Notes for running Agile Power Platform Projects including DevOps

Overview:  General overview notes on setting up Power Platform projects/programs.  Before I get into the mechanics, my overriding goal is to have high functioning teams, and be a member of high functioning teams.  "Create an environment where team members can do there best work".  for instance, I visit and work with a lot of businesses and I many teams that are in an "Artificial Harmony" state (pretend all is well with the world). Everyone says it's wonderful but it's a snake-pit with relationships and fear.  Teams members need to be happy, open to conversations, accept risk and aware mistakes are going to happen.  Basically, these teams need to be identified and trust build, this often involves an adjustment to a particular mid-level manager.  The worst offenders tend to be offshore teams, and there are amazing teams and people so this definitely is a generalization. The teams tend to be hierarchical as opposed to flat or matrix. it's terrible for software projects.  Look out for Technical leads, ISV Project managers, Deliver Leads, they can breed the wrong tone/attitude across multiple team members and teams.  Check out Amy Edmondson's book the Right kind of wrong: the Science of failing well.  Anyway, rant over.   

Learn from mistakes, simple mistakes, remove them ASAP, strategically think automation, if we learn mistakes ensure they don't happen on the next project or sooner.  Encourage transparency, and open communication.

Here are my notes for setting up ADO and guidance for Agile PP projects....

Agile Artifact Hierarchy:

Epics > User Stories (max 5 days work) > Tasks 

                                                                  > Bugs

Epics > Spike

Guide:

• User Stories mush be written in the format: As the <role> , I want to <feature> so that <benefit>., and have 1 to many Acceptance Criteria using Gherkin 
• Ability to add a release note to User Story, Spike, Task or Bug.
• Automate pipelines from unmanaged to UAT Managed.
• Min three env (Dev-unmanaged), and UAT/Prod-both managed), use ADO pipelines or Power platform pipelines
• Adding annotated images is great for improved communication.  Recorded voice narrated mp4 walk thrus are also great for proofs, and explaining issues.
• US, bug, Task, Spike artifact items, each has a Release note tab.  So if a User Story needs more than 1 solution package changed, use child tasks and add the release notes to the User Story.

Flow of bugs and User Stories:

1. New (Anyone)
2. Approved (Product Owner (PO)) 
3. Ready - (PO)
4. Committed - (Team Member/dev)
5. Dev - In Progress (dev)
6. Dev - Complete (dev)
7. Dev - Show QA (dev & QA)
8. UAT - Ready to Deploy in UAT (dev)
9. UAT - Deployed Ready for Testing (QA)
10. UAT - In Tested Manaual (QA & PO)
11. UAT - Complete Ready for Deployment to Prd (QA)
12. PRD - Deployed
13. PRD - Sanity Check (can include automate smoke testing)
14. PRD - Done

Example Status's

Other states:

• Removed
• Duplicate
• Not Applicable

Release Notes for Power Platform packages need to include the following fields in ADO against artefacts:

1. Package Name (dropdownlist), 
2. Current Package Version, 
3. New Package Version (Default TBC), 
4. Change Note,  
5. Deployed Status (dropdown list: NA, UAT, PRD), 
6. Pre deployment steps, 
7. Post Deployment steps

Example of ADO Release Notes assigned against tasks, bugs, and user stories.

Quick fixes/urgent bugs/Emergency changes:

• Try make release cycles as short as possible, and only do emergency changes if absolutely required.
• Take a snapshot copy of dev/label, for each proposed production deployment - unmanaged env - part of ADO pipeline, this allows us to build Dev, and UAT env for the specific emergency change.
• Take a snapshot of UAT - managed env - part of ADO pipeline
• Deploy to PRD from Emergency UAT.
• Developer integrates emergency change into Dev from the Dev Copy.  And follows the full path.

Team/Teams:

• Try keep teams as small as possible.  I prefer 1 team to multiple scrum teams unless their is a clear distinction/break.
• Product Owner (PO) needs to be available all the time and answer immediately.  To me they act as the business and the traditional BA role, and are responsible for the product backlog.
• Scrum masters.  Your job is to ensure the team members are happy and confident to take risks and work, Scrum ceremonies are merely a way to help out.
• Team members are mainly pro and citizen developers, if I use dedicated QA testers in the scrum team, they need to be responsible for the AC with the PO.  They tend to be analyst/developers.
• Automate, automate, automate.  there are fantastic tools including low code test tools, use them.  Ensure you have automate smoke tests, regression tests, and performance tests for each DTAP env.
• Have short coding standards and naming conventions, error handling patterns and enforce them, have a defined ADO process, have a pipeline for deployments, automate tests and continuously update.  Have a Monitoring strategy i.e. Azure Monitor, log via AppInsights on a Log Analytics workspace.  Each env logs to it's own Azure Log Analytics.  Does each Log analytics belong to their own workspace?  I pref Non-prod, and prod workspaces. 
• Teams/Slack, okay just Microsoft Teams, remote work make happier team members and gives people more time, use it.  But encourage camera to be on, email is not a defence (ever), people must IM/chat/ping and call each other.  
• Encourage meeting up, join with social inclusive events at once a month to once a week.  Encourage people to work together online including peer programming.  

Power Platform Notes - Power Apps, CDS, Power BI & Power Automate

Power Apps

Variables:
Microsoft Docs "PowerApps and Excel both automatically recalculate formulas as the input data changes".

• Contextual variables - scoped at a screen level
• Global variables - scoped app level
Fx> Set(MyUniqueClientNo, 12)

Functions:
Fx> UpdateContext({MyTimesheetId: 34})

Tip from Shane Young:  Note the setting variable may be the reference, so for a control use:

Fx> UpdateContext({MyTimesheetId: txtTimesheetId.Text}) not
Fx> UpdateContext({MyTimesheetId: txtTimesheetId.Text}) unless you want the context to float

Pass a variable to another screen use the Navigate overload, OnSelect property of a button
Fx> Navigate(Screen2, ScreenTransition.None, {TSvar: MyTimesheetId}
MyTimeSheet Id is a contextual variable

If Statement:
Fx> If(MyUniqueClientNo = 12, lblAns.text = 'yes', lblAns.text = 'No')

Environments:

1. Power Platform allows you to create multiple environments, each environment is connected to you AAD tenant.
2. Policies can be applied to prevent DLP against all environments or specific environments.
3. Use Environments for DTAP, business units, or Extranet vs Intranet.
4. Updated June 2022: Environments can be of type: Default (don't use and rename), Developer, Trial, Sandbox or Production.
5. Each Power App environment can have no CDS/Datavserse or a single CDS/Dataverse connect.

Manged vs Un-Managed Solutions:

Solution are useful for packaging and moving assets between environments or tenants.  Manged restricts who can edit the applications in the solution.  I like to keep each solution with a single app in it.  On large projects, it's a good idea to keep environment variables, custom connectors, cloud flows, apps in separate solutions.  It makes it easier to deploy pieces.    

Managed Environments:

Don't mix up with Managed solutions as I did recently.  Managed environments allow for a host to control all the environments.  You also should use a dedicated host production environments with Dataverse database to control all the environments.  You need to install solution on the host.  Managed environment have no correlation to managed solutions.  You need managed environments is you are going to use Power Platforms simple ALM for App deployment.

ALM:
Power Apps has it's own source control and you can manually export and import entire projects "Export package" not connections are not export as part of the package.  Solutions are the best way to move code between environments.  It's a good idea to use environment variables  Get ADO, more secure, better tooling using solutions over manual exporting code using packages.  Power Apps Build Tools allows for ADO/DevOps integration generally using solutions to deploy.  At a minimum you should have your own dev env (Sandbox or Developer type), a test (Sandbox type) and production (production type env) for any serious app you build.

Add "Power Platform Tools"

Example Power Platform ALM deployment using DevOps - 5 environments

Update Jan 2022: 

Solutions are used to in Power Apps to package and move code and resources such as flows, env variables, canvas apps, Dataverse tables between environments.  It's a good idea to not use the default environment as everyone has access to the environment.  The DTAP around ALM can get pretty complex and I like to keep it fairly simple.  Connectors can get nasty in packaging.  ADO using AppBuild Tools makes for a good CI/CD solution for Power Apps.

Environment variables are a great way to manage configuration, they can also easily be configure in the pipelines to replace with the appropriate values.  Tip:  Don't ever set the current value in an env var it get carried thru to the next DTAP env.  Also env vars support Azure Key Vault, use it for secrets.

Custom Connectors and getting Connection References correct when using managed environments to deploy code need to use environment variables so they can easily be set for each environment using CI/CD.  It's a good idea to create connections in solutions and use a dedicate Owner account.  Connection references in solutions - Power Apps | Microsoft Learn

There is also a great tool to unpack .msapp solutions for raw review and storage in git.  https://powerapps.microsoft.com/en-us/blog/source-code-files-for-canvas-apps/ for me, it's main use is verifying code and standards and comparing versions.  Post on unpacking solutions.  You can also see how many controls you have in you Canvas app.  MS have the guideline of 500 controls in an app.  

Have a: 

1. Dev environment that is of the "sandbox" type.  Have an un-managed solution that will act as your base canvas app for all new Power Apps.  When you export the solution remember to export as a managed solution and ensure environment variables are emptied before publishing the export.  Good place to backup to a repository such as TFS Azure DevOps/Git.
2. Test env of the type "production" or "sandbox".  Only allow managed solutions to be deployed.  Watch out for custom connectors, I can't get them to deploy correctly in solutions.
3. Prd env must be of type "production".

Manual ALM i.e. Use PowerApps to store Dev versions, Exporting solutions and unpacking managed solutions into UAT and production.  Manual ALM is good even manually moving the applications by hand is simple and safe.  There are backups and manual backups to avoid a source code repository.  I also like the testing framework in Power Apps.  Using the build tools getting full ALM/CI/CD it is easy to then move your Power Platform into a higher ALM CI/CD level using the Power Platform Build tools, DevOps, and PowerShell cmds.  

Update April 2022: Great simple video on ADO for Power Platform 

Licencing:
Updated: Power Apps Licencing Summary as of 30 December 2019

"To run standalone apps, guest users need the same license as users in your tenant."  Microsoft Docs.  

• PowerApps using AAD B2B user (both members and guest) using standalone Power Apps shall require the Power Apps licence (not necessarily Portal Apps).  Steps to Share Power Apps with Guests. 
• SharePoint user interacting with a Power Apps form on a SharePoint list do not require a Power Apps licence.

Coding Standards for Power Apps:

• Microsoft provide a whitepaper as a suggestion for using naming/coding standards.
• Controls and variables should use prefixed Camel case e.g. txtContactEmail
• Data sources use Pascal Case e.g. ContactUsers 
• Screen must be Full names e.g. Edit Contact User Screen as they are read as named by screen readers like JAWS and Microsoft reader.
• Prefix controls and collections (Label is lbl, Textbox is txt, Button is btn, Collection is col, drop down lists are ddl, Form is frm, Group is grp, Gallery is gal, Icon is ico, Images are img, Table is tbl.  I also prefix my components with com.
• Variable naming is: gbl for Global and context variables are var
• Use Containers for layout and groups for control aggregation.
• Use TabIndex so keyboard navigation makes sense.  Use the AccessibleLable over HintText.  Ensure colour contracts and use the approved colour templates stored in global variables.  All fonts, sizing and colouring must come from global variables so the app can be easily changed.  Use the App Checked and complete all identified accessibility issues/concerns.  Test on actual devices and use screen readers.
• Ensure App Insights is setup, capture and log errors, also use the monitoring (maybe not in production).

Power Apps Portals:
Build responsive website using CDS.  Allow anonymous access or implement multiple Identity Providers (IdP) such as AAD B2C, AAD, Google+, LinkedIn.

Updated: 28 July 2018:
Common Data Service (CDS): Comes from Dynamics CRM Sales, pretty much used like CT's in SharePoint.

• Based on Azure SQL & uses CosmosDB with a nice API that support REST/ODatav4;  
• Has Row, field RBAC and uses AAD for authentication;
• Allows Power BI, Power Apps (previously labeled as PowerApps) & Flow (Power Automate - new name since Ignite 2019) to work with CDS (renamed to Dataverse);
• Use Power Query to Import data easily or data flows
• Multiple data source such as SQL Server, Cosmos, files, Excel, Search, 3rd parties such as SAP.
• CDS is not part of the O365 licencing (including E5), you need to get a PowerApps P1 or P2 (Now Power Apps for Users as licencing changed circa Oct 2019).  Note Power Apps licencing included with O365 is extremely limited and for instance does not cover CDS;
• One Power Platform Environment ties to one CDS/Dataverse database
• Any type of data; any type of app.  
• Easy to use; secure.

https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/powerapps/maker/common-data-service/data-platform-intro

Examples: 

Insert or Update using Patch to CDS:

Patch(

        Vote,

        Defaults('Employee Sentiment'),

        {

            userid: UserID,

            vote: ThisItem.Vote,

            votedate: Now()

        }

    );

Select from CDS:

UpdateContext( { locVotes: LookUp('Vote', votedate = <date>) });

Tip: XrmToolBox is a fantastic tool.  Multiple contributors have added to the client application, there are so many useful features for instance FetchXMLBuilder allows you to query the Dataverse tables.

Power Automate

Updated 11 December 2019:
Microsoft Power Automate (previously called Microsoft Flow, is an user friendly workflow tool/service): Simple workflow engine sitting on Azure Logic App.
Basic business process flows are:

1. Automated Flows - used when event/status change e.g. CDS row status changes
2. Button Flow/Instant Flow - Events such as a click triggers the flow;
3. Scheduled Flow - in effect timer jobs;
4. Business Process Flow - ensures users enter  data consistently (think Windows Presentation Framework) & follows the same steps every time; and
5. UI Flow (preview) - Provides RPA capabilities;

https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/power-automate/get-started-logic-flow

Building Blocks for Power Automation are:

• Trigger - what starts the workflow, can be manual trigger or an automated trigger
• Actions - ,
• Conditions,
• Data operations, 
• Expressions - basic operations like adding two numbers together, making a string upper case, and
• Flow Type - see the 5 flow types above.

Display directions using Map on a Image control in PowerApps:
https://dev.virtualearth.net/REST/v1/Imagery/Map/road/Routes/driving?waypoint.1=51.525503,-0.0822229&waypoint.2=SE9%4PN&mapSize=600,300&key=<key>
https://dev.virtualearth.net/REST/v1/Imagery/Map/road/Routes/driving?waypoint.1=" & EncodeUrl(txtDriverLocation.Text) & "&waypoint.2=" & EncodeUrl(txtDriverLocation.Text) & "&mapSize=600,300&key=AsR555key