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addHours produces different date/times

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Hi,

I have a Flow that uses this function in two settings:

addHours(utcNow(),10)

1st setting: used as is to populate a SharePoint Date/Time column

2nd setting: used to build a concatenating text field in SP for audit purposes

The issue is that I get 2 different times in my columns, see below

UTC_Now difference.jpg

Here's the flow setup in question:

UTC_Now differenceFLOW.jpg

Can anyone explain why this is? Do I just need to drop the addHours() function from the ApprovalDateTime column and just use Now(). This is the column that is giving the incorrect date/time.

Thanks

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abm abm 32,865 Most Valuable Professional on at

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Hi @Anonymous

Change the expression to

formatDateTime(addHours(utcNow(),10),'yyyyMMdd_HH:mm tt')

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@abm
Won't that expression convert the date to a string? I want one column to be a date and the other to be part of a string.

Just wondering why they are different

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abm abm 32,865 Most Valuable Professional on at

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Hi @Anonymous

In your format you used small hh

yyyyMMdd_HH:mm tt

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@abm
Can you explain why this matters?

Im not sure I've explained myself properly.

I want column ApprovedDateTime to be a date and time. I use addHours(utcNow(),10) to fill this column.

I want the column ApprovalStages to reflect the same date and time as the column ApprovedDateTime. I use addHours(utcNow(),10) in this column but convert it to a string.

As you can see, the dates and times don't match yet they are generated at the same time in the same Flow using the same expression, ie addHours(utcNow(),10).

Im just trying to find out why there's a mismatch.

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abm abm 32,865 Most Valuable Professional on at

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Hi @Anonymous

You have a specific format

formatDateTime(addHours(utcNow(),10),'yyyyMMdd_hh:mm tt')

Where as in you other column you are using addHours(utcNow(),10)

Of course it will be different with seconds time difference.

If you looking for the same then declare a compose above and use the expression addHours(utcNow(),10) then refer this in your columns.

What I noticed is if you using format 'yyyyMMdd_hh:mm tt' and 'yyyyMMdd_HH:mm tt' there are differences in the output.

Thanks

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@abm
The two values do not differ by seconds, they differ by 10 hours.

ie 19/03/2020 1:02 AM vs 18/03/2020 3:02 PM

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abm abm 32,865 Most Valuable Professional on at

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Hi @Anonymous

addHours(utcNow(),10) I got

2020-03-18T22:36:17.7650610Z (Correct)

formatDateTime(addHours(utcNow(),10),'yyyyMMdd_hh:mm tt') I got

20200318_10:36 PM (Correct)

formatDateTime(addHours(utcNow(),10),'yyyyMMdd_HH:mm tt') I got

20200318_22:37 PM (Correct - Here 24 hours format)

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@abm
Ok, if that's the case then why are the date/times different for me and not you (see my picture above)?

Could my SharePoint site be doing something weird with the dates or could it be that the formatDateTime expression sits inside a concat() expression? I'm struggling to understand why the two expressions yield a 10hr difference.

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abm abm 32,865 Most Valuable Professional on at

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Hi @Anonymous

19/03/2020 1:02 AM vs 18/03/2020 3:02 PM

Not sure which expression you are using to produce these.

18/03/2020 3:02pm adding 10 hours in your expression gives 19/03/2020 1:02 AM

which is correct

addHours(utcNow(),10)

formatDateTime(addHours(utcNow(),10),'yyyyMMdd_hh:mm tt')

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@abm
19/03/2020 1:02 AM vs 18/03/2020 3:02 PM Comes from the very first picture I posted. The arrows show which columns are filled by my Flow using which expression, maybe have a second look if you are unsure?

The expression used to fill ApprovedDateTime is addHours(utcNow(),10)

The expression used to fill ApprovalStages is concat(...formatDateTime(... addHours(utcNow(),10)...)

So, the way I see it is that addHours(utcNow(),10), is used in both expressions BUT they output 19/03/2020 1:02 AM vs 18/03/2020 3:02 PM respectively. Why?

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