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Flow Copies SharePoint File But it Still Running

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Posted on by Community Power Pla... Microsoft Employee

I have a Flow that copies a SharePoint file from one library to another within the same site. It successfully runs but when viewing the Flow results, it will often show as still running. Since the copy action does not modify the file at all, I don't see how it could create an endless loop but I have heard of that occurring. Any recommendations are appreciated.

FLOW copy SP file.PNG

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cdblind 6 on at

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Hi
did you find a solution to this I am having the same issue. The Flow was working without issue for several weeks then all of a sudden the flow never finishes. When I checked the history there were 15+ flows still running some of them have been running for 3 or 4 days. No files had been copied. My issue differs in that my trigger event is a Time Trigger, not a Change Trigger.

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tyson_ETC 10 on at

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I am having the exact same issue.

It does the same thing when you use Move File as well.

If your getting desperate I have found that the Copy File (depreciated) flow block still works.

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Community Power Pla... Microsoft Employee on at

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I'm Experiencing the same issue in my Flows. The File gets Copied in my case with all the desired Metadata and Content (I can edit the copied file). BUT the Flow doesn't continue and stays "Hanging" on that Step.
I Double Checked all Library Settings, they are 1-to-1 the Same so there shouldn't be an issue there.

I Presume the Issue comes from Flow and would like to have this solved as quickly as possible. Is there an Option to escalate it to the Team?

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Community Power Pla... Microsoft Employee on at

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It sounds like a bug to me, especially since a copy file operation should not satisfy the "modify properties" part of the trigger and therefore, in theory, eliminates the endless loop scenario.

I also notice that you can run the same Flow multiple times and the time to copy will be different for files of similar sizes.

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frederikbisback 222 on at

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Dear,
You need to use Apply to each output of previous step. So foreach changed or update file in sharepoint the Copy will be execute. Because when using the "equal to" - condition, flow will not stop and get into an endless loop. First you need to select your output item and then use the action "File To Copy"
Thanks for the feedback.

Regards,

Frederik

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Community Power Pla... Microsoft Employee on at

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I am facing the same problem in the flow history, the history remains on running, despite the fact that both the move and copy actions seem successful. Looking into the flow, the condition action remains on Running.

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Community Power Pla... Microsoft Employee on at

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@frederikbisback wrote:
Dear,
You need to use Apply to each output of previous step. So foreach changed or update file in sharepoint the Copy will be execute. Because when using the "equal to" - condition, flow will not stop and get into an endless loop. First you need to select your output item and then use the action "File To Copy"
Thanks for the feedback.

Regards,

Frederik

Thanks for the response. I am relatively new to Flow so I have a disconnect with your recommendation. Unfortunately, this is what I interpreted your recommendation as and I am at an impasse. Please clarify your solution. Thank you.

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frederikbisback 222 on at

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Better will be to do this.
Because the flow will be triggered every time a file has been create or modified.
So no Apply to each or Conditional action is needed.
In the trigger select your sharepoint site and folder where you will monitor changed files or new files.
Then create an action that will create a file on another location on your sharepoint site.
It this something tha can help you?

Regards,

Frederik

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Community Power Pla... Microsoft Employee on at

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Frederik - It seems like we're getting away from the simplicity of the goal which is just to copy a file when a condition is met. While I appreciate both of your examples, you only provide a portion of the solution and I don't see the entire picture. Since I only need to copy a file, it seems counterintuitive to use a create file command. Can you provide a complete picture of how you would copy a file while eliminating the endless loop scenario? Any feedback is appreciated.

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frederikbisback 222 on at

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Yes Sorry I have used the wrong action.
Here is the correct one.
Regards,

Frederik

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