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Harnessing Host Form Data with PCF Controls in Model-Driven Applications

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Introduction This tutorial delves into integrating PowerApps Component Framework (PCF) controls with host form data within Microsoft Power Platform’s model-driven apps. This article will guide you through the necessary scripting to expose and consume formContext and globalContext from a custom table called new_Competitor. Aimed at enhancing both custom and Microsoft Form Component PCF controls, this approach ensures dynamic interactions with the host form data. Disclaimer : It’s important to note that there are various methods to retrieve data within PCF controls, including the use of WebAPI. While WebAPI provides a versatile way to access data across different entities and contexts, the approach described in this tutorial focuses on directly integrating with host form data, which can be particularly beneficial in specific use cases where immediate context is crucial. This method allows for real-time data interactions that are essential for certain scenarios, providing a streamlined...
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Copy Hidden Power Automate Expressions

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While recently walking a colleague through Power Automate, I was reminded of one of my long-standing frustrations: how difficult it is to copy expressions once they’ve been inserted into actions like a Compose , Filter Array , or For Each . For example: workflow()['tags']['environmentName'] item()?['logicalName'] Once fields are wrapped in certain expressions or are in certain actions, you can no longer open them in the expression popup—you or easily copy them out to reuse elsewhere. That makes it frustrating when you want to replicate logic in another flow or simply document what you’ve written. There is a copy action functionality but that copies the entire action and sometimes you just want a specific expression. The Workaround (Until Now) To deal with this, I used to: Add expressions to a comment or note in the action so I could reference them later Open DevTools and inspect the DOM to grab the full title attribute that contains the expression ...
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Connecting to Dataverse from Azure Data Factory

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Introduction Azure Data Factory (ADF) provides versatile ways to connect and interact with Dataverse. Understanding the connection options and configurations is crucial for securely and efficiently managing your data integration tasks. This guide walks through the primary methods for connecting Azure Data Factory to Dataverse, covering their benefits, best practices, and detailed walkthroughs to get you started. provides versatile ways to connect and interact with Dataverse. Understanding the connection options and configurations is crucial for securely and efficiently managing your data integration tasks. This guide walks through the primary methods for connecting Azure Data Factory to Dataverse, covering their benefits, best practices, and detailed walkthroughs to get you started. Disclaimer: These thoughts are my own and based on my personal experience. If you have different ideas or approaches, I’d love to hear them—I’m always eager to learn more from others in the community. C...
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Fixing Temperature Fluctuations on the Creality CR-6 SE with PID Tuning

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After installing a new hotend on my Creality CR-6 SE , I ran into a frustrating issue: when printing above 210°C, the hotend temperature would swing wildly—fluctuating by 5–10°C. The printer wouldn’t even start the print due to this instability. 🧠 The Fix: PID Tuning (Thanks to Community Firmware) This issue led me to discover PID tuning , a way to calibrate how the printer regulates temperature using smarter controls. Out of the box, Creality’s firmware doesn’t always support this—but I’m running the excellent CR-6 SE Community Firmware based on Marlin, which includes PID autotuning support via G-code commands. 🔧 How to Tune the Hotend Using OctoPrint Open the Terminal tab in OctoPrint. Turn on the cooling fan before tuning for accuracy, if you typically run the fan during your prints: M106 S255 Run PID autotune at a typical print temp (I used 215°C with 10 cycles): M303 E0 S215 C10 After sending the M303 command, you’ll see a series of output logs in the te...
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Automating Azure Storage Account IP Restrictions with Power Automate

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When managing Azure Storage Accounts, it’s essential to control access by restricting allowed IP addresses. Manually updating these restrictions can be cumbersome, especially when dealing with frequently changing IP ranges. To address this challenge, I developed a Power Automate custom connector that automates fetching and processing Azure IP ranges using Microsoft’s Azure IP Ranges and Service Tags JSON files. Azure IP Ranges and Service Tags – Public Cloud Azure IP Ranges and Service Tags – US Government Cloud Azure IP Ranges and Service Tags – China Cloud While my initial use case focused on automating Azure IP Ranges and Service Tags, this solution can also be adapted to work with custom lists of IP addresses . Many of the actions in this connector, such as reducing CIDR blocks and generating IP rules, can be applied to any list of IP addresses. This allows users to integrate their own IP management workflows and leverage the Azure Management API to dynamically update fire...
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FBI Top Ten Power Platform Connector

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Today’s digital landscape offers unprecedented opportunities to leverage technology in the service of public safety. The FBI’s open API, a comprehensive source of data on the nation’s most wanted individuals and significant art crimes, now seamlessly integrates into the Power Platform thanks to the FBI Most Wanted Custom Connector. This innovation enables low-code developers across federal agencies to quickly and easily repurpose critical law enforcement data for the greater good. Inspiration Behind the Connector The inception of the FBI Most Wanted Custom Connector was driven by the untapped potential within the FBI’s publicly available data. Recognizing the wealth of information housed on the FBI’s Top Ten Most Wanted list and the broader FBI’s Most Wanted API , the development of this connector was aimed at unlocking this data trove. By facilitating streamlined access to these resources through the Power Platform, the connector is designed to empower developers and agencies to b...
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How to Show Notes (Annotations) on a Model-Driven App Dashboard

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Model-driven apps in Power Apps allow users to create dashboards that display key data from different entities. By default, dashboards do not provide an easy way to display Notes (Annotations). However, using a combination of dashboard customization and XrmToolBox, you can modify a dashboard to include a list of Notes. This article provides a step-by-step guide to achieving this. Step 1: Create a New Dashboard Navigate to the Maker Portal . Create a new dashboard . When adding components to the dashboard, insert a List for any entity (e.g., Accounts). The selected entity does not matter, as we will modify it later to display Notes. Step 2: Obtain the Notes View ID In the Maker Portal , navigate to an existing View for the Notes (Annotations) entity or create a new custom view. Once the view is open, copy the View ID as it will be needed later. Step 3: Install XrmToolBox and FormXml Manager Plugin Download and install XrmToolBox from https://www.xrmtoolbox.com/ . ...
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