Null in Parse JSON when Upload in Forms is Optional

[bsmith736464]

I have a flow that is triggered when a user submits a response to a Microsoft Form.  A user has the option to upload an attachment to the form and then the flow writes their responses to a Sharepoint List.  The flow works if a user does upload a file but fails when a user does not upload a file.  Before the flow creates the Sharepoint items, I am using a Parse JSON to get that information - how do I change the schema so that it accepts a null file?

{

"type": "array",

"items": {

"type": "object",

"properties": {

"name": {

"type": [

"string",

"null"

]

},

"link": {

"type": [

"string",

"null"

]

},

"id": {

"type": [

"string",

"null"

]

},

"type": {},

"size": {

"type": [

"integer",

"null"

]

},

"referenceId": {

"type": [

"string",

"null"

]

},

"driveId": {

"type": [

"string",

"null"

]

},

"status": {

"type": [

"integer",

"null"

]

},

"uploadSessionUrl": {}

},

"required": [

"name",

"link",

"id",

"type",

"size",

"referenceId",

"driveId",

"status",

"uploadSessionUrl"

]

}

}

[edgonzales]

@bsmith736464 

Hi there!  You'll want to remove the parts that have "Type" and "String" in it.  That will open things up a bit so Power Automate accepts whatever the previous step hands it.  

Check out John Liu's Thesis on Parse JSON for more details.  Hope that helps.

Keep us posted.

-Ed-

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[bsmith736464]

Thank you so much for your help @edgonzales 

Unfortunately I am still getting the error "Unable to process template language expressions in action 'Parse_JSON' inputs at line '1' and column '2770': 'Required property 'content' expects a value but got null. Path ''.'." when I run the flow after I cleaned up the schema to be:

{

"type": "array",

"items": {

"type": "object",

"properties": {

"name": {

},

"link": {

},

"id": {

},

"type": {},

"size": {

},

"referenceId": {

},

"driveId": {

},

"status": {

},

"uploadSessionUrl": {}

},

"required": [

"name",

"link",

"id",

"type",

"size",

"referenceId",

"driveId",

"status",

"uploadSessionUrl"

]

}

}

Any other suggestions?

[edgonzales · Accepted solution]

@bsmith736464 

Whoops!  I just re-read the original post.  So, you're new schema is fine probably so go ahead and leave it.  What we want to do is add a condition to check if the output of forms responses, specifically the file upload, is empty, ya?

So, I added this:

And the function looks like this:

empty(body('Get_response_details')?['r4ef3850bbdab45d536205d433a669706'])

Which is just what happens when you type Empty(      and then click into the dynamic values to grab the field for the upload...  you're long string of gibberish will be different than mine.

If there's nothing there, then it will return a 'true' so you can build your flow to go down the appropriate path.

Sorry for missing that in your original post.  Let us know how this works out.

-Ed-

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[usayd]

The condition works fine if you only have one Upload attachment question in your form. In my case, I have a form with two or three multiple attachment questions that are option and the flow starts there with approvals, pdfs, etc. So repeating all these process for each condition might not be the best solution these cases.

I've tried using the expression below in a Compose but didn't succeed.

if(empty(body('Get_response_details')?['r4f4f31cbf708413db8dc102623628a95']),null,body('Get_response_details')?['r4f4f31cbf708413db8dc102623628a95']['name'])

Someone has tried some other expression?
Thank you.

[stephanie2]

Hi Usayd, I may be over simplifying your case here, so I'm sorry if I am, but you don't have to replicate each additional flow step in your conditions. 

You can put in a condition to check if the file question is empty and then resume the rest of your flow. (All of this is happening inside an Apply to Each, so it also works when nested.) For example, here I check if the file question was left blank and then leave the "yes" box empty. If the question is blank, the flow just skips the steps where I needed the file to be uploaded and moves on to the next steps in my configuration. It doesn't end there. 

Later in the Flow I reference the data parsed here (the Body input in the Apply to Each 2) and I put the same exact condition in there with the same empty() expression that checks if that particular question on the form was left blank. Then same thing, I leave the "yes" box empty so the flow continues and I don't have to duplicate the proceeding options in each of the condition boxes. 

Your flow may have many more dependencies than mine, but it took me a while when building this to realize I could apply the condition to only that single step and have the rest of the Flow resumed as normal instead of replicating all of the ending steps each time I had a condition.

Hope this helps!

