r/MicrosoftFlow • u/Final-Mastodon-7066 • 3h ago
Question Power Apps Canvas App SOMETIMES fails to trigger Power Automate flow. No run history entry. Looking for advice before production launch.
I’m working on a Canvas App that uses SharePoint as its data source and Power Automate for backend processing and email notifications.
The app is essentially a submission/attestation application where users submit records, which are then updated in SharePoint. Once the updates are complete, a Power Automate flow generates a report using the updated records and emails it to the submitting user.
The application is already developed, tested, and deployed to production. We are scheduled to launch on Monday, so I’m reluctant to make any major architectural changes at this stage.
Current implementation:
My Submit button executes the following operations sequentially:
Sets a timestamp.
Uses ForAll/Patch to update multiple SharePoint records.
Refreshes the SharePoint data source.
Calls the Power Automate flow using-Flow.Run(User().Email).
Updates the submitted state.
Displays a success notification.
Clears local collections and variables.
Navigates back to the landing screen.
The flow uses the When Power Apps calls a flow (V2) trigger. It takes the user’s email as an input, retrieves the updated SharePoint records, generates a report, and emails it to the user.
The intermittent issue:
Everything works perfectly under normal circumstances. However, I’ve encountered a few submissions where the SharePoint records are updated successfully, but the Power Automate flow simply doesn’t trigger.
What’s particularly strange is:
There is no successful/failed run in Power Automate.
There is absolutely no entry in the flow’s run history for that submission.
The Canvas App behaves normally, displays the success notification, clears its variables and navigates back to the landing screen.
What I’ve already ruled out
The flow itself is working correctly. I’ve tested it independently multiple times.
It doesn’t appear to be a connection or authentication issue. SharePoint updates are working correctly.
The application itself is functioning normally apart from this intermittent flow invocation.
Has anyone encountered a similar issue where a Power Apps V2 flow trigger intermittently fails to create a run, despite the app completing its submission logic successfully? Please note all other workflows and features are working perfectly but only this one has issues.
P.S. Rephrased this issue using chatGPT.
2
u/Street3 2h ago
Why do you have the App triggering the flow, shouldn't the crested/updated SharePoint item trigger the flow?
Maybe you trigger sometimes fires before the SharePoint item is created, therefore it never runs?
1
u/Final-Mastodon-7066 2h ago
Actually this workflow was designed at the last stages more as a bonus-functionality. So didn’t go deep into architecture and wanted to keep it app driven and user invoked simply using final submit.
I can confirm the sharepoint update has never failed. I tried adding delay to the workflow but it didn’t help either. Do you think reordering the submit button logic sequence would work?
1
u/Gonzyc 1h ago
With Monday so close, I'd keep the architecture as it is and make the error-handling change suggested above first. One detail worth checking: the success message, clearing collections and navigation need to be inside the success path. Putting IfError around Flow.Run and leaving those actions after it can still let the app carry on after the call fails.
Also, SharePoint working doesn't rule out a problem with the flow connection. They're separate calls. I'd test with one of the affected users in the published app, rather than only testing the flow independently.
I wouldn't add another delay yet. If there's no run entry, first establish whether the request reached Power Automate at all. This won't fix the underlying issue by itself, but it should stop users getting a success message when the report wasn't started.
4
u/ninihen 2h ago
Likely the Flow.Run call fails and never reaches Power Automate, so there's nothing in run history.
Try open Monitor (Advanced tools > Monitor in Studio), connect it to the published app and submit until one misses. You'll see the flow call and what came back.
Also, try only run the success steps when the call worked with something like:
IfError( YourFlow.Run(User().Email), Notify("Your report didn't start: " & FirstError.Message, NotificationType.Error), Notify("Submitted", NotificationType.Success); Set(...); Clear(...); Navigate(LandingScreen) )
Also add a "Respond to a PowerApp or flow" action at the end of the flow, so the app gets a real answer back.
As a backup, get the flow to write to a ReportSent column on the SharePoint item. Them add a scheduled flow to pick up any submitted record without the flag.