based apps: If your app uses Microsoft Dataverse, offline support is built-in. You can use standard Power Fx formulas, and the platform handles downloading data to the device and uploading changes back to Dataverse automatically.
    • Non-Dataverse apps: For all other connectors (e.g., SharePoint, Office 365, custom REST APIs), you must manually manage offline data using collections and the LoadData and SaveData functions to provide local storage.