"Initializing" a dataverse record variable/collection field to Blank()

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Posted on by HansHeintz

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I sometimes need to set a variable that represents a record in a dataverse table to blank.

(f.e. i am building a collection and the column I want to use for a record is empty to begin with but will be filled later in an updateif)

I might get away with just setting it to Blank() but initializing variables to another type then elsewhere in the app can be catastrophic, not immedeately but after saving and reopening the app. Potentially hundreds of errors and you don't know where to begin correcting.

Can I safely initialize such a variable as

{MyRecord:Defaults(MyTable)}

like in a append patch or is that improper and potentially dangerous use of this syntax?

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Building Power Apps

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Ami K 15,679 Super User 2024 Season 1 on at

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@HansHeintz so long as the record schema populated in the variable is consistent across your entire app, using Defaults will be fine. You may also safely use the empty operator: {}

Set( gbl_MyRecord, {} )

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HansHeintz 704 on at

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I tried but if in

,UpdateContext({lPleegAccount:If(lStayDetail.Location='Stay Detail Location Choices'.'Foster Family',lStayDetail.Account,Defaults(Accounts))})

I replace Defaults(Accounts) in {} I get errors in code trying to refer to fields of the record variable (of course)

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Ami K 15,679 Super User 2024 Season 1 on at

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@HansHeintz - why would you not expect an error to occur here?

You're trying to populate a local Context Variable with a GUID data type ( Account ), but then elsewhere you're also trying to populate the same variable with a Record data type ( Accounts )

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HansHeintz 704 on at

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Both Defaults(Accounts) as lStayDetail.Account are reported as datatype:Record if I higlight them in the editor.
lStayDetail.Account refers to a lookup datafield in another table: Accounts.

Defaults(Accounts) does not compute to Blank() so that could be a problem. Mayby I'd need another function {lStayDetail.Account : Blank(Accounts)}. Or check for IsBlank(lPleegAccount.Account) it it comes to that.

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Ami K 15,679 Super User 2024 Season 1 on at

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@HansHeintz - how is "lStayDetail" being generated? Is that derived from a Control or a Collection?

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HansHeintz 704 on at

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In my example It is a context variable created at this line. But my questions stems from numerous instances where assigning a record to a record variable or collection field does not leed to errors at once but only after saving and reopening the app. When you have done a lot of editing in a session and there may be many dependencies on the error I encounter hundreds of errors and often don't even know where to begin. This is where the lack of strong typing in powerapps (probably to be able to call PA low code) really starts to hamper productivity.

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HansHeintz 704 on at

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I thougt of another way:
UpdateContext({lPleegAccount:LookUp(Accounts,false)})

Hope that doesn't get me a lookup time penalty 😉

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Ami K 15,679 Super User 2024 Season 1 on at

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@HansHeintz - ideally Power Apps should immediately inform the user of a incompatible type error when a conflict occurs. I suspect some initialisation is performed in the background whenever the app is restarted, and it is only at that point when Power Apps identifies a conflict in data types between variables. @CarlosFigueira will have better insight on this behaviour.

Back to the problem, your response still does not answer what lStayDetail is / how it is being generated.

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HansHeintz 704 on at

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lStayDetail is initialized as a context variable
;UpdateContext({lStayDetail:First( SortByColumns( Filter('Stay Details',Stay.Stay=lStay.Stay) ,"doa_from" ,SortOrder.Descending ) ) })
But there is no specific problem. My initial question is about making sure record variables are or type table.record even if they start without a value. LookUp(table,false) would perhaps be most elegant if it doesn't cost time. I could test for that.

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Ami K 15,679 Super User 2024 Season 1 on at

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@HansHeintz - I just ran a simple test in my Dataverse environment using the same code on the Accounts table and the Contacts table (using the 'Company Name' LookUp to the Accounts table), but I am not experiencing the conflict error, despite restarting the App session.

UpdateContext( { lStayDetail: First( SortByColumns( Filter( Contacts, 'Address 1: City' = "Redmond" ), "company", SortOrder.Descending ) ) } )

UpdateContext( { lPleegAccount: If( lStayDetail.Email = "someone_j@example.com", lStayDetail.'Company Name', Defaults(Accounts) ) } )

Your solution is not ideal because it does not get to the root of the problem, but I hope it works for you.

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