This helps provide insight into the success, failures, inputs, outputs, timings, and error messages from previously executed flows. By becoming familiar with these intricacies, one can easily troubleshoot and optimize flows for better automation and increased efficiency.
Section 1: Understanding Flow Run History in Power Automate
Flow run history is a critical aspect of flow management in Power Automate, providing a historical overview of the execution of flows. For both cloud and desktop flows, the run history provides detailed information on each run’s status, whether it’s successful, failed, running, or cancelled, including the starting and ending times of each run.
Cloud flow run history displays all the runs from the past 28 days, whereas the desktop flow run history depends on the user’s subscription level, ranging from seven days for free users to 28 days for premium users.
Section 2: Accessing Run History in Power Automate
To access the history for cloud or desktop flows, one needs to navigate to the ‘Runs’ section on the flow details page. Here, one can find the complete list of runs, including both successful and unsuccessful attempts, and their respective statuses and timings.
Section 3: Evaluating Cloud and Desktop Flow Run History
The run history for cloud and desktop flows provides invaluable insights that can be used to enhance the performance of flows and troubleshoot issues. When evaluating the run history, here are the main aspects to focus on:
- Validation: Check the flow inputs, outputs, and conditions within the history to ensure that they are performing as expected. Validate that the data flowing through the steps is correct and follows the expected logic.
- Failure Analysis: Inspect the details of failed runs, which show the exact step where the flow failed, along with error messages. This is essential for pinpointing where issues arise and acting promptly to resolve them.
- Timing Analysis: Review the start and end times of each run to ascertain how long specific steps are taking. This can help identify bottlenecks within your flow, allowing for further optimization.
Section 4: Run History Comparison: Cloud vs Desktop Flow
Although the fundamental concept of run history remains the same, there are certain differences between the cloud and desktop run history:
| Cloud Flow Run History | Desktop Flow Run History |
|---|---|
| Provides history for the past 28 days | Provides history for up to 28 days depending on the subscription type |
| Error messages can be deeply nested | Error messages appear in a top-down manner |
| Recorded data includes trigger and action data | Recorded data includes input, output, screen images, and error details |
By understanding and routinely evaluating flow run history in Power Automate, RPA developers can optimize their flows and ensure more reliable automation functionality. Be it for cloud or desktop flows, observant revision of run history plays a critical role in troubleshooting, refining, and maintaining healthy and efficient flows.
Practice Test
True or False: The Power Automate portal provides detailed run history for both cloud and desktop flows.
- True
- False)
Answer: True
Explanation: The Power Automate portal does allow users to see a detailed history of past runs for both cloud flows and desktop flows.
The run history in the Power Automate portal includes which of the following information?
- A. Time and date of each run
- B. Whether each run was successful or unsuccessful
- C. The name of the desktop or cloud flow
- D. All of the above
Answer: D. All of the above
Explanation: The run history provided in the portal is comprehensive and includes each of these details.
True or False: The run history in Power Automate portal only shows the past two weeks of data.
- True
- False
Answer: True
Explanation: Yes, the run history in Power Automate portal is only retained for the past two weeks.
Can you export the run history from Power Automate portal?
- A. Yes
- B. No
Answer: A. Yes
Explanation: The portal allows users to export the run history to a CSV file for further inspection or record-keeping purposes.
Every entry in the run history indicates the duration of each flow.
- A. True
- B. False
Answer: A. True
Explanation: Each row in the run history includes a ‘Duration’ column, giving accurate data on how long each flow took to execute.
Multiple select: The Power Automate portal lets users filter run history by:
- A. Flow name
- B. Start and end times
- C. Duration
- D. Status
Answer: A. Flow name, B. Start and end times, D. Status
Explanation: Users can filter the run history by these parameters in order to find specific runs or analyze patterns.
True or False: In the run history, successful runs are marked in red.
- True
- False
Answer: False
Explanation: Successful runs are marked in green, while failed runs show up in red.
