Power Apps Standard ALM Process for SQL Databases

[Anonymous]

Hello All

I am working on a Power Apps solution that has Azure SQL as a backend.

When I export the solution from my Dev environment and import it into higher environments like QA or Prod, it never asks me higher environment database details. It simply imports the solution with details of Dev environment. After every deployment I need to edit the Power App, delete the connections and add it once again. However it is working fine with all the flows within the solution.

Just like we do it with SharePoint sites, can we not deploy the solutions with SQL databases? Where we just need to provide server name and database name at the time of import and it will automatically refer to the tables and views from specified server and database.

At the moment, I do not see any of the options for this. If there are any hacks or standard approaches to do this then please suggest.

[Klaas_]

Have you found a workaround for this?

The way I see it now we need to either do this manually in an unmanaged solution as you suggest, or edit the canvas app in the default solution if you're using a managed solution. Neither have my preference.

I think my project used SQL Authentication when it first started. There you can at least change the database in the connection reference, but I would much rather use Azure AD / Microsoft Entra ID instead so I can just share with the users and have them use SSO to connect to the database that I set up for that environment.

Edit: another option I just thought of is just adding multiple versions of each connection to the canvas app and have your app switch between data sources in Power FX based on an environment variable. My app is huge so this means a lot of extra checks whereever any of my sources are used. Not a fan of this idea either.

Edit2: Earlier I had a script here to replace references to a development environment with my test environment inside my Devops pipeline, but I figured out this isn't working either because my Canvas app still connects to my development database. I think this guy is correct:

https://powerusers.microsoft.com/t5/Building-Power-Apps/Help-moving-AAD-SQL-connections-between-envi...