Powering Up SharePoint Forms with PowerApps
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The document discusses PowerApps, a service for building custom applications that integrates with SharePoint and can connect to over 200 data sources. It compares PowerApps with InfoPath, highlighting features and limitations, and explains how to create and embed apps within SharePoint. Additionally, it provides a demo of using PowerApps with SharePoint, notes the importance of regular updates, and includes learning resources and contact information for further inquiries.
Powering Up SharePoint Forms with PowerApps
- 1. Powering Up SharePoint forms with PowerApps
- 2. Hello!I am April Dunnam Owner & Lead Developer at ThriveFast SharePoint, PowerApps & Flow Geek. Karaoke Queen. You can find me at : @aprildunnam | Blog: www.sharepointsiren.com
- 3. × Discuss what PowerApps is and what is can do × Compare PowerApps and InfoPath × Walk through how PowerApps can be connected and used in SharePoint
- 4. What is PowerApps? × O365 Service for building custom apps × Connect to over 200 different data sources × Works across web and mobile × Normal “citizen developer” can create apps – no custom software development needed!
- 5. + =
- 6. What Does it DO?
- 7. Gather Automate Report Where Does It Fit In?
- 8. Powerful Alone. Stronger Together
- 10. InfoPath vs PowerApps feature comparison InfoPath PowerApps Drag & Drop Interface X X Repeating Tables X X Attachments X X Conditional Logic X X Multiple Data Sources X X Offline Capability X X External User Access X Printing Capability X
- 11. Structure InfoPath Data Sources Views Controls Rules Repeating Tables PowerApps Data Sources Screens Controls Rules/Formula’s Galleries/Data Tables VS
- 12. Quick Tip: Rules in powerapps != infopath rules × The rules pane is *supposed* to make conditional logic easier but it’s just not there yet × No easy way to point and click to create actions/conditional formatting × Only guides you to correct location to input formula × Example: Show text box if radio button is yes. Set Visible property to: If(PerDiemEarnedYN.Value = true,true,false)
- 13. SharePoint & PowerApps – Dynamic Duo +
- 15. Using powerapps with sharepoint on-prem × On-Premises Data Gateway allows you to connect to on-prem SharePoint & SQL
- 16. Creating powerapps using sharepoint data Two Options: 1. Customize the default SharePoint List Form (SharePoint customized app) 2. Create a separate app and add SharePoint as a data source (Stand- alone app)
- 17. Sharepoint customized app vs standalone app Customized × Can only open from SharePoint list, not in PowerApp Gallery × Can’t move between sites/environments × Can’t use if list contains un- supported field types: Rating, External Data, Task Outcome Standalone × Appears in PowerApp Gallery and Mobile × Can embed in SharePoint Page × Use anywhere
- 19. Switching back to default form × General Settings -> Form Settings
- 20. Working with SharePoint document libraries × Document libraries aren’t fully supported in PowerApps…yet × Work-Around: Type in Doc Library Name × To Open File: Launch('{Link}')
- 22. Attachment support × You can now upload documents to SharePoint as list attachments × Still can’t upload directly to a document library × Use Flow to move those attachments to a document library × Flow Template: https://us.flow.microsoft.com/en- us/galleries/public/templates/1f4a2b1b99e64e8dbb81b7c47cc 5bb11/upload-a-file-to-sharepoint-from-powerapps/
- 23. Sharepoint web part × Microsoft just released a web part to enable you to embed PowerApps in your Modern SharePoint sites × Only available on Modern sites
- 25. Important noteOnly backwards compatible up to 6 months. Microsoft recommends updating and re-publishing your apps every 6 months. https://docs.microsoft.com/en- us/powerapps/maker/canvas-apps/save-publish-app
- 26. Learning resources × Power Users Community https://powerusers.microsoft.com/ × Guided Learning: https://docs.microsoft.com/en- us/powerapps/guided-learning/ × My Blog: www.sharepointsiren.com × PowerApps Experts: Shane Young, Daniel Christian, Paul Culmsee, Laura Rogers
- 27. THAN KS!Any questions? Twitter: @aprildunnam Email Me: [email protected] LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/april-dunnam/ Blog: http://www.sharepointsiren.com ThriveFast: http://www.thrivefast.com
Editor's Notes
- #6: I like to describe PowerApps as if Excel and PowerPoint had a baby that would be PowerApps. The way that you add functionality or “code” in PowerApps is with functions that are very similar to Excel functions. The interface reminds you a lot of PowerPoint with screens, shapes, controls, etc
- #8: PowerApps is part of the Microsoft Power Platform. This Platform consist of the Power User Tools PowerApps for forms/app development, Power BI for Reporting and Analytics and Flow for Workflow and Business Process.
- #11: POWERAPPS is Microsoft’s replacement for InfoPath. InfoPath is going away eventually… no more new releases. They have been gaining ground on InfoPath Feature Parody. The only things missing are external user access and printing capability. External user access is currently in the “Planned” status on the PowerApps Ideas forum. One thing I’ll say about PowerApps is if you find a feature missing I encourage you to go to the PowerApps Ideas Forum and vote for the feature you want added. Microsoft has been very good at monitoring this list and providing updates. Microsoft did just announce at the Business Application Summit that in the October Release External Users will be able to utilize SharePoint List Forms that have been customized in PowerApps so that’s a step in a good direction for external user access
- #12: As you can see, although the technologies used are vastly different (goodbye XML)…the building blocks of PowerApps and InfoPath are pretty similar. You add your data sources to use in each tool. InfoPath has Views which are called Screens in PowerApps. Each tool has a set of controls that you add to be able to input data. And each tools have ways to create Rules to show/hide information and perform actions.
- #13: If you’ve messed with PowerApps at all you’ve probably noticed there is a “Rules” pane. If you come from an Infopath background then you probably think this Rules pain is similar to InfoPath with a point and click interface to create rules and conditional logic. Unfortunately that isn’t the case. All the Rules pane in PowerApps really does is guide you to the correct location to write out your formula’s.
- #23: For a long time there was no way to get files into SharePoint from PowerApps. At the North American Collaboration Summit this year, Cathy Dew announced the release of the ability to add documents to SharePoint as List Attachments. While that’s a positive step forward, most people want to be able to add documents to a library, not as a list attachment. Luckily, you can do that via Flow.
- #26: https://powerapps.microsoft.com/en-us/blog/republish-your-apps-to-get-performance-improvements-and-additional-features/ This is something that most people don’t realize but when they do it freaks them out. Microsoft is constantly updating and adding functionality to PowerApps. Because of the high rate of updates they can only guarantee a 6 month backwards compatilbily window. I’ve never run into any issue with my app going down but it is recommended to re-publish your apps every 6 months to take advantage of performance improvements and new features. Microsoft is currently working on an auto-republishing feature but no ETA on when that will be released