Window will not open to upload attachment

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Posted on by DerekSmith

Hello,

I've been building out a workflow to read and input data from a PDF file.

The last step is to attach the PDF file.

I've tried using both:

- Click link on Web Page

- Press Button on web page

- Click UI element in Window

The first 2 seems to be working as the text highlights yellow in that step, but the window to select a file never opens.

I've tried all the usual advice of looking at the selector and making sure to use ID vs name. I've tried every variation at this point and nothing I'm doing is opening that window.

Any ideas??

Thank you,

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Power Automate Desktop

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DerekSmith 51 on at

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Note:
I've done both Web recorder and adding the UI element individually.

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MichaelAnnis 5,727 Moderator on at

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Can you Send Keys {Tab} to it and then Send Keys {Enter}. Another option is a hot key. If you manually press and hold the Alt button, does an underline appear? If so, you Send Keys Alt([underlined key lowercase]) would do the trick. Good luck!

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DerekSmith 51 on at

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I can tab to the button but Enter/ Alt+Enter do not work to bring up the attachment window.

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MichaelAnnis 5,727 Moderator on at

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I can't believe that window won't open for you; it's crazy how sometimes we run into these things. I assume it's opening manually.

If UIs aren't working and Send Keys isn't working, the last options are 'Move mouse to image' and 'Move mouse to text on screen (OCR)'. Both I use as a last resort.

'Move mouse to image' will work as long as you plan to only run this flow on this computer with these monitors, and you never have to run this flow remote.

'Move mouse to text on screen (OCR)' is less accurate, takes longer during the run, and harder to set up correctly, but more reliable if this flow is ran on other computers with different monitors or in a remote environment. Most of the time you use OCR, you have to increase the multiplier to get an accurate text read. The higher the multiplier, the longer it takes to scan/read the screen (it's like zooming in).

I don't envy you. Best of luck!

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MichaelAnnis 5,727 Moderator on at

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Also, try {Space} instead of {Enter}...sometimes that's a valid option to select something that you have tabbed to.

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VJR 7,635 on at

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Hi @DerekSmith

Is there a textbox or another control where you can write the path of the actual file?

On final submit your application will pick the file(s) mentioned in that box.

Textboxes are easy to write, but if you have a listbox and unable to write using regular PAD actions, then also try using the "run javascript on webpage" action.
Not only to write into the listbox you can even click the button via javascript assuming this is a web application and not a desktop one.

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Henrik_M 2,021 Super User 2024 Season 1 on at

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You have to use this technique: Send physical clicks on a web element - Power Automate | Microsoft Docs

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DerekSmith 51 on at

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Hi thanks for all the replies.

I tried to send the click via javascript but that did not work either.

I was able to get it to work with the Tab/ Space combination, however that feels really unstable when it runs. I've only run through a few times but it hasn't worked 100%.

Of course, now that I've got the window to open I can't paste anything in the text fields for some reason and I can't step through the process because the act of clicking to the next step changes the active window where the tab/ space is entered.

I like the idea of writing the path directly, so I'll be investigating that to get around the button click all together.

Thanks,

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MichaelAnnis 5,727 Moderator on at

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Between Send Keys {Tab} (however many times needed) and Send Keys {Space}, put a Wait (1). Pressing the tab key and the time it takes for the selector to move is a fraction of a second. But the selector has to be on it before space is pressed.

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DerekSmith 51 on at

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Thanks,
Yeah I added to the Delay between keystrokes so they were recognized.
I also added a Wait for Window, which may actually be my problem now that I think of it. The attachment window doesn't pop up as a window but as an object in the existing browser instance...

Thanks, that gives me something else to try

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