Power Automate Naming Convention Best Practices

A Quick Review on Power Automate Naming Convention

The blog, written by Timo Pertilä, an MVP at Forward Forever, focuses on the importance of naming conventions in Power Automate. Pertilä willingly reveals his early developmental missteps to assist others. He particularly highlights the importance of adopting a standardized system for names—a feature he failed to utilize in the early stages of his journey.

Pertilä emphasizes that a name isn't entirely just a name. He explains different fixtures exist to suit specific applications; he, however, insists that the matter isn't about which variant to adopt but whether one exists and its consistency.

He furthermore explains that naming conventions, particularly in Power Automate, play crucial roles beyond mere names. When you employ a proper naming convention, your workflows become self-documented, eliminating the need for additional documentation. This standard saves developers confusion and time, particularly when revisiting flows after extended periods.

Additionally, Pertilä discusses how naming conventions are useful for future developments and troubleshooting. They are especially helpful when others need to pick up where you left off; an organized flow ensures a smooth onboarding process.

Differentiating Power Automate Naming Style

Pertilä shares his preferred naming convention for Power Automate as a starting point—a system commonly adopted by his peers too.

The naming begins from the broader picture—the workflow itself. If a process involves multiple flows, clear and concise names are imperative. He uses a formula; Name of the flow – Order number – Project name; to ensure each flow is easily identifiable. The same meticulous consistency is applied when naming actions and variables. For actions, Pertilä prefers to keep the original name but adds his own definition. A formula that ensures clarity even for the next person.

Adding definitions to actions makes the work of the next developer easier because it eliminates the need to guess the action used. Pertilä uses a formula for action naming: Action name | More detailed action name.

Scopes, which are used to organize actions, receive a similar treatment. Pertilä uses a short and descriptive name for the group of actions as his formula. Finally, when naming variables, he employs a recognizable method consistent with his Power Apps naming convention: var + short descriptive name in camel case.

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In his conclusion, Pertilä emphasizes the importance of consistency in adhering to naming conventions in the flow design. If implemented from the start, the practice becomes second nature and can save developers arduous work in the future. The overarching theme of the blog post is that naming conventions can assist in making the development process smoother and more efficient. Such guidelines allow developers to document, troubleshoot, and share their work with other developers effectively.

Read the full article Naming convention for Power Automate

Learn about Naming convention for Power Automate

When you initiate your journey as a citizen developer, there are a myriad of overlooked errors that perhaps we all have been guilty of. One such oversight is the lack of a proper, consistent naming convention. This is especially evident in the realm of Power Automate.

Many wonder, why is such an aspect so crucial? Isn’t a name simply a name? Let's explore why having a naming convention is so essential.

Understanding Naming Conventions

Primarily, a naming convention is a specific set of rules formulated for the precise naming of things. Having a distinct, consistent naming convention matters tremendously in the world of automation tools like Power Automate or Power Apps.

It's important to note that the focus should be more on having a convention that you can stick to, rather than getting engulfed in a variety of personal preferences.

Importance of Naming Conventions

The essence of a robust naming convention lies in the fact that it allows your flows to become self-documented, thereby negating the need for additional documentation to a large extent.

Trying to recall a flow's execution process or function after a considerable time lapse can be an uphill task. Ensuing organization and consistency with your flow names can save you significant time in future development and troubleshooting stages.

Besides benefiting you, a standardised naming convention can be of tremendous help to others in future who might need to work on your flows.

Naming Conventions In Power Automate

Naming conventions such as the one recommended here allows both clarity and conciseness. This convention is useful for individual flows or sequences of flows that follow each other in a specific order.

In terms of actions, always retain their original name along with your specific definition. This can assist those who are not very familiar with the actions that are being used. Logical grouping and organisation of your actions can be easily achieved by using Scopes.

For variables, maintain a consistent naming pattern to ensure they stand out in expressions.

Consistency is Key

Once you have decided upon a suitable flow naming convention, it is paramount to maintain its uniform application throughout your process. This reduces complexity and confusion resulting in an easier, streamlined process.

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