Power Automate Flows

Power Automate Flows — Programmatic Creation & Management

Create, manage, and deploy Power Automate cloud flows programmatically using the Dataverse Web API, the Power Automate Management connector, and HTTP trigger patterns.

When to Activate

• User asks to create a Power Automate flow via API or code
• User wants to generate a flow definition JSON (clientdata)
• User asks about the Dataverse workflows endpoint
• User wants CI/CD provisioning of flows across environments
• User asks to wire an Office Script to a Power Automate trigger
• User wants to expose a flow as an HTTP API
• User asks about connection references, trigger types, or action schemas

Core Concept: Flows Are Dataverse Workflow Records

Cloud flows are stored as rows in the Dataverse workflow table. Creating a flow means POSTing a record with:

After creation, the flow must be enabled via a separate PATCH call.

Dataverse Web API — Complete Reference

Base URL: https://{org}.crm.dynamics.com/api/data/v9.2/workflows

API Endpoints

Create a Flow

POST /api/data/v9.2/workflows
Content-Type: application/json
Authorization: Bearer {access_token}

{
  "category": 5,
  "type": 1,
  "primaryentity": "none",
  "name": "Daily Excel Report Generator",
  "description": "Runs Office Script daily to generate sales report",
  "clientdata": "{...escaped JSON string...}"
}

Enable a Flow

PATCH /api/data/v9.2/workflows({workflowid})
{
  "statecode": 1,
  "statuscode": 2
}

Disable a Flow

PATCH /api/data/v9.2/workflows({workflowid})
{
  "statecode": 0,
  "statuscode": 1
}

OData Query Reference

# List active cloud flows
$filter=category eq 5 and statecode eq 1
&$select=name,statecode,workflowid,modifiedon,createdon
&$orderby=modifiedon desc
&$top=50

# List flows by owner
$filter=category eq 5 and _ownerid_value eq '{userId}'
&$expand=ownerid($select=fullname)

# Search flows by name
$filter=category eq 5 and contains(name, 'Excel')

The clientdata Structure

The clientdata field contains a JSON string with the complete flow definition:

{
  "properties": {
    "definition": {
      "$schema": "https://schema.management.azure.com/providers/Microsoft.Logic/schemas/2016-06-01/workflowdefinition.json#",
      "contentVersion": "1.0.0.0",
      "parameters": {
        "$connections": { "defaultValue": {}, "type": "Object" },
        "$authentication": { "defaultValue": {}, "type": "SecureObject" }
      },
      "triggers": { },
      "actions": { },
      "outputs": {}
    },
    "connectionReferences": {
      "shared_excelonlinebusiness": {
        "connectionName": "shared-excelonlinebusi-{guid}",
        "source": "Invoker",
        "id": "/providers/Microsoft.PowerApps/apis/shared_excelonlinebusiness",
        "tier": "NotSpecified"
      }
    }
  },
  "schemaVersion": "1.0.0.0"
}

Key Elements

See references/flow-definition-schema.md for the complete trigger/action/connection schema.

Trigger Types

Recurrence Trigger Definition

{
  "Recurrence": {
    "type": "Recurrence",
    "recurrence": {
      "frequency": "Day",
      "interval": 1,
      "startTime": "2026-03-01T08:00:00Z",
      "timeZone": "Central Standard Time",
      "schedule": {
        "hours": ["8"],
        "minutes": ["0"]
      }
    }
  }
}

HTTP Trigger Definition

{
  "manual": {
    "type": "Request",
    "kind": "Http",
    "inputs": {
      "schema": {
        "type": "object",
        "properties": {
          "fileName": { "type": "string" },
          "sheetName": { "type": "string" }
        },
        "required": ["fileName"]
      },
      "method": "POST"
    }
  }
}

SharePoint Trigger Definition

{
  "When_an_item_is_created": {
    "type": "OpenApiConnectionWebhook",
    "inputs": {
      "host": {
        "connectionName": "shared_sharepointonline",
        "operationId": "SubscribeWebhookTrigger_V2",
        "apiId": "/providers/Microsoft.PowerApps/apis/shared_sharepointonline"
      },
      "parameters": {
        "dataset": "https://contoso.sharepoint.com/sites/project",
        "table": "{listId}"
      },
      "authentication": "@parameters('$authentication')"
    }
  }
}

Action Types

Run Office Script Action Definition

{
  "Run_script": {
    "type": "OpenApiConnection",
    "inputs": {
      "host": {
        "connectionName": "shared_excelonlinebusiness",
        "operationId": "RunScript",
        "apiId": "/providers/Microsoft.PowerApps/apis/shared_excelonlinebusiness"
      },
      "parameters": {
        "source": "me",
        "drive": "{driveId}",
        "file": "{fileId}",
        "scriptId": "{scriptId}",
        "ScriptParameters/sheetName": "Sheet1",
        "ScriptParameters/startRow": 2
      },
      "authentication": "@parameters('$authentication')"
    },
    "runAfter": {}
  }
}