The “Error” column in the run history provides details of failed runs.
- A. True
- B. False
Answer: A. True
Explanation: The “Error” column is designed to provide insight into any issues encountered during a flow’s execution, aiding debugging efforts.
In the run history, can you view information about each action executed in a flow?
- A. Yes
- B. No
Answer: A. Yes
Explanation: Clicking on a particular flow run will show you details about every action that was executed during that run.
True or False: Power Automate portal allows you to delete specific entries from the run history.
- True
- False
Answer: False
Explanation: You cannot delete specific entries from the run history. But Microsoft only retains this information for 28 days.
Power Automate portal does not provide any graphical representation of run history.
- A. True
- B. False
Answer: B. False
Explanation: Power Automate portal provides a graphical view of the run history where you can visually track the performance of your flows.
True or False: You can replay a specific run from the run history.
- True
- False
Answer: False
Explanation: Power Automate portal does not support replaying a specific run from the run history.
True of False: You can navigate to the run history from the cloud flow details page.
- True
- False
Answer: True
Explanation: You can examine the run history directly from the details page of a particular cloud flow.
True or False: Only global admins can access the run history of cloud and desktop flows in the Power Automate portal.
- True
- False
Answer: False
Explanation: Any user with access to a particular flow can view the run history of that flow.
True or False: The run history does not show any information regarding the triggers of the flows.
- True
- False
Answer: False
Explanation: The run history does show the trigger time and other related information.
Interview Questions
What is the Power Automate portal?
The Power Automate portal is a web application that provides an interface for users to create, manage, and monitor automated workflows between their applications and services.
In Power Automate, what is meant by cloud flow run history?
Cloud flow run history is a feature in Power Automate that provides detailed information about each instance a cloud flow has run. It includes event- or time-triggered flows and allows for troubleshooting by tracking errors or exceptions that may occur during the execution of a cloud flow.
Can you define Desktop flows in Power Automate?
Desktop flows in Power Automate are a type of flow that perform actions directly in your desktop application. These are typically used to automate repetitive tasks.
How long is the cloud flow run history available in Power Automate?
In Power Automate, the cloud flow run history is available for 28 days.
What information is included in the run history?
The run history includes details of when the flow started and ended, the status of the flow (whether it succeeded, failed, or was cancelled), and detailed information about each action within the flow.
How can a user access the run history in Power Automate portal?
A user can access the run history by navigating to the particular flow and selecting ‘Runs’ from the left side menu.
What are the benefits of evaluating cloud and desktop flow run history in Power Automate portal?
Evaluating the cloud and desktop flow run history helps developers or administrators to troubleshoot any issues or failures. They can identify the actions that failed and obtain more information about the error. This makes it easier to debug and correct the flows.
Are there any limitations to the amount of run history you can view in the Power Automate portal?
Yes, depending on your licensing plan, there may be a limit to the number of runs you can view in your history.
How can you filter cloud run flow history?
You can filter cloud run flow history by selecting the status type(e.g., succeeded, failed, cancelled, running, etc.), and the time range.
How do you clear the run history?
Currently, there is no feature to manually clear the run history in Power Automate. The history is automatically cleared after 28 days.
Does the Power Automate portal support the viewing of history for desktop flows?
Yes, the Power Automate portal does support the viewing of run history for both cloud and desktop flows.
Can you export the flow run history from the Power Automate portal?
No, you cannot directly export the flow run history from the Power Automate portal.
Can you debug failed run history in the Power Automate portal directly?
No, you cannot debug the failed runs directly, but you can use the details provided in the run history such as error messages, failure times, etc., to understand where and why the failures occurred.
Is it possible to view Run history of flows triggered manually?
Yes, Run history in Power Automate includes both automatically triggered and manually triggered flows.
Can you customize the level of detail you see in the flow run history?
No, the level of detail provided in the flow run history is standard and can’t be customized. It includes sufficient information to understand the success or failure of each flow run.
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