Flow control is a vital aspect of application development, as it regulates the way instructions are executed and determines the proper flow of logic in a program. Within the PL-400 Microsoft Power Platform Developer exam, candidates are expected to have a deep understanding of flow control actions, including error handling procedures. In this post, we will describe flow control actions, discuss their significance within Microsoft Power Platform, and provide examples for illustrative purposes.
Flow Control Actions in Power Automate
Flow control in Power Automate has several concepts that one must thoroughly understand to effectively create and manipulate flows:
- Condition control: This is a crucial control action that determines the execution path based on certain conditions. If the condition is true, one set of actions will be followed; if it’s false, another set of actions will ensue.
- Apply to each control: This control action loop through each element in an array to perform a specific set of actions consecutively.
- Switch control: Switch is used for multi-branch condition checking. It checks a variable or expression against multiple possibilities and executes the first matching case. If no matches found, it operates the default case.
- Do until control: This is like a looping action which performs certain tasks until a specific condition is met.
if(var == 1)
{
//Actions for ‘true’ result
}
else
{
//Actions for ‘false’ result
}
Array: [“one”, “two”, “three”]
Apply_to_Each (Array)
{
//Perform necessary actions
}
switch(expression)
{
case x:
//Block of code
break;
case y:
//Block of code
break;
default:
//Default code block
}
Do
{
//Block of code
}
While (condition is not met)
Error Handling in Power Automate
Just like any platform, error handling is necessary to implement robust solutions within Microsoft Power Platform. Run After setting in Action cards provides several options for error handling:
- Has Failed: This action will run if the preceding action has failed.
- Is Successful: This action will run if the preceding action is successful.
- Has Timed Out: This action will run if the preceding action runs out of its allocated time.
- Is Skipped: This action will run if the preceding action is skipped.
These error-handling mechanisms enable developers to easily manage and control errors and exceptions within their flows, leading to the development of robust and reliable solutions.
Summary
Understanding flow control actions and error handling mechanisms is crucial for Microsoft Power Platform developers to effectively design and manage solutions. The PL-400 exam places strong emphasis on these topics, preparing candidates to manage complex control and error situations effectively and efficiently. Armed with this knowledge, candidates will be well-positioned to ace the exam and excel in real-world application development scenarios.
Practice Test
Flow Control actions can not manage the execution of actions or steps in Power Automate.
- a) True
- b) False
Answer: b) False
Explanation: Flow Control actions in Power Automate include functions that allow developers to manage the execution of actions or steps based on conditional logic.
Which of these actions is a flow control action in Microsoft Power Platform?
- a) Approvals
- b) Terminate
- c) HTTP
- d) OneDrive
Answer: b) Terminate
Explanation: The Terminate action is part of flow control actions in Microsoft Power Platform used for stopping the execution of a flow.
The Do until action in flow control executes the steps under it multiple times until the condition is met.
- a) True
- b) False
Answer: a) True
Explanation: The Do until action in Flow Control repeats actions until a specific condition is met.
Error handling in flow control of Power Automate is implemented using which action?
- a) Terminate
- b) List records
- c) Scope
- d) None of the above
Answer: c) Scope
Explanation: The Scope action allows developers to group related actions together, facilitating error handling within the group.
The Timeout duration in the Do until action keeps checking the condition until the time is out whether the condition is met or not.
- a) True
- b) False
Answer: a) True
Explanation: The Do until action in flow control keeps running until the specified timeout duration, or until the specified condition is met, whichever happens first.
In Flow Control actions, a switch case can be based on multiple column values.
- a) True
- b) False
Answer: a) True
Explanation: A switch case in flow control enables the execution of actions based on multiple column values.
Which Flow Control action would you use if you need to run the flow until a certain condition is met?
- a) Terminate
- b) Scope
- c) Do until
- d) Switch case
Answer: c) Do until
Explanation: Do until action runs or repeats an action until a certain condition is met.
The Scope action in Flow Control Actions can be used for error handling.
- a) True
- b) False
Answer: a) True
Explanation: The Scope action allows for handling errors within a specific scope of actions in Microsoft Power Platform.
The Terminate action in Flow Control Actions is used to :
- a) Repeat actions
- b) Simplify error detection
- c) Stop the execution of flow
- d) Run actions simultaneously
Answer: c) Stop the execution of flow
Explanation: The purpose of the Terminate action is to forcefully stop the execution of the flow when called.
All Flow Control actions involve condition checks.
- a) True
- b) False
Answer: b) False
Explanation: Not all Flow Control actions involve condition checks; for example, the Scope and Terminate actions do not require any condition to execute.
The Do until action will continue to execute indefinitely if the condition is never met.
- a) True
- b) False
Answer: b) False
Explanation: The Do until action has a Timeout setting that will end the execution if the condition is not met within the specified time.
The Switch case is a flow control action that allows for only binary choices.
- a) True
- b) False
Answer: b) False
Explanation: The switch case allows for more than two choices whereas binary choices would allow only two options.
Interview Questions
What is flow control in Microsoft Power Platform?
Flow control in Microsoft Power Platform is a concept that allows developers to define the order in which actions are executed or conditions are evaluated.
What are the three main categories of actions in Flow control?
The three main categories of actions in flow control are standard actions, control actions, and operation actions.
What functionality does the ‘Scope’ control action provide?
The ‘Scope’ control action provides the functionality of grouping and organizing related actions together in a flow for better management and error handling.
What are the two types of errors in Power Automate?
The two types of errors in Power Automate are ‘Action Failed’ and ‘Invalid Argument’.
How does the ‘Terminate’ action operate in Flow control?
The ‘Terminate’ action immediately stops the flow with a status of ‘Failed’, ‘Succeeded’, or ‘Cancelled’, useful when an error is encountered or a specific condition is met.
How can you handle errors in the flow control actions?
You can handle errors by using ‘Configure run after’ settings that specify the conditions under which the action should run, such as ‘has failed’, ‘is skipped’, ‘has timed out’, or ‘is successful’.
What is the purpose of ‘Try-catch-finally’ structure in comparison to ‘Configure run after’ settings?
Similar to ‘Configure run after’, ‘Try-catch-finally’ structure can also be used to handle errors. The difference is that ‘Try-catch-finally’ is more granular and can catch a specific exception type, whereas ‘Configure run after’ applies to general conditions.
How can you trace errors in Power Automate?
You can trace errors in Power Automate by using the ‘track your flows’ feature, where you can see all runs of the flows and their respective success and failure messages.
How can you improve the error messages in Power Automate?
To improve error messages, you can add ‘Compose’ actions in the flow to provide additional context or helpful information when an error occurs.
What role does the ‘Switch’ control action play in Flow control?
‘Switch’ control action allows you to conditionally divide the flow execution path based on the value of a specified expression.
How can you handle multiple related errors simultaneously in Power Automate?
You can handle multiple related errors by grouping them in a ‘Scope’ and defining a ‘Configure run after’ setting that applies to the whole group.
What is the purpose of the ‘Do until’ control action in Flow control?
The ‘Do until’ control action allows you to repeat a specific action or group of actions until a certain condition is met.
What is the use of the ‘Apply to each’ control action in Flow control?
The ‘Apply to each’ control action allows you to iterate through a collection of items and perform actions for each item.
How can you track the performance of your flows in Power Automate?
You can track the performance of your flows using analytics, where you can view run history, successes, failures, and other performance metrics.
Can you cancel a flow run in Power Automate mid-execution?
Yes, you can cancel a flow run by going to the run history, selecting the specific run, and clicking the ‘Cancel’ button.
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