power-automate

name	power-automate
description	Power Automate Cloud Flows. Use when: designing flows, error handling (scope try/catch), triggers, Dataverse actions, Apply to Each performance, child flows, HTTP connector, expressions, approval flows, Teams Adaptive Cards, desktop flows (RPA).

Skill: Power Automate Cloud Flows

When to Use

Trigger when designing, building, reviewing, or debugging Power Automate cloud flows.

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Flow Design Principles

1. Idempotent flows: Re-running the same trigger should produce the same result
2. Error handling first: Add try/catch scope before writing the happy path
3. Minimal permissions: Use service principal connections for production
4. No hardcoded IDs: Use environment variables or dynamic lookups
5. Name every action: Descriptive action names are your documentation
6. Solution-aware: Every production flow must be inside a solution

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When to Use Power Automate vs Alternatives

Scenario	Recommended	Why
React to Dataverse record changes	Power Automate	Native trigger with filtering columns
Complex business logic on save	Plugin (C#)	Runs synchronously in transaction pipeline
Reusable API callable from multiple apps	Custom API	Registered in Dataverse, callable via Web API
Scheduled batch processing	Power Automate	Recurrence trigger + pagination
Real-time validation before save	Plugin (C#)	Pre-operation stage, can throw to block save
External system integration (async)	Power Automate	HTTP connector with retry policies
External system integration (sync)	Custom Connector	When response needed immediately
UI automation (no API available)	Desktop Flow	Power Automate Desktop with cloud orchestration

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Solution-Aware Flow Checklist

• Flow is inside a solution (not "My Flows")
• All connections use Connection References
• All hardcoded URLs/IDs use Environment Variables
• Flow has error handling scope (try/catch)
• Flow name follows convention: [Solution] - [Trigger] - [Action]
• Run-only permissions configured if shared
• Trigger conditions set to avoid unnecessary runs
• Concurrency controls set on Apply to Each loops
• Action retry policies configured for external calls

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⚠️ Verify Flow Patterns Against MS Learn

Before writing flow definitions programmatically, verify patterns using the MS Learn MCP tools:

1. microsoft_docs_search("power automate [your pattern]") — quick overview
2. microsoft_docs_fetch(url) — full page detail
3. microsoft_code_sample_search("power automate [pattern]") — working examples

Skill files are battle-tested but can contain errors. If MS docs contradict what's in the skill file, trust MS docs and flag the discrepancy.

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⚠️ REQUIRED: Load Sub-Files Before Implementation

SKILL.md is a summary only — it is NOT sufficient for implementation.

The detailed content (complete payloads, XML templates, working examples, edge-case handling) lives in sub-files in the same directory as this SKILL.md. Before writing any code, you MUST use read_file on the sub-files relevant to your task:

• Error Handling — Scope-based try/catch/finally pattern, error notification, cleanup actions
• Triggers — Trigger selection, Dataverse filtering columns, trigger conditions (OData expressions)
• Dataverse Actions & Performance — Native connector actions, OData filters, Apply to Each concurrency, child flows, pagination pattern, performance profiles
• Expressions & HTTP Connector — Null-safe access, date formatting, JSON parsing, HTTP resilient pattern with retry policies
• Approvals & Teams Adaptive Cards — Approval flow pattern, Teams card posting, email notification sync, approval types
• Desktop Flows (RPA) — When to use RPA, execution modes, cloud-to-desktop integration, best practices
• Agent Flows — Agent Flows (AI-native automation), generative actions, Automation Center governance, autonomous agent patterns
• Flow Creation via Web API — Programmatic flow creation, activation, and monitoring via Dataverse Web API: clientdata structure, trigger types, connection reference wiring, activation latency, run monitoring via flowruns entity

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Anti-Patterns

• Flows outside of solutions ("My Flows") — can't be promoted via ALM
• Dataverse calls inside unbounded Apply to Each (no concurrency limit)
• Personal connections instead of connection references
• Missing error handling (no try/catch scope)
• No retry policy on HTTP actions
• Hardcoded GUIDs, URLs, or environment-specific values
• Using "Send an HTTP request to Dataverse" when a native action exists
• Apply to Each with >1000 items and no pagination strategy
• Approval flows with Teams cards AND email notifications enabled simultaneously (card won't sync)
• Using desktop flows when a cloud connector exists for the same system

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Related Skills

• dataverse — Schema design for tables that flows operate on
• code-apps — Triggering flows from Code Apps via Custom API or Dataverse record triggers
• custom-connectors — Building connectors for external APIs used in flows
• alm — Solution packaging, connection references, environment variables for flow deployment
• plugins — Alternative to flows for synchronous, transactional Dataverse logic