Microsoft Power Platform Guide

Power Apps

Power Apps lets you build custom business applications that run in a browser or on a phone -- without traditional software development. Apps connect to your existing data sources and can be shared with your team in minutes.

Canvas apps vs. model-driven apps

How to get started

1. Go to make.powerapps.com and sign in with your work account
2. Click + Create and choose a template or start blank
3. Connect a data source -- SharePoint list, Excel file, Dataverse table, or other connector
4. Design your screens using drag-and-drop controls
5. Use Power Fx (plain-English formulas) for logic and conditions
6. Share the app with your team directly from the editor

Power Fx basics

Power Fx is the formula language used in canvas apps. It reads like Excel formulas and requires no programming background.

Good habits for app makers

• Build in a dedicated development environment, not directly in production
• Document your data connections and formulas so others can maintain the app
• Test on both desktop and mobile before sharing widely
• Follow your organization's sharing and permission policies before granting access

Power Automate

Power Automate lets you create automated workflows -- called flows -- that connect your apps, data, and services. Flows run automatically based on a trigger: an event, a schedule, or a manual button press.

Types of flows

How to build a cloud flow

1. Go to make.powerautomate.com and sign in
2. Click + Create and choose Automated, Instant, or Scheduled
3. Choose a trigger -- e.g., "When a file is added to SharePoint" or "When a form response is submitted"
4. Add actions -- send an email, post to Teams, update a list, start an approval, etc.
5. Use conditions and loops to add logic to your flow
6. Test the flow and review the run history to confirm it works as expected

Common triggers and actions

Good habits for flow builders

• Name flows clearly -- include what it does and who owns it
• Add error handling steps so failures are caught and reported
• Use shared service accounts for flows that need to run 24/7
• Document flows and keep a record of the connections they use

Power BI

Power BI is Microsoft's business intelligence platform. It lets you connect to data sources, build interactive reports and dashboards, and share insights across your organization -- all with a self-service interface that requires no SQL or code to get started.

Key components

How to build your first report

1. Open Power BI Desktop and click Get Data to connect to a source (Excel, SharePoint, SQL, etc.)
2. Use Power Query to clean and shape data -- filter rows, rename columns, combine tables
3. Build a data model by defining relationships between tables
4. Drag fields onto the canvas to create visuals -- charts, maps, tables, and KPI cards
5. Add slicers and filters to make the report interactive
6. Publish to Power BI Service and share with your team or create a dashboard

AI-assisted features in Power BI

• Q&A visual: Type a question in plain English and Power BI generates the chart automatically
• Key Influencers: Automatically identifies which factors drive a metric up or down
• Decomposition Tree: Breaks down a measure across multiple dimensions interactively
• Smart Narrative: Auto-generates a text summary of what your report is showing
• Anomaly Detection: Automatically flags unusual data points on line charts

AI Builder

AI Builder brings prebuilt and custom AI models directly into Power Apps and Power Automate -- no data science background required. It is designed so business users can add AI capabilities to their existing workflows in a few clicks.

Prebuilt models (ready to use now)

Custom models (train on your data)

• Document processing: Train a model to extract specific fields from your organization's forms and documents
• Object detection: Train a model to identify specific objects in images -- useful for inspections or inventory
• Text classification: Train a model to categorize text into labels you define -- e.g., route support tickets by topic

How to use AI Builder in a flow

1. Open Power Automate and add a new action to an existing flow
2. Search for "AI Builder" in the action search
3. Choose a prebuilt model (e.g., "Extract information from invoices")
4. Pass in the document or text from an earlier step in the flow
5. Use the extracted fields -- amount, date, vendor -- in downstream actions like updating a list or sending an email

Access and governance

Power Platform is powerful, but that power needs guardrails. Most organizations manage access through environments, data loss prevention (DLP) policies, and connector restrictions.

Environments

• All Power Platform resources live in an environment -- think of it as a container for apps, flows, and data
• Organizations typically have separate environments for development, testing, and production
• Build and test in a dev environment; move to production only after approval
• The default environment is available to all users -- avoid storing sensitive data there

Data Loss Prevention (DLP) policies

• DLP policies control which connectors can be used together in a flow or app
• Connectors are grouped into Business, Non-Business, and Blocked tiers
• A DLP policy might allow SharePoint and Outlook in the same flow but block consumer services like Twitter or Dropbox
• Check with your IT team before building flows that connect to external services

Sharing and permissions

• Apps can be shared with individuals, security groups, or the whole organization
• Flows run under the credentials of the owner -- co-owners can edit; run-only users can trigger
• Use service accounts for production flows that must run reliably regardless of who is out of office

Requesting access

• Request access to Power Platform environments through your organization's standard access request process
• Some connectors (premium) require an additional license -- confirm with your IT or licensing team
• Power Platform Community site is available for learning and sharing -- see your org's guidelines on community participation

Licensing overview

Licensing details change frequently. Always verify with your IT or licensing team before planning a solution that requires premium features.