Answered

Why does Patch() automatically trigger GetRows on all bound controls?

(1) Share

Report

Posted on by Wil.adi

I'm building a Canvas App connected directly to a Microsoft List (without caching data into a Collection).

I noticed that every time I call Patch() to update a record, all controls that reference the same data source automatically trigger a GetRows operation, even controls that are not related to the record I just patched.

I confirmed this behavior through the Live Monitor (Advanced Tools - Monitor), where I can clearly see multiple GetRows operations being sent to the data source immediately after the Patch() call completes, one for each control that is bound to the same data source.

My questions are:

Is this behavior by design?
Does Power Apps invalidate the entire data source cache after every Patch() call, causing all dependent controls to trigger GetRows?
Is there a way to control or limit which controls trigger GetRows after a Patch(), without switching to a Collection-based approach?

Any explanation of the Power Fx reactive evaluation model and how it handles data source state changes would be very helpful.

Categories:

Building Power Apps

I have the same question (0)

All responses (3)

Answers (3)

Sort by

Verified answer

Vish WR 3,748 on at

Like
a
(3)

Report
Copy link

Link copied!

@Wil.adi

When the Patch() function finishes executing, Power Apps sends out a notification that the data source has been changed for the entire data source (in this case, the List). It is a global notification, not a record-level one. There is no notion of “just this one record” within the reactive system.

Vishnu WR

LinkedIn - My Tech Space

Please ✅ Does this answer your question if my post helped you solve your issue. This will help others find it more readily. It also closes the item. If the content was useful in other ways, please consider answering Yes to Was this reply helpful? or give it a Like ♥

Was this reply helpful? Yes No
Verified answer

WarrenBelz 155,840 Most Valuable Professional on at

Like
a
(2)

Report
Copy link

Link copied!

Hi @Wil.adi,

Firstly @Vish WR is correct in that the behaviour is by design.

I will elaborate a bit further as this is actually a strength of Power Apps that is very useful. Whenever you submit a Form or initiate a Patch on a data source, Power Apps automatically refreshes the source for any controls that display records from it on that screen (controls on subsequent screens are queried when the screen is entered). This means that galleries filtered directly on that table will automatically update to display the changed data on the relevant record/s and forms will update to the information you have just written to it.

Please ✅ Does this answer your question if my post helped you solve your issue. This will help others find it more readily. It also closes the item. If the content was useful in other ways, please consider answering Yes to Was this reply helpful? or give it a Like ♥
Visit my blog Practical Power Apps LinkedIn

Was this reply helpful? Yes No
Verified answer

11manish 3,333 on at

Like
a
(1)

Report
Copy link

Link copied!

Yes, this behavior is expected. When you use Patch or submit a form, Power Apps automatically refreshes the data for all controls on the current screen that are connected to that data source. This helps ensure that galleries and forms show the latest updated information without needing any manual refresh.

Because each control updates separately, you may see multiple GetRows calls. This is part of how the Power Fx reactive model works.

There isn’t a built-in way to refresh only specific controls, but you can improve performance by reducing direct data source bindings, using variables, or applying a hybrid caching approach.

Power Apps prioritizes data consistency over query efficiency

Was this reply helpful? Yes No