HTTP Action Definition

{
  "Call_External_API": {
    "type": "Http",
    "inputs": {
      "method": "GET",
      "uri": "https://api.example.com/data",
      "headers": {
        "Authorization": "Bearer @{variables('apiToken')}",
        "Accept": "application/json"
      },
      "retryPolicy": {
        "type": "exponential",
        "count": 3,
        "interval": "PT10S",
        "minimumInterval": "PT5S",
        "maximumInterval": "PT1H"
      }
    },
    "runAfter": {}
  }
}

Condition (If) Action Definition

{
  "Check_result": {
    "type": "If",
    "expression": {
      "and": [
        {
          "greater": [
            "@outputs('Run_script')?['body/result/rowCount']",
            0
          ]
        }
      ]
    },
    "actions": {
      "Send_success_email": { }
    },
    "else": {
      "actions": {
        "Send_no_data_email": { }
      }
    },
    "runAfter": {
      "Run_script": ["Succeeded"]
    }
  }
}

Connection Reference Catalog

Connection Reference Template

{
  "shared_excelonlinebusiness": {
    "connectionName": "shared-excelonlinebusi-{guid}",
    "source": "Invoker",
    "id": "/providers/Microsoft.PowerApps/apis/shared_excelonlinebusiness",
    "tier": "NotSpecified"
  }
}

source values: Invoker (run-as invoking user), EmbeddedConnection (run-as connection owner).

Expression Language Reference

Common expressions for use in action inputs:

Authentication

All Dataverse API calls require an Azure AD OAuth 2.0 token:

import { ClientSecretCredential } from "@azure/identity";

const credential = new ClientSecretCredential(tenantId, clientId, clientSecret);
const token = await credential.getToken("https://{org}.crm.dynamics.com/.default");

Required App Registration Permissions

Error Handling

Dataverse API Errors

Flow Run Errors

Retry Policy Configuration

{
  "retryPolicy": {
    "type": "exponential",
    "count": 4,
    "interval": "PT10S",
    "minimumInterval": "PT5S",
    "maximumInterval": "PT1H"
  }
}

Retry types: none, fixed, exponential. Default: exponential with 4 retries.

Scope-Based Error Handling (Try/Catch)

{
  "Try_Scope": {
    "type": "Scope",
    "actions": {
      "Run_script": { },
      "Process_results": { }
    }
  },
  "Catch_Scope": {
    "type": "Scope",
    "actions": {
      "Send_error_notification": { }
    },
    "runAfter": {
      "Try_Scope": ["Failed", "TimedOut"]
    }
  },
  "Finally_Scope": {
    "type": "Scope",
    "actions": {
      "Log_completion": { }
    },
    "runAfter": {
      "Catch_Scope": ["Succeeded", "Failed", "Skipped"]
    }
  }
}

runAfter Status Values

Common Deployment Patterns

Pattern 1: Office Script + Scheduled Flow

1. Build clientdata with Recurrence trigger (daily at 8 AM)
2. Add "Run script" action targeting the Excel workbook and script
3. Add condition to check script return value
4. Add email notification for success/failure
5. POST /api/data/v9.2/workflows → PATCH to enable
6. Test via manual trigger before enabling schedule

Pattern 2: HTTP API Flow

1. Build clientdata with HTTP Request trigger (POST with JSON schema)
2. Add "Run script" action passing trigger body parameters
3. Add "Response" action to return script results
4. POST /api/data/v9.2/workflows → PATCH to enable
5. Retrieve the generated trigger URL from the flow properties
6. Call the URL from external applications

Pattern 3: Multi-Environment CI/CD Deployment

1. Build clientdata template with parameterized connection references
2. Store template in source control (Git)
3. For each environment: substitute connection names and IDs
4. POST /api/data/v9.2/workflows to create in target environment
5. PATCH to enable after validation
6. Run integration tests against the deployed flow

Pattern 4: Event-Driven Excel Processing

1. Build clientdata with SharePoint trigger ("When file is created in folder")
2. Add "Get file metadata" to retrieve the new file's drive/item IDs
3. Add "Run script" action with dynamic drive/file parameters
4. Add error handling scope with Teams notification on failure
5. Add "Move file" action to archive folder on success
6. Deploy and test with sample file upload

Quick Checklist for Creating a Flow via API

1. Register Azure AD app with Dataverse permissions
2. Obtain OAuth 2.0 access token
3. Build the clientdata JSON with definition + connectionReferences
4. POST /api/data/v9.2/workflows with category=5, type=1, clientdata
5. Capture the returned workflowid
6. PATCH /api/data/v9.2/workflows({workflowid}) to enable (statecode=1)
7. Test the flow from Power Automate portal or via its trigger URL

Reference Files