[Anonymous]

Hi!

Am I doing it right? I have 4 attachments and all of them are optional.

I created these steps to all parse JSON

[stephanie2]

Hi Bishimori, 

From what I'm able to see in your screenshot, this looks correct! 

[Tucker1999]

Hello their can you please tell me the process of doing this i also have 3 attachments but i am finding it difficult to decode what you have done.

Please help me

[KellyHickman]

You have no idea how long I've been searching for this exact answer. It should have been this simple from the beginning. THANK YOU.

[ThomasH]

Hello,
I think I have the same problem, I have a form with a possibility to attach files, if a file is attached, the flow works, if no file is attached it doesn't work, I've tried it now as here in the solution, get but then an error.

---

InvalidTemplate. Unable to process template language expressions for action 'Bedingung_10' at line '0' and column '0': 'The template function 'emptyoutputs' is not defined or not valid.'.

Unable to process template language expressions for action 'Bedingung_10' at line '0' and column '0': 'The template function 'emptyoutputs' is not defined or not valid.'.

I implemented it as shown in the picture, what am I doing wrong?

emptyoutputs('Antwortdetails_abrufen_2')?['body/r9845a7aaa5474396a935017c1dfb4371']

Thank you

[stephanie2]

Hi Thomas, Try moving the parse JSON step to the "If No" side of the condition. Right now your flow says, if there's no file, parse the file. You want it so say, if it's not true that there's no file, parse the file. 

[c20916]

I'm having the same issue and I added your condition of Empty is True and the problem I have is I have an Apply to Each that then throws an error, what do I need to do that so that if there is an attachment is sends the email? 

[stephanie2]

Hi There, you need to put each step that will use the file inside a condition. I believe this error is telling you there's no data for that step when there's no file. See this part of my original post, 

'Later in the Flow I reference the data parsed here (the Body input in the Apply to Each 2) and I put the same exact condition in there with the same empty() expression that checks if that particular question on the form was left blank. Then same thing, I leave the "yes" box empty so the flow continues and I don't have to duplicate the proceeding options in each of the condition boxes. "

Let me know if that helps!

[c20916]

I'm new to this so some of this is hard to understand, but I basically have two separate flows, one that works whether there is an attachment or not but it will send an email without an attachment,  Then I have a separate flow that will work if there is an attachment and send the email with the attachment, but if there is no attachment, then the flow fails.  However if there is an attachment, then I get two emails, one with and one without an attachment. 

I can't figure out a way to combine the flows so that I just have one.  I ended up taking out the apply to each in this flow so this is the one that always works, but if there is an attachment, it won't attach it to the email.  So if I want this to work I guess the question is where would I put what you are referencing in this flow so that it sends an attachment?

[stephanie2]

Hi, the email step needs to use the file if one is uploaded, so you need to put it inside of a condition that checks if the file was uploaded using the same empty expression as in the first condition of your flow.  In the "if yes," (no file) box, put an email step with no attachment. In the "if no" box, put an email step where the file gets attached. So you'll have two corresponding email steps (which will match excluding the attachment), but the flow will only ever use one of them at a time.

Every step that needs the file needs to be in a condition. If this is your whole flow and the end is the email, then you could just create two branches and avoid having multiple conditions. The multiple-condition method is best used to skip duplicating items when you have a very complex flow. 

[c20916]

This is my complete Flow.  There is one step at the top that I couldn't get in the screen, but it was just when a new response is submitted.  This flow runs successfully whether or not I attach something , however if I have an attachment when it sends the email it does not attach the file.  So I'm stuck as to how to make it so it sends the email with an attachment if there is one, and still sends an email if there isn't an attachment. 

And this is how I have the condition setup.  What would I need to add to have it send the email with the attachment if it's there? 

[kinghnvn]

I'm facing the same the issue. I have 5 fields to upload attachments.

The flow works if a user does upload a file in all the fields but fails when a user does not upload a file in a field.

Below is my flows, can you please help to change it correctly?

[hmenzel]

I have a similar issue, so I'm hoping I can dust off this thread. 

Adding the Empty condition still breaks the flow, and the error is related to parse Json. "The execution of template action 'Apply_to_each_3' failed: the result of the evaluation of 'foreach' expression '@body('Parse_JSON')' is of type 'Null'. The result must be a valid array."  Any ideas?

[stephanie2]

Hey There, can we see what's in your Apply to Each 